Not intended as a stealth boast, genuinely wondering whether DD2's behaviour seems normal. She is 2 years and 2 months. Our first is a boy, 6, and his school have suggested he be assessed for ASD/ADHD, so I'm wondering whether what we see in DD is "normal" for a 2 yo, or if she seems advanced socially, or this is more what one might expect with a girl (I've heard they're socially and emotionally more advanced than boys?) Or is this just bog standard and we missed it because DS was our first?
- DD is quite tuned in to social cues, if I stub my toe, for example, she asks "are you okay?", if I sit down to eat/drink and have a bite, she says "Is it yummy?" etc And she always pays attention to where we are, at a museum for instance, she's always got her eye on me. DS would also notice if he wandered too far and call out to me, but DD really stays close.
- She loves to take care of her dolls, sits down on a chair gently and holds them in the cradle hold, shushes the baby and rocks it whilst she gives it a bottle or pretends to breastfeed it!
- Her imaginative play is quite elaborate, she's often got tea parties going with us or her teddies, sets up games on the sofa with pillows where we're on a bus going to a museum with her Nan, etc. DS did this, too, but it was...just a bit more simple? He would bring tea and cakes and we would pretend to eat it, or sit in a box and say he was in a boat and we'd pretend to be pirates. But DD is running back and forth and doing pinches of salt and sugar on the sandwiches and coffee, etc.
- She's quite tidy. She often puts toys away before getting a new one out, and if I tell her it's tidy up time, she happily joins in. If she finds something out of place (including a toy that's her brother's), she'll pick it up and put it where it belongs. If a drawer or door is open/ajar, she will close it, or if we put her clothes in the laundry and a sleeve or something is hanging out, she will fix it and make sure that it's all fully in the basket.
- She also just says when she needs wants to eat, drink, or wants to go to bed, and has done for a while now. I feel like DS needed a bit of prompting for much longer (and still doesn't say when he's ready for bed, we need to tell him and bring him).
- She sings constantly, nursery songs and sometimes just la la la-ing to herself. DS didn't do this at all, but did join in when we would sing a song or do Rhyme Time, taht sort of thing
Is this all normal 2 yo behaviour or is DD socially/emotionally advanced?