19 month old development

[Babydevelopment1]

My 19 month toddler boy has really no speech, he babbles a lot and there seems to be new sounds coming every day! He does say mama and baba but I don’t know if it’s directed at me and the baby in our house.
He follows my point and occasionally (very rarely) points to things. He will respond to his name most of the time. He will play peek a boo and clap hands using my hands, he is only beginning to cover his own eyes for peek a boo and is starting to show signs of clapping his own hands.
He will follow simple instructions like “let’s go” “ready steady go”. When I’m dressing him he will help to dress himself.
He is building blocks, stacking, we have started to do puzzles! He walked at 12/13 months. He has excellent eye contact and looks to play with others and play by himself with his toys. He does have an older sister who has ASD, he will try to interact and play with her but she doesn’t want to know.
I have recently began to notice that other toddlers that are younger have words.
Has anyone else had a child whose development was behind in some respects but then caught up.

Sounds a lot like my son.
I've been told by nursery staff and Health Visitors alike that when they're quite ahead in some areas (DS is a whizz at fine motor manipulation and problem solving) then they often lag a little behind in others (He's only just begun to talk at 26 months) as long as your DS's understanding is there and he's interacting with you then thats the main thing. A lot of what you've listed is really positive, but please talk to your health visitor if you have any concerns.
Have you tried reading books with him?

@BoyoMama11 I do have picture books but I will start to read to him. Thank you

It sounds like a speech delay which are very common at this age. A lot of what you mentioned sounds very positive, and I imagine that what you are concerned about is him rarely pointing which can be concerning, specially with an older sibling with autism. If his is following your point then his lack of pointing could just be that pointing is beginning to emerge (and hence hopefully increase in frequency). The pointing you really want to see is the pointing to share interests (like a plane in the sky). Rememberer that autism is a social communication disorder (not a speech disorder) so that is the area that will be primarily affected by autism. So you want to see him pointing to share interests with you (like a plane or a large bird in the sky), look at you from a distance when he is cautious or unsure (social referencing), look at you when he does something that he is proud of? (praise seeking), show/give you interesting things that he finds (like an interesting rock or leaf from the ground), etc.

@AladdinMum hi I’ve read a few of your posts and you seem quite knowledgeable in the area of ASD. I have a little girl who is 17.5 months who isn’t yet pointing to show or request, however she’s fantastic as social referencing, looks at my husband and I for praise when she does something, looks at us for reassurance when she meets new people and a few time’s has shown us things she finds of interest to her i.e a feather or random object in the park. It’s really the lack of pointing and no words or waving that’s got me in knots. In addition I know you’ve said any child that points after age of 18 months is most likely going to be on the spectrum however I have a sister who pointed at 2 and only had a dx of speech and language delay. She’s absolutely fine and had no issues in the course of her life whatsoever. Was just curious as right now I’m not sure whether to pay for a private SALT assessment or private ADOS assessment. I just don’t want to waste time worrying about the uncertainty. If she has asd or speech and language delay it wouldn’t change how I view her I just want to give her the best chance.

Serwaa91... To be fair, I don't think anyone has said that if you point after 18 months, you will be on the spectrum. It just means you are at greater risk than kids who do point earlier than this. ASD is a disorder and takes a lot more than one thing (such as lack of pointing) to be diagnosed. What are your other concerns? Inevitably, some children, like your sibling, will just be late to develop in some areas. But, it can also be an indicator that a child is more at risk, along with other things. I don't think SALT will be able to do much with your child when they are such a young age. My local authority has a Speech and language helpline you can phone for advice. You should maybe check if your area has similar.

Basically what CP2701 has said, totally agree - with ASD nothing really is black or white. Your daughter seems to be doing great and the skills she is showing are very positive. As with pointing, remember that it can happen very suddenly, one day they do not point and the next they are pointing all day long.

@CP2701 my main concern at the moment is her inability to adequately follow a point. And I didn’t say if a child points beyond 18 month they’ll definitely be on the spectrum I simply said “most likely” from the posts I’ve read from @AladdinMum. I didn’t mean for it to come out the way you implied.