I don’t know what to think

[ShannonLouiseX]

Hey guys my little boy is turning 1 on the first on November he can’t crawl but does army shuffle his way about, can say baba and just learned to pull to stand, I’m concerned about him though as he shows no interest whatsoever is trying to learn to clap, wave or point, he also flaps his arms and legs a lot when excited or mad, I have seen the health visitor and they said they will see us in around 3 months to see if anything’s changed should I be worried

I asked ChatGPT (or Grok is really good too):

It’s understandable to be concerned — you’re paying close attention to your little one’s development, which is great parenting. At 12 months, there’s a pretty wide range of what’s considered typical. Some babies aren’t walking, clapping, or pointing yet and catch up quickly in the following months. The fact that he’s pulling to stand, babbling, and moving around by shuffling are all positive signs.
Arm and leg flapping can be part of normal excitement at this age, though it’s good that you’ve mentioned it to your health visitor. Since they plan to check in again in a few months, you’re doing the right thing by keeping an eye on any changes. In the meantime, you can encourage gestures like waving and clapping through play — model it often, sing songs with actions (like If You’re Happy and You Know It), and celebrate his attempts even if he doesn’t copy right away.
If at any point you feel his development isn’t progressing or you notice new concerns (like a loss of skills or no eye contact), you can always ask for an earlier appointment or contact your GP. Trust your instincts — you know your child best.

When you saw your HV @ShannonLouiseXwas it for the 12 months so check and did she ask you to fill in the 12 month Ages & Stages and take it with you to the appointment?

@BunnyRuddington yes it was, and no we do it all online now so she had the form

My son didn't say any words until he was 18 months and didn't take his first step until 14 months. He's just started uni and is fine. Boys are pretty lazy. My daughter was walking at 9 months.

My dd was a “textbook baby” — rolled at 4 months, crawled at 8, pulled up at 11, and so on.

My son, however, didn’t roll until 13 months, only started crawling after he turned 12 months, and didn’t pull himself up until 14 months. He’s now 16 months and still not walking — but I’m not worried; it’s just his personality.

I also raised my concerns with the health visitor, who told me the same thing — they checked in three months later, and he was doing everything he needed by then: rolling, pulling up, crawling.

Every baby is different — some are simply more cautious or laid-back.
As long as your baby smiles, makes eye contact, recognizes you, and loves cuddles, I don’t think there’s any reason to worry.

Hi OP, I was a chronic milestone worrier - my DD sat up at 6 months but never crawled, just bum shuffled until she walked at just over 15 months. When she did walk, she got up and did it one day and we didn’t have that “little drunk” phase of falling over. Same with talking, I worried endlessly over that because she never babbled much and I even had her assessed when she turned 2 and still only said a couple of words…the assessor said she was ahead in terms of understanding and that the words would come soon enough. She hit 2.5, full sentences came out and she hasn’t stopped since 😂 she’s 3.5 now and I can’t believe the sleep I lost over it. The more her personality comes out the more I think she was just waiting until she felt she could do these things “properly” 🤦🏼‍♀️ I was always told if they are engaging with the world and with you, smiling, making eye contact etc this is what matters the most and the rest will come when it’s supposed to.

Thanks for that I didn’t realise it was online now. Do you know how he scored?