2yrs in 2 months, Should my daughter be talking by now??

[Visitor9]

This was so me 4-5 months ago,
So after spending about $250 on speech therapy that really didnt do alot my daughter is a chatter box. What I would suggest is
1. Get hearing checked (Eliza has fluid on her middle ear but has normal hearing for development of speech)
2. Praise this helped us alot, the speechie told us to make a big deal about any noise and not to say "What is this" More like give an option many times Eliza would grunt and we would have to say Yes Eliza you want (Example) Cheese". If she pointed we would have to say yes Eliza that is a light.When she made an effort whether it be the correct name or noise we would have to say "Good Speaking Eliza ...you said Cheese" Believe me you feel like a dill but it rewards them to vocalise.
3. At 2 Eliza went to the speechie and she was borderline at an age where we were surrounded by fantastic talkers so it was magnified so much more. She gave us the tools to help develop in the next 6 months and it has been beneficial and re-assuring.And the gap that we started with has now started to lessen. But to see the child that grunted for so long now walk along and yell out Kids at the local school is amazing and the amount of words in her vocab.
4.Do animal noises they counted as words to the speechie any positive parroting is good, sheep goes baa, snoring was sleep I felt this was the wrong thing but she thought it was a step in the right direction

So at 2 and a bit Eliza is now trying to do 2 word sentances "Daddys car" ect we are now having to use expansion words like noisey truck, Mummys cuppa is a favourite lol.
But Eliza was slower to speak but happy to follow instructions, now she can follow instructions to the point where DH tells her to put the laundry in the washing machine and she can as she chores off "Helping" Helping.
Bec
ETA: Just because they speak slower, no way reflects there intelligence. So many stories I have heard across the medical field about highly intelligent children that have just taken it all in for longer