When people meet my almost 3 year old they try and talk to her of course but my daughter is speech delayed. She knows how to say some words but she doesn’t know how to say hi, yes, etc. some basic first words even. She is a lot more vocal at home too but in public or around new ppl she gets shy a lot of the time

this firefighter came up to her the other day thinking she’d be excited to talk to a firefighter. She also is tall for her age, she looks older than she is for sure. He said hi to her and she just looked at him. He kept asking her questions and then he acted like she was being rude almost for not answering. I feel sooo awkward in situations like that. I don’t feel like I should have to explain plus I don’t want my daughter hearing me say that (she understands everything just has trouble putting sounds together to make words). But I also don’t want ppl thinking she’s rude. We have a lot of events coming up with distant relatives etc who will meet my daughter for the first time. Idk am I supposed to even say anything when things like that come up or no? Like when ppl try having full conversations with her and she’s not responsive back? I know this is a weird question