speak to me!

So, I think my boy is so smart. When I watched him put his coat away in the coat closet yesterday I was so proud. You have to put the coat in his hand and direct him towards the closet, but he put it in himself (and then picked it back up and wanted to play with it). He's finally carrying around his sippy cup, so I'm happy about that. Up until recently, my biggest concerns with Ethan have been if he's eating enough, if he's eating the right foods, if he's getting enough sleep, keeping him away from harmful activities or objects, and things of that nature. As long as he was content playing with his toys, eating healthy, sleeping well, and not sick, I was okay with life. I'm beginning to be a little worried about his lack of speach, though... He doesn't say any words at all, except a range of sounds that he repeats, but I have no idea what they mean- if anything. He says mamama and dadadada (they are not directed towards Ryan and I, though), and his favorite- duh! duh! duh!. He doesn't wave to people, play patti cake, or clap his hands (but I just figured he didn't want to, that he just wasn't interested in it). It's not that I think there is something wrong with him, it's more that I don't feel I've been doing enough to teach him. I see other children the same age (of course most of them are girls, so I know that makes a difference) speaking and pointing to things they want. Ethan will guide me to something he wants, but he never talks, or assigns noises to any object. He makes his noises, when he's happy and when he's sad, but I don't know what they mean. I've been trying to teach him the word milk, or the sign for milk, for several months now, and still nothing. I decided today that I haven't been trying hard enough. I was content to see him happy, playing, and eating, and I didn't worry too much about teaching him a whole lot, at least not yet. It didn't help to see the video of the 17 month old girl on the Today show that can read, but I know that is not normal. So, I've decided that I'm going to try harder to point out objects to Ethan, saying their names over and over. I thought that maybe I should make flash cards (the artist in me wants to make them myself), and find a bunch of hard picture books. The hard thing is that Ethan doesn't hold still. The only time he stays in one place is if he is drinking his bottle, going to sleep, or sick, which makes it difficult to read stories to him. I know that I need to try harder. I thought that maybe I could get those signing time videos, but Ethan didn't seem too interested in watching them when I brought it up on the internet, so I don't know. He would rather be playing. I welcome any suggestions or thoughts anyone might have, I need the help. :)