My DS6 walked around 10 months- not extremely early- but he pursued it! i used to sit watching him pull himself up again and again until he finally mastered it. I have never seen such will. I honestly think he wanted to go places and get to interesting things. He threw howling fits when he would grab something and we took it away. Now, DS is strong and fast but not particularly coordinated.
He did the same thing when he decided to talk (again, not early 18 month). DS would bring me book after book pointing to every picture and having me name it. During that time he would sit for 3-4 books, and we were reading up to 20 a day. By age two, he went from a bright talker, to extremely advanced.
It wasn't early milestones that had me thinking "gifted" - it was his "drive." Once he becomes interested in knowing/ doing something, he is so passionate. It's a quality that I love dearly, but it can be exasperating.
