My Son's Size

N.,

My brother and I are 2 1/2 years apart, and up until high school, I was always taller than he (I am 5'10"). I think girls grow faster than boys do, at least that was my experience. In school, again up until high school, I was taller than all the boys (I was 5'3" at the end of 6th grade and when I began 7th I was 5'7 1/2" - it was a painful summer). So, I wouldn't worry about his size now...

I'd talk to your dr about seeing a specialist if that would calm your nerves. You could just talk and see what they have to say. Just to calm you a little, my son turned 3 in April and is only going to 3T pants now. He's at 50% or just a little below.

Start with asking your pediatrician their opinion on the matter. They may have you see a nutritionist first. Your husband shouldn't be embarrassed, for heaven's sake, he's only 2! Kids grow at different rates.

I wouldn't be concerned about it. If there was any concern at all, your doctor would have said something. Just because your kids are twins, they won't grow at the same pace. Both of my kids are small and both times the doctors have been very concerned, and both times they have turned out just fine. It becomes more of a concern if they are having any developmental delays or nutrition issues. If you're really concerned about it though, talk to his doctor at his next check-up. They can probably do some tests to see if he has any deficiencies anywhere.

My oldest son is in the 10% for his size. He is 3 and has only gained 10 lbs since he was 9 mon (2Ts too). And my husband is 6ft and I am 5'6". We were told that since he is growing tall and developing fine not to worry. We don't have a twin to compare him to but our neighbor's daughter is one month younger and wearing 4/5Ts, so she is a lot bigger than him. But everything I have seen and heard reassures me. Girls do tend to be bigger than boys at this age, the boys will catch up. It may seem like this for a while but eventually you will be looking up at him. My "little" brother grew from my height to over 6'2" in a just a year

Ask your pediatrician if he/she is concerned. There are pancreatic tests that my daughter has had done to make sure she is absorbing her food. There's a screening test they can do on their stools. The other test was done during her endoscope/colonoscopy so it was more invasive. Your pediatrician could give you a lot of info. Good luck!!

Hi Nichole,

I just wanted to let you know, my son was 4 lb 15 oz, full term at birth. My son is now turning 4 on the 28th, and he is still in 2T/3T clothing, but even the 3T has to be safety pinned on him or they fall off. My husband is tall also, but I"m only 5'1'', so I"m afraid my son is going to take after me on the height. He has always been very low on the charts, around 25%, for height and weight. He turns 4 in two weeks and only weighs 34lbs. He does have a few health problems, but nothing to really attribute to his size. I really don't think you have anything to worry about, my son is turning 4 and probably isn't much bigger than your son who is 2. I hope this eases your mind! Take care!

I think that it's pretty normal. I was always bigger than my brother--who is 18 months older than me. He didn't get his growth spurt until high school. Now he's 6' 5"!

My son is 2yrs 4 months older than his sister and she is almost as tall as him!! He has always been in the 5th or less than 5th precentile. He is the smallest boy in his class at school, and his gymnastic class.

I am only 5' 3/4" tall and my husband is 5' 8" so I don't expect my children to be to tall but I would like for my son to be taller than his sister!!! I wouldn't be to concerned at this point. Like the other poster said children grow at different rates, you have to remember that girls will only grow till they hit puberty (which is anywhere from 10-14 sometimes even earlier) and boys can continue to grow till they are 18.

My son was wearing a pair of 18-24 month shorts from gymboree when he was three!!! I have found that because my kids are very skinny they can wear smaller pants for a longer time.

If you are really concerned ask your ped at their 3yr check up. Hope this helps!!

A.

Kids grow at their own pace. I have a boy and a girl. The boy is a year older, but the girl was always taller and just generally bigger and healthier looking. that was up until adolescence. Now, at 14 and 13, my son has grown about a foot in the last three months and filled out. My daughter is still taller than most of her friends, but no longer taller than her brother.
Tell your husband to stop worrying so much! Even if the child was not growing at the normal rate, there is nothing that can be done about it.

i don't think you need to worry. for one i think girls are always bigger as kids and the boys get the jump when they are older. me and my brother were the same age and i was always bigger. also. both my boys are smaller. and my family is tall. my five year old only weights 37 pds and my 2 and half year old weighs 26 pds and only wears 2t . except in lenght my 5 year old can weigh 2t . as long as they eat and move steadily up they are fine. but my husband is always saying stuff about my kids and i just ignore him. my mother said she was like that and we were skinny when we were little.

I wouldn't worry about it unless your pediatrician suspects something is wrong. My son is 4 years and 5 months old and still wears 2T pants and just beginning to wear some 3T. At your sons age my son was still wearing 12-18 months clothes. He was tested for every concievable disease and disorder possible and it was all ruled out. Eithr he is going to be on the smaller side or he has just not had his big growth spurt yet. He was just at the doctors for something last week and was 36.5 inches tall and 35lbs, which is considerably small for almost 4 1/2. What he lacks in height he makes up for in personality and smarts.

J.

At this point I don't see any need for a specialist to become involved. My kids all seemed to stop growing for a while and they were towards the bottom of the charts as well. Before I knew it they would hit a growth spurt and get right back to where it was good (50%) or maybe a little above. My youngest is 4 and he can still at times fit into a 3. It depends on the way clothes are made. My mother in law was telling me that for the longest time my husband was as tall as he was round and he didn't really grow until he was 13 and then he shot up. Some kids just kind of slow down growing for a while and then they hit a growth spurt. I wouldn't really worry a whole lot about it.
D.

I have been married for almost 12 yrs. MY husand and I have 3 boys ages 10,7, and 4.

Hi - I have the exact same issue with my B/G twins except he was always smaller (and my husband is worried he will be short :-) My son is just reach the 10% for the weight (they are 3) and about 50% for height. However, because he is "growing" normally as in at each check-up he is bigger then I am not concerned. Girls grow faster when they are younger and you would probably not even notice his size if he wasn't a twin (hard not to compare).

So unless he is not "growing" I wouldn't be too concerned about it...at least I am not.

my girl/girl twins are about the same, the smaller older one now was heavier at birth, but now the younger one is about 6 lbs and 2 inches taller, 90 % on height and weight and the older one is now at low 30% charts as long as the doctors think he is ok don't worry about it, i would like to fatten her up a bit and have been adding potatoes to almost every meal and she has been gaining slowly. he may just slow on a growth spurt, and remember (i know you already know) even though they are twins they are still two completely different individuals so don't compare them to each other. my little can still fit 12 mo jeans around the waist while the other is almost needing 3's and they're 20mo's

All I know is as long as the kids are healthy that is what is important. Every child has their own growth schedule. I have seen kids start out very small and end up very big. And I have seen kids start out very large (12 lb) and at 2 yrs were very small for their age. Check with the doctor to make sure everything is OK; then just enjoy those twins!

is he growing? if he is, don't worry about it. every kid grows at his own pace.

if he is not growing-- if he's been the same height/weight for a long time or if he seems unhealthy or his poop is weird color/texture, then he may have some digestion issues. my brother was small for his age and a nutritionist said he was allergic to a lot of things and unable to absorb the nutrients so they went straight through him. he was put on a special diet for a while and took a digestive enzyme to help his body digest and absorb the food and grew like a weed. he's now almost 6 feet tall.... and he can eat anything... no allergies any more.

my husband was always the shortest kid in his class but now he's six foot 3. i think that every body grows at different rates so i wouldn't worry too much as long as he is growing.

My son was born at over 8.5 lbs. He dwindled down to about 5th-10th percentile for both wt and ht for 2 years. At a little over 3 now, he's in the 30-ish percentile for weight and 75th for height and still wears a mix of some 2T 3T clothes. He's not a big eater but he eats good nutritious food. He's always been developmentally ahead and my pediatrician has always said that's just the way he's built. My older son has always been in the 90-ish percentile and always wears clothes 2 years bigger than he is. Both are hale and hearty and some kids have growth spurts as late as their late teens. My husband and I, and both sides of our families are reasonably tall people. I wouldn't worry about it if your pediatrician doesn't, especially if he reaches most of his milestones. We come in all shapes and sizes and we love them regardless of how tall or skinny they are eventually anyway.

I don't have twins, but my son is 4 and is still in 3T pants. It looks like he may finally grow out of them this year, but not sure yet. I look at his preschool classmates and it does seem the girls are taller than the boys. Mine is taller than a couple, but not most. On the scales he is growing slow but steady and the doctors say this is just fine. I really hope your husband isn't really embarrassed, but maybe just worried. No matter what that is his child and he should be proud of him.

I have a son that is now almost 16. When he was little people(family included) use to comment on how short he was. When he hit 14 yrs. he started to grow very fast & now he is considered tall. He caught up to the cousins his age that were once taller! He wears larger shoes than his dad now. I have to buy him larger jeans every 3 months.

I also have an almost 9 yr old son. He was not growing & was 35 lbs. for 3 years! We were told to take him to a specialist. That Dr. saw that his tonsils were so large they were effecting his sleep. If a child does not get the right kind of sleep he may not produce enough growth hormone. His tonsils were removed a yr. & a half ago. He is slowly growing. He may grow fast at 14 like his brother did.

I am short(5') & have a short brother that is very talented & owns a business he created! He has 1 tall son that is 15 & 1 short son that is 13. Both are gifted in IQ ,both are good athletes(tall one in football & short one in soccer), & both are gifted/self taught musicians that have won contests together in their band.

Ask your son's Dr. if he needs to see a specialist on hormones.
Please do not draw attention to your son's height! Focus & comment on his accomplishments only, & let others know that you want them to do the same! Help him build a lot of confidence & self esteem & he will be able to do great things!

Make sure you bring it up to your childs doctor. If your concerned then you should mention it. Don't wait for a Dr who spends 10 minutes with your child to pick up on something. Also if your Dr isn't worried have him/her explain why you shouldn't be concerned. They get paid pretty good for that short office visit and sometimes forget to make a longer explaination that "everythings fine". And if you don't feel comfortable with their response never be afraid to get a second opinion. As for myself, my son was born just under 5 lbs and only 2 weeks before the due date. My husband and I are not tall people so when my son refused to get off the 10% line the Dr's have told me it's no big concern because my husband and i are not big people. Sit down with your husband/friend/parent and think of questions to ask, then write them down and go down the list with the Dr. There probably is nothing wrong with your child. But part of a Dr's job is to give us the piece of mind that everything is OK. And don't forget that second opinion too.

Hi N.,

I didn't read any other responses, but wanted to add that your twins are completely different from each other, as if they were siblings born at different times. Just b/c they are twins does not mean they will grow and develop the same. I have boy/girl twins as well. Their moods, appetites, napping have all been different at times so I do not try to make one like the other. My boy still fits in some 2T at the age of 3 as well (very slim waist.) If your boy is really active, this may be the reason. Both my girls (my older is almost 10) tend to be on the taller side. In fact I joke that it's my girls that should be the twins! But compare to my oldest, the twins who were born at 38wks, have always seemed to be smaller than their peers and big sis at that age, maybe just because they're twins. But they are eating, sleeping, thriving, learning and growing...and amazing me and their dad everyday.

Peace,
K.

I'm 4 10 and my husband is 5 4, yeah..we are both really short. My son is 3 and he is still using some 2T, and he is short for his age. My doctor seems to think that is too early to do anything about it. But, as soon as we can, we intend to take him for tests and see if there is anything else we can do. Is worth it a try. With me my mom waited way too long and it was too late, my husbands parents never really took him even to the dentist,(nice hum),so he was never treated. That is something to talk to your doctor. HTH!

Kids grow at all different rates, if you are really concerned, talk to your doctor about it when you go in for your next well visit. You said he will be 3 in a couple of weeks, you could ask then.

Your doctor can probably make you feel better, or know if there is really a concern.

Hope this helps!

I have two boys one is 8 and the other 5. The both were below the charts when growing up both height and weight. they grew at a steady rate each time we went to the docs and I felt need for concern neither did the doc. they ate well and were very active. My 8 yr old is now average size and fits right in. My 5 yr old is still on the little side but very active and eats well. My thought to you would be sometimes girls grow up faster than boys. In the long run your boy may be inches taller then your girl. If he isn't showing any other signs besides being smaller then just enjoy. If you are noticing other signs then go talk to doc. Mom's gut instinct regardless if right or wrong is what you need to follow. You need to feel at peace!! Enjoy your children.

Hi N.. I am a Mom to two boys - ages 5 (will be 6 in Jan) and 3 (will be 4 in May). My boys are at the 50% in height, but weight is 10%. I have worried about this for 2 years, and last week met with my peditrician about my concerns. Of course, neither are big eaters, are very picky about what they like, and refuse most healthy food and snacks. As infants, they ate almost anything in the jars, but as soon as they could chew and "decide" what to eat, their choices became minimal. My 3 year old still wears 2T pants, and my 5 year old wears 4 slim pants (and they barely fit but he needs the length).

I asked our doctor about supplements, calorie drinks, super vitamins, etc. In a nutshell, she said to do nothing like that. She said that unless they were actually choosing to starve themselves (they're not), kids won't let themselves starve, and that as Moms, we need to look at their intake on a weekly basis vs a daily basis. If they get 3-4 servings of fruit in a week, that needs to be our measure vs checking the food groups off daily. She also said to be sly....like make them pumpkin muffins from breakfast b/c there's real pumpkin in the mix. Or fruit smoothies and call them milkshakes. Or oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, b/c at least they're getting the oatmeal.

Other tips she gave was to serve food in 3 ways at a meal: one thing you know they'll eat, one thing they'll likely try and eat, and one thing you want them to try. We've done that for 2 weeks now and we're making progress.

And finally, not to fill up on Vitamin D milk (which they were). So we limit milk to 1 cup of 2% milk for breakfast and another cup before bed with a snack. That way, they'll desire food, and not fill their stomachs with milk calories.

If you're regularly going to your doctor and talking about your concerns, they should be able to help you and also recognize anything abnormal. But I suspect if you talk to most Moms and doctors they'll tell you kids are all individuals and that their age doesn't dictate their clothes size.

Good luck to you!

A little about me:

Recently, I became a stay-at-home Mom of a kindergartener and a 3 year old.

As long as he's on the charts, he doesn't need to see a specialist :)

I have a son who is now 12 years old. He's always been small for his age. This past year (5th grade) he grew from a size 8 to a 12 HUSKY! I didn't think he would ever grow and they even wanted him on growth hormones when he was little and I wouldn't let them! Just wait it out. He will hit his growth spurt when it's his time! I know it's very frustrating! My daughter is almost 3 years younger and has always been taller than my son! Just keep your head up!

Tell your husband to take a good look around himself and remember that girls grow faster than boys in most cases. If you take a good look at the children in classes K thru 6 a lot of the girls are much taller than the boys.
Girls stop growing generally about the time their cylces start. Boys continue to grow thru age 21. My son grew 2 inches between 20 and 21, it was scary!!!!

Hi N.,

I would not be concerned if your doctor is not. My daughter is going to be 5 in January and is now only 33lbs. It is true that all kids grow at their own pace and it may not be what we expect. I would imagine that if your husband and his family are tall your son will hit his growth spurt and be just fine. Just keep your doctor up to date and try not to be as worried, he may shoot up later and be taller than all. Good Luck.

S.

Both my husband and I are "short" so our daughter is on the short side of things. If you and your husband have a significant difference in heights then having twins(or more then one child) there's no telling how the genetics sorted themselves out. Looks like your girl got the "tall" genes taking after your husband and your son got the "short" genes taking after you.
If your doctor has shown no concern for your son's height then I wouldn't worry. Just watch him and if you can't calm yourself or your husband then a trip to your doctor is in order. Trust your instincts and get your doctor to check your son's growth plates.

Good luck.