Are my kids going to be giants?

[Nienor]

I can relate! My DH is 6'5", brother is 6'8", and I'm 6'. Both my kids are very tall. DS9 is always in the 99th percentile, DD5 at the 95th or above! They have outgrown age-appropriate clothing, rides, etc. WAY too soon. They have also always been treated as though they are older than they are until people are told their age. I actually had strangers come up to me in a public restroom as I was changing my son's diaper (shortly before age 2) and remark "You mean he's not potty trained yet?"
My sister =in=law's retort (I was speechless!):
blank stare, then "He's not even 2! How old were YOU?" They hushed up fairly quickly.

I was once nearly refused a high chair in a restaurant. The hostess gave me a funny look and said "at his age". I informed her he was 20 months old. I'm sure I had people wonder about the potty training too.

 

[jcc0621]

Sounds okay to me and if your peditrician isn't concerned about it, I wouldn't be either. My Ds is 3.5, 40 inches and 42 lbs. He is in the 75th percentile for his height and the 50th percentile for his weight according to last check up.

 

[Stephres]

My son was always in the 90th percentile for height until he got to kindergarten and then everyone caught up with him. Now his right in the middle at 60%, so don't be surprised if the other kids start to catch up!

 

[mom2alix]

DD was 4 on our last trip and was tall enough for everything except the really big rides (ToT, Space Mtn, RnR, etc.), however, she can be a bit timid. She rode BTM and wanted to go back again TWICE and she absolutely LOVED Soarin'. We didn't do Splash Mtn simply because it was a little chilly that day (in Dec), but I think that would be fine too. Now, this child will not even consider walking near Snow Whilte's Scary adventure, but bring on the rollercoasters!

 

[wdwfamilyinIL]

While my youngest are normal or maybe even slow growers, my oldest is the big one. He has always been off the charts, even as a baby. At six months he wore 18-24 clothes. He will be 9 in September, he weights about 82 pounds, and is around 52 inches tall. He recently grew again, and now wears a size 12, and he wears a size 6 in shoes.
I do have to second if your doctor isn't concerned, then I wouldn't worry. Every kid grows different. My dh was short until his last year of highschool, and at 18 he went to 6'2''. You just never know.

 

[natenapril]

My son turned 2 in March. He weighs 48lbs and is 39 1/2 inches. I am hoping he gains the extra 1/2 inch before our trip in Dec

 

[Merriwind]

There is such a huge range of normal. Kids' growth rates change too.

My DD9 started out freak of nature tall. When we moved to FL, I thought that the sun just made kids here grow faster than in cloudly Syracuse. She wasn't the tallest anymore--2nd grade in the tallest group, 3rd grade right in the middle. Turns out, she's slowed down! At 3, she was completely off the height chart, then hovered in the 90%s forever, now she's around the 75%. Her height projection has gone from 6'-6'2" to 5'7"-5'8". Even if she's a 5'1" shrimp like me, she'll be great. (My Dmom and Dsis were giants as kids, but ended up 5'5" and 5'3".)

Unless a doctor is worried, no need for it. They've got all those percentiles because normal comes in so many heights and weights.

 

[holden]

My DD4.5 must be tiny - 37" and 31#. I tried to use that link to calculate her height as an adult, but I couldn't use the one where you put in the parents' heights b/c she's adopted. I tried another site where you put in the current height/weight, but it said that she was below the 3rd percentile so it couldn't make a prediction

 

[MindyLuvsMickey]

My DS is on the little side. Although he was born weighing nearly 10 pounds and in the 90% for height and weight, he's now in the lower percentiles. he's 2 1/2 and is 35 1/2 inches tall and weighs 28.5 lbs. I worry about him because he's only grown about an inch since last year.

 

[LilGMom]

My DS is on the little side. Although he was born weighing nearly 10 pounds and in the 90% for height and weight, he's now in the lower percentiles. he's 2 1/2 and is 35 1/2 inches tall and weighs 28.5 lbs. I worry about him because he's only grown about an inch since last year.

Is your ped. worried? I noticed when my oldest was between 3-5 he grew an inch, maybe, and didn't seem to gain any weight but then between 4-5 he grew several inches and his weight went up with his height. Our ped. told us that kids seem to sorta slow down, almost stall, around that time but developmentally he was fine and still is.

 

[pixiepower1971]

My dd just turned 11 the end of April. She is 5' and weighs 101 lbs. She seems to be taller than most in her class but not overweight by any means. a lot depends on your family. While my husband and I are not very tall5'10 and 5'6 respectively, we both have grandparents and close relatives well over 6'. I guess sign my dd up for "giant"

Its nice to see others out there with kids that are more like mine! Both of my DDs were able to ride the BIG coasters that have 54" height requirements at 8 years old. My girls have always fallen into the 90/95th % but neither have ever been overweight/unhealthy. As I have told some people in the past-they are exactly where God intends them to be!

DD11(bday was yesterday) is 4'11" and 90 lbs. She is a SKINNY ballerina almost too skinny. She is very muscular, which is where the weight comes from.

DD8(will be 9 in 2 weeks) is 57" and almost 90lbs. She is very muscular, dances and takes gymnastics.

Both of them lookand act much older then they are. People tend to forget how young they still are!

There is a wide variation of sizes but it does seem like we always here about the teeny tinies on the boards as the OP mentioned.

As for rides, I say let them ride when they reach the height limit. My girls have ridden everything since they reaced the height limit...sometimes just at the line. The only thing that has ever caused them a moments unrest was Bugs Life! That is the one to keep the little ones out of!

 

[TheDizMom]

I have one who is small for her age and one who is taller than average for his age, but who knows how they will end up in the end. I don't care so much for my DD, although I am short and wouldn't mind having a few more inches, but I want my DS to be taller. My DH isn't real tall, but all of his uncles and his dad are. The guys in his generation, save 1, are all about 5'8" and it's almost like the height skipped a generation. You think it could come back in my DS generation ? Anyway my DD is a real scaredy cat when it comes to rides and she loved all of the rides you mentioned except BTT which she didn't try. The TT is actually very tame until you get to the end when it goes fast but in a very unscarry way. KR only has one place where you go down and it's not very steep. It's almost like a slide and my DD loved this one at 4. Soarin' is probably more of a motion sickness issue then a scared one. You know your kids best though so if you think they can't handle it don't take them or try and if they chicken out at the very end of the line they have special exits for the to nervous to try it crowd.

 

[shelly3girls]

I am the mother of 3 giants...
DD just turned 8 and is about 53"-54". She is about 67lbs but has a slim build b/c she is so muscular from swimming and skating so much. She is the second tallest 8 year old in her class but very much on track with what I was at her age. I only turned out 5'6" so she will probably be around that.

My second DD just turned 6 and is about 50". She towers over all of the other kids in Kindergarten. So much so that she gets upset when people call her "big". Given that we have some very tall people in my family the dr. said she could be around 6' tall. Of course it really depends on what age she hits puberty.

I don't know how big DS is but everyone says how big he is. He is not chunky but he was 28.5" and 21lbs at his 6m check up.

The only problem I have is that everyone expects them to act older than the age. No problem for my mature DD8 but it definitely is an issue with DD6 when she is in unfamiliar settings with other adults. They think she is 8 and expect her to act that way.

As far as rides are concerned my DDs are daredevils and go on everything. My younger DD went on ToT at age 4. She goes through phases when some days she goes on everything and other days nothing. We do not push and only have her go on what she wants to. She does always want to keep up with her sister so that makes her want to go on more.

 

[kelscross]

My girls are little. They are 5 1/2 and 6 1/2 they both weigh 38 pounds and are 40 inches tall. The ped has predicted they won't get much over 5 foot. I was worried up until this last well child check up. The ped reassured me and said she has no concerns. They are proportionate and growing fine, they're just little.

 

[mommylicious]

Trust me, your ped would tell you if there was cause for concern. We are dealing with this now.

My almost 7 yo is about 52" and 72 lbs. He's got an athletic build, wears a slim size pants so not big at all.

My 5 year old is the one we are going through this with. He is 48" tall and 75 lbs. He's always had a stocky build and his legs are pure muscle but he's put on 23 lbs in 9 months. He's grown almost 4 inches in that time frame as well. He's been 95%+ for height and weight since he was an infant (exclusively breastfed infant...no solids till 6 months; so much for breastfed babies being leaner kids...DS7 was formula fed to to a medical issue at birth). His weight and height have always been in proportion. In the last 9 months he's had a big jump in both but more so in weight. This is not expected based on his caloric intake. He and his brother eat the same and are both active. We've kept a food diary for him for the last 2 weeks to take to the ped. Typical day has cereal w/ skim milk and OJ for breakfast, snack at pre-k is usually something like pretzels or yogurt, lunch is a sandwich or mac and cheese, fruit, crackers and water to drink, after school snack fruit or something like cheese and crackers, typical dinner (rarely anything fried...only if we eat out) and fruit for desert. DH is 6'5" and I'm 5'11 so we expected to have not small kids. The ped was surprised at his height and weight changes especially given his food diary info. They ran all sorts of tests. We've gotten a few back and are waiting for the results of the others but they were quick to let us know something was off. They are rechecking his growth hormone levels because the first reading was "unexpected" as they put it. The ped suspects it's his thyroid based on some other stuff he checked. We shall see I guess. We've always said he was going to have a "linebacker build" because he has always been the most "solid" kid I've ever seen but untill the last 6 months or so he's had no tummy or anything.

Anyway, just wanted to say my kids are big too AND that if your ped thought something was off, they'd let you know.

 

[larkles]

This is so interesting I had to go measure the boys They are looking at the Passporter to see which rides they can go on and are psyched

DS9= 55in 55lbs

DS7= 48in 50lbs

DS4= 44in 40lbs

DH is 6'3 and I am 5'9 so I think they will all be tall!

 

[*KeepMovingForward*]

I have noticed on some of these threads where people talk about how big their kids are. On one someone had an 8 and a 6 year old who weighed around 44 pounds. Is this now the norm or are my kids just giants? I just weighed the 3(soon to be 4) year old and she is 50 pounds! She is also about 43 inches tall. The 2 year old(just turned 2) is 38 pounds and 39 inches tall. They have both always been in the larger percentile but neither have ever had the rolls of baby fat and they are very active. They don't eat a lot of junk or ever drink soda and seem to be really healthy. I guess they are just going to be big people. I have been assuming both of them will be riding most rides on our trip because they will be big enough. Do you think they won't be mature enough, though? The ones I'm thinking about are Soarin, Kali River, BTM, and Splash Mt. and maybe Test Track. They both are daredevils if that makes a difference.

Your kids sound right on track for their heights and weights. You never really can tell. DH is 6'2 and I am 5'9. DS turned 15 a week ago and is 6' tall already-he was never the tallest or the shortest growing up...just average. DD just turned 13 and she is only 5'2-she has always been the shortest girl in the class through the years (quite a switch from me, since I was always the tallest). We're not sure if maybe she is getting the short gene from her maternal and paternal grandmothers or she just hasn't hit her growth spurt yet. Anyway, I guess my point is, don't stress over what your kids are compared ot others. What is normal really depends on your family.

I'd let your kids decide what they are mature enough to ride. I remember coercing DS to ride ToT when he was about 7 or 8 and I felt like the worlds worst parent after the very first drop. DS was sitting right next to me and his leg starting shaking uncontrollably like he was Thumper from Bambi-we still had quite a few more ups and downs to go before the ride was over. Since that experience, I never force the issue, if they don't want to ride, they don't have to. Normally DH will sit out in that case, or we switch out. To this day, DS still will not go back on ToT, although he rides everything else. I guess the best advice is to prepare them for what the ride is like beforehand with a brief explanation that the ride is in the dark, goes upside down, drops suddenly, goes at a fast speed, goes backwards, etc.. The element of surprise is not always a welcome one for kids.

 

[MindyLuvsMickey]

Is your ped. worried? I noticed when my oldest was between 3-5 he grew an inch, maybe, and didn't seem to gain any weight but then between 4-5 he grew several inches and his weight went up with his height. Our ped. told us that kids seem to sorta slow down, almost stall, around that time but developmentally he was fine and still is.

He won't have his 3 yr well baby check until August. I will be talking to him a tthat point. We had concerns about his weight when he was 18 months old because he actully lost weight from his 9 month and 12 month appointment. He's acutally gained 3 lbs this year so far, so I don't worry about his weight anymore.

Developmentally he is right on, if not a bit advanced. I just am a worrier.

 

[kxmeeh]

On our last trip to DL, my youngest was 4. She was big enough for almost all the rides. Soaring and Indiana Jones were her 2 favorites. i was very concerned, but I made sure she wasn't forced to go on anything. Now, she had just turned 6 last week. she's 4'2 and 76 lbs. She is very often mistaken for an older child. I always think it's harder on those of us with bigger kids. I make it a point that she is included with things her own age, even if she towers over the other kids there. this year, while she can't wait to try tower of terror, she is petrified to ride POTC. Sometimes I think it would be easier to say sorry honey, you're not big enough. it's the rules.

 

[dhardawa]

My daughter is 7 1/2, 47" and 46 lbs. She is in the 25th percentile for height and about the same for weight. So, she is small. a six year old who is 44 lbs isn't that small. An 8 year old who is 44 lbs is pretty little.