Conference moira::parenting_v3

    
    
    
    There's a lot of 15 mo. clothes where I shop (Raschels in Westboro), I
    don't know what's around you but if your close you might want to give
    it a try.  
    
    -Nadine
    

    I always heard that, on average, you double the kid's age to get the
    correct size.  So, if she's 7 mos., pretty soon she'll be fitting into
    18 month sizes (I never heard of 15-mos.).  2T is sort of equivalent to
    24 mos., so that would be _way_ too big for a 7-month-old.  My son is
    fitting into 18-mos. just perfectly now, so I bought all 2T for the
    winter, since I want his winter stuff to last all winter.
    
    I'd go ahead and get 18-mos., and just roll up the sleeves and pants if
    you have to.  Also, if you buy pants with elastic bottoms, she won't
    be tripping over the pants legs.

    Double the age is a good indicator for the first year or so.  I think
    that they run more true to size when they get a bit older.   I have
    found that there is a huge difference between 18months and 24months
    sizes, however.  The thing I've noticed about the toddler sizes is
    that they are longer and leaner; so take your child's proportion into
    account.  I have a "chubster" so need to stay in the 24months.
    
    Bear in mind that your child's growth rate will slow somewhat in the 
    second half of the first year and slow dramatically in the second
    year.   I bought my just-turned-one son a snow suit in July (I couldn't
    help it, it was 40% off!!).   Well, I grossly overestimated his growth
    rate and bought a 3T...hopefully, it will fit him NEXT year.  I'd 
    *guess* that an 18-month snow suit would take your daughter through 
    the winter.
    
    Sometimes I wish I had a little girl to buy for...their stuff is
    so cute and such a big selection!!
    
    carol 

    Buy the 18 mos. for a snowsuit. Roll or hem the legs on the 18 mos
    outfits that are too long. Or, womething my wife did with a couple of
    our daughters long outfits was sew a narrow hem in the bottom of each
    leg and run elastic through it...didn't fall over her toes then, and
    grew with her.
     The previous note was right about toddler sizes being leaner and
    longer. 24 mos and 2T are the ones with that difference being most
    obvious. In shirts it is less noticeable than with pants and overalls.
    Our youngest is 17.5 mos. and wears a 2T or 24 mos.  Mostly 2T as he is
    tall and slender. Our daughter, who was 3 in June is just starting to
    wear 4's in some things, is still mostly in 3's, and can still wear
    most of her 2T tops! She is *very* petite. She was the only child I
    know of who usually wore the same size as her age!
     Can you borrow a snowsuit from a friend, just to try it on for size?
    Or, better yet, take her with you and try it on her directly. This will
    give you some idea of how much grow room you have for the whole winter,
    and will let you know if she'll be fitting into it nicely by mid-late
    winter or still be "swimming" in it!
    --dave--

    My daughter is 19 months and last year she wore an 18mon snowsuit.
    The double the age rule worked for me until recently. Last year at
    this time I was moving her into the 18mon size and probably around
    January I started switching her into 24mons. The were large on her
    at the time but elastic legs and rolled up sleeves helped. Now that
    the weather is cold, I have put in the 24mon sweatsuits, long pants,
    and turtlenecks and most of them still fit. Anything new that I
    buy for her is 3T and she is 25lbs now.
    
    Jan

    Don't buy her entire wardrobe now. Buy some basics and as the winter
    progresses and there are sales you can buy more. I vote for the elastic
    bottom pants (cuffs) as well. I personally wouldn't hem the pants
    because after washing you will get that line and when you go to let
    them down, you'll see it. This hold especially true for things like
    Osh-Kosh, cordoroys and jeans. Just cuff them up or tuck the excess
    inside her socks so she canno trip over them. Roll up the shirt sleeves - 
    they usually have a cuff on them as well to turn over once. Plus she
    might be wearing a sweater over them so if they are big, don't worry.
    
    Also ther are a few brands that I think run even smaller then most -
    Heathtex comes to mind as the worst offender!!
    
    If you can afford it, try the GAP Kids. They do run some great sales
    and there clothes wear like iron. My son got an XXS (extra-extra small)
    sized outfit for his 1st birthday. A year and a half later he is still
    wearing the cardigan sweater (year round too) and the short sleeved
    shirt has been worn with the exception of the winter. He also has a
    sweat suit from them and has worn it for 2 years. I think we got our
    money's worth out of these!!! He's on his second winter with the
    turtlenecks.
      
    Andrea  

    
    What I found with JA was that she came into the world "small" (27% of
    the weight chart) ... quickly shot up to 70% of the weight chart and
    got STUCK there!  So I could kind-of estimate her sizing based on the
    fact that she was pretty much "average" for her age.  (She's since
    dropped back to 50%, mostly because of her walking and activeness.)
    
    I have a friend who shops as if his 2 year-old were really a 
    4 year-old!  One big drawback is the britches don't have snaps once you
    enter toddler sizes.
    
    JA cruised through sizes the first 6-8 months (but then again, when 
    6 pounds increases to 10 pounds - they have just about DOUBLED their
    size! ... but when 15 pounds increases to 20 pounds - well, maybe a
    size difference, and then again maybe not if they sprouted UP!).
    
    So ... when JA's width moved to her height, we found she still could
    wear the same clothes!  (JA's starting this fall in last winter's
    bib-front jeans -- we just don't have to roll up the cuffs this 
    year!).  Bib-front jeans ... now that's another interesting
    tidbit.  No waistbands and adjustable shoulder straps -> fits longer!
    Jogging suits shrink in the dryer AND the kid's growing (so you're up
    against double DE-sizing!).
    
    Sizes vary, too.  At 12-1/2 months, JA is wearing 12 month Oshkosh's
    (which tend to run LARGER!) to 2T jogging suits and sleepers!
    
    BOTTOM LINE:  sizing varies with style and manufacturer
                  kid's shape changes "with time" (whether/not weight does)
                  I buy "a little bigger" AND try things on (when purchased)
    
    I buy very little.  I give JA's outgrown clothes away and JA receives a
    lot of "recyclables".  I've found some great buys at the second-hand
    shops (keeps my blood-pressure down when I pick her up at the sitters
    having finished a work-of-art in finger painting!).  JA gets 
    most of her nicer outfits as "gifts", so I shop very little (mostly for
    tshirts, sneakers, hats ... things which don't usually get handed down
    and things which people don't typically give as gifts!).
    
    My sister buys JA a lot of end-of-the-season clearance clothes.  For
    some reason she can ESTIMATE JA's size for NEXT year!  She's right on
    the money every time!  (Yes, she's experienced - two teenagers.)
    
    I have to loosen up a little and let JA wear some of those beautiful
    "gift" outfits more often ... as I end up giving away "hardly worn"
    better outfits, while JA's trucking off to daycare in her recyclable
    bib-fronts and turtleneck!
    
    Enough babbling!  Can't wait until JA can dress HERSELF ... wears me
    down trying to snap her bib-fronts when she's standing on her head
    with a beachball in her arms!   This morning I snapped the shoulder
    snap to her side waistband and couldn't understand why the kid
    couldn't stand up!  Now the kid's a kicking-pretzel and I had a bear of
    a time getting it undone!  P-A-R-E-N-T-H-O-O-D -> never a boring day!
    
    Dottie
                                                                         

    The rule of thumb I was told, and worked for me was to buy the snowsuit
    six months larger that whatever she's wearing now.  AJ was about
    10months, and wearing 9 months when I had to tackle the "first" winter
    of clothing.  I bought a two piece (jacket with hood and snowpants) set
    and he not only got that winter out of it, but most of the next.  I
    guess I consider myself fortunate in that he never seemed to gain huge
    amounts of weight during the winter.  Now this year, we've got a
    problem, he's shot up in torso height but not in the waist and nothing 
    fits!
    
    The other trick I've used for too long pants is to use the "magic-mend"
    iron on hemming tape(the fiber stuff you put between the two pieces, this
    isn't iron on seam binding) .  It's quick, you don't have to sew and when 
    you need the length back all you have to do is warm the hem with the iron
    and tug a little.  Usually you won't get a noticable line where the fold 
    was, unless you iron the hem a lot.
    
    Lyn
    (who keeps Raschel's in business!)
    

    I've found that Izod runs very narrow (great for Alex but the opposite
    of what you need!).
    
    Also, don't know if they run to infant sizes, but Little Levi's come in
    proportional sizes (I know they have "regular" and "slim", so they
    probably have "ample").
    
    I would go for rolling up or hemming (without expecting to let down the
    hem later), because the elastic cuffs drove us both nuts.  As Alex
    climbed on stuff, etc., the cuffs would ride up her calf and stay there,
    looking awful and leaving a red line....
    
    Leslie

    When we'd put elastic in hems ourselves, the pants were always long
    enough that they didn't ride up. Also left the elstic a bit loose, so
    it wasn't snug on the ankle, just kept the cuffs from falling over her
    feet. And when she grew taller, we'd just take out the elastic and have
    a narrow hem there already, and she'd get a couple more months wear out
    of them.
    --dave--

    Thanks, Dave, for the idea on inserting elastic into the hems of
    too-long pants.  I have a couple of winter outfits that probably won't
    fit in length until the _summer_, so look forward to giving it a try.
    
    Do I owe you $20 for not having to buy a new outfit? ;-)
    
    

    Just FYI folks, I just bought AJ 4 pair of Toddler size jeans and
    cordoroy pants, different brands (but all from Raschel's) and it seems 
    THE hottest style this year IS the elastic leg pants.  I was impressed, 
    at least he might get another year out of these-minus the elastic at the 
    ankles. Plus it seem that "baggy" is in, he may get TWO years??!?
    (now where did I put the suspenders, for this kid with no rear end!!)
    
    

    Boy your little girl must be huge if she is 7 months old and already
    the 12 mos cloths are getting to small.  My son Alex was always in
    clothes 2-3 months prior to his age.  This was due to the fact that he
    was a big baby when he was born.  He will be a year old in 5 1/2 weeks
    (november 4th) and is wareing 18 month sizes, well actually he has been
    for a couple of months know.  He is a big boy for his age and I am also
    having a hard time trying to buy him a two piece snow suit.  I am told
    that Raschels has a good selection of these and will be most likely
    heading up there this weekend to check them out.
    
    
    Good luck with the clothes.
    
    Liz

    re .11
    No, all ideas are gratis! Of course, if you wanted to make a $20
    donation to us......   :-) :-) :-)
    --dave--

    
    Thanks for all the suggestions!  One of you noters was kind enough to 
    hand-me-down a 18 month snow suit.  I haven't had the opportunity to
    try it on her yet as she hasn't been feeling well and dressing IS NOT
    one of her favorite things.
    
    .13 She is large, in the 95% for both height and weight.  I've been
    told that during the second 1/2 of the first year, babies grow slower.
    I don't know about that, she grew over 1 inch this month.  She seems to
    be just about as large as some other 10 month old babies.  She is
    always mistaken for an older baby.  
    
    Next step....shoes!  She is holding on to furniture (or people) and
    walking around while holding on to things.  Socks just don't cut it!
    What kind of pre-walking shoes did you all buy?  The typical
    prewalkers? or sneakers?  I'm going to have her little feet sized this
    week.  I just don't know what kind of shoe to buy.  
    
    Thanks again!!
    
    Rose Marie

    Why is it that "socks just don't cut it"?  If it's just because they
    are slippery, you might try the socks with the non-skid rubber designs
    on them.  We used them for Brian when he first started standing and
    walking (holding onto things).  We wanted to keep him out of shoes for as
    long as possible and these worked until he was ready to walk around
    outside.  For outside, he wears sneakers.
    
                                                  Tracy

    I also wanted to keep my son out of shoes for as long as possible
    thinking that he would have better balance, etc. because there would
    be nothing between him and the floor (except his socks).  This has
    kind of backfired on me because he now (at almost 13 months) refuses
    to wear shoes (and socks for that matter).  Everytime I turn around
    he has taken his shoes/socks off and it doesn't seem to matter to 
    him that it is getting chilly now.   So, were I to do it over, I'd
    put him in shoes regularly.
    
    Just my opinion,
    Carol

    
    ...oops, forgot this part for .15
    
    Personally, I'd recommend sneakers or some other soft-soled shoes 
    without slick bottoms for early walkers.   The traditional stiff
    leather walkers with slippery bottoms are more of a hindrance than
    a help; in my opinion.
    
    carol

    I've also been looking around for some real soft shoes.  I may
    have to begin with those cordorouy type shoes with the non-skid
    bottoms because Eric, at 14 months, has never worn shoes and
    flipped out about a month ago when I put some sneakers on him.
    He wouldn't even stand up.  He just laid down, screamed, and kicked
    his feet.  The reason I didn't keep him in shoes from early on
    is because when I did put shoes on him and he didn't fuss, within
    5 minutes his feet would be soaked from sweat.  I figured I'd 
    wait till he had to walk outside, but now it's too late.
    
    I hear Fisher Price has some nice flexible shoes but I haven't 
    found them yet.  I may run into additional problems with Eric's
    wide feet.
    
    Donna
              

    Donna,
    
    I'm not sure where you're located by I bought a couple of pairs of
    terry cloth slippers with rubber soles at Calverts in Olde Shrewbury
    Village.  Jason seems to tolerate these and they seemed to have
    eased the transition to sneakers *somewhat*.   The corduroy booties
    are also a good idea as might be suede (indian-type) moccasins or
    booties.
    
    Sounds like our boys have much the same problems; Jason has "fat
    feet"!   Good luck.
    
    Carol

    I've found Stride Ride to be very helpful in sizing shoes,
    recommendations on what types for crib-shoes, pre-walking, walking,
    etc.  They also have a nice variety and seem to be able to fit
    different sizes.  (My daughter has the opposite problem - Looooooong,
    very skinny feet!)  Though, they're pretty pricey. . . IMO
    
    Guess I'm the opposite all-around.  I've had Samantha in shoes since
    she was around 6 weeks old.  I found they helped keep her socks on
    (winter baby), plus they were really cute :-)
    
    Cheryl

    re: .21
    
    Marshall's seems to be carrying quite a few Stride Rite shoes
    for infant/toddlers lately.   Maybe get sized there and buy 
    somewhere else?   I bought a pair of size 5 dress walkers for 
    12.99 there last week.
    
    Carol

    For inside:  bare feet of course!
    
    For outside: the cheapest sneakers you can find.  Don't let shoe
    salesmen or tradition make you paranoid about fit, either (unless your
    kid needs orthopedic shoes).
    
    		- Bruce
    

>    I hear Fisher Price has some nice flexible shoes but I haven't 
>    found them yet.  I may run into additional problems with Eric's
>    wide feet.

You may have better luck with the F-P shoes than we did.  They're adorable, 
and priced very reasonably, but they were just too narrow for Michael's fat 
feet.  We would have had to buy a pair 3 inches too long to get the proper 
width.  Actually, Pat bought one pair and brought them home without trying 
them on him.  That was the first and last time she'll do that -- he wore 
them exactly once for about 15 minutes before he started crying very 
uncharacteristically in a restaurant.  We can't prove the shoes were the 
reason, but within 5 minutes after we took them off he was happy as a 
little clam.  BTW, Michael is accustomed to wearing shoes occasionally, so 
the problem wasn't that he had on shoes, but (we think) rather that the 
shoes he was wearing didn't fit.

We've kept Michael barefoot most of the time since it's nice and warm here 
in Texas, but he does wear little white dress shoes every Sunday for 
church.  Up till now we've bought very inexpensive shoes since he only 
wears them for about 90 minutes a week and isn't walking yet.  Once cool 
weather sets in and/or he starts walking, we're going to be a good bit more 
particular about what goes on his feet.  But we've priced the Toddler-U and 
Buster Brown shoes, and they're about $35 a pair!  That's highway robbery!  
And Pat wants him to have two pairs at any given time:  sneakers for 
everyday (in winter) and dress whites for church!  We've finally decided to 
buy the expensive sneakers since he'll be wearing them a lot of the time, 
and to get some inexpensive dress shoes for church since he'll be wearing 
them so little.

I was absolutely amazed at the prices of children's shoes!

Steve

    I got Eric a new pair of sneakers on Saturday for $1.99.  They were the
    last pair in the store, but happened to be the right size.  The only
    tricky part was getting him to "choose" that style.
    
    		- Bruce
    

    I guess since I took some extensive (16 months) off with AJ's birth I
    had lots of time to scout out the bargains, at least in Worcester
    County!
    Here's my best list of where to get the most for your shoe dollar:
    	Little Feet Shoes, Lincoln Plaza Worcester, all shoes 17.90
    	-most brand names especially Stride Rite.  Sneakers are brandnames
    too, but expensive.  They will measure and fit, they have wide widths.
    
    TJ Maxx, Auburn especially, frequently has Reebocks for kids, usually
    around $15, you try them on and size them.
    
    Spag's, the cute little white infant dress shoes $2.99 (yup they're
    vinyl which is against my principals) lots more shoes in their
    "Schoolhouse" Sneakers are in the main store too.
    
    As was mentioned, Calvert's has the "skippers" terry slipper sox with
    rubber no-skid sole, as well as the TV Booties; the cordoroy slippers
    with the non skid sole, fairly inexpensive, many colors and go up to
    pretty large sizes.
    
    As for what to put on them, my own, my sister's and several other
    friend's pedis recomend that a good pair of sneakers are enough.  Those
    cute patent leather dress shoes are cute, but extremely slippery! Put
    tape on the soles or rough up the soles with sand paper BEFORE wearing!
    Someone said that their child's feet sweat in shoes, most common cause
    for that is non-leather (vinyl) shoes which prevent the feet from
    "breathing"  Try to use leather shoes or cloth sneakers to prevent
    sweating.
    
    Just a tiny bit of input
    Lyn (the original bargain hunter!)	

    re: .17
    
    Don't worry, even if they've been wearing shoes since they were
    six weeks old, when they hit about 10-14 months, they'll discover
    they can untie knots, and they will take off their shoes and socks
    at every opportunity.
    
    David, 12 months, is walking well, wears shoes to the sitter's but
    generally goes around our house barefoot.  I go barefoot too. 
    Neither of us generally notices the chill unless it's *really*
    cold.  And then we put on sweaters or socks, not shoes. :)
    
    --bonnie

    An earlier note mentioned wide feet - which my son has (along with
    his Dad).  3 different sales folks in 3 different stores have measured
    him and all have said the same thing - 'the only shoes that will
    fit him properly are Toddler University's'.
    
    Since Matt is 18 months and RUNNING around, I do want to make sure
    his shoes fit properly.  However, $32-$35 a pair is pricey and ideally
    I like having 2 different styles at any given time.
    
    I would be interested in knowing if anyone has any other suggestions
    with fitting wide feet, or where to buy TU's < $32.!
    
    (I've tried Stride Rite and Weeboks already)
    
    Thanks,
    Carol

re: .27

>they'll discover they can untie knots, and they will take off their shoes and 
socks at every opportunity.


Untie knots?  Gary discovered you don't need to untie knots to get out of 
shoes.  That's for mom and/or dad to do when it's time to put the shoe back 
ON.  I'll swear he could get out of a completely laced pair of combat boots 
without untieing them  :^)

Clay

    As for .28, Toddler University generally advertises in Parents
    Magazine. It also give an 800 number to call for where the closest
    store to you would be.  Not sure where you are, but I recall them
    recommending a place in Auburn (MA). Maybe either Auburn or Heritage
    Mall.
    
    I'd still say sneakers work best for your child AND Budget!!
    
    Lyn
    
    

    re: .28
    
    Did you try Nike?  Their infant line is about $17-$19 and most of
    the styles come in width.
    
    We got David's sneakers at Alex's shoes in downtown Nashua -- they
    took their time fitting him, and they carry a variety of brands in
    a wide range of styles and sizes.  
    
    --bonnie

    re: .30
    
    - I got the names of several stores in my area from calling the
      800 number for Toddler U.  The unfortunate thing is that all
      these places are bonafide shoe stores as opposed to more self
      service types of places.  As a result, prices vary by no more
      that $2.  I was hoping that someone knew of a discount place
      that carried Toddler U's.
    
    re: .31  Nikes aren't wide enough.  I have tried several styles but
      thanks for the suggestion.
    
    Carol

    Here's one more thing I tried with AJ, the kid with the wide foot, and
    high instep.  I bought the StrideRite Boat (leather) shoes for him.  I 
    went to LittleFeet Shoes at Lincoln Plaza Worcester, they gave him a wide
    (E or EE widith) and his measured length.  My feeling is because they have
    only two lace holes they're easier to get on.  Plus you're still
    getting the best of both worlds, a dressy looking shoe and a nice
    rubber sole.
    
    Lyn