Why won't she buy clothes that fit??!!!

[BabyLlama]

This is NOT a MIL bashing thread. My MIL is an extremely generous lady and has helped us no end - however she keeps buying my DD too-small clothes. My DD is almost 3 and is very tall for her age and has been wearing 3-4 year clothing for the last 3 months. My DH and I have both told MIL this and she she does see our DD regularly and is always buying her a new outfit (which we are both grateful for), but it's always 2-3 years. I don't like her wasting her money on something that our DD will never even wear, and we have tried over and over again to tell her that 2-3 years is too small.
I don't want to come across as grabby or ungrateful, but also feel bad that my DD simply doesn't fit into the clothes that MIL has so generously bought for her.

Am I the only one who thinks kids clothes sizing is bonkers and inconsistent (much like women's clothes sizes) and just looks at it rather than reads the size label? my 4yo has aged 2-3 stuff and also age 5-6 stuff in her wardrobe

Clearly Raving has never had kids!!!!!

(Or has squeezed hers into to clothes according to 'age' on label!!)

Maybe she thinks you get stuff too big?
If you've told her lots of times and she's still doing it then make it her problem like pp have said. Say 'oh that's lovely but it won't go near her. Could you change it for a 3-4?'. She'll probably start remembering after a few return trips.
Another thought though since you say you don't know where she gets the clothes so I'm assuming they don't have tags. Maybe someone is passing them to her or she's getting them at boot sales or something so she won't be able to swap.

Yes Raving, my ds 5.9 years, wears, 6-7 bottoms, and 7-8 year tops, and is as thin as a whippet, with a rake thin body (eats like a dustbin), is on the go, but takes after my 6ft 4 father, and 6ft dh. He is a tall one. I would rather clothes be a bit roomy, than just about fit, what a waste of money.

Oh. It's amazing all the mners that cannot believe a nearly 3 year old could possibly be already more than 98 cm.

My daughter is tall and always at the top end of the size range, at 3 she would have needed 3-4 clothes, definitely not 2-3. So that's not unusual! But it is odd that mil doesn't take this on board. If you have lots of unworn outfits would it be worth a trip to wherever she got them? Or could you sell them on eBay and buy something that fits?

My DS is 4 and in age 6 (7 in some stores) clothing.

He’s on the 91st centile for height and weight, so perfectly in proportion thank you very much!

My sister used to do this (22 year age gap, half sister), buy me clothes when I was little that just about fit, and after a couple of months my mum had to give them away as they were too small.

Raving, in my ds's case, yes - I like long sleeve tops to actually reach his wrists, and ankle flapping bottoms are not a good look at any age. I was 6'1 by the time I was 14yo. That's pretty tall at that age. Just like my ds is pretty tall at his age. I really don't get why you're so about it.

Kids clothes manufacturers seem to work in cahoots to ensure that there is zero consistency between them. Today my DS (a tall skinny 13) is wearing M&S age 9-10 pants, Gap size 14 shorts (which I think is equivalent to age 12?) and a Sainsburys age 14 t shirt....

Where is she buying them from? Jsut return them for bigger sizes. Keep the labels on. I've had to do this over the years with my Mum's M&S habit and wanting to buy all the sparkly party dresses, no toddler needs them for every day. I would return and buy a range of things that were suitable.

Tbh I find it hard to believe a 2 yo is as tall as a 3 or 4 yo

Not sure why you would think that? Obviously clothes are designed to fit average sized kids of the age range on the label. There are always going to be short kids and tall kids too.

My DS1 was above the 99.6th centile curve for height (well, length, at that age, I guess) at birth. He was in 4-5 yr clothes before he'd even turned 3. Thankfully he stopped growing at around 14/15, so now at 18 years old he's "only" 6 ft 1in.

And yes, he absolutely was in "huge sizes because of his height". He's always been below average weight for his height.

I'm sure she means well but it is frustrating especially when you either have the faff of trekking around to exchange them or you pass them on without dd getting any benefit from them. I know this is a bit mean but I think at this stage she might only get the message if she's the one being inconvenienced so I'd hand them back saying "oh such a shame they're the wrong size, maybe you can exchange them next time you're in there".

I had similarish with my mother who is lovely but she really enjoys pootling round the shops looking for a bargain and really enjoyed being the granny buying things for her gc but actually wasn't overly bothered whether the item was age appropriat, the correct size or to my the child's taste. In the end I did start handing things back for her to return or exchange because it really was winding me up.

My son is three and is already wearing size 5 in John Lewis-no, he'd not fat, their clothing is just designed for children with shoulders narrower than a fairy's. Other stores he canwessr anything from a size 3-4 (Joules type sizing) up to a size 5. A lot of the children's clothing is just too small. OP is not lying and she is not over feeding.

OP-it's annoying but to be fair in some brands your DD would still fit a 2-3 (although your MIL would be wise to err on the side of caution and but 3-4). But it's her money and sibling as she isn't getting huffy about your DD not wearing the clothes I think that you should just drop it. Either pack them away for your next child, try to exchange if convenient or just put it up for sale on eBay.

Raving - all my 3 dc were 10lb at birth and have stayed on the 98th centile for both height and weight. They are perfectly in proportion but all look years older than they are due to being just generally bigger all over. DS1 is just 5 and wears 6-8yo. ds2 is just 3 and wears 4-5 and dd just 1 is in 18-24mo. They all have freakishly long arms and legs (like me - 5ft 10 and their dad 6ft 1). DS1 has a seriously restricted diet as he has asd and still manages to be massive!

OP my MIL used to do this too and it was a shame as she never got to see them wear what she bought. I just kept saying 'they are big kids and in x size' she would nod, say dh had been the same, then a few weeks later hand over too small clothes. Sigh.

Raving, there is an interesting thread about the negativity of some posters at the moment who seem to like putting a downer on everything. Perhaps you should read it.

Sounds like MIL might be starting with dementia or something if she really cant grasp that the clothes shes buys are too small.
I'd ask for a voucher/s instead.

have you tried putting them on dd as soon as MIL hands them over so that she can really see in the flesh that they don’t fit.

Yes, it’s true that clothing sizes are inconsistent. But with that in mind, surely you err on the size of buying too big: a child is only going to grow one way.

Perhaps she associates larger sizes with being fat, or thinks that little girls should be petite, or something like that.

I agree with PPs - just give them back to her, telling her that it's a shame, but they don't fit your daughter, as she wears a larger size.

Its always makes sense to buy a little bigger so there is more room to grow, and you don't have to keep buying clothes all the time.

RavingRoo

the same as every one else granddaughter is 3 in Feb she has been in 3-4 trousers for some time and 5-6 tops also size 10 shoes same as her elder sister who is 9 (whoes father is 6ft 9) always been in much bigger clothes than her age (girls have different dads)

Yes i could probably just about fit ds 5.9 years into 5-6 clothing, but why should I when he's nearly 6, and tall for his age. How does that make sense.

Some people are such UNPLEASANT** bitches.