What's the Point of Size 5T?

[lizzywednesday]

OK, so my DD is an average-to-tall kid with a very solid build.

She is 3.5 yrs old, weighs somewhere around 35lbs and is around 38" tall.
Her legs are long, but they are a bit chunky. (Not fat, chunky. Like a baby doll's legs are chunky.)

Depending on the phase of the moon, cut of the clothing, and even items of clothing, however, she seems to be on the cusp of moving from "toddler" sizes to "little girl" sizes, depending on the brand.

What I want to know is - for brands that have a 5T, what's the point? How does a 5T differ from a 4 or even a 5? (Some brands I've seen overlap between 5 and 5T or 4 and 5T in their size charts.)

We recently went shopping for blue jeans at the OshKosh outlet, for example, and I had her try on the size 4's as well as the 5T's ... and it seemed like the legs fit better on the 4's. But in shirts, she seemed to be OK with 5T, though now I'm concerned they are going to run short.

At Carter's, I bought her a top that's a 4 - and it's only a tiny bit too long in the arm, so I plan to exchange it for a larger size, but can't decide if the 5 will be too big vs. the 5T.

What gives? I don't remember having seen size 5T for children when my siblings - or even my 14-year-old "niece" - were younger, so is this a new development? Or am I just falling victim to the trap of self-reporting after 20+ years?

[abh5e8]

usually the "T" size is wider, so 3T wider then 3, 4T wider then 4, 5T wider then 5. i see the size on any given piece of clothing to be merely a suggestion or starting point. i make my dc try everything on, because sizing is SO inconsitent. :)

[YouAreTheFocus]

I agree that the Ts are generally shorter and wider, regulars seem longer and narrower. But for me, the point is being able to keep your kid in the toddler lines/styles for an extra year. I love it when brands go to 5t, since that means another year until I have to resign myself to the world of "kid boy".

[KrisM]

I agree that the Ts are generally shorter and wider, regulars seem longer and narrower. But for me, the point is being able to keep your kid in the toddler lines/styles for an extra year. I love it when brands go to 5t, since that means another year until I have to resign myself to the world of "kid boy".

That's what I thought. Kind of like 6X gave us another year as kid girl before moving to big girl 7+ sizes.

[citymama]

The T part of 5T is silly, but I like the little girl styles so much more than the tween-ish big girl ones. The very silly part is buying dresses for 5 year olds that come with diaper covers.

[Kindra178]

T is for diaper wearing kids. So if you have a big diaper wearing toddler, 5t might be the right size.

[Green_Tea]

IME, 5T runs shorter than a 5 in the regular kids department. My DS can wear 5Ts, but regular 5s are way too long (and he's 7!)

[ett]

IME, 5T runs shorter than a 5 in the regular kids department. My DS can wear 5Ts, but regular 5s are way too long (and he's 7!)

:yeahthat: The size 4/5 pants from Target's boys section are longer than the 5T from the toddler section. The 4/5 were way too long on 6.5 year old DS2 so I got the 5T's, which fit him but were still a inch too long.

[waitingforgrace]

T is for diaper wearing kids. So if you have a big diaper wearing toddler, 5t might be the right size.

:yeahthat: pants especially are usually cut with more room for a diaper.

[lizzywednesday]

IME, 5T runs shorter than a 5 in the regular kids department. My DS can wear 5Ts, but regular 5s are way too long (and he's 7!)


:yeahthat: pants especially are usually cut with more room for a diaper.

Yeah, we're out of diapers, so we don't need the "T" in pants and she's showing a fairly long torso, hence my concern about the 5T blouses I bought her being too short by the time it's cool enough outdoors to wear them. I've managed to find the brands that work for her chunkier legs and it's holding fairly true for bigger sizes now. Thank goodness! Her legs are also pretty long, so the "little kids" sizes vs. the "toddler" sizes are not an issue - I have the same problem, honestly, so I always have to get/special-order "tall" sizes so I don't look like I'm wearing floods.)

Fortunately, the shops where we are buying DD's things don't really lean "tween" in their bigger sizes, so we're able to hang onto the little kid look for a few years yet! (No "sassy" sayings, not a ton of glitter, clothing is cut modestly, etc.)

And citymama - ABSOLUTELY there with you on that!! One of DD's & my favorite dresses from this past summer was a size 4T with diaper cover ... and by the time it was warm enough outside for her to wear it, she was completely out of diapers.

[boolady]

And citymama - ABSOLUTELY there with you on that!! One of DD's & my favorite dresses from this past summer was a size 4T with diaper cover ... and by the time it was warm enough outside for her to wear it, she was completely out of diapers.

DD wore the diaper covers, for a very long time, in lieu of bike shorts or monkey bar buddies over her unders, at least the solid color ones that were dark. Just an idea. :)

[lizzywednesday]

DD wore the diaper covers, for a very long time, in lieu of bike shorts or monkey bar buddies over her unders, at least the solid color ones that were dark. Just an idea. :)

If she'd cooperate, totally brilliant, but she threw a hissy when I told her she had to wear underpants under them, so I hid them in her closet.

I actually bought her coordinating boy-short style underpants from H&M for more coverage under dresses instead - longer lifespan and she doesn't confuse the diaper cover with underpants.

[AnnieW625]

DD wore the diaper covers, for a very long time, in lieu of bike shorts or monkey bar buddies over her unders, at least the solid color ones that were dark. Just an idea. :)

:yeahthat: although I don't recall ever seeing a 5t outfit with a diaper cover even at Gymboree, but it should be an option because some kids are just big. A year ago there was a girl in DD2's mom n me gym class and she was taller and stockier, probably 40" tall and 35-40lbs. vs. DD2 who was 36" tall and maybe 30lbs fully clothed and so I asked the mom when the girl turned 3 and the mom said oh she is 2, turns out she was two weeks younger than DD2 and she ended up giving us a bunch of clothes this girl had outgrown and most if them were size a size 4 so the girl was into size 5 clothes and not potty trained.