Many parents want to know how tall their baby’s will be when they are born. There are many ways to guess, and sometimes you will get pretty close, but nothing is guaranteed and often your baby will end up several inches taller or shorter than the estimates just because of genes and the changing environment.

Double the Inches
Some people believe that you can double the inches of your two year old to determine how many inches they will be when they are at full adult height. If this was the case and your baby was 36 inches at two years old, then they would be 72 inches as an adult, or six feet.

Growth Charts
In many cases you can go by the growth charts to get a general idea. By the age of two your baby’s growth patterns should have stabilized enough that you can look at their chart and see if they fall more on the small side, average side, or high side of the chart. If they fall on the small side, they will probably be on the smaller side for adults. If they are in the 90% as a two year old, then they will probably be a tall adult.

The Formula
There is actually a formula some go by that can be pretty accurate. It says to add up the parent’s height and divide by two to get the average. Then for a girl subtract 2.6 inches and for a boy add 2.6 inches. That means that if mom is 67 inches tall and dad is 73 inches tall, making the total 140 inches, the average is 70 inches. This would make their daughter approximately 5′6″ tall and their son approximately 6′0″ tall. This is not always accurate however because it is possible that a girl might get a short grandmother’s gene as her dominate gene, making her shorter than the formula states she would be.

Nothing is exact; after all it is all science. Everything is just the expert’s best guesses on how your child will grow through puberty and into adulthood.

Your baby is growing and growing fast. The average baby weighs approximately 7 ½ pounds at birth when born at 40 weeks. Obviously, since most babies are not born at 40 weeks, babies are born at various different sizes. Non-preemie babies can be anywhere from five pounds on the low side to 11 pounds on the high side when they are born. The good thing about babies is that no matter what size they are when they are born — they will all grow, and during the first year will go through several growth spurts.

Growth spurts are normal in both breastfed and bottle fed babies. It may however be a little more noticeable in babies who are breastfed because it would be felt more by mom. She would have to nurse more frequently in order to build up her milk supply to satisfy her baby.

There is no set time for a growth spurt to appear, however there is a generality. A baby’s body is not a clock but they will generally go though a growth spurt between 7-10 days old, around three weeks, six weeks, three months, four months, six months and nine months. Most of the weight they gain during the first two years will be gained during this time and they will also grow in inches.

Growth spurts are less frequent after the first year but they still occur. Your baby will probably gain more in inches than pounds after their first birthday. Through out the toddler years and into adolescence however you will notice growth spurts.

Growth spurts generally only last 2-3 days, but can sometimes last as long as a week. During a growth spurt it is important to follow your baby’s lead. When he seems hungry, feed him. While still young be prepared to nurse more or offer more bottle of formula. If breastfeeding have a bottle of breast milk prepared and waiting to top your baby off if he still seems hungry after a nursing session is complete.

As a nursing mom you may also feel more hunger or thirst while your baby is going through a growth spurt. As your baby eats extra calories from you, it is important for you to replenish yourself and keep your energy up. If you are feeling extra hungry or thirsty, eat and drink a little more, but be sure to keep it healthy.