Gail, it may be my monitor, but the color of your Julia Child looks nothing like mine. Yours seems to be almost apricot while mine has a distinctly golden yellow tone when the flowers are young, and then becomes much paler, like yours. I can't believe how floriferous your bush is. Mine is still recovering from a gopher root pruning last year, which left me with less than half a bush. Mine was about 3 x 4 when it was still intact. Ingrid

Mariou, What region of the country are in? Most California rosarians do not have to deal with the rampant black spot typical in my zone 6b garden. Their biggest problem is mildew. If you garden in the Mid-Atlantic, for example, you will have to contend with the worst fungal pressures in the country. Roses that are completely clean - no spray - in places like Petaluma CA will defoliate elsewhere. I do not have Julia Child but I have grown Happy Child for years. It is pretty little rose, approximately 2.5 feet tall with an loose, open growth habit. Good repeat bloom and truly lovely flowers. Fragrance is moderate to strong, and Tea-like. The foliage is rather unusual looking, resembling spinach leaves. In my region black spot can be a problem but is resistant to other fungal diseases. To prevent defoliation you would have to spray it with a fungicide every two weeks to control the black spot. About my only real complaint is the vigor. Without disbudding during years one and two, an own root plant will limp along never maturing. It is also a wee bit more sensitive to the cold than your typical English Rose. I lost one during a particularly cold winter, which I quickly replaced in the spring. You would too if you ever saw the blossoms. The yellow color is extremely pure without any secondary tones. Very few roses combine fragrance with such clear, canary yellow color. You can purchase an own root plant of HAPPY CHILD online from Heirloom Roses. Good luck, Patrick

You can probably stick w/ the 3T's, esp. for the first part of the summer, unless she's a kind of chubby kid. But if she's pretty lean, those 3T's will last her for most of the summer. The thing w/ shorts is, they've usu. got elastic waists, plus they're made w/ room, bcs of diapers and the manufacturers making them roomy to fit the rounder kids. So kids can wear stuff for a while, in terms of how big around it is. It's the HEIGHT that they grow out of quickly. Shorts that are shorter this year than last, don't look funny. (Pants do, but shorts don't) They're only an inch or so shorter on the kid than before, so it doesn't matter too much. Shirts can be a problem, also because of height--my lean kids always could still fit inside their shirts, but the shirts started to get too short. My kids always wore their shorts for 2 years.

I agree, unless this little guy is big for his age, I would buy him 18mos....especially if you are going with an outfit, pre made/presized. Now on the other hand- if you pick and chose pieces/coordinates and put it together yourself, which is what I always like to do, then I would say get the shirt in a 24mos and the pants in 18mos... My son wears bigger tops than bottoms! It is REALLY important to buy pants that will at least CLOSE To fit, otherwise it's a danger for a running, walking, toddling toddler!! Pants can be rolled up, but it never looks good and sometimes the waists are too large, which is an even worse problem! If I buy outfits for my 17mos old son, size 24mos, he won't be able to wear the pants for many months-since he wears 12/18mos bottoms! Personally I would try to avoid buying an "outfit" and piece a great outfit together yourself, catering each piece of clothing to the child...you can gage each item on looks...some size 12mos run the same as a 18mos, even a size 2t can look like a 5t!! Your eye is sometimes your best judge! Worst case scenario, your friend can return the item if it doesn't fit! Keeping in mind, like the other posters said, growth slows down A LOT after they hit the 12mos size mark..my son is now almost 18mos...wearing clothes from 12mos-24mos, even many 2 and 3t tops..yet 18mos pants and he is average size! ~Happy Shopping! ~JEN.