January 2012 Moms
shamilton223
member
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First Pair of Shoes
shamilton223
member
When DS was a tiny baby and didn't like shoes I thought it would be wise to fight that battle when he started walking. It seemed a long way off at the time. Yesterday we went and bought DS's first pair of shoes. Guess what? He still doesn't like them. I posted about it on a blog I write. Anyone else having this problem. Any advice?
https://ubtmotherhood.blogspot.com/2012/12/ugly-first-pair-of-shoes-epic-fail.html
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Re: First Pair of Shoes
Try a different pair.
DD was a barefoot baby until earlier this week. She has had two pairs of UGGs that I put on her when we go out in public when it is cold outside, but she never wore them inside which is where she does the majority of her walking. Last week our DCP asked that she start wearing shoes full time at DC because she will move to the toddler room in a few weeks where shoes are required. The UGGs were too hot for her to wear inside while playing all day.
Long story short, we went shoe shopping last weekend. I tried several pairs of shoes on her and some of them would have her screaming before I even got the second one on. Finally, I put a pair on her and she didn't scream. We bought those, and now she carries them to me to put them on her and fusses when I take them off. I imagine it is much like our own shoes - some feel good and some don't.
I think you should abandon the shoes you have for LO and get different ones.
Duke's House: Eating and Running with the Big Dog in Chennai: eatrunbrit.com
2010 Race PRs:
5K - 24:57 10M - 1:28:20 13.1M - 1:57:29 26.2M - 4:28:29
I've probably given this rant here before, but I used to work in a shoe store with pediatrists. They told me that it's healthiest to let young children walk barefoot until they are walking in public places that need shoes. Even then, keep them barefoot at home. Unless your DS is walking with you when you're out, I'd say keep the shoes off.
My DS isn't walking yet, so I just put thick socks on him when we go out to keep him warm. When he's stable enough to walk with me in public, I'll probably look for a soft sole that's thick enough to protect his feet. I'll likely resist using a hard sole until he really needs the protection when he walks/runs.
That's what I thought, too!
Thanks everyone for sharing thoughts...
Just to update: When I picked up DS from daycare on Friday, he was still wearing his shoes! They said that he must have just forgotten that they were on. He seemed to be walking better in them. We haven't had a major meltdown over shoes since Friday morning. I'll call this my Christmas miracle.
I understand the point that a couple of folks made about letting children walk barefoot until absolutely necessary. In fact, I even tend to agree with that theory. That was my reasoning behind going to buy Stride Rite brand shoes as they are supposed to be designed to mimic barefoot walking. Otherwise there is no way that I could pay $40 for a pair of shoes I know he'll out grow in a few months.
I'm afraid we are long overdue shoes being a necessity. We live in the southeast and tend to have some exceptionally mild winter days throughout the entire season. The daycare DS attends is required by the state to give children 45 minutes of outside play time a day when the weather is within certain limitations (this week for instance our highs are in the 60s). DS loves to play outside and cruise along the fence. But even in great winter weather, socks were just not enough protection for his little feet. The grass in shady spots almost never fully dries out during the winter so his feet would get wet. It seemed preferable to put on shoes than to go with wet feet or miss his outside play time.
It didn't seem fair to ask the daycare workers to fight this battle with him on a day-to-day basis. So, we just opted to wear shoes throughout the day. It's probably safer considering the fact that he's in a room with kids as old as 3. Little ones might not always watch where they are headed and might step on his little toes once he really starts walking. Added protection on the top of the foot I'll call a bonus. For the record, we still go barefoot at home as much as possible.
Thanks again for the input. It's always helpful to hear what other mommies think.
My baby doesn't have shoes yet - I don't see the point if he's not walking.
But for the older kid, when he started walking we got him the Stride Rite early walker shoes that are SUPER flexible. Everything I've seen says to put something on them that is as close to barefoot as possible (if they can't actually go barefoot) to allow for proper foot development.
Also get socks withOUT grippies on the bottom, because the grippy stuff irritates their little feet.
good to know!