Shoes

One would think that shoes such as these would be anything but problematic. Yes, they might stir emotions or bring back memories, even conjure up a feeling of nostalgia for a parent. But to cause distress, a complete meltdown - not what first comes to mind.

I love to be barefoot. If I have to wear shoes, I prefer flip-flops - anything that lets me still wiggle my toes. Of course, I own a pair of running shoes, but I don't like wearing them - they're too constricting. Being such, I have been a mom who let's my babies go barefoot for most of their 1st year of life. Why put shoes on a baby when they don't even walk? Sure, shoes can be fashionable - especially on little baby girls, but really - what other purpose do they serve? My babies wear socks a lot or go barefoot. After they learn to walk, I'll start putting them in shoes - and I always enjoy watching them learn to walk with shoes on. After going barefoot it's always tricky for them to get used to the extra weight of the shoes.

Seth was my latest walker - didn't get around to actually walking until he was 14 months old. Seth's never worn real shoes in his life - with the exception of Robees (which aren't "real" shoes in my book) and he hasn't worn those since he was about 7 months old. Seth has gone barefoot for longer than any of my other kids. Anyhow, it was rainy and cool today and Levi had his playgroup, so I thought it was time to put shoes on Seth. I pulled out Levi's first shoes that look very much like the ones pictured above. I love those shoes - they're a "classic" baby shoe. Seth does not. The second I put the first sock on, Seth started crying and trying to pull it off. Once I got the first shoe on - it was a complete meltdown. He did not want those shoes on his feet. I could tell he didn't like having his toes all contained in those shoes. But, I had to be a responsible parent - it was cold and wet and he can't go barefoot his entire life. So, the shoes stayed on and he cried. I tried standing him up to see if he could walk with them on. He just collapsed on the floor and cried some more. I picked him up and took him downstairs to get Levi dressed. He continued crying. I tried standing him up and getting him to walk again. He collapsed on the floor in tears again. I'm such a mean mom! But, we had to get through this. I left him lying there in a heap of tears on the floor while I got Levi ready. Seth finally stood up and after tripping a few times and all the while crying, he walked over to me. Yeah! He figured it out. He wasn't happy about it, but he was up and walking (or should I say marching?)

I didn't dare take his shoes off when we got to playgroup - I asked that Seth be allowed to keep the shoes on, I didn't think I'd be able to get them on again once they came off. He stopped complaining about the shoes and carried on with the day. By late afternoon, when all the kids were back from school I finally took his shoes off. You'd think the child had just been released from prison! He wiggled those toes. Held onto his toes. And then, he took off toddling around the house at twice the speed he was moving earlier in the day!

Like I said, I'm a mean mom. The shoes will have to go on again tomorrow. I have a feeling we're going to have a repeat of today.