First shoes

Last week, I took my one-year-old son on an adventure – shoe shopping!  Sadly the browsing and purchasing of shoes was not for me, oh no, but for Dexter.  The need for the outing was obvious and not before time; we had reached that ‘first shoes’ milestone where socks or comfy slippers no longer cut the mustard with Dexter being 15-months-old and now firmly on his feet at all times, even wanting to walk outdoors.

With Sophia safely at Pre-School, off Dexter and I went on our little jaunt.  I’m of the opinion that first shoes are a big deal and not just because it’s another sign that your baby is growing up far too quickly.  I believe it’s important to visit a reputable retailer to get those little feet measured and buy a proper fitting pair that will support growing feet.  So, where did we go?   I’ll give you three guesses.  Which shop do you think of first when it comes to buying shoes for children?  Yep, you guessed it, we went to Clarks.

Now, Claire who blogs over at Chapters of Claire hasn’t had a great time of it lately with Clarks and has vowed never to shop with them again.  I must admit, her experience has been downright disgraceful and if I’d read her story before going on my shopping trip, I’d probably have bypassed Clarks in favour of someone...anyone else.  But I didn’t so I didn’t.

Actually, the reason I went straight to that particular retailer was solely because of the experience I had when buying my daughter’s first shoes.  She was 13-months-old and we were on holiday on Cornwall.  Sophia had been walking since one week before her first birthday and her confidence was growing in that she wanted to toddle rather than be pushed along the pavement.  I spotted a Clarks store so we dived in and enquired about shoes.  Sophia’s feet were measured and we were told they were so dinky she couldn’t fit into any walking shoes.  So, we had to opt for ‘crawlers’ instead but she absolutely loved them.

Back to present day and it was Dexter’s turn.  As it was a weekday, the Clarks concession inside our local Mothercare store was empty, allowing Dexter a full and attentive audience with the store assistants.  Much cooing and some feet measuring followed.  Considering Sophia was a size two when she had her first shoes (and is just about a size six nowadays), you can probably imagine my surprise when I was told Dexter was a size four already!

Out came boxes upon boxes of shoes and Dexter tried them all on.  He didn’t show the slightest bit of interest in any of them, preferring instead to grab at the teenage-sized shoes instead, so it was left to me to make the choice.  What do you think?



So that’s it, the ‘first shoes’ have been bought.  Another milestone over.  I find these moments can be bittersweet; it’s so wonderful to see your child grow and develop yet sometimes I can’t help wondering where my little baby has gone.

As for Dexter, he couldn’t care less about any of that.  He just wants to be on the move.  His new shoes mean give him more freedom to come and go between the house and garden as he pleases.  His shoes are most certainly made for walking but, unlike the song, I’m hoping he won’t walk all over me...well, not all the time anyway.

How did you feel when you had to buy those first shoes for your little one?  Was it a big occasion?