Now that I’m dressing a second boy I’m discovering that it’s not all hand-me-downs and sloppy seconds, especially in the shoe department.

My oldest son who is two has particularly long and narrow feet. After spending his infancy in Robeez and various novelty pairs of shoes, I.e., Frye boots, Jack and Jills, I went to the brand I trusted for his foray into walking – Stride Rite. Stride Rite carries lots of really sweet European looking models and they fit his narrow foot really well. His first pair was a 5.5! I love Stride Rite – great quality, lots of style choices and kid-friendly. I’ve discovered a small online boutique in Midlothian for his dress shoes (www.tootsiesstriderite.com). I insist that he has a pair saddle shoes for special occasions, and I’ve found Willet’s fit his foot well, but they run awfully big so I always order down a size and a half. He also has Tevas and Keens (the Newport) for summer. I worried the Keens would be a little wide for his foot but he loves them and never complains, therefore, we have at least three pairs. I tried a pair of Simples but they weren’t very “I’m in a hurry” friendly (read: they have laces). Also, despite their hideousness, the crocs have served us well, plus he can decorate them with silly pop on cartoon thingys. And they’re the first shoe he has been able to put on and remove by himself.

My second son is 27 pounds and 30 inches long at seven months. Holy and moly. I’ve recently started thinking about shoes for his feet as he is becoming more mobile, working on his military crawl. Now before the “barefoot is best” crowd starts burning me at the stake, I invite you to explore my 200 year old unfinished floors on your hands and knees and let me know how many splinters you end up obtaining. First I tried the old Robeez but they were too tight on the ankles, even the fishermans sandal. Then I tried my first son’s starter pair of stride rites, but in addition to being slightly big, they were too hard. I do want him to feel the floor as he’s learning to walk. This brings me to the shopping point. I read review after review on diapers, amazon, zappos, etc. I decided to try a pair of See Kai Run ‘Smaller’, a pair of stride rites and one pair of Nowali sock moccasins. Believe it or not, the best price turned out to be on diapers, plus free shipping. The SKR sandals are perfect for his fat, long foot and the moccasins are also a great fit, however, the stride rites are too slender from top to bottom. Bummer. I have a lot of stride rites with no home now thanks to my skinny firstborn. On the other hand, I love exploring the world of baby stuff and finding new treasures to share with other moms. That’s my 2 cents. I’d love to hear any suggestions for shoes for extremely fat footed babies.

Update: the SKR ‘Smaller’ shoe is actually too tight for his fat foot, also. Looks like sandals for the summer…