Children's Shoes

Dd is nearly 15 months old, she has been walking since 10 months. Whenever we go out i put shoes on her for obvious reasons.

I have been using the soft soled shoes, skeenies, etc. She loves them and walks fine in them.

Thing is she has a large foot and i worry if we are at a park etc the soft soles dont offer enough protection. I have tried her in some normal soled shoes and she wont move. She acts like she is stuck in mud and eventually sits down and pulls them off. Funny, but not helpful lol.

Any suggestions on what to do or try? What age should they start using a structured shoe? will it just take practice for her?

The longer you can stay in flat, flexible soles the better. We buy pediped shoes for the kids because even in the larger, more structured sizes they have pretty flexible soles and I buy the flat soled shoes.

My kids were in soft soled shoes for ages (DS still is) as they had/have tiny feet and walked at 9 & 10mths.
Feet are hardy things I wouldn't worry too much I used to never wear shoes as a kid. But to get used to shoes just put them on when she's inside to let her get a feel of them, start with short amounts of time and then increase it. Walking towards something they want always works ;)

Thanks meow, i had never heard of them. They have some nice styles too (looked them up ;))

So they still provide enough protection for playing outside etc?

I had a laugh at the sitting down and pulling them off, that sounds cute :) Personally I'd keep her in the soft soled shoes for as long as she fits them and you can get them. They're better for her feet and development as they let her walk naturally - a thick sole on a tiny foot won't move so she won't be walking as she would barefoot.

I go barefoot as much as possible, and so does DD, we only wear shoes outside. It feels so much better than having big clunky shoes on all the time! There's also a thread around here somewhere about how constantly wearing shoes can damage your feet, and the type that you wear. If I find it I'll link it.

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Thanks meow, i had never heard of them. They have some nice styles too (looked them up ;))

So they still provide enough protection for playing outside etc?

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My kids have big feet so they're in the flex shoes and the soles are pretty much like regular shoes, they just have some ridges in them so they move with your foot more than a really stiff sole.

I love Betts Airflex for littlies. DD2 has the cutest silver pair of casual Mary Janes which have sparkles across the front. She's had them for ages now and they're still going strong and she's 20 months. The sole is soft and flexible but firmer than the really soft baby Skeanies. We also have Skeanies in the toddler range which were DD1's. they are soft pink Mary Janes and so gorgeous.

I also find Target's toddler range generally pretty good as the soles are usually flexible.

DD is 18 months and we have some suede soft soles. They are fine on her but no good for wet weather!

What in particular are you concerned about protecting feet from?

DD2 still rarely ever wears shoes and she's 19mo (been walking since 10months too). My mum keeps on at me about it so I have been feeling a bit slack but I don't exactly understand the concern either. So far we have had no issues and we are down at the park most days. To be honest I'm more likely to put her in shoes for a trip to a restaurant than the park lol. Not to derail the thread but is there something I should be worried about?