At the recommendation of a few people, I got my 12 month old a pair of Stride Rites. Well, she has worn them twice and both times the shoes leave red marks on her ankles. My husband says they need to be broken in, I say they just don't fit her right. She had been wearing a pair of See Kai Run. She had them trashed after a few wears --all these shoes are designed for walkers, not those toddling, taking 6 or 7 steps to only drop to all fours to go faster! In fact, even the stride rites, after only being worn for a few hours, are scuffed beyond repair. Ignoring the racked for baby gear....should properly fitting shoes need to broken in? Should she have red marks? Or do these shoes just not fit?
This shoe thing is driving me mad. And then, this morning, we lost a soft sole shoe while out running errands. So now I have one pair that don't seem to fit right, another that look terrible, and a pair missing a shoe.
Make sure you get wide width. Shoes shouldnt make her ankles red. I would exchange the shoes from Stride Rite, they are very good about things like that.
I went through the same thing when my now 3 1/2 yr old was younger. In fact I traveled to 5 stores with her barefoot looking for a pair of shoes because the only shoes she liked she lost one of them.
Take the shoes back to stride rite. they have a wonderful return policy. especially if the shoes are causing red marks. we have in fact taken shoes back there months after purchase when they came apart at a seam. they took them back with no hassle at all.
S.
I would say that red marks are definitely not a good thing and kids that young cannot really "break in" shoes or shouldn't need to. I agree with everyone else -return those Stride Rites. The only real way to figure out what works for your daughter is to try different brands because they all vary in fit. For my sons, Gap shoes work well because they are roomy and often not bulky. Also, you can often find them at decent sale prices. My older son also has wide feet and it's hard to find shoes otherwise. My other favorite place to look for shoes is at Nordstrom Rack in Oak Brook. They carry a lot of different brands and they are all on the shelves to try on. People usually rifle through the racks and make a mess, but you can find nice brand name shoes for a good price.
I'm not a Podiatrist, but I'm fairly certain that baby shoes should NOT have to be broken-in!! The last thing a new toddler needs is difficult shoes to manage. Get rid of them immediately. She was probably not measured well. The previous poster suggested taking them back for a different pair, and that sounds like good advice. Ask for a seasoned salesperson to measure her.
Unfortunately, I found that Stride Rites just didn't fit my daughter's feet well. Her foot was not only very wide, but also very thick and padded (from bottom of foot to top of foot). I found a wonderful brand of shoe at Von Maur called "Geox." They are extraordinary shoes that fit her foot so well! They are quite expensive, but I thought she should spend her first walking/running summer in shoes that fit. She's now 3 and her foot shape has changed and thinned. Thankfully, I can now buy her shoes at Target.
