First thing first, we did not set out to get blue shoes for Baby P’s first baby walking shoes and all his other shoes that came after that. But because baby P had rather large feet for his age and other specific considerations I had which I will elaborate in this post, we somehow ended up with this spread of entirely blue pairs of shoes that you see in the photo. Oh well.
So, about baby shoes, we start by understanding that:
Walking barefoot is currently advised as very important for the baby’s development.
… shoes can provide too much support and can possibly limit the child’s muscle and gait development. The bottom line is that a child should be barefoot as much as possible until he or she is about two years of age.
Oss, L. V. (2014, April 26). The great debate: What should babies wear on their feet when learning to walk? North Shore Pediatric Therapy. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
Walking barefoot was not an issue since we are barefoot all the time at home .
But I was also very much influenced by the literature that I was reading which were advocating as much outdoor time as possible for young children.
Outdoors. Where there are lots of dirt, dust, litter and sharp objects/fragments left around even in places like the playground. Not that safe to go barefoot.
So getting baby’s first walking shoes became a priority.
What criteria should we apply to select a good pair of baby’s first walking shoes for Little P?
Well, certainly a pair of baby walking shoes that will give Little P the experience of walking as close to barefoot as possible.
When choosing shoes for your toddler, the best shoes will be flat and will be made of cloth or leather. A flexible sole will minimize tripping. Cloth and leather will allow your child’s feet to breathe and decrease excessive sweating.
OSS, L. V. (2014, APRIL 26). THE GREAT DEBATE: WHAT SHOULD BABIES WEAR ON THEIR FEET WHEN LEARNING TO WALK? NORTH SHORE PEDIATRIC THERAPY. RETRIEVED SEPTEMBER 28, 2021.
We were quite sure we wanted Little P to try the shoes before we buy, so online shopping was out for us. This was the pair of shoes we bought in the end.
Baby’s first soft sole baby walking shoes – Bobux for Newborn and Pre-walkers
Size Large, about 14cm long.
Bobux is a New Zealand brand. You can read about Bobux soft sole shoes here.
There really wasn’t much of a choice for us. Little P had big feet and this was the only pair of soft sole shoes the shop had that fitted. The box says “L 15-21mth”. Yup, Little P was not 15 but only 11-months-old at the time.
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Little P wore his first pair of baby walking shoes for 8 months, from when he was 11-months-old to 19-months-old. And then it was time to change to a new pair.
Getting my toddler his second pair of shoes
The information I read when researching for Little P’s first shoe seemed to still be applicable for his second pair of shoes.
Rachel @ CanDo Kiddo suggests the following in her email newsletter:
Pretty soon your baby will become a toddler and soft-soled shoes won’t stand a chance against the beating that toddlers dish out. That’s when you’ll look for a toddler shoe with a sole that’s very flexible…
… Look for a shoe with sole you can bend…
Look for a shoe with a sole that twists a little when you wring it out like a wet washcloth.
Coley, R. (2019, November 7). Choose the absolute best shoes for baby.
Unfortunately the popular brands that she named like Robeez, Stride Rite or Pediped did not seem to have any presence in stores locally here that I can bring Little P to try at the time.
So we went back to the same shop where we bought Little P’s shoes the first time. We left and visited another shoe shop on the same floor to see if we have other options. We eventually returned to the original shop and bought this pair of shoes.
Baby P’s 2nd pair of shoes – Biomecanics Sport Ocean Sandals.
Size 25, about 17cm.
Biomecanics is a Spanish brand. You can read more about it here.
Is it flexible?
But it is still more or less bendable. And it does twist a little when I try to wring it.
We had to settle for this pair of sandals because of one main problem that it solves. The little one’s feet were not only large but rather plumb. This pair of shoes had 2 velcro straps that can be adjusted to provide a customised fit, not just at the ankle but also at the front of the foot, which tends to get squeezed. I guess his feet are that broad or plump. Haha.
And can be threaded through and velcro-ed at the desired length.
Velcro straps enable young children’s independence!
Between 21 and 30 months, children are usually ready to start putting on certain types of shoes with assistance. Putting on socks independently takes longer, and typically happens between 36 and 44 months.
Lovevery, T. (2021, March 17). This is how we put on our shoes and socks. Lovevery. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
Velcro straps was definitely a required feature for Little P’s shoes. (Our Bobux had velcro straps for fastening too!) At 23 months, Little P was definitely ready to try wearing his own shoes himself. And velcro fasteners will make this easier for a toddler than laces or buckles.
To an adult these (life skills) tasks may appear very simple… But your child will experience a sense of accomplishment and self-worth when she is able to carry out these activities independently.
Pitamic, M. (2012). Life Skills. In Teach me to do it myself: Montessori activities for you and your child (pp. 13). essay, Barron’s Educational Series.
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Check out this book – Teach Me to Do It Myself- on Amazon. 
It has step-by-step instructions for Practical Life Skills, plus other activities based on the Montessori philosophy. Take “Putting on shoes” for example, this section has 3-step instructions for velcroed shoes and also buckled shoes and laced shoes for when your child progresses to these.
Now back to the sandals. :)
Little P very soon outgrew his Biomecanics sandals in 6 months.
It’s only when I started writing this post that I got educated that wearing the same shoes for 8 and 6 months may be considered quite long for baby shoes. Oops!
A typical toddler will need a new pair of shoes every two to three months until they’re two and a half; after that their rate of growth slows down a little.
1ST 1000 DAYS. (2019, JUNE 25). WHEN AND HOW TO SELECT TODDLER SHOES. NCT (NATIONAL CHILDBIRTH TRUST). RETRIEVED SEPTEMBER 28, 2021.
Little P’s current shoes that he is wearing
So yes, 6 months later (blergh!) we went back to the same store. Gah!
The little one’s 3rd pair – Old Soles Fitz Shoe
Size 27, about 19cm.
Old Soles is an Australian brand. You can read more about their toddler shoes here.
The Old Soles shoe twists a little when I try to wring it too.
If you look at the Biomecanics shoe picture again, it bends more towards the middle, whereas Little P’s pair of Old Soles bends more towards the area between the toes and the middle of the shoe. I am honestly not sure which is better for a toddler.
But if I refer to this article that quoted from Joseph Stern, former president of the Canadian Podiatric Medical Association,
The shoe should flex at the ball of the foot, but the heel counter at the back should be stiff to hold the shoe upright.
Lola Augustine Brown September 5, 2019. (2019, September 16). How to choose the right toddler shoes. Today’s Parent. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
It seems the Old Soles shoe which seem to flex around where the ball of his foot may be is preferable for Little P’s feet now.
Again once we got down to the “shoe needs to be wide enough to fit big, plumb feet”, “shoe must be able to bend”, “shoe must have velcro straps” requirements, there really wasn’t that much of a choice for us. If I remember correctly, it was really just down to a choice of colours and dark Navy just hides dirt better than a lighter colour. Haha.
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Check out more Old Soles kid’s and baby walking shoes on Amazon.
At 32 months old, Little P has also started to wear the shoes on the correct foot they are supposed to be on by himself.
What’s next?
It certainly seems like the right time to get a new pair of bigger size shoes for Little P right now. He’s been wearing this pair of shoes for 7 months now so and when I checked this morning, Little P still has about 1cm of space between the tip of the shoes and his toes but when looking at the breadth of his foot, it does look like the shoe is getting narrow for him.
But we’re not too keen on bringing him out to stores just yet with the current Covid situation. The good thing is we still have a pair of Daiso slippers to fall on. Little P loves this $2 slippers and this is his second pair.
Daiso slippers – Little P’s favourite pair of shoes
Size 18.0, about slightly more than 19cm.
All these shoes and slippers seem to bend differently from each other.
The first pair was a dull green colour that we lost outside. (That’s the downside with slippers, they drop off. Haha.) They are light and bendable and you can easily see if the slippers start to cramp the feet.
I originally bought it for him to wear on our few trips to the beach. Little P loved them so much that he wore them as often as his shoes when going outside for walks or visiting grandparents. It gives him the freedom to go barefoot outside if he suddenly decides he wants to.
I bought the first pair (the one pictured above in green) based on the measurement and they turned out too big!! These slippers I do have to say have sizes BUT are not consistently sized even for the same size so definitely bring a child along to try them out before buying.
Fit & Sizing are crucial since little feet grow too fast! But oh the cost of changing shoes every few months…
Back to the question of his next pair of shoes, I think we have been visiting the same store out of habit and it has worked well for us especially for the first shoe where we had so much trouble looking for a soft sole shoe that fits.
However if “children 2-3 years old grow approximately one-half a foot size every 4 months, and children over 3 years of age experience increases of one-half a foot size every 4-6 months. (source)” then we should really start looking good options at more affordable prices so that costs don’t go up because we are changing shoes more often. :P
I wonder where we can go next…
The much less heralded second pair, and third, and fourth…
Your toddler’s shoe should always have space at the front to allow those tiny toes to wiggle and spread so check that they have this…
… Children’s feet are very flexible and not particularly sensitive, so they seldom complain of areas of pressure or friction. That means you’ll need to check their shoes fit regularly.
… Do keep checking your child’s shoes fit as children’s feet grow super fast until they’re five and their bones need to grow straight. If they’re cramped by tight fitting shoes or socks, your baby’s soft toe bones won’t be able to grow properly.
1st 1000 Days. (2019, June 25). When and how to select toddler shoes. NCT (National Childbirth Trust). Retrieved September 28, 2021.
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Going barefoot works for Donna.