View Full Version : She won't wear shoes!
BabelFish
23-06-2009, 15:27
... or a hat!
It's getting very cold and wet now, and DD is 11 months old and on the verge of walking. Her entire life she's never, ever worn a pair of shoes (my fault - I've just felt she's never needed to) and now that she is getting to the point where she's going to have to sometimes, she just will NOT!
She points her feet so I can't get them on, and she is ridiculously strong so I can't make her stop pointing them without hurting her. If I can get them on, it doesn't matter what I do, they're off again in minutes. She has been able to work everything out, too - laces, velcro, press studs and buckles.
It's the same with socks - she won't keep them on, either, unless they're the super-duper knee-high ones that are nice and fitted and she can't manage to pull them off by the toes.
She also will not wear a beanie or hat - comes straight off immediately, no matter what. She has a tonne of thick, curly hair which helps keep her warm, but still she needs a beanie sometimes!
So nothing on the feet, nothing on the head! Anyone got any tips? :D
Lil Bugs Mummy
23-06-2009, 16:07
Sorry i don't have any advice but i am going to put a pair of shoes on mine now lol:laughing:
buzzing bee
23-06-2009, 16:15
I would go with the really long ones that you have, I am not a big fan of shoes on babies. Mine wears socks fairly happily. As long as she don't slip over in them I think socks are fine. I think it's pretty normal.
SmileyBJ
23-06-2009, 16:15
Ds use to be the same but to me its like wearing a seatbelt, he doesnt really get the choice, its a safety thing and we all wear hats and shoes when we go out...
When I was 7 I was brought into the dr surgery to watch my father get a 22 stich skin cancer cut out of his back. Hats on heads, shoes on feet in our house no negotiation lol.
Persistance, persistance, persistance. :)
buzzing bee
23-06-2009, 16:20
I think babies that aren't walking yet don't really need shoes to be safe.
BabelFish
23-06-2009, 16:20
Lol! I wouldn't get her to wear them in the house - at her age it's actually bad for their feet and they are far steadier in bare feet, which is also better for them. Her long socks have grips on the bottom and she has no trouble at all balancing in those, and doesn't slip. So they're great for at home. But when we go out, it's a different story. When she's walking anywhere outside of this house she has to have shoes on, and that's that!
I've started her off with slippers and she seems to be going ok with those - they're a bit more solid than socks but not quite so stiff as normal shoes. Once I can finally get them on, and hide the velcro tops under the legs of her suit, then she seems happy to leave them on! Hehe - I'll look for some nice soft pairs of shoes for her, too, to get her used to it. **sigh**
OP my DS was like this when he started walking, I spent $70 on a pair of Clarks for him and he wouldnt wear them, so for about 6m I had him in soft leather shoes to protect his feet when outside, I got mine from Cheeky Little soles.
We went through three pairs and then suddenly he was fine with the Clarks!
2girls&1angelboy
23-06-2009, 16:25
they say its better not to put shoes on them till they are walking comfortably
buzzing bee
23-06-2009, 16:27
My bub is 11mths, not yet walking but trying to and cruises everything. Our house has lots of grass and I am happy for him to be in socks when out. They get dirty and don't look the best but he just wears socks everywhere. It's not overly cold here so I think socks are warm enough most of the time. Having said that, when he is walking majority of time he will have shoes. But most places we go are fairly safe bare feet I think.
Bare feet are recommended until they have started walking for just over a month. It's better development for their feet.
The shoes may not feel comfortable and hinder her walking which is why she may not like them.
You could either persist or just ignore it and one day she'll wear them when she sees other people wear them or when she gets over the fascination of taking them off.
My children did not wear shoes until they were about 14 months old and had no problems with wearing shoes (actually my DS wanted to wear shoes when he saw everyone else wearing them) so maybe in a few months time after your daughter is happy walking comfortably on her own she'll wear shoes then.
BabelFish
23-06-2009, 16:41
That's usually how things have happened for us - she does it when she's ready and not before.
Same thing with a sleeping bag. She's only JUST started sleeping in one happily. At just before 10 months I tried again and she took to it beautifully when only a few weeks before she wouldn't have a bar of it.
Same thing happened with avocado, incidentally. Not that I try to get her to wear that :laughing:
Try some of those soft soled shoes - I got some for my DD from an ebay store for a lot less than you'd pay in stores.
They're elasticised around the top and difficult for them to get off.
Once she is used to having something on her feet you can try regular shoes. My DD is quite happy to wear shoes now, except she does try to take them off if they have velcro straps, although I suspect that has more to do with her liking the noise the velcro makes more than anything else! :laughing:
As you and most of the PP's said, babies should not be in shoes until they are walking properly for a month or so.
They need to be able to feel their feet on the ground for stability and to work their muscles.
Perhaps try pre-walkers with soft soles and make sure the shoes are wide enough for your child’s foot to lie flat, and long enough for a little extra room to wiggle and grow, maybe one-half inch beyond the toes
My DD at that age hated solid shoes but would happily wear soft ones so i brought her the baby dunlop volleys which are soft soled but keep their feet safe, they were the cheapies then i brought her tip toey joey's which were more $$ but last really well.
I brought her 2 new pairs of tip toey joey's this year (biggest size available so they will be her last) and she is still wearing those but will happily wear whatever shoes these days i just like the tip toey's for the flexibilty of movement they allow DD's feet.
EmmasMummy
23-06-2009, 20:11
I have discovered little kids work boots.... can't get them off ...and they look to have nice support and at big w in a bout 10 different colours :) ....and nice and grippy. ... Best shoes ever. ... Also have little joggers but DD sometimes has a bit of trouble in them because they have really thick soles so working out how to stand up again with an extra inch under her foot.
DD used to wear the soft pre walker ones a lot but now she is walking because they don't have proper soles they are actually harder to walk in because they are so slippery
BabelFish
23-06-2009, 20:21
As you and most of the PP's said, babies should not be in shoes until they are walking properly for a month or so.
They need to be able to feel their feet on the ground for stability and to work their muscles.
Perhaps try pre-walkers with soft soles and make sure the shoes are wide enough for your child’s foot to lie flat, and long enough for a little extra room to wiggle and grow, maybe one-half inch beyond the toes
Yes I've thought of that - popping her in a size just a tad bigger.
BTW, your username and tag is awesome. That is DD's name :)
Agree with the pre-walkers! My DS is 14 months and has been walking since 11. I was more than happy for him to stay in socks, but he had to have some sort of shoe on for outdoors activities at FDC. I got a pair of the leather 'tickle's' brand from Myer for about $17 and they've been fantastic...elasticised top which he has difficulty getting off, soft bottom (just enough to stop any issues with sticks and dirt etc - not like they have him playing on gravel anyway) and they look so cute too!
reAllytee
23-06-2009, 22:22
Bare feet are recommended until they have started walking for just over a month. It's better development for their feet.
The shoes may not feel comfortable and hinder her walking which is why she may not like them.
You could either persist or just ignore it and one day she'll wear them when she sees other people wear them or when she gets over the fascination of taking them off.
:iagree:
They dont have fully formed bones in their feet so its much better for them to be shoeless !
Boof wore pre-walkers early as he loved them but did go through a stage of hating them whereas G even now at 22mths is rarely in shoes at home infact if we are ducking down the shops with him in his stroller I still dont bother with them unless he asks. We used pre-walkers for as long as possible as he was more comfortable getting used to them that way when he started to walk because he wasnt keen at all. He is heaps better now but he yells "shooos" when we get in the door for them to be taken off lol ! But is happy to now have them on knowing they are needed for walks & being older he has more of that understanding !!!
I would invest in shoes like pre-walkers otherwise boots that slip on really easily & that bit bigger to make it easier & Crocs !!!! Crocs are my life saver !!!!
My DS didnt want to wear shoes at all, next day he did, now he tries to put them on himself, same thing wiht the hat. But i put it on him then distract him straight away so he forgets its there. I got DS some thongs with a backstrap, they are light and easy for him to walk in. He was 13mths when i started "shoeing" him, now he is 14mths and loves his shoes. :)
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