See Kai Run

With shoes, silly!

Those of you who have been reading me at Mommies with Style may recall that I have been referred to as “the shoe guru.” I’ll admit, I know exactly where it came from. You see, Whitney and I went up to NYC for our first children’s trade show and I had only one goal in mind: to find toddler shoes for my, then, little guy, aka Middle.

Anyone who’s been to, or can even imagine, a children’s trade show will realize just how many toddler and baby shoes I came across. The market isn’t just full of them, its saturated. I spent the better part of the day learning the ins, outs, bottoms, tops, cuffs, closures… of toddler shoes. Toddler -odiatry was explained to me, time and again. As were breathability and, of course, how unique each shoe was.

I recall getting on the train that afternoon, excited, exhausted and with so much shoe knowledge I couldn’t think of much else. I might have dreamed shoes.

I can’t help but walk into our local shoe boutique to snobbily eye-up all the shoes they have in stock. I love it when my kids are wearing shoes they don’t carry and that I get to introduce them. Admittedly, the fact that I know more than most of their employees and that the manager and I have an ongoing conversation about proper fit and flexibility may be a little much. And just the fact that he knows me so well, that when my husband went over recently to return a pair of socks, he asked how I was doing and where I was, by first name.

The Huz wasn’t sure what to make of that. I mean, he knows Charlie’s not my type, but when Charlie shared the newest brand of baby shoes with him, the Huz was a bit concerned. Was he supposed to just buy them? Charlie was pretty excited to share that See Kai Run had switched to a better leather that won’t scratch. And then he showed the Huz how their Penguin Sneaker Cleaner cleaned his shoes just as well as Middle’s.

Okay. So Charlie may know me pretty well. And my kids, too (okay, just their feet). But he’s a nice guy who gives me leads on sale prices about a week before the sale starts. Of course he’s my friend!

Did I mention that my feet are small enough to fit in the store? Did I mention they’re a kids boutique, but sell brands like UGG and Northface? Suddenly, my little shoe store friendship isn’t so strange, now, is it?

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