Things We Love: Sparkly Red Shoes

When I was four, I wanted a pair of white go-go boots. I pined for those boots for at least a year. Sometime when I was five, my mom bought them for me. I was in absolute heaven, and wore them everywhere. They were the only (at least that I remember) pair of “non-practical” pair of shoes she ever bought me.

As a mom, I’ve bought dozens of shoes in the past eleven years. Being a veteran of 5 knee surgeries, 6 years of physical therapy and several pairs of custom-made orthotics, it’s important to me that my children’s shoes are well-made and well fit. (Give me the clothes on sale or from consignment stores!) Going to a high-quality shoe store doesn’t leave a lot of money for anything but “practical” on a relatively tight budget.

However, my third baby was a GIRL. And being a shoe lover myself, you can imagine what visions went through my head. When I went to Nordstrom, I was seriously disappointed in the girl’s shoes “cute factor”. So I did what any internet-savvy mom would do – went online.

I found the most adorable line of shoes (from Italy!) called “Jumpin Jacks” and went on a hunt for them. In the process I discovered The Shoe Zoo. The Shoe Zoo is by far my FAVORITE shoe store ever. They only carry shoes for children – from Vans to Geox, and See Kai Run to Stride Rite. And the prices – about the same as Nordstrom.

But the best thing of all – I’ve needed to buy far fewer pairs of shoes from The Shoe Zoo. The owners are so good at fitting my children (they’ll even make shoe suggestions based on the shape of their feet), that the shoes we buy fit longer than I was used to.

I’ve even gone intending to buy new shoes, and instead of taking the opportunity to sell me new ones, they’ve said, “These still fit. Come back in April.”

As for the Sparkly Red Shoes… Natalie had been eyeing them at The Shoe Zoo for about 2 years, and remembering my long-awaited impractical white go-go boots, I finally bought them. And the look on her face made it totally worth it.

But the thing I love? The owner of the store said, “Buy them a size big, and we’ll put special inserts in them for now to make them smaller, and then take them out when her foot grows. You’ll have the shoes longer that way.”

Wow! What great customer service.

-posted by a nostalgic Miss Analiisa, who recommends you to The Shoe Zoo, located at 2920 NE Blakely Street in Seattle. It’ll be worth the trip.