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.

We just started part-time potty training with my son Isaac (27 months). I worry about making it too big of a deal so I am keeping it very relaxed and low key. I know there are potty-training-Mommy-professionals out there who are snickering, but I thought I would share our experiences thus far.

I bought this lovely “device” called The Freedom Trainer. You can find it online at their website or any retail site like Amazon or Diapers.com. We had a small/portable potty seat, but he likes this toilet better. Why? I believe there are many reasons, but the most important is that Isaac can use the same potty Mommy uses! Our children love to do what we do; cooking (all those toy kitchens out there), cleaning (toy vacuums), etc. I guess even pottying makes the list.

Isaac also love that he can climb up and down on his own, and he relishes that independence! There are handles on the sides to help him feel steady. He’s so confident on it, that when it is time for him to poop (which he has done several times already) he says “bye-bye” to us, to shoo us out of the bathroom. We shut the door, and he uses the potty all by himself. Isaac yells at us when he is done (“help please!”), and he’s so proud of his accomplishment! 

Now, we may have a magical child that is able to be trusted in a bathroom by his lonesome, but I am sure he is not the only one. That is why I thought I would share our new favorite potty with you. Isaac didn’t like the tiny portable potty. He didn’t like the potty books, but he does like the Freedom Trainer! 

I love it because I don’t have to clean out a potty chair. We just flush the toilet and are done!

-posted by Miss Stacey, who hopes potty training will continue to be a breeze (HA!).