These shoes CANNOT be for my child, can they?
Self-denial.
This post was supposed to be written last summer, but I got sidetracked. Or it could be that I simply did not want to deal with reality.
Up till this summer, I still ordered shoes for my oldest from Lands’ End, BOYS department. I buy almost everything online not wanting to go shopping with my boys in tow, ever, yes, including shoes for everybody even myself. Lands’ End only makes shoes for BOYS up till Size 7. Anything larger falls under MEN’s department. My boy was wearing Size 7 then. He never complained about them being too small. I never gave it any thought either because I wear size 8.5, and of course, his feet were smaller than mine. Right?
We went into the sporting goods store with my husband one night. At the sight of the bargain-bin sneakers, my husband suggested that we get new shoes for our son. He asked one store employee to measure my son’s feet.
“What size are you wearing?” He asked.
“Size 7.” I answered since the other two did not seem to have any clue.
“Yah… Let me see.” The man took one look at my son’s feet and shook his head in disagreement. He proceeded with the metal instrument. “Size 9. He is a size 9!” He said it with too much glee, if you ask me.
“No. It can’t be! He is still wearing size 7 shoes. Look at these!” I picked up the shoes from the floor and shoved them in his direction.
“No, ma’am. He is a size 9. And in fact, I’d recommend that you buy him shoes in Size 9.5 to give his toes more wiggle room.”
I sat down on the bench in the middle of the aisle. Dejected. Surprised by how emotional I was feeling towards this. THIS.
Still clueless, My husband chuckled. “A size 9. Whoa!” He slapped my son on his still-bony shoulder. Turning towards me, “I think you are scaring the guy!” He whispered loudly.
I bet he was indeed scared: He walked away quickly when I burst into tears.
My son’s feet, upon their release from BOYS’ shoes, have been growing quickly. He is now wearing size 10.5.
BUT he is still one of my two grade school kids. At least until this June. And he is still about a head shorter than I am. Probably not for long now, I know even though I am not sure I am ready. When the day comes I hope I won’t be caught off guard like my shoe store revelation.
It’s amazing how kids grow! And I totally get how sad it is when your son’s feet get bigger… I feel sad each time Nathan outgrows a size in clothes!
.-= Jen @ NathanRising´s last blog…Yet Another Shower Mishap =-.
If I didn’t know better I would say you were trying to practice foot binding with your son.
.-= Unknown Mami´s last blog…I Comment Therefore I Am =-.
Indeed! LOL.
I feel ya! Miss D. is in 2nd grade and her feet are only 1/2 a size smaller than mine! Already!!
.-= TheKitchenWitch´s last blog…Shrink-My-Ass-Month: Salmon with Ginger-Soy Butter =-.
No way. You have some petite feet then. Wow. Imagine all the bargain shoes you get to buy! They are always in the Lilliputian sizes!
I am amazed at my youngest daughter’s feet – they are nearly the same size as her older sister.
Hopefully they’ll stop somewhere ladylike though, and not end up with feet as big as their father!
.-= pixielation´s last blog…Teddy Bears – like currency, only furrier =-.
I have never been able to find shoes my size easily in Taipei. My dad used to joke that he would just buy two boats for me. (Like I said, I really do love my family. Don’ worry.)
My son was the same way. He would never complain that his shoes were too small. A trip to the shoe store and he’d be up two sizes or more. What the heck? “Weren’t they too small?” I’d ask him. “They were fine,” he’d say. This is why they need moms.
Save money. Silver lining. 😉 That’s what I am trying to tell myself…
I am bemused by my girls’ feet as well.
.-= honeypiehorse´s last blog…Mazel Tov! (Hope that means thanks…) =-.
I imagine that with girls it’s even worse: My boys have one pair of shoes each. And snow boots. We buy them new shoes when they outgrow them. I assume girls need more than one pair of shoes. LOL. That may count towards child abuse? 😉
I gave you a little gift over at my blog…because you are special.
.-= A Vapid Blonde´s last blog…I Love Your Blog…the Chick Edition. =-.
Get ready, because very shortly, you will be feeling like you are buying shoes every two months. Those feet will never fail to amaze you at the rapid rate they can grow! His height will follow, and every month it will seem that the brand new pants that you just bought…are already clam diggers.
.-= Velva´s last blog…Blueberry Buttermilk Cake =-.
Speaking of clam diggers… LOL. Boys don’t seem to care, do they? My son was wearing “high water pants” and didn’t even notice. Finally my husband said to me, “Please throw those pants away to make sure that he cannot get his hands on them.”
If it makes you feel any better at all, my husband and I bought his dad some running shoes for his birthday. He keeps talking about how he wears a 9 … or maybe a 9 1/2. He gets measured for shoes and he has one foot that’s a 10 and one foot that’s a 10 1/2, so the guy brings out an 11 and it fits perfectly! A grown … 54 year old man … who doesn’t even know his shoe size! I wonder how long he’s been walking around thinking that his feet were just getting fatter.
.-= LittleMissEnglishTeacher´s last blog…Another rant about something maternity related … =-.
Oh my. I feel so sorry for his feet! We women tend to wear too small shoes ’cause we want to fit into the glass slippers so to speak. LOL. What’s his excuse??!! Poor feet…
Adorable! I cry when my husband outgrows his belts, too. That’s probably not the same thing but it’s all I have to offer.
.-= Elly Lou´s last blog…Fingernail Sweat =-.
LOL.
Oh my gosh. I just laughed so hard about your husband being excited about his big feet : ) So funny : ) You just gotta love boys, dontcha? : ) Kaishon only likes shoes that he can slip into… Do you know how hard it is to find shoes like that? Oh. Boy!
.-= Life with Kaishon´s last blog…3,650 days. 3,650 magical days. =-.
We have the same issue here: HATES shoelaces. I know the pain of finding slip-on ATHLETIC shoes. UGH. My 7 yo still wears Velcros…
Oh boy do I understand the misery of a child’s feet being bigger than the parent’s. I’ve gone through this heartbreak for the past couple of years. My Son is 12 now (13 in a month), and is wearing a size 10! I wear an 8.5 women’s, which I think is equivalent to a size 7 men’s? He’s had bigger feet than me for years now! And I went through the same emotions when I first learned his were bigger than mine. 🙁 The docs say he’ll be over 6 feet tall. I’m 5’2″ on a really good day, and his father is maybe 5’8″. We don’t know where he’s getting his size, both our families are considerably short.
.-= Shelli´s last blog…First they came … =-.
Lucky in the gene pool! That’s one of the best things you can give your child! 🙂
Awwwww! Every time my kids get new shoes, I think they look ridiculously huge. And my niece’s feet grew 3 sizes in one summer (which was fun for me because I got some of her barely worn hand-me-downs). If there is a way to prevent these sweet children from growing, please let me know. I can’t bear it either.
Forget not wanting to spam y’all with emails. This is much easier to just reply directly to each comment. Plus, I do enjoying DOUBLING the count of my comments. WIN WIN!
Once they are out of diapers, we want them to stop growing. I guess it’s sort of our fault for not making up our sweet mind from the beginning… 😉
I can sympathize. my son wore a man’s size 10 in 5th grade. We thought he’d be 7 feet tall. But his feet stopped growing, and he topped out about 6′ and size 11 😀
.-= Sherry Gray´s last blog…sherisaid: RT @submom: sayz: Shoes http://bit.ly/8ZiCwi =-.
Sherry! Thank you for stopping by. How are you doing m’lady? Thanks for letting me know. Now I don’t have to worry about making him a new bed… 😉