only the best...

I have terrible feet. They're flat, I had surgery on the one which left me with a screw in one place and a shortened second toe, and they're downright ugly. There was no chance in hell for me to ever be a foot model.

This has made me incredibly protective of Alexis' tootsies. I recognize that much of what's wrong with my feet is structural and was probably set before I even came to be. Ultimately, such concern for my child's feet comes with a price.

It started with the pedipeds. These moccasin-esque pink darlings were said to be podiatrist recommended and stood behind the motto of "barefoot is best." $25 later they came in the mail and Alexis was a proud owner of her first designer shoes.

It was inevitable that she'd outgrow them in a short period of time. About 2 weeks ago, the time came for me to research the hell out of what her next pair should be. Would it be another pair of pedipeds? What about some Robeez? Oh but wait, maybe Stride Rite? Since I wasn't sure what her size was, we trekked out to King of Prussia to the Stride Rite store to get her measured.

After we determined that she's a size 6, it was time to look around to see what they had. Wouldn't you know, it was buy one get one half price? I, of course, was therefor required to buy two pairs. And two pairs I bought. The critical piece for me was that they have soles that were incredibly flexible - ones that were meant for early walkers. Also, she's a size "wide" - important to make sure that her feet don't pudge out all over. Both of these can also cost "extra" if you will.

First, we have a stylish pink and silver sneaker with white laces. (click here). In addition to being cute and flexible, they're completely washable, are antimicrobial, and leather (with silver mesh). The other pair are super special (click here). These are SRT - sensory response technology. Love the sound of that.

In the end, I spent way too much on two pairs of kids shoes. My ultimate total was $68. I'm counting on Jamie not keeping up with my blog and not seeing what I just wrote. Call me crazy, but the last thing I want is for me little one to have nasty-ass feet like mine.

slacker...

Hi all,

This is my official apology for being MIA for 2 weeks. I blame the crazy winter weather. Not sure why I consider that a viable excuse, but go with it.

Look for a new post in the next few days!

Thanks everyone,

Jessica

the new 'do...

Some children have hair that comes in gradually. Alexis, on the other hand, has hair that reached past her shoulders by the ripe old age of 17 months. As her hair continued to grow, it came in straight forward with no part to speak of. The poor child was constantly looking through her bangs. I finally decided to trim the bangs (quieting the very persistent complaints from Omi who threatened to take the scissors into her own hand and do it herself). I did that a couple of times, but the rest continued to grow until we had a lovely mullet on our hands. So what is a mother to do?

I called my salon to schedule an appointment and also to inquire into how much exactly a toddler cut would cost. The day and time of the appointment was clear - the cost was not. Apparently it all depended on the stylist. I love my stylist and I'm pretty sure she doesn't hate me, so I was hoping it would be reasonable. I booked a time for late morning, a time when she's typically well rested.

The day of the cut, I made sure I had a nice big zip-lock baggie of "poofs" for her to munch on. When we arrived, we were greeted by plenty of "aw she's so cute"s. Abby assessed her hair, we talked about what we wanted to do, and off to the chair we went. We had some options. Should Alexis sit on my lap? How about stand on the chair? Or of course what about the booster seat? The lap seemed limiting, standing seemed dangerous, so let's give the booster seat a go.

Alexis wasn't quite sure what to make of it, particularly when the big drape came out and wrapped around her tiny neck. We pulled her little arms out so that she could reach for the yummy "poofs". And so it began. When we needed her to look down, we moved the baggie of poofs down. When we needed her to look up, we moved the baggie up. When it came time for bangs, Alexis just sat quietly and watched as the shiny scissors snipped away.

At one point, Abby needed to spray Alexis' hair to get some of the static out of it. As it spray misted around her, Alexis seemed indifferent but curious. She was probably most concerned that we were getting hairspray on her poofs. We checked to make sure everything was even, and "tah dah", we were done. Not a single freak-out!

While I'm not 100% sure I love it, she definitely doesn't have bangs in her eyes anymore and the mullet is no more. The whole thing only cost $12, which is nothing compared to an adult cut. Even better was that they considered her a new client, which meant that I "referred her" (as if she had a choice whether to come or not.) That meant my next cut was free and Alexis gets $5 off her next cut. Sounds good to me!

And so we begin the never ending necessary primping and grooming that comes along with being a woman. This is the beginning of the end.

PS - I was offered a small envelope into which I could place a bit of the hair for remembrance. Other moms might think I'm crazy, but eeww. Thanks, but no thanks.