How many shoes does a child need?!
This is not a trick question. It's a plea for sanity.
A pair for school, a pair for parties. A pair of trainers (that's tennis shoes for you yanks). Slippers. Oh yeah, and wellies. Sandals for the summer. That should just about cover it. Tops six pairs of footware per child.
I have three children. So why the heck do I have 82 PAIRS of shoes in the children's wardrobe? This doesn't count the 13 pairs of "in use" shoes that clutter our entry way. And I won't even go into how many I have, though this does make me curious and I might go count them.
I was cleaning out the children's wardrobe the other day. Don't get the wrong idea, this is a job that only happens once a year at most. It's an expensive job. I buy my mother a ticket to come over from California. Her reward? Help me go though mountains of stuff. Mom was over recently and that is how I discovered the obscene amount of girls' shoes I have hoarded over the years.
These shoes are of all states and sizes as well. Most don't even fit my three-year-old anymore. Some don't fit my six-year-old yet. Several have only been worn by one child, because I had forgotten about their existence.
I have no idea the origin of some of the shoes. I have purple velvet ones, black Mary Janes, a pair of pink Stride Rite's with orange polka dots that are spotless. I have blue Van's that have seen better days, I even have a pair of worn pink Princess trainers with sand in them! Yikes. I'm sure most of these shoes have been shipped back and fourth between the US and UK several times.
Why? Why can't I just give them to Oxfam or Sue Ryder or in some cases, just throw them away? Because when you start to off load your children's old shoes and clothes, you have accepted that your babies are GROWING UP.
I approached an unsuspecting mother at school with an adorable two-year-old girl, and told her that I had "a few shoes" that may fit her daughter. Would she want them?
She came by, and I immediately thrust a large bag of shoes her arms. And then I offered her an even larger bag of used girls' clothing.
I have no idea if she wanted them, but I sure feel better.
Photo credit: trepelu
