Shoe Survey

Somebody's awake – and not going back to sleep – at 5am on Saturday, so I've got a pile of the boys' old shoes. I'm looking at them and wondering why some shoes are so good; why some shoes are so bad, and why we can't find the perfect pair.

These came from Target. These shoes only made it through one child and then his toes were poking out the end. I did the like the elastic laces and velcro closure...

...because I can't get my 5/6 year olds to wear shoes with laces. We've had the shoes below for two kids, and neither child would wear them. Thus, they are in very good condition. I'm clearly a failure when it comes to teaching my kids to tie (and wear!) their shoes with traditional laces. Maybe Trixie will wear them in three years? One can hope:

At 7 years-old, one child finally figured out how to tie his shoes. And then he wore the following black and blue shoes until his toes stuck out the end. However, he couldn't always be bothered to properly tie his shoes. I spent many evenings detangling knots in the laces. 

Note to self: buy shoes where the rubber sole wraps over the toe. 

Note to self: traditional shoes laces are over-rated. 

The elastic-shoe-laces-with-velcro-closure (first, above) is not bad.

The sandals/water shoes below lasted through two kids. Too bad I can't convince the boys to wear these through the winter with socks (come on, kids, you've got German citizenship!); even the rubber soles are in decent shape. See! I knew it was possible to make a shoe that didn't fall apart and wear through the soles in 6 months! I think they might be smelly in other parts of the world. But here in Colorado, the climate is so dry that they're fine. Except for the strange loop at the ankle strap. That part doesn't work so well because my kids do not like to waste time putting on their shoes. The little loop is TOO fussy. They'd rather let the strap cut across their ankle, making the shoe a lot less comfortable.

There's a reason that the shoes below are such classics. This pair made it through two kids, and they're still good for a third. (I mean, if you're rather relaxed about making your kids wear used shoes, which I am...) Thank you, rubber toe. Thank you, elastic closure/laceless design. I'm even okay with the fraying. It's shoe-patina, you know. Doesn't affect the functionality.

I'd buy more of these lace-less shoes, but the boys want something with more cushion in the soles. Mattias seems to think he runs faster in other shoes. Hmmm...maybe that's the real reason they lasted through two kids. Which means we're back to searching for the perfect shoes.

Updated: Has anyone tried these Hickies as a replacement for traditional shoe laces? I'd be especially curious to know how they held up and how easy they are for kids to use.

Blog Reading

Every now and then, my blog reader gets a little empty and I find myself seeking out new-to-me blogs.  These are some of my recent favorites:

Muddles as a Mennonite "of sorts" on "whatever" I enjoy almost all of Muddle's posts because she has a beautiful (and yet plain-spoken) way of blending everyday events with personal experience, humor, observation and insight. Her blog falls into the category of exactly what I think a blog should be.  What is the goal and does it matter? is a great example. (I came across Muddles after having a discussion with my grandmother about Tweeback, a twice-baked sweet bread that my late great-aunt used to serve with coffee. My grandmother described the recipe. I went online looking for some sort additional guidance because I wanted to make it myself. And I ended up subscribing to Muddle's blog. Although, I should caution you, this is not a food blog!)

Messy Nessy Chic is like an online collection of vintage, but new-to-me photos and information by various contributors. So, maybe it's less-a-blog. But, oh, I'm learning about lots of twenty-century history! Reading this blog is a bit like taking a visual college history course from some hip millennials. It leans in the direction of feminist studies, although not exclusively. One of my favorite recent posts was on Emilie Flöge, a clothing designer. I think Messy Nessy Chic simply from clicking through links on other blogs.

Brain, Child is a thoughtful online source for writing by mothers of all ages on the topic of motherhood. Sometimes it feels like the lines between magazines, sensationalist online marketing, and blogger conglomerates are blurring. I appreciate the way Brain, Child manages to position motherhood as an intellectual endeavor AND that it is still mostly written by people who are also bloggers AND no advertising.  Jennifer Berney's What Summer Should Be is an eloquent piece about the fluidity of summer. While Antonia Malchik's Self Preservation resonated deeply with me. Despite the fact that Brain, Child pulls its authors largely from a blogging community, the writing does not, in my mind, adopt the quite the same tone as a regular blog. Sometimes, in fact, the posts on Brain, Child are too polished and finished for the type of stuff I want to find in my reader. But I look forward to being introduced to new insights and new-to-me bloggers.

From Brain, Child I started reading Andrea Lani's blog, Remains of the Day. I like it for many of the same reasons I like Muddle's blog. It's beautiful in its simplicity without being put-on or false or marketed. Andrea's been posting a lot about wildflowers lately. I know very little about wildflowers, but I am learning so much by reading. I was particularly impressed by one of Andrea's points about weeds. Something to the effect of: weeds are the pioneers of recently disturbed soil. Which made me feel a little less bad about all the dandelions in our yard. Turns out, I'll buy the perspective that weeds are just the natural beginning of a trajectory any day.

Have you found any favorite new-to-you blogs lately? I wouldn't mind a few more!

(This post from 2012 still, more or less, quantifies my feelings about blogging and blog reading. In fact, I recently made my blog unsearchable by search engines in an attempt limit my audience a bit. I'm thrilled to meet new voices through my blog, but I don't enjoy feeling as though my blog is being raided by internet machines!)

Yesterday's Adventure

Here we go again. This child has taken plasticware from the kitchen and is inevitably misappropriating it for something in his bedroom! And what is the deal with the tape? Sheesh. This kid.

Ick. What is in there?? Legos? Water? Mud?

Oh, hello.

Maybe I should slack more often, because it just keeps getting more interesting, right? (By the way, that's a toad, not a frog.)