# what are your fave early walker shoes??



## Isaacs_mom (Jul 19, 2006)

besides robeez .. i am looking for more something like pedoodles or see kai run .. i was wondering what everyone liked ? my son has chunky feet and i am not sure what to get him .. thanks


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## box_of_rain (Mar 16, 2006)

Isabooties are wonderful, and we also like See Kai Run. Both are wonderful!


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## alexsam (May 10, 2005)

I loved See Kai Run, but the velcro died on them long before he out grew them







. That sucked. We also had a pair of Pedoodles and the stiching came loose







. Again, sucked. Both, however, were really flexible, soft, wide and comfy and got TONS of comments!

Lately, we've been buying Vans. They are not especially "soft soled", but the old-school slip-ons are pretty light and bendable and the whole toddler line is very wide and extremly durable.


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## jonnysgirl (Jan 19, 2007)

I second See Kai Run....we just got our first pair and they're great!!!! Someone had suggested Preschoolians so I ordered a pair but the quality doesn't compare to See Kai Run, not even close...So I returned them...(terrible return policy too







: )


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## Isaacs_mom (Jul 19, 2006)

i am waiting for my fave store to get the new see kai run ..has anyone gotten any or seen them ... i love the spencer and the london


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## cushy (Nov 24, 2005)

I have to admit, I like the Genuine Kids shoes at Target (is that so wrong?). I think they're the perfect mix of comfort and support. As soon as I put them on DS for the first time, he ran for the first time, literally. And the best part is they're only $15.00.


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## saucebox (Jan 28, 2007)

I wonder if my kid (who REFUSES to wear socks and/or shoes) would dig the soft soled slip ons.

/sigh/


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## rere (Apr 21, 2005)

Pedipeds were my gals first outside walking shoes.They held up great and seemed really comfy.They also come in wide withs.
http://www.pediped.com/Home/Home.aspx


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## beachbaby (Jan 21, 2003)

after reading so much about See Kai Run shoes, we got some for DD's first 'real' shoes after Robeez. I was nervous that the velcro would be tempting for her to pull and easy for her to take off, but so far, so good. I saw the new styles but haven't tried them...we got ours from Zappos--excellent return policy and free shipping (they even upgraded to next day for free!)


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## chiro_kristin (Dec 31, 2004)

My DS hates socks and shoes (takes after his mama), but when we got his first pair of Isabooties, he actually brought them to me to put them on him in the house! He still likes his Isabooties.


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## alicia622 (May 8, 2005)

We love Pedipeds


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## sarahcecile (Mar 3, 2004)

We love Soft Stars - and they are having a huge sale right now. We had a pair of the mocs as her first shoes and adored them and just bought a pair of their "shoes" on sale. Her size (6) has Sof-Touch soles, which we found to be really really flexible. We got the Classics with velcro.

They come in a million different colors and you can get them with different "motifs" on them.

They are handmade in Oregon - a small, family friendly business.

Hope that helps,

Sarah


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## verde (Feb 11, 2007)

We like Playpaws. 17 mos. old dd cannot pull them off (the one's with elastic -- she snears at velcro!) http://www.platypaws.com/Products.htm


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## cee3 (Oct 24, 2005)

I'm a Stride Rite fan. My little guy is still in his soft-soled shoes (Robeez), but when he graduates to the thicker soles, this is what he'll wear: http://www.striderite.com/shopping/p...iProductID=263

This is what my older son wore when he was a toddler and they wear really well, breath well, are very flexible, and I really like the old-fashioned baby shoe look (I'm sure that's not most people's cup of tea).


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## sesa70 (May 12, 2006)

Thanks for posting this, I always love to hear what other mamas like!

My dd is needing her first real walker shoes now too. I did buy her a pair of the genuine kids shoes from target, they seem very flexible! Only problem is they were too big







: So I bought a pair of used preschoolians shoes, and they look awsome, nice and flexible, but also too big!







: both my girls have small feet. Anyway, right now she is in the stride rite prewalker shoes:

http://www.striderite.com/shopping/p...ProductID=1205

They are mostly softer leather but have a small amount of rubber traction on the bottom. I really like them!


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## sesa70 (May 12, 2006)

Oh here is another idea~!

These are pumas and are SO cute and super super soft not to mention very flexible,more so than any other shoes I have seen in real stores. They start at size 5 but run small, so probably fit more like a 4.5. I have them for my older dd who is almost 8 (wears a size 10.5) and they are the best.

http://www.zappos.com/n/p/dp/2313599.../I_262144.html

or

http://www.zappos.com/n/p/dp/1209249.../I_262144.html


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## sleet76 (Jun 2, 2004)

We love Soft Star Shoes as well. Cute, durable, flexible!


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## Mama2Kayla (Feb 12, 2005)

We just purchased dd a pair of peddoodles. She loves them, and refused to take them off after the first day of wearing them. So far, I like them too.


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## MonP'titBoudain (Nov 22, 2005)

After hearing everyone rave about the see kai run shoes I went to the store that was listed on their site. I asked the sales lady for them and she handed me a pair of Echos. When I said, "Oh no these are echos" she explained that see kai run was just a style of ehco brand shoes. Anyway, they weren't nearly as flexible as I was hoping for so I didn't buy them. But now I'm confused. Has anyone heard anything like this before or was this lady just wacky? Also, how flexible are the see kai runs compared to robees?

eta: I just looked at see kai run's site and they are a small family owned company: not a subsidiary of echo







still an annoying occurence.


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## aisraeltax (Jul 2, 2005)

pedoodles!!!!! we just got a pair and they are awesome!!!


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## ipfree (Oct 4, 2006)

Thanks! I was researching shoes for my dh! Great thread.


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## ipfree (Oct 4, 2006)

Any recommendations for thick ankled 11 month old that is running already. He has a pair of Robeez that leave big red marks on his ankles. Any ideas.
TIA!


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## kaspirant (Apr 28, 2006)

Tip Toey Joey's!! I LOVE Them. We also have pedipeds, and pipsqueaks and SKR. Love my SKR..but Tip toeys..... My all time favorite.

www.tiptoeyjoey.com


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## rere (Apr 21, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *ipfree* 
Any recommendations for thick ankled 11 month old that is running already. He has a pair of Robeez that leave big red marks on his ankles. Any ideas.
TIA!

The pedipeds would be good for that.They don't have elastic.They are soft like Robeez but they have a little bit of padding in the bottom.


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## GooeyRN (Apr 24, 2006)

My dd wears padders in the house. She wears soft soled stride rites out of the house.


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## sesa70 (May 12, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *kaspirant* 
Tip Toey Joey's!! I LOVE Them. We also have pedipeds, and pipsqueaks and SKR. Love my SKR..but Tip toeys..... My all time favorite.

www.tiptoeyjoey.com

I just looked and they are adorable! Do they ship/sell to the us?


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## kaspirant (Apr 28, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *sesa70* 
I just looked and they are adorable! Do they ship/sell to the us?

They are available at amazon.com and babystyle.com

I'm seriously in LOVE with them. they are my all time favorite baby shoes. They are soft soled but have reinfocements at the heel and toe to keep non skid.


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## Socks! (Dec 25, 2005)

http://www.toddlertreads.com/nav.asp?page=home.htm

I love these! The only downside I have found is that they loose traction on some plastic playground equipment. DS1 loves to climb up slides the wrong way and that will not work with these.
Other than that they are perfect. We've had them in so many different sizes and am waiting for DS2 to be able to wear them too now, since they still look great!


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## SandraS (Jan 18, 2007)

Target has moccasin style shoes for like $9.99. That's all they lived in for the first two years - I think the sizes only go up to 6.


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## Eaglevoice (Nov 30, 2004)

See Kai Run's were the first "walking" shoes that we bought dd. And I've bought like 5 pairs since then!! I love them so much. And for us, the velcro has held up really well. I've even gotten a pair of used skr's off of ebay that were very used and the velcro is still working great. I bought her a pair of pedipeds and I didn't really like them. They were terrible on hard wood floors and stairs, they had no traction at all.

For thick ankled babies, skr's would be great, because they don't go up high on the ankle and they have a pretty adjustable strap length.


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## Rainbowbird (Jul 26, 2004)

Another vote for Pedoodles. They are so cute, so comfy, go on easily, and wear well. The rubber soles are awesome for playing outside. My DD loves them. She has been wearing the same pair for almost 6 mos. and they still look great. I have already bought another pair and I'm eagerly waiting for her to grow into them. I am going to see if they have them for bigger kids. They would be great for my son, who is 4!


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## ipfree (Oct 4, 2006)

Thank you so much for all your help. I wish there was store near us that carried the SKRun or the TTJoey. So I could compare. My son has a quite a wide foot I am learning


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## elijah'smom (Mar 8, 2007)

my son has really wide feet and we got him a pair of classic style canvas vans with the double velcro and they are really easy to put on and off. for the summer time we bought him teva's that velcro'd and those fit excellent on his chunky feet!


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## APmom2Libby (Mar 18, 2006)

My dd started walking at 11 months and we started her off in Pedipeds. She stayed in those until 18 months. I think they were better for a beginner walker because they are so soft and flexible, but still have a tiny bit of padding for outdoor use. Now, we have her in the See Kai Run's, which she LOVES! They are much more protective in outdoor play. But, she did have some trouble getting use to the rubber soles being stickier on most surfaces than the Pedipeds soft leather sole. She's got the hang of it now, though.


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## Flor (Nov 19, 2003)

Ds's favorites were www.preschoolians.com he is 3 now and I am going to order him another pair of their sandals for the summer. Flexible, but they have lasted a really long tim too. He also loved Pedoodles. Now he is into his Converse Chuck Taylors (very flexible, too) but not for wide feet.

These were the sandals we loved:

http://preschoolians.com/item.asp?ca...=2182&id=25887


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## hottmama (Dec 27, 2004)

We love Isabooties and Joshoes. Isabooties come up to 24 mos., and Joshoes go up to 7 yrs. Both are much more durable than Robeez. When absolutely necessary, my 4 yr. old wears Converse sneakers (for soccer) or rainboots (if it's pouring down rain), but I really prefer to keep them in soft-soled shoes.


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## mum5 (Apr 10, 2004)

We love Bobux shoes. www.bobux.com They are made in NZ, and I wanted to support my mother's country, and we have used them for both girls still have them for #3.


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## Sarahfina (Oct 17, 2006)

I wanted to add to this since I used it to help me make decisions about first shoes for my DD!! We checked out many kinds of shoes...

The shoes that she has been wearing are CIRCO pre-walkers (although she's walking) which we got as a gift, and which I have since found out are from Target...arg...but I love them! They are super flexable, but also decently supportive around the ankle. If I could get another pair I would, but I'm in Canada now and we can't get them here. I do recommend seeing them if you are looking for something between robbies and a firmer soled shoe. And they are cheep. But proabably not as good for the foot as better quality shoes. But I have to say I was surprised when I discovered they were from Target and cost $12.99, I thought they were very good shoes.

We checked out Tip Toey Joey's which I found to be too soft for my DD- she's 16 months and moving fast. They had no ankle support and were, IMO just a thicker soled version of robbies. They slip on. Nice shoes, but were not what we wanted. Plus they are sized 6-12 months, 12-18 months, etc which means that they are a bit sloppy for a while until DD grows into them fully...

We checked out SEE KAI RUN after all the comments we read about them on here and I found them to be really wide. I wasn't able to see a large variety of styles, unfortunatly, but they were not right for us. I had kind of thought that their soles might be softer than say the STRIDE RITE but they didn't seem to be, at least not the ones we saw.

In the end we bought STRIDE RIGHT, a little lace up pair, which seem to fit really well and which we liked. They were more narrow than the SKR shoes and although the soles were firmer than I had hopped to find, they seemed okay. We bought them 2 days ago. DD has napped with them ON once, and screams when I make her take them off for bath and bed. If I take them off when we come home, she follows me around carrying them until I'll put them back on her!! So I guess she likes them!!

Good luck shoe shopping!!

Sarahfina.


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## ipfree (Oct 4, 2006)

Thank you so much Mommas. So helpful!


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