The feeling of pride as your baby take their first wobbly steps is hard to beat. As parents, you may be eager and curious to adorn your little one’s feet with a trendy, stylish, and smart pair of shoes. Though baby shoes are super cute, it’s better, in the beginning, to let your baby walk barefoot as they learn to walk and feel comfortable. Now, you are also super curious to know, at what age your baby should start wearing shoes, and what kind of shoes, most importantly.
Experts at the American Academy of Pediatrics have advised that babies don’t require to start wearing shoes until they begin to walk. The bones in the baby’s foot are quite soft, and demand flexibility and comfort while walking. Because of this, it’s advisable to buy shoes until the baby starts walking. After all, flexibility is the most important issue as they are developing their arch.
As soon as your little one has started taking their first steps, the next task for being a parent is to ensure they are giving comfortable and flexible shoes to have some grip on the slippery surfaces. In the excitement of watching baby taking their very first steps, it’s the normal thing in the world to buy the wrong shoes for them. Sometimes, shoes might worse hinder their development if they’re not the right fit.
It’s those just a few months and years that play an important role in the development of the child’s feet. Therefore, it is an excellent idea to get clued up on the right dress, footwear and when to buy for them. This blog post will help you resolve all the queries you have been facing for buying the right shoes for your little baby! Let’s read!
When Should you get the First Pair of Shoes for your Little One?
The average age for little ones to start learning to walk ranges from 10 to 18 months, but this range can vary for every child. At birth, the bones in the baby’s toes are quite soft, so they need to grow up straight and healthy. If parents start forcing a child to walk before they are ready, it can straight away affect their growth level. Moreover, if parents are also buying tight shoes or socks, it can also make it much more difficult for them to manage.
Therefore, if your child hasn’t started walking willingly, don’t buy shoes for them. In fact, encourage them to move barefoot to have good development. And when he is ready to walk outside, your toddler would need shoes for most of the days. This mantra will allow the child’s feet to breathe and become comfortable with the floor.
Always keep an eye on the impact of shoes on your children’s development. It can become a hurdle for your little one’s growth if didn’t take care properly. Be sure to give them plenty of time barefoot and always choose appropriate footwear.
Tips for Buying the Right Baby Shoes
Generally, infants don’t need shoes. But once they start walking, proper footwear provides better and much-needed protection for them. Many parents fail to buy the right pair of shoes for their little one. After stepping into the market, you’ll find an ample number of options. So, it is quite obvious that parents start feeling overwhelmed and end up making the wrong choice. Here’s what to look for when shoe-shopping:
Soft and Lightweight Material
The first and foremost aspect that every parent should take care of is looking for a soft, reliable, and lightweight sole in the shoes. And also look for breathable materials like canvas or leather. This is because little one’s feet sweat a lot more than the adults.
Width of the shoes
As you shop for the baby walking shoes, always remember that you should look for wider ones with some room to grow. The baby’s feet are wider and have a different bone structure than other adults and older kids. Therefore, the shoes of the baby should have a wide fit so that baby can move and grip their toes more flexibly.
In fact, there should be more traction on the bottom in order to limit unnecessary spills and slips.
Flexible Nonslip Soles
Another factor that should be looked at properly is flexible and comfortable nonslip soles. In order to check, whether the sole is flexible or not, you should bend the toe of the shoe up to 40 degrees. If it can be moved up to this degree, you can claim that the sole of this shoe is quite flexible.
Moreover, look for the shoes which have nonskid leather, especially those with bumps or grooves, it will keep your little ones from slipping. Even baby dress shoes should have good traction.
Padding
Well, it is also important for you to check the firm support of the baby walking shoes. There should be padded support on the heel backs and around the ankles in order to minimize the rubbing issues. After all, comfort and flexibility are the core features for babies learning to walk.
If in case, your baby is giving signs like limping or tripping after wearing the new shoes, you should immediately change their shoes, because these are the signs of discomfort.
Extra Secure Closures
And last but not least, the factor that should be looked at carefully is the extra secure closures of the baby walking shoes. It doesn’t matter whether the chosen baby shoes are fastened with Velcro, snaps, or laces, it is important for them is to get on the feet comfortably.
More importantly, not so easy that they can come loose on their own, especially when they start walking.
In short, the shoes should be comfortable, flexible, wider, and offer extra-secure closure to the babies.
Best Walking Shoes for your Baby’s First Steps and Beyond
By now, you have a better idea about the key things to be considered before buying walking shoes for your baby’s first steps. Now, you’ll be thinking, “what are the best shoes for a baby learning to walk?”.
Baby’s feet are generally wider and have a different bone structure than other adults and older kids, so every parent should look for the above-mentioned tips and then try to search for the best walking shoes for your little one. Here are some of the most popular baby walking shoes you can buy online:
Soft Motion Jazzy Sneaker
Soft motion jazzy sneaker is the best overall baby walking shoe that parents can buy from the online store or offline store. This shoe from the Stride Ride collection has everything that every parent should be searching for a baby’s first shoes. It offers flexibility to promote foot development, rounded soles for balance, and slip resistance on the bottom, wide opening, and a comfy foam footbed. Therefore, it becomes easy to slide over fussy feet.
Honestly, I love their shoe and especially a die-hard fan of their ample collection like boots, sandals, and dress shoes. In fact, my baby boy loves these shoes, whenever he wants to go outside, he always looks for this shoe.
Every Step Park Sneaker
The next type of shoe brand that can gauge every parent’s attention is every step park sneaker. In fact, it is known as the best value baby walking shoe among newly-minted parents. These shoes are designed by using natural fabrics and real leather which offers supportive features for baby feet.
What’s more? These shoes are quite lightweight and flexible. Therefore, my baby can easily move around without any support and worrying about traction problems!
Mini Shoez Low Top Sneaker
Another brand that can be considered for baby walking shoes is the Robeez Mini Shoez collection. This brand is recognized for its trendiest, unique, and attractive designs of baby walking shoes.
Though these shoes generally look like Mom or Dad wear shoes, they are designed to promote the development of baby feet. There is a split sole in these shoes so that baby gets the skid resistance of a rubber bottom with the flexibility of a soft shoe.
And don’t forget, most importantly of all, to have fun!
By now, I believe that you would get an idea about the factors that need to be watched properly before buying a new pair of shoes for your baby. Look for the fine quality and comfort zone so that your kid can walk smoothly without any hassle.
When your baby starts learning to walk, you can gift him a comfortable and flexible shoe pair to wear. Check out different stores that offer quality at affordable prices for baby shoes. Most importantly, don’t forget to have fun activities with your kids!
You can also choose from the brands, I added in this blog post. Don’t be in hurry! Sit relax and enjoy your special time with your cute and active little toddler, and also think about the special occasions you might have coming up.
At least this can help you to select a shoe that can work for your baby. But if you have any concern about your children’s walking or their development, you can talk with their pediatrician, podiatrist, or physiotherapist.
