Now as some of you may know, Alexander turned one recently. Being a boy, he's decided to do a lot of cruising and a lot of crawling but not so much of the walking (yet)! I'm not moaning about that, no, not me, I'm not competitive at all. I don't feel just that little bit better when others his age can't walk either ( I daren't say that I'm disappointed when I hear others his age are. That would be plain wrong!! Anyway, I just tell myself that he talks a lot and I choose talking over walking any day!
Anyway, I'm wandering off subject now slightly because this post is about foot protection. I was happy to let Alexander potter around in socks with non-slip soles in the beginning, when it wasn't winter but slowly but surely as we are very much used to in the UK, those reasonably warm temperatures outside plummeted to very cold temperatures sometime back in October. I don't have a pram foot muff yet, oh bad mother that I am and I didn't want to venture into shoes just yet as most advice states that before babies are really walking it is not good to start putting their feet into harder structures than needed whilst they develop. You can get cruising shoes too which are softer than normal shoes but still hard and I'm yet to be convinced.
So, doing a little research I came across Moccis; Swedish moccasins and now I can't live without them. Hand sewn in Sweden, these absolutely beautiful things are like hybrid sock/shoes! They are basically exactly what every toddler needs. They come in thirty-five fun designs we have Fly Me To The Moon and Just Give Me A Kiss but Alexander also has his eye on Croc Me Up and That's It:Navy! They are thicker and more elasticated than socks so that they stay on and the sole is made of skid proof leather so he is safe on our wooden floors. Also, his feet are more protected when we go outside, thus warmer. On a practical note, they are machine washable, made of breathable cotton as poor Alexander does get hot feet sometimes and lastly they are made from natural Ecotex certified yarns. If you are thinking of Christmas gifts they come in nifty little eco-friendly bags too and also to mention that they are for adults too; I love my pair as I don't like wearing slippers and socks just don't cut it!
You would think that something like this would be easy to find and that most shoe shops would stock them but they don't. They insist on pushing our toddlers into shoes before they need them or are ready for them and if you have a toddler who isn't quite walking (or even who is!) over winter then get yourselves a matching pair of these. The adult's come in wool too. You will thank me!