Growing up

Yesterday I bought my son Jasper his first pair of shoes. Well, he's been wearing shoes for quite some time now but these shoes are different...these are his first shoes since being able to walk...these are his first necessary shoes.

Today I took a picture of these shoes in the hope that I will forever remember how I felt. I am a mixture of very proud of him (that he's reached this milestone), very sad (same reason!), and a little disappointed that they're not the brand I wanted to get for those special first shoes! I know how materialistic that sounds but I used to manage a store next door to a Clarks shoe store and I promised myself that I would buy this sturdy and trusted brand for my future childrens' first shoes. So why didn't I buy him a pair of Clarks shoes? Well it wasn't for lack of trying, let me tell you! My mother and I went to every store we could think of that would stock children's shoes and, after having him measured and fitted five or six times (many screams involved...no wonder I had a headache come 5pm!), it was confirmed...my son has wide feet like his Dad! I have it under good authority that Clarks do make extra-wide versions of their shoes so I will look into that for sure. My poor boy though may be bound to a life of difficult shoe shopping where the most beautiful shoes will never fit.

Today I also took a couple of photos of Jasper in the car before we left for Mother's Group. He was in such a great mood and I was feeling nostalgic. It always amazes me that he can look like such a baby in one shot yet such a big boy in another! I'm forever being told that he will "age" overnight when I have his little brother...please don't let them be right!