Pretty Shoes

When you're the third of three girls, most of your clothing comes from hand-me-downs.  Or, as they are called in our house, "pass outs."  I'm not sure quite how they got that name, but it has stuck and it makes us laugh (well, mostly me and John - the husband).

But every year, just before school starts, my mother-in-law abuses her credit card and takes my girls and my two nieces Back to School Shopping.  It started about 3 years ago at the outlet mall just down the way, and has since grown to a two-day extravaganza where we trek across the state to the biggest outlet mall in Michigan (yes, Michigan).  And since we have so many "pass outs," I'm always a little weary about a full day of shopping for things we don't need.  But, as my mom-in-law says, "It's always nice to have something new."  And, quite frankly, if it were left to me, they'd only get new socks for school. 

This year though, we ran into a snag - not enough weekends.  So our "grand trek" was shortened to the outlet mall "just down the way."  Since it's so close, I decided that #3 daughter could join us. 

Did I mention she is 3?

It's pretty hard for a 3 year old to "be patient," and "wait her turn" to pick out something - especially when Grandma is buying and says you can have whatever you want.  So at the very first stop (Gap Kids), she fell in love with a pair of "pretty shoes."

The problem is, I, the mommy, did not think the shoes were pretty...  I thought the shoes were hideous...

They were shocking pink patent leather ballet flats with a turquoise jewel that covered the entire toe of the shoe.

As Grandma started to say, "Of course you can have those pretty shoes," I shot her down.  Nope.  No way.

And then the finagling began.  Have you tried to compromise with a 3 year old lately?

For the rest of the day, all I heard about was the "pretty shoes" that she wanted so desperately.  We tried every shoe store in that stinking outlet mall, but to no avail.  Too tight, too ugly, too "hurty" in the back...

Finally, at the end of the day, she had worn me down.  I mean, weary worn down.  To the point that if I heard the phrase "pretty shoes" one more time...  well, you know...

So we went back to the store.  We bee-lined to the back where the pretty shoes were.  I dug through the rack and found the right size, and when I pulled them out, she says, "Those are ugly, Mommy."

And picked out these instead...

Aren't they the cutest shoes you've seen for a 3 year old in ages?  And there's no Velcro, or ties, or silly huge turquoise jewels.

And this is the beauty of it... she loves them.  They make her happy.  She wears them around the house and wanted to wear them to bed.

Now if I could just find some shoes that made me feel that happy...