Winter boot struggle

To choose shoes for the little ones.. it's not an easy task.
At least, if you give it some thought..

It's a responsible task, same as with everything - they are growing and developing so fast, not only their minds, but also bodies are forming, and we want to help them to form well, am I right?
Anyway, shoes are a controversial subject, there are different opinions out there, but as I have mentioned before - we are supporters of the barefoot thinking. Let's say, we are not any crazy fanatics, but it just makes sense.

If anyone is interested to read, why is it good to choose barefoot concept shoes for children, quite an easy and good overview was in this internet shoe shop I found - Happy Little Soles - Foot Health.

I have shown here all the shoes we have for Adelaide, and we don't have many at all - 3 pairs of Little Blue Lamb shoes (2 for summer and 1 closed type of shoe), Stonz (still liking and using those, maybe should get a bigger size) and MyMayu rainboots.

It got so cold so suddenly, that everyone I know started talking about winter and winter boots. And yes, we also felt it's time to think about it and make a decision. Sure, it's possible to use Stonz, but they are not waterproof at all, and it's also possible to use MyMayu, they are waterproof, but still are rubber boots, not warm and with a thin rubber sole, not really suitable for a colder weather, I think.

The problem with Estonian winter is.. That it can get really cold (-20 C and colder), but usually not for long, most of the time it is around 0 C or -5 C or something like that, there is snow, but most of all it is wet. Cold and wet, and muddy. And slippery.

So my thought was, that the perfect winter boots should be waterproof, definitely, warm enough, with a good grip, and same time comfortable enough, fitting the barefoot principles. Impossible? Turns out that, yes.

There are all kinds of cute barefoot concept boots for toddlers out there, mostly made out of leather, sheep skin and so on, but none of them are any waterproof, usually they don't have also any grip.. And are they protective and warm enough? Don't know..

Well, and the price is an issue too, of course. I get that boots are more expensive than shoes, however, our limit is somewhere there, that I don't want to spend more for her boots than I would for my own,

I found our answer in the same internet shop mentioned before - they support barefoot shoes, but in the Snow Boot section that's exactly what they say - there is no such thing! Because, to protect from cold and wet, there has to be somekinda thick enough sole, and it will not be very barefoot then. However, they had chosen their best selection, still comfortable and light boots, and that's how we found Baby Bogs.

So we have bought them, they have already arrived, and these are Adelaide's first winter boots - Baby Bogs - Classic Pompon Dots Black.



I found good reviews about them from other parents, who like barefoot shoes, they are 100% waterproof, warm (promising comfort and protection until -10 C), light, with a thin sole, machine washable.. and cute. :) And the price was not that bad, kinda around our limit, we got these (with shipping) exactly for 50 euros.

Bogs have also the next version, which is promising comfort until -20 C or more, but they have a thicker sole, and I figured, maybe we don't need those yet, as how often will it be that cold anyway.. (Even if it will, how much will we go out then..) So we went with the thinner, more comfortable version.

For now we have only put them on her once, to try, and she didn't like them that much. She has not minded the shoes we have gotten for her so far, but these were obviously more uncomfortable. Even though the sole is quite thin, it is kinda stiff.. She was able to walk in them though, even if not perfectly.
We had one hand-me-downs - very traditional Ecco boots, that are hard and heavy as a rock, when I put those on her, she could barely walk, like if she would have two rocks tied to her feet. So, even if not perfect, walking with Bogs was definitely better..
Lets hope she gets a hand on it and that they will be comfortable for her!

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