Questions Answered~

 

Answers to the Keene questions!

 

Goodness, a popular post, it seems! And as I hit publish, I thought to myself, now who is going to care about the shoes my kids wear? :)

 

Yes, Jean, we love us some crocs, too!  Charlie has not been able to wear them and has always had the Keenes.  His foot is misshapen, and the crocs don't mold to his feet and he can't hold them on very well.  But for the girls, crocs have been a hit and a good "one play shoe per season" kind of shoe for us.  The reason I'm switching the girls over to the Keene's is because they are sturdier and fill the gap of not having tennis shoes.  We're not big time hikers, but when we do go to the mountains, I feel like the crocs are not as sturdy as I'd prefer.  Also, when we play in the river, they are slipperier on the rocks. 

 

They are easy on and off; of course they don't slide on and off as crocs do, though.  But for the littles, there is Velcro, and when you hit size 1, they just pull on and off. (at least the style I bought does)

 

Yes, $50 is not cheap.  But, this one pair of shoes does it ALL.  No need to buy tennis shoes AND sandals, though I do buy "dress" shoes for Sundays and any other time a nicer shoe is needed.  So given the fact that I'm not buying any other type of play shoe, AND given the fact that they'll be able to be handed down, I don't consider them to be expensive at all.

 

Jean, like you, our winter go-to shoes are the UGG knock offs. (I think I read that on your blog) I buy them at Target, and my girls get 2 seasons out of them.  I think they run about $30.  They are cute with jeans, leggings and skirts!  Love them!  Again, another all in one type shoe.

 

And yes, Leslie, I do hand down shoes. Though since we have only one pair of play shoes and they usually last 2 seasons, they are often too ratty to hand down.  The crocs have handed down well, and Ellie is wearing crocs now that both AC and Kate wore for more than one season each.  The "UGG" boots get kind of nasty, so those are not generally handed down, though I have in a pinch. :)  Church shoes are always handed down!

 

As far as whether the Keene's are "in style" for the older kids.  We tend to hang with a more....hmmm..... not sure how to put it..... outdoorsy type crowd?  A crowd that dresses girls modestly and for active play.  A crowd that is not high fashion. :)  Many of my friends dress their kids in LL Bean and Land's End clothes, and the Keene's are big in that circle. In fact some mamas wear them, too.  No, they are not the peak of fashion, but kids around the 12, 13, 14 year old age do wear them.  They probably are not big past 14-ish, though.  Grace does not care at all about fashion (she likes to wear her jeans, a few favorite shirts that she rotates every day and she's happy, no matter how many shirts are hanging in her closet, each season she tends to find 3 or so favorites and repeats them over and over) and she's a very "young" 13 year old. She likes to dress comfortably and she's ACTIVE.  She loves the crocs and Keene's. I am sure that the kids getting on the middle school bus, at the end of my street though, are not wearing crocs or Keene's. Nor would the girls be wearing the knock off UGGS~ they'd be wearing the real thing. But in our homeschooling circle they are just fine, and she fits right in!

And as to where I buy their shoes?  Zappos.com  Free shipping both ways.  Excellent customer service.  I buy nearly everything online.  I was once a "shopper" but now with the kids in tow, I HATE to go to the mall.  I buy all the children's shoes except the "Uggs" (which I get from Target) at Zappos.

All the children's clothes are from Hanna, Mini Boden, Land's End or LL Bean.  We are due to have a Hanna store open at a nearby mall very soon, so I will go to the mall for that reason to save on shipping, as I do feel like the Hanna shipping rates are high.  I hand down clothes between the 3 little girls, so I don't mind paying a little more (though I always try to buy when some sort of promotion is going on) because I know with these companies, the clothes will last.  And if they don't, they ALL have excellent customer service.