What shoes should I buy when my child outgrows Pedipeds?

[landksmom]

My daughter has not worn any other shoes besides Pedipeds. She has wide feet and the Pedipeds worked great for her. Now she is almost outgrown her last pair of the biggest size they make. Anyone have recommendations for shoes that are like Pedipeds or are wide but still comfortable? We have been shopping for shoes for a few weeks now and I can't find easy on and off shoes that are comfortable for size 1 or 2 youth. 

[pianojazzgirl]

Have you tried any sports/running stores?  My dd has the opposite problem (feet so narrow that it's hard to find shoes that fit) and when we were shopping for shoes a few months ago we had the best luck at a sports store.  We were looking for something comfy to run around in (runners), and they had a great selection of shoes to fit all types of feet.  Before that we had tried lots of kids shoe stores with no luck (they tended to just have medium width shoes).

[abeliamama]

Try Keens and New Balance

[LuckyMommaToo]

My DD with wide feet likes Primigi. I've been known to order four pairs from Zappos to see what works and return the ones that don't. It's hard to find local shoe stores that carry a wide selection for kids, IMO.

[mamamille]

love love love Livie and luca.  Their shoes are perfect size for fat little feet.  Nice and wide with a wonderful rubber sole.  They were my dd's first "shoe".  That and soft star as they hand make them and can do them according to measurements.

[EmmaJane]

DD1 has narrow feet, but we love Pedipeds too! We're in size 30 now... she's also really liked Eleven shoes -- the big kid line from See Kai Run, which I think goes up to size 3. They're made from much more durable leather than the toddler See Kai Runs, and they have lots of  velcro Mary Janes...

[JudiAU]

Perhaps soft star shoes and eleven?

[LeslieB]

Converse shoes are great. Either the shoe or hi-top. Very light and flexible, plus lots of colors to choose from. I just got a pair for my son for $23 from zappos.com.

Another type of shoe my son wears is the Teva Proton 4. They don't make them anymore, but I still find the girl's pink ones for sale online. They are actually super thin and flexible.

[LessTraveledBy]

There are tons of thread about this question.

I would recommend Soft star shoes, but not with the soling they use from size 8 and up. I would ask for the soling they use for the smaller sizes. I once ordered a pair of size 8 and was shocked. I could not understand why people thought the soles were soft. They seemed hard as a rock and did not even bend easily. So not "like barefoot."

There is a company called Feelmax that makes shoes for both adults and kids. They shoes are as flexible as Pedipeds, but she sole is rubber of some kind. (Do not buy the older styles, though, as they had different soles. They do not last. Only 2009 and up, I think. ) I know the adult shoes were sold in the US but not sure about the kids shoes. (They are super light, though, so postage would not be expensive.) http://www.feelmax.com/ You will not get close to barefoot than these. Yet, they are protective enough. Dd says they feel super good on. I have 3 pairs, and totally agree.

There are not a lot of truly thin and flexible soled shoes out there for older kids. I find some of the shoes to be rather sorry excuses. (How can you first make a toddler shoe and talk about the benefits of "as close to barefoot as possible" and then start to make shoes with have a higher heal? It seems that they don't trust they would have enough customers unless they made something "almost like all other companies" but with a more flexible sole. They may be right, but I still find it sad.)

In the end I solved the problem by starting to make dd's shoes. (Feelmax does not make anything suitable for our late fall and winter.) She has super narrow feet (thanks, dh... ha ha), so many of the shoes out there don't fit her, anyway.

[LeslieB]

I forgot to mention Terra Plana shoes. . They're cute, and I'd love a pair myself, but they are way pricey.
http://www.terraplana.com/kids-c-189.html