After I had my first son, I thoroughly researched what kind of shoes I should buy for him to ensure he was wearing the perfect type of soles and had the ideal amount of ankle support to begin walking as soon as he was ready.  My research led me straight to Pedi-Ped, and I purchased a pair of their infant walking shoes and waited and waited and waited for him to walk in them.  In the end, I think he finally got around to walking in a pair of dirty old baby socks, dispelling my naive notions that the shoes have anything at all to do with it.  My subsequent experiences have only confimed that fact–they’re going to walk when they’re good and ready regardless of what footwear choices you’ve made for them.

But I still love pedipeds because they are adorable and because, although there isn’t necessarily any research out there to prove this, pedipeds satisfy the primary criteria you should be considering when buying baby and toddler footwear: 1) they are easy to put on and take off, 2) they are durable, 3) they are reasonably priced, and 4) kids think they are comfortable and don’t seem to throw temper tantrums when you tell them it is time to put on their shoes. 

pediped released its new Spring 2010 Collection for boys and girls yesterday.  Both the Original line, pedipeds’ collection for infants, and the Flex line, the toddler collection, are available on pedipeds’ website here.  The new collection is as adorable as past collections, but does include some new features, such as several pairs of shoes that are specifically designed to be machine washable.  How great is that?  I am going to add “machine washable” to the list of primary criteria above.

Some of the new shoes are not available for purchase until March 5th, but pediped is a fan of Pregnant Fashionista and is offering a free pair of pedipeds Originals to two PF readers.  Just send me an email at caroline@pregnantfashionista.com if you are interested in being included in a drawing which I’ll do next Friday, February 19th. If you win, you’ll be able to request a pair of girls’ or boys’ shoes and request a particular size, and pedipeds will send them directly to you.