Back to School with Start-rite Shoes

My twin girls have been trying out some Start-rite shoes ready for back to school in September. They have already worn them for the month of July at school and now the shoes are put away for the next couple of weeks until they start back to school. Both of their senior style brogues and loathers have done an ace job so far and I feel fully confident they are going to last them well into year next too.

As part of Start-rites back-to-school campaign they wanted us to really put the girls shoes through their paces, so they have been to school in them, walked through the woods, scooting on their new Micro Scooters in them and playing at the park too.

Scooting Adventures in their Start-rite School Shoes

Do you think someone likes their new @startrite_shoes? She's been waiting for these brogues to arrive & now they may not leave her feet! Review to follow in a few weeks.

A post shared by Michelle Pannell (@michelletwinmum) on Jun 26, 2017 at 8:00am PDT

This last half-term has felt like it was very long and we were truly ready for it to end. So finally when that last bell rang at school on Friday I picked the girls up for a few hours girlie time.

First stop, our local town Battle where we had some jobs to do ready for our holiday. Prescriptions to fulfil, keys to be cut, summer reading challenge to be signed up for and celebratory ice-cream milkshakes to be enjoyed! Miss M opted for a bubblegum flavour and Miss E white chocolate; I'm not much of a fan so I had an Oreo cupcake instead.

5 Months Later - Hotter School Shoes Update

Pictures taken in the Hotter Store, Eastbourne

You might recall that all three of my children were super lucky back at the end of August and chose a pair of Hotter shoes each for back to school. They have all been wearing their shoes for all of Sept, Oct, Nov, Dec and Jan and I'll let you take a look at the shoes and see for yourself how they are doing.

The Pictures above were taken in January 2017 as they came off the kids feet, so without them being polished and the ones below are today with them polished ready to wear again tomorrow.

Back to School with Hotter Shoes (Review)

Last week just before the kids went back to school we headed into Eastbourne for the dreaded back to school shoe shop. Well I say dreaded but actually on this occasion it wasn't as we knew we were heading for the Hotter shop and as they only sell adult sized shoes we didn't have to worry about coming up against screaming toddlers and too-hot preschoolers who would rather be in the park.

I've been a keen Hotter customer for about five years now. I recall when they first approached me in 2011 and I assumed their shoes were all for the older ladies who couldn't wear heels anymore and yes they do cater for that market but they really are so much more than that. I have trainers, comfy boots and stylish pumps from Hotter, no heels but that is only because I rarely wear them nowadays.

How are our Hotter School Shoes standing up to JJ's Tests?

Back in January JJ was gifted a pair of men's Venture shoes from our local Hotter shoe shop in Eastbourne. We wrote a review of the enjoyable buying experience and I said I'd update you all on how these shoes are lasting.

JJ is quite a typical 12 year old boy, except for the fact that he is the size of a 15 year old and has size 9 feet. He is also very heavy footed and this means he has been going through school shoes far too quickly and now due to his man-sized feet they are costing us £40 or £50 each time. For this reason I asked Hotter to allow us to review some of their men's shoes to see how they would hold up to JJ's regular antics.

He has now had his shoes for three months and they are still wearing very well. Within a couple of weeks the leather had softened up and he found them like a glove to wear. Yes they get scuffed and look filthy at times but with a clean and polish they come up looking good as new.

How JJ's shoes arrive home from school

I didn't realise that JJ had taken me quite so seriously when I asked him to put them through their paces and give them a really good try out. Apparently he even went wading in the sea at the youth club treasure hunt the other week and yes these shoes with GORETEX technology really are waterproof (thankfully). But then he already knew that as his daily walk to the school bus is often down a flooded back road and he wades straight through the mud and water.

Returning home sopping wet

I asked JJ if anything could be improved in regard to his shoes and his only comment was that he would have liked longer laces, as there is hardly enough length in the supplied ones to tie them, let alone do a double bow, which is what he feels he needs. After about six weeks one of the laces did snap, so we have since replaced them but that was no issue as the laces are just a cheap consumable part of the shoes.

In general we are very happy with his Hotter men's shoes and we will happily invest in them again as shoes for school. Thanks so much Hotter.

July 2016 Update:  JJ's Hotter shoes lasted him right to the end of the term and I'd be sending him back to school in them if it wasn't for the fact that his feet have grown again!

Disclosure: we were gifted these shoes for the purpose of this review. I have not been instructed what to write and I remain honest.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

If you like what you have read and want to stay up-to-date then subscribe by email for free and receive blog posts directly to your in-box - just click the link Subscribe to Mummy From The Heart... by Email or perhaps you like to keep all your blog reading in one place, if that is the case you can follow me on BlogLovin too!

Review: Cloggs Back to School Shoes from Kickers

As part of my getting ready for back to school early scheme I ordered a couple of pairs of school shoes from the online retailer Cloggs and boy was I impressed with their service. I'd not heard of Cloggs before but then in general I'm not a massive online shopper so its not surprising. I will from now onwards be very happy to shop with them though.

Placing my order was very simple and the shoes arrived quickly and in pristine condition. The mail package even had a handle like a shopping bag so I could carry it easily, which was a bonus.

The shoes I ordered were The Kickers Kick T Brogue shoe in infant size for Miss E and these retail at £49.99, which is a little more than I might pay for her regular school shoes from Clarks or such but these beauties are made to last and Miss E feels so very special in them. She has been putting them on all summer and dancing round in them!

Start-rite Shoes - Field Test Update

You may have read my earlier post where I mentioned that Start-rite had sent all three of my children new school shoes for a field test this term.

I thought I'd show you a visual update on how the shoes are doing. I've photographed the shoes most weeks during this 7 week half-term and I took the pictures of the shoes as they came home from school on the Friday. So they have not been cleaned or polished.

First up JJ, he was sent a pair of Warrior shoes from the rhino range, these retail at £55 for his big size 7 feet.

July 2015 Update - JJ has worn these shoes the whole year and they have been fabulous. The best school shoes he has ever had!

Week 1

Start-rite Shoes - The Ultimate Field Test

Back at the beginning of the summer Start-rite contacted me to ask if the kids would be interested to field test some of their Back to School range of shoes over the next term. I jumped at the chance as I was really thrilled to find a brand who didn't only want me to give an initial impression on their shoes but they want me to continue to report on how well the shoes are lasting. I'm going to be taking regular pictures of each of the three pairs of shoes so you can see how they stand up to being used (or should that be abused) by my children. Start-rite are really confident that their shoes will prove to be durable, good value for money and have room for my kids feet to grow.

First up I had a Skype chat with a couple of Start-rite staff to establish what was important to me when I am buying my children's shoes. You can read some excerpts from my interview here if you fancy. Basically I am not too interested in the shoes being fancy or high fashion; durability and value for money are probably my big drivers. Along with finding velcro front shoes for my massive footed boy (he is a size 7 aged 10 years).

I know the Start-rite name and believe it to be a quality brand but I've never bought a pair of their shoes before, I have pretty much been a faithful Clarks shopper. I've seen Start-rite shoes stocked in John Lewis and I know many independents sell them but it hadn't occurred to me you could buy them online as well. I'm generally not much of an online shopper but having now moved to the countryside it is a bit of a trek to get to the shops and thus having things delivered to my door has become much more attractive. I was a little worried about getting the right sizes but thankfully Start-rite have some really good information on measuring for size.

So first up I needed to measure the kids feet and check the Start-rite size calculator. To be honest I have avoided Start-rite shoes before as I've never really understood the sizing, it is a bit different to other shoe shops. However once you have a Start-rite foot gauge it all becomes quite easy to find the right size and we all know how important it is to have well fitted shoes for our children whilst their feet are growing.

Start-rite have three different measure at home methods available for you to choose from and their instruction is very good as there are videos to watch as well as instructions to read. It was very easy once I had the length and width measurements to use the grid and see what size shoe I needed to order for each child.

The kids were a bit nervous about what might arrive for them as they did not have any input to the styles sent but Start-rite seemed to understand each of my children very well. Miss M received a pair of 'older girl' style shoes (Dawn) as she has enormous feet for a just 7 year old. Whilst her shoes are gorgeous and just what she wants sadly they look less durable than Miss E's, so it will be good to see how they stand up to the field test. They retail for £45.

JJ received a pair from the rhino range (warrior) which were right up his street, super comfy, durable rubber soles and bumpers and importantly for him the velcro closures at the front. They retail for £55.

Miss E received a pair of the Princess Serena shoes, which come in a stylish box and with two removable charms. At first Miss E was ready to dismiss these shoes as being too young for her as they look quite chunky at the bottom with the big bumper all round but once I pointed out the charms, pretty diamante heart closure and front detailing she was happy they were pretty shoes. These retail for £47.

Of course the important thing I needed to do was ensure that each of the shoes fitted well. Again I followed the video and instructions on the Start-rite website and I was really happy to see that I had obviously measured accurately as each of the shoes were a good fit and the kids are now ready for school this Thursday.

As I mentioned before I'll be visually recording how these shoes stand up to the normal use of a near 11 year old boy and two 7 year old girls. So do stop back in a month or so and have a read of the update.

Disclosure: We were sent these shoes free of charge for the purpose of this review/ field test. I have not been instructed what to write and I remain honest.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

If you like what you have read and want to stay up-to-date then subscribe by email for free and receive blog posts directly to your in-box - just click the link Subscribe to Mummy From The Heart... by Email or perhaps you like to keep all your blog reading in one place, if that is the case you can follow me on BlogLovin too!

Moving Schools Mid-Year

My kids on their first day at their new school September 2012

Moving house at any time is a bit of a military operation. Throw children into the mix and you have a recipe for a whole lot of stress and tears. There are ways to make your move go smoother such as employing people to pack and move you however, and this leaves you to the task of ensuring your family can adapt to the change. It’s hard enough moving when your kids will be able to stay at the same school, but if you are moving a little further and this isn’t an option there’s a whole new worry to contend with. This is even greater if you are moving at any time other than the summer holidays, as your kids will have to jump in to a new school and home mid year. 

Here are some ways of helping with this tricky transition -

Communication

Kids regardless of their age really appreciate good communication, and being told what is going on, especially when it directly affects them. Throughout the moving process keep them in the loop as far as they can understand, and let them get involved with looking at and choosing their own new school. The last thing you want to do is to drop them off at their new school on their first day with no knowledge of what it might be like there.

Gather information

Find out from your children’s new school what topics they are currently covering so you can do a bit of reading at home to get up to speed. Find out as much as you can too about the structure of the day, your child’s new teacher, clubs and activities and anything else you can discover that will help your child settle faster. Show them where you’re moving to online and look at the website of their new school as well as going on visits so they can feel more comfortable about the change. Speak to your child’s current teacher as well as their new one to work out what is done the same, and what will be new to them.

Excitement

Moving home and to a new school doesn’t have to be scary, in fact it can be an exciting adventure if done right. Build up a new home to kids with the promise of a new bedroom and new parks to try out. Schools too are exciting, with new friends to be made (whilst reassuring them they’ll still see old friends) and a great new teacher and place to learn. Let them help you buy their new uniform so they can get used to the idea and be involved. Get new stationary as well as everything from shirts to socks to make it all feel nice and new. You can get all you need, from pens to schoolshoes for girls from George at ASDA so it doesn’t need to be another big expense when you’re moving.

Moving in the middle of the academic year is by no means ideal, but kids will adapt quickly and soon catch up to where the other children in their new school are with their learning. Soon enough it’ll be like they’ve been there the whole time and you’ll wonder why you were so worried. 

-----------------------------------------------------------------

If you like what you have read and want to stay up-to-date then subscribe by email for free and receive blog posts directly to your in-box - just click the link Subscribe to Mummy From The Heart... by Email or perhaps you like to keep all your blog reading in one place, if that is the case you can follow me on BlogLovin too!