I have five brothers who are still growing. Constantly. We’re always buying them new clothes, because as farm kids, they wear them out before they can pass them down to the next brother. Another thing we’re always buying is shoes and boots – you’d think those would last them a while, but they go even faster than the clothes, it seems.

One day, I noticed that Hewitt had worn through his shoes – the bottom was coming off the right shoe. I checked his shoe size and bought him a pair of new shoes the next time I went into town, leaving them on his bed for him.

A few weeks later, we were gathered in the office for a “staff meeting” at Goat Milk Stuff, and I noticed that Hewitt was still wearing the pair of shoes he’d had on several weeks before.

They’d gotten even worse.

When I asked him about the shoes I’d left on his bed, he laughed. “Why would I wear those? These are more comfortable!”

That night Dad threw these shoes in the trash, and the next morning, Hewitt was wearing his new shoes.

Do your kids try to wear shoes that are falling apart? My siblings have been doing it for as long as I can remember!