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CraftyMom 05:36 PM 06-06-2014
Do you guys let the kids run around barefoot outside?

My own kids never have shoes on. With the dck's I always put their shoes on, but they want them off. Now with the warmer weather they end up off anyway because we have playing with the water table and sprinkler a lot.

I feel like it's a losing battle with the shoes. We don't have mulch in the play area so I'm not worried about that or rocks. The only thing I'm concerned about is bees or other insects.

Does anyone not bother with shoes in the summer?

As a kid I remember always being barefoot, even now I am barefoot or flip-flops.
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Lucy 05:59 PM 06-06-2014
I buy cheap flip-flops in all their sizes and keep them here. I found them at Target one year for $1 !!! Old Navy usually has a sale for them really cheap too.
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nothingwithoutjoy 06:04 PM 06-06-2014
We're barefoot all the time. My daughter shucks her shoes while she's still wearing her snowsuit and there are patches of melting snow in the yard! I'm barefoot all summer (and much of the spring and fall), so of course the kids want to be, too. I insist on shoes for walks and water shoes for stream wading (rocks, possible broken glass), but at home, we almost all have bare feet.
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LysesKids 06:28 PM 06-06-2014
I and childcare babies are barefoot in house and on the deck once it's warm enough… I wear sandals when taking walks in summer, but all kids are barefoot because they are all in stroller or on grass. in Winter i have my babies inside or in snowsuits
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craftymissbeth 07:21 PM 06-06-2014
I wish we could. I personally dispose shoes. I wear flip flops 100% of the year... rain, snow.. I wear flip flops. I have a thing about my feet being covered

My backyard has a lot of little sticks so I'm afraid to let the kids walk barefoot out there.
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jenboo 07:51 PM 06-06-2014
I hate wearing shoes or flip flops.
But... We get a lot of bees in the grass, a lot of the Dck fall on the sidewalk (don't want body toes to deal with each day) and with most of the days right now being over 100 degrees the sidewalk is way to hot.
All my Dck have to wear closed toed shoes/sandals outside that are Ok for water play.
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Leanna 08:19 PM 06-06-2014
Personally I can't stand shoes and wear flip-flops ALL THE TIME...but I make my daycare kids wear closed-toe shoes outside. I do not allow flip-flops, crocs, sandals, jellies, or slip-on shoes. I tell them we need to protect their feet from rocks, wood chips, things hidden in the grass, bees, stinging insects, not to mention shoes falling off and the potential to stub toes. The only time those shoes mentioned above are allowed is during water play.
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cheerfuldom 09:52 PM 06-06-2014
Daycare kids always have shoes on outside....too much liability in letting them run barefoot. Me and my kids usually have shoes on but sometimes not.
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CraftyMom 05:14 AM 06-07-2014
My next question, so would you all agree that it's ok to let my own kids go barefoot but put shoes on the dck's? That's pretty much how it goes right now.

I don't think I could keep shoes on my kids with super glue and duck tape

The dck's sometimes say "but xxx isn't wearing shoes, I want mine off too"
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KidGrind 05:42 AM 06-07-2014
Originally Posted by cheerfuldom:
Daycare kids always have shoes on outside....too much liability in letting them run barefoot. Me and my kids usually have shoes on but sometimes not.

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Blackcat31 08:02 AM 06-07-2014
Originally Posted by cheerfuldom:
Daycare kids always have shoes on outside....too much liability in letting them run barefoot. Me and my kids usually have shoes on but sometimes not.
same here

I go one step farther and require shoes that tie.

NO open toed shoes
NO sandals or flip flop
NO Croc's
NO Vel-cro
NOTHING but good sturdy tied running shoes.
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Blackcat31 08:03 AM 06-07-2014
Originally Posted by CraftyMom:
My next question, so would you all agree that it's ok to let my own kids go barefoot but put shoes on the dck's? That's pretty much how it goes right now.

I don't think I could keep shoes on my kids with super glue and duck tape

The dck's sometimes say "but xxx isn't wearing shoes, I want mine off too"
When my own kids were present during daycare hours, they were daycare kids and therefore had to follow the same rules as the others.
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Play Care 08:22 AM 06-07-2014
Originally Posted by CraftyMom:
My next question, so would you all agree that it's ok to let my own kids go barefoot but put shoes on the dck's? That's pretty much how it goes right now.

I don't think I could keep shoes on my kids with super glue and duck tape

The dck's sometimes say "but xxx isn't wearing shoes, I want mine off too"
At the risk of being flamed, I don't care if they keep shoes on. The *one* time I had a child stung on their foot, he *was* wearing shoes and the darn bee must have somehow gotten caught in a little gap - stung he about three times before I could get the shoe off!
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KiddieCahoots 09:08 AM 06-07-2014
Originally Posted by cheerfuldom:
Daycare kids always have shoes on outside....too much liability in letting them run barefoot. Me and my kids usually have shoes on but sometimes not.

One of the trees in my back yard has a bee hive in it. They are pretty much everywhere in the grass on clover flowers.
I'll admit too, I find it too much work cleaning off all the dirty feet when we come back in....but that's just my OCD at work on cleanliness.
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Childminder 11:04 AM 06-07-2014
In the summer they are playing mostly in the water or sandbox so we are barefoot. Dumping sand out of shoes, soggy wet shoes and cleaning their feet is more work than barefoot.

I grew up on a farm and never wore shoes, still remember crying when school started because I had to put them on. My dad always used to laugh and tell everyone I was so tall because I was well fertilized from running around in the barnyard barefoot.
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Kelly 12:54 PM 06-07-2014
I require the dcks to wear shoes outside, not picky about what kind as long as they are closed-toed. I worry too much about injuries or bee stings. This summer I have been having my only dcb (2 years old) him wear swim shoes most of the time because he is in and out of water and mud and they are easy to clean and dry quickly.
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Second Home 01:10 PM 06-07-2014
Originally Posted by cheerfuldom:
Daycare kids always have shoes on outside....too much liability in letting them run barefoot. Me and my kids usually have shoes on but sometimes not.
Same thing here .
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TaylorTots 01:17 PM 06-07-2014
Originally Posted by Blackcat31:
When my own kids were present during daycare hours, they were daycare kids and therefore had to follow the same rules as the others.
Yep. If my own children want to play in the daycare area or do daycare activities like the sprinkler or wading pool, they are daycare kids and I treat them the same, honest to goodness.

However, both my children can choose at any time to not play in the daycare area or do daycare activities (unless we are taking a long walk, then I require my children to come). During naptime they often choose to go play/rest in their rooms quietly though they have a mat set out and often come down and lay down after everyone else is asleep. Likewise, if we are in the backyard and they don't want to play outside, they can play in the house.

My own kids are 4 & 6.

I don't think I give my children special treatment, but they get the option of whether they want to be with daycare or not.
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SignMeUp 02:13 PM 06-07-2014
Originally Posted by TaylorTots:
Yep. If my own children want to play in the daycare area or do daycare activities like the sprinkler or wading pool, they are daycare kids and I treat them the same, honest to goodness.

However, both my children can choose at any time to not play in the daycare area or do daycare activities (unless we are taking a long walk, then I require my children to come). During naptime they often choose to go play/rest in their rooms quietly though they have a mat set out and often come down and lay down after everyone else is asleep. Likewise, if we are in the backyard and they don't want to play outside, they can play in the house.

My own kids are 4 & 6.

I don't think I give my children special treatment, but they get the option of whether they want to be with daycare or not.
I did this much the same way as you. However, now we are told that our own children MUST be in the authorized child care space during all child care hours. They may not even leave the space with their other PARENT.
Which I think is ridiculous. AND disrespectful of our children and spouse.
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e.j. 05:04 PM 06-07-2014
Originally Posted by Blackcat31:
I go one step farther and require shoes that tie.

NO open toed shoes
NO sandals or flip flop
NO Croc's
NO Vel-cro
NOTHING but good sturdy tied running shoes.
Same here.
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Leanna 05:18 PM 06-07-2014
Originally Posted by SignMeUp:
I did this much the same way as you. However, now we are told that our own children MUST be in the authorized child care space during all child care hours. They may not even leave the space with their other PARENT.
Which I think is ridiculous. AND disrespectful of our children and spouse.
WHAT???? That is the most ridiculous thing I ever heard! What state are you in?
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SignMeUp 05:39 PM 06-07-2014
Originally Posted by Leanna:
WHAT???? That is the most ridiculous thing I ever heard! What state are you in?
I think that it's more my county than my state. Regulation has been taken overboard.
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melskids 08:48 PM 06-07-2014
In the summer, we are barefoot 100% of the time.
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