"Bog"ged down?

Four years ago, after much research and agonizing, I bought my first pair of Bogs boots. It was a tough decision because I pretty much clothe myself head to toe from the thrift store. It kills me to think of paying full price for clothes. Thrift stores are great for the occasional awesome find, but its hard to shop for anything super specific, especially when you need a particular item within a specific time frame. Winter was coming, and I needed snow boots! Luckily, my Bogs were worth every penny and far exceeded my expectations. They were super comfortable right out of the box, warm, great in the snow, and cool looking to boot (no pun intended)! They were so comfortable and easy to slip on and off that I ended up wearing them for everything. I basically have my year divided into Chacos season and Bogs season (both of which were full price footwear purchases that I've never regretted). But, as you can see (on the left) in the above photo, it's been a tough four years for them. With another winter fast approaching, and the neoprene on my original Bogs torn and coming apart, it was time for an upgrade. I was lucky enough to find a discounted pair of a previous season's design/color scheme in my size on Amazon.com for about half price. As you can see, they're gorgeous! I can hardly bring myself to wear them because I don't ever want them to lose their bright, brand new glow. They'll be my "dress" pair of snow boots.

 Which brings me to a problem we have around here. We never get rid of old shoes! There's always a use for the previous pair. My old Bogs are still super comfortable; there's nothing wrong with the foot part, and since they're already scuffed and torn, they're perfect for dirty work. Shoes can always be downgraded, so when the day comes that you have to wade through raw sewage, you've got the shoe for that! Even the one pair of work boots I downgraded completely out of footwear status ended up being recycled into pansy planters, so they're still sitting around on the porch. Hence the problem, we've got way too many shoes sitting around on the porch, and in the house. I haven't figured out a solution yet, I'm just complaining.

It doesn't help that when I bought my new Bogs snow boots just recently, I purchased a second pair of Bogs as well. Like I said, as soon as the weather turns too cold for Chacos sandals, I switch to the Bogs because I want a waterproof, easy slip on, sturdy pair of shoes to do everything in, snow or not. All the gardening, hiking, etc. that I did in my Bogs probably shortened the life of the neoprene quite a bit. So, this new pair is to be used for all non-snow, non-downpour situations. And I'm loving them! They are comfortable, easy to slip on, sturdy…and something else to trip over on the way in or out of the house.

New Bogs, "Rue", photo courtesy of the internet

 Who'd a thought that I would ever end up one of those women with a "shoe problem"! (In my defense, Joe and Eden's shoes are equal parts of the problem.) At least I've got my farm footwear needs all sorted out. Don't get me started on what the heck kind of shoes I'm supposed to wear with a skirt or dress in the winter time!

P.S. Maybe this is what I need to do with some of the bottom-of-the-totem-pole shoes around here.  I mean really, what are the chances we'll have to wade through raw sewage anytime soon.

P.P.S. This post is dedicated to Eden. Shoes (or shooies as she pronounces it) is one of her new favorite words, both spoken and signed.