Ayva received a pair of black patent leather shoes as a gift for Christmas. From the moment they were lifted from the box, she was in love, and she began petitioning me to let her wear the shoes every single day. The shoes, shiny with a flower applique are a perfect fit for Ayva’s sense of style. Not only are they super fancy, but they click clack when she walks, “just like Mommy’s shoes”! All of these combine to make the shoes irresistable, so each morning, Ayva asks if she can wear her “tippy tap shoes”.

At first, I wouldn’t let her wear them. The shoes were too dressy. They weren’t appropriate for romping and rolling around at daycare, doing all of the things that 2 year olds do. Besides, they might get scuffed before she got a chance to wear them somewhere special. Well, my little girl persisted. She was NOT going to take no for an answer. Just wearing the shoes to church wasn’t enough because, well, her friends hadn’t seen her shoes, and her teacher didn’t see her shoes, and she wanted to wear her shoes to school!

Finally, after she asked for the one hundred thousandth time, I gave in. I put an adorable dress on her, tights, and her beloved tippy tap shoes. As soon as she put those shoes on, she was transformed! She couldn’t stop smiling, and was so excited, SO EXCITED! She twirled around the room like a ballerina, and when she walked, it was as if she were royalty, arms at her side, stepping delicately and gracefully. All the way to school on the bus, she kept looking at her shoes, crossing and uncrossing her feet, too anxious to show them off to keep still.

When we arrived at school, she didn’t even have a chance to point out her new shoes, because her friends noticed them as soon as she stepped in the room. Yeah, they’re pretty fabulous like that. Ayva was more than pleased to model her footwear, and demonstrate how they tippy tapped when she walked. She was happy, and wearing those shoes made her day special. Nothing changed from her regular routine. Later that morning, I caught a glimpse of her on the playground. She did everything that she normally would do, climbing up the steps to go down the sliding board, running around chasing her friends…she just looked extra lovely doing it with her patent leather shoes shining in the sun.

Of course, then I got it. She’s 2. EVERY day is a special occasion. What’s the point in saving shoes for “just the right time”? So that she grows out of them before she’s even had a chance to wear them more than a handful of times? That doesn’t make any sense. What about if “just the right time” never comes? Should she just never wear the shoes? Ridiculous. I don’t know if it has something to do with how I was raised, or what, but there have been several situations when I was waiting for the right time to do something, and I ended up missing out on everything from a prestigious internship when I was in college to a spa gift certificate that expired before I found the “perfect” time to use it.

Now, there are some things that are worth saving. Big things. Life changing things. Patent leather shoes, however, well, every day is the right day for patent leather shoes. Especially ones that tippy tap when you walk.