What's a pair of jeans like you doing in a place like this?

Thanks to a recent growth spurt, Ethan has outgrown the shoes he wears every day. I'm sorry to say that both he and his sister inherited my unfortunate feet, and so shoes are not always so easy to find for my children. When Abby was a toddler, I discovered a brand of children's shoe called Robeez. Robeez are soft soled, which is best for kids learning to walk, and come in all kinds of cute designs. Best of all, they fit wide, chunky feet. They recently started making boots, and these boots are what Ethan wears every day. Children CANNOT get Robeez off their feet--in fact, it's sometimes hard for the parents. They are cute and comfy, and worth the price (around $35 per pair). Ethan has worn his pair for 4 months, so I consider it a worthy investment. You can take a look at the shoes here:

http://www.robeez.com/product.aspx?ProductID=190&deptid=52&PriceCat=2&Lang=EN-US

At any rate, you can't get these shoes at Wal Mart or Target. They are usually sold in specialty children's shops. Yesterday, I called around and finally found the pair in the color and size I needed at a shop in Fayetteville called Bella Jack's. I had never been there before, but I always relish a new shopping experience, so after lunch I headed there with Autumn to pick up the shoes and browse a bit.

The store is kind of sparse, with clothes lining the walls and a few random things in the middle. Their clothes are of the typical boutique variety, which means lots of ruffles and loud fabrics. Oh, and of course the clever sayings. It is beyond me why people want to put phrases on infants' shirts that imply the infant has an attitude, but it's all the rage. In the baby boy's section, I found a tiny onesie that said, "What's a girl like you doing on a playground like this?" Ugh. It's almost as distasteful to me as bibs with ridiculous things printed on them, my least favorite being "Spit Happens."

But I digress. Shocking, I know. So I'm headed towards the counter to buy the boots when I see a stack of girls' jeans. I am always on the lookout for good jeans for Abby. She is incredibly hard to fit for jeans, but she loves wearing them. I picked up a pair, and was excited to see that they were just plain jeans--no sequins, no fur cuffs, no rips, no paint, no appliques. Just plain jeans. Imagine, then, my shock when I turned the price tag over to see that this pair of unadorned, plain jeans cost $96. NINETY SIX AMERICAN DOLLARS. FOR CHILDREN'S JEANS. There is no excuse for such absurdity. I dropped the jeans as fast as I could, paid for my little brown boots, and hightailed it out of there. The only way I'm paying that much for a pair of jeans is if the jeans can babysit and cook dinner.