How to Keep Your Kid's Shoes Tied

When it comes to keeping your kid's shoes tied, are you fighting a losing battle? Most kids learned to tie their shoes at an early age. It's a landmark accomplishment. That doesn't mean they stay tied. Elementary tying skills sometimes equal skinned knees. If it seems like your kid's shoes are becoming untied a little too often, try one of these handy techniques.

Buy a gadget. There are plenty of nifty little gizmos that can help keep your kid's shoes tied. The best one I've found is a little round screw top box. It fits over the whole knot and loop. Everything goes inside. You the screw the lid on. The shoelaces all fit in the little box and shoes stay neatly tied. Best of all, these come in a variety of colors and designs. Great for toddlers!

Use a barrette on girls shoes. Girls might like to keep their shoes tied with a fashionable twist. Why not snap a pretty barrette across the ties to hold them in place? I did this on a regular basis when my kids were younger. I've also used a rubber-band, ribbon or scrunchie. The barrette was the most attractive by far.

Double knot the bunny ears. Here's a tried and true method. Keep kid's shoelaces tied by double knotting the bunny ears. Just have them tie their shoes normally. Then make them more secure by tying the bunny ears in a single knot. This looks like a normal shoe tying job, but provides a little more security.

Knot and cut. I have a friend who likes to turn all her kids shoes into slip-ons. It's an easy, clever fix. She adjusts the laces so the shoe won't fall off, but can easily slip on and off the child's foot. Then she knots them at the top grommets. She cuts off the excess shoelace. Brilliant! No more morning shoe tying struggles. No more untied shoes.

Knot and tuck. Of course, you may want to save those shoelaces. If so, you can still use my friend's method. Just tuck the laces into the shoe, rather than cutting them off. Tucking in the ends works with conventional shoe tying as well. It keeps laces from catching on things, therefore, it keeps your kids shoes tied.

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