Just minutes after this photo was taken, Austin's feet suddenly grew one size and could no longer fit into his little slip-on sneakers. I am not kidding people, it was that fast. There was no thinking that maybe his shoes were too small, no forgetting to pick him up a new pair on the way home from work...it was like lightening struck Austin's feet and they just grew. I had to take him out in his stroller with no shoes on, going shop to shop in Chinatown until I found a store that sold baby shoes. And boy, did we find good ones.

As you can imagine, or as I imagine, Austin had no idea why I was taking him out for a walk with no shoes on. He is the type of person that can go with the flow and I attribute this part of his personality to the fact that he was born in California. So when he received a new pair of shoes I think it was a big surprise for him. We looked around for a while and I finally found some toddler shoes at a store that sells the type of sandals you often find on elderly men, as well as battery operated monkeys that make chattering noises and of course calendars decorated with images of naked ladies. Something for everybody, right? Right.

Well, after I put the shoes on Austin and ascertained to the best of my ability that they fit, I paid the salesperson continued on our way. It took me a little while, but I finally noticed that Austin was staring at his feet and holding them at different angles so he could get a better look at his new shoes. And then when we got home and I tried to take the shoes off him, he wouldn't let me. Austin then proceeded to walk around the living room, pointing at his new shoes and babbling all sorts of happy noises. I am not sure, but I think you could call this Austin's first consumer experience and it seems to have worked out for him. May things go this smoothly when suddenly none of his pants fit him.