Step Aside Nancy Sinatra

Ava is the stereotypical girl in that she loves shoes, boots, sandals, etc. She wore her rainboots EVERY DAY for nearly a week after Doni bought them for her. These were sunny, blue sky days with no hint of rain. It didn't matter. She needed to wear her rainboots.

There is a character in Toy Story 2 called Jesse who is a cowgirl doll. Ava is a big fan. Woody is cool and Buzz Lightyear is flashy, but Jesse seems to be the main reason Ava likes to watch that movie.

Given her appreciation for all manners of foot coverings and that she would be the president of Jesse's fan club if there was such a thing, I thought that Ava would probably really like a pair of cowboy boots. I had a pair of black cowboy boots as a kid and I kept them long after they would no longer fit. In fact, they may still be in the closet of my old bedroom.

On a recent trip to Chicago we stopped at Tony's Saddle Shop in Valparaiso, IN to see about getting a pair. They have a wall of boots covered with so much leather and decorative stitching it would make Clint Eastwood shed a tear. We checked out our options for Ava. There were only two sets of boots in her size. The first were black and pretty standard, run-of-the-mill boots. The second option were a pair of bright pink, flashy, over-the-top boots that screamed girl power. If you looked long and hard, you could almost make Ava's name out in the stitching. These boots were made for her. On the other hand, they were also $20 more than the black pair. Knowing the answer, I asked her if she wanted the pink boots. She cocked her head to the side, looked at me out of the corner of her eyes, and said through a perfectly timed grin, "... Yeah". Shortly thereafter we were walking out of the store with her boot heels hitting loudly on the floor with each step and my wallet becoming a little lighter after another purchase for daddy's girl.