The shoes in this poem marked a turning point for my daughter, then aged four. She discovered a life long love of shoes - she's now grown up and still has more pairs than anyone I know.

These shoes are party shoes.
Once they were shiny, white and new.
Now, though still white, still with their shine;
Having been worn time after time,
The toes are just a little scratched -
Both the same, so they still match.

But Marianne's growing,
She's getting quite tall.
Soon they won't fit her feet at all,
Then she'll have some new shoes
With a new sort of shine
And she'll wear them at parties
To make her look fine.