Many many thanks to those who answered my questions about safe bags and walking shoes in Paris. I just wanted to follow up in case in helps someone else. You can read the original post here if the link works: http://www.ricksteves.com/graffiti/helpline/index.cfm/rurl/topic/33603/paris-middle-aged-woman-bags-and-shoes.html
I took Wendy from BC's advice and bought a Pacsafe purse, which I highly recommend. Used that instead of a money belt. Made husband carry the money belt, which he hated, but it was useful for protecting passports and credit cards from theft. (By the end of the trip, he was calling it a "man diaper.") The Pacsafe bag was hideous, but very light when empty (unlike a leather bag) and sufficiently unisex enough that my husband didn't mind carrying it when it got too heavy from all the stuff my family tried to cram into it. We had no problems with theft, even though we were approached by those gypsy pickpocket people on 4 occasions. ("Do you speak English?" "NO!") Thus, we did not require the services of Terry the cop from Bellevue, although we did appreciate his advice about the money belt.
We wore the following shoes: Privos for me (highly recommend!), loafers or sneakers for husband, sneakers for son, and very thick flip flops for daughter. No one complained, and we had no mishaps or unfortunate accidents, unless you count the shrieking geyser toilet at the rest stop in Normandy.
I am now a fount of information on the following subjects: driving a rented Renault Scenic thru Normandy and Brittany, deciphering a car owner's manual in French to figure out how to turn off the "limiteur de vitesse" so that the car can go more than 36 kph, and folding a Michelin map the size of a car roof while in the passenger's seat without obstructing the driver's view. After paying about a million Euros on toll roads, I also understand why all French roads are better than anything we have here in Massachusetts.