Mall of America, Part 2

Friday morning we had breakfast at the hotel, let Diva splash around in the pool, and were ready and waiting when the Mall opened at 10a.m.  We were planning to meet my Aunt Nade, my late daddy's sister, at the Mall at some point during the day, so I told Walker and Diva if they wanted to go on some rides they should do that right away.  I didn't know what time Nade would be joining us but I didn't think she'd enjoy hanging out in Nickelodeon Universe while Walker and Diva went on nausea inducing amusement park rides.  I didn't have to tell them twice ~ they took off for the park like their butts were on fire and spent the next hour happily making themselves dizzy on rides like the Brain Surge, which spun them upside down while also spinning them in a circle, the Log Chute, which floated them around a serene log camp scene before dropping them, in their log boat, forty feet down into a "splash pond", the Splat-O-Sphere, which lifts them 60 feet into the air on a dangling cage before dropping them back down, and all three of the Mall of America roller coasters.

Before the big plunge on the Log Chute

This thing spins upside down and backwards while it revolved around a center pole.  Yikes!

One of the reasons I like to do this trip on Diva's school break is that the Minneapolis schools are always in session.  In other words, she was the only kid her age at the park that morning.  There were lots of little kids on the little kid rides, but Walker and Diva were able to avoid waiting in line the whole time they played at the amusement park.

After the rides, Diva, who apparently has a cast iron stomach, decided she was hungry.  So off we went to the food court for lunch.  My mom had a banana split - just a banana split - declaring it was a fine lunch, with her fruit and dairy requirements met.  Um, okay, Mom, LOL.  She sure didn't use that reasoning when I was growing up.  Diva was disappointed to see that the kid spa was gone, but we found a nail salon that had an immediate opening and she treated herself to her very first manicure.  I love the little daisies.

Aunt Nade showed up about that time, so we zipped over to her parking area to pick her up.  I just love Nade, and we don't get to see her often enough.  She's been having mobility issues, and my mom has mobility issues, so they were content to sit together, chatting away, at various locations around the Mall while Diva, Walker, and I shopped for shoes, hunted down bargains on cold weather clothes, chose gifts for the family at home, and played with the cosmetics at Sephora.

Lego sculpture at Lego Land

Diva told me that she wasn't allowed to go on one of the attractions in the amusement park because she was wearing a skort (like a skirt with shorts built in).  The attraction required her to be strapped into a harness and she had to have her legs covered.  So we found her some cute leggings at Old Navy, had her change in the store, and went back to Nickelodeon Universe where Walker and Diva climbed an obstacle course designed, I'm sure, to cause old aunties to have nervous breakdowns when they watch.  This kid climbed 56 feet into the air on tightropes, floating bridges, and I honestly don't know what else but everything swayed and there were no railings.  She was attached to a rope that was hooked to her harness but I can't imagine doing anything like that, let alone thinking it was fun.  At the top she had to walk out onto a plank and ring a bell, then she had to make her way back down through the same kinds of obstacles she conquered going up.

See my kid?  She's at the top of the center pole.  Really!

See? And yes, I pretty much held my breath until she got down, LOL.

My mom and Aunt Nade watched the climb with me, but I doubt they were as nervous as I was because my mom, God bless her, fell asleep. Of course I had to take a photo of that, too, but I think I'd be grounded for life if I posted it here.  So after Diva took twelve years off my life with her mega climb, we headed to Build-A-Bear where we - you guessed it! - built a couple teddy bears.  Well, actually, a bear and a kitty.

The first time I saw a Build-A-Bear, the un-stuffed teddies were hanging from a clothes line across the store, pinned up by their ears.  I remember being horrified at the sight of all the disemboweled bears.  I could not believe anyone would bring a child there. These days, they have shelves with samples of the bears all stuffed up; the un-stuffed ones are folded into a bin.  Much better.  Anyway: the bears were buy one, get one free, so Diva chose her bear and I picked out an orange kitty for myself.  We stuffed them, put in a little red fabric heart, and had them stitched up.  Diva gave them each a brushing and a bath (with an air hose) and it was off to the dressing room.  Diva's bear ended up with a pair of Chinese pajamas, and my kitty left the store decked out in a denim mini skirt and sparkly tee shirt.

Dinner was next on the agenda, so we wandered upstairs to a beach grill called Kokomo.  The food was great, the atmosphere was festive, and it was quiet enough that we could all have a nice visit. We had a really nice time.

That was pretty much it.  We walked Nade back to her car after dinner, then Walker and Diva went on a couple more rides.  Diva, who has been saving for this trip since July, still had more than half her money, so we stopped back at Sephora where she purchased some nail polish in a kitty shaped bottle.  We were pretty much wiped out when we got back to the hotel, but Diva and I went to the pool anyway.  I thought a little soak in one of the hot tubs would sooth my tired legs.  Unfortunately, there was a problem with the chemicals in the tub I chose.  Here's what gets me:  half a dozen adults watched me walk over to the hot tub, dip a toe in, then climb down the stairs and sink into the water.  A minute later, when my throat started burning and this weird chemical smell hit my nose I jumped out and that was when they told me that there had been a "do not use" sign on that hot tub.  I don't know what happened to the sign but honestly?  What did they hope to accomplish by waiting until after I got in to tell me?  One guy said he'd gotten in, too, before he was told.  Guess he was recycling the bad karma.  Nice. I could still smell that chemical smell on my skin after I showered.  If I suddenly sprout a third eye guess I know why.

Road Trip! The Great River Road

There's a local commercial that runs for a place called Horsfall Variety Store in Lansing, Iowa.  The tag line is, "We have everything you need, and lots of things you don't."  I love that.  So after seeing this commercial about six hundred and twelve times, I looked at Walker and said, "One of these days we'll have to check that place out."

You would think by now I'd learn that if I say something out loud, I'm pretty much committing to doing it.  Iowa isn't all that far - took us about an hour to get there - but really?  We processed for the end of the quarter at work on Friday night and it was a late one.  I would have liked to get a little more sleep.

Saturday morning was picture perfect.  The route down to Iowa follows the Great River Road, which is a pretty drive on any given day. This time of year, with the fall color starting to come down, it was downright gorgeous. We stopped a couple times, at a scenic over look, and at a lock and dam.  I remember when we were kids there were viewing spots at the lock and dams, where you could watch the boats pass through and see the water levels rise and fall.  I don't think they let you do that anymore, because even though there was a visitor center and guest parking, the area around the water was fenced off and marked as inaccessible.

Once in Lansing, we found the Horsfall stores - both of them - and poked around a bit.  I felt a little like I'd stumbled into an episode of Hoarders, but in a good way. Sort of.  They really do have everything, but the shelves are very close together and the windows have boxes piled in front of them, so the store felt rather dark. We found a toy section and picked up some new jigsaw puzzles.  Got a great deal on them, too. 


 We weren't in a hurry to head home so we wandered around downtown Lansing for a bit.  We really had to watch ourselves - the curbs were so high if we weren't paying attention one of us probably would have gone over and snapped a leg. Check out Walker with his knee-high curb.

There were all kinds of cool old buildings, and a couple "small town America" signs.  I didn't get a chance to snap one of the "ice cream and bait" shop, as it was along the highway and I was driving, but we did get a chuckle out of the "auto parts and tanning" shop.  Someone told us you can use the tanning bed while your car is services.  So every 3,000 miles you get a little color.

We also passed this cool stone school, which is currently being restored. They hope to put a museum inside at some point, and maybe even hold classes there again some day. We made a quick stop for a couple lottery tickets before we headed home.  That was Walker's idea.  He says that you have better odds when you play out of state.  Not sure about that theory, but I can spend a couple bucks to test it out. I'll let y'all know if we win ~