Nelson Family Blog: Mall of America Trip

This past week, Emma had spring break, so we planned a trip to Minneapolis to spend some time away from home. We left our house on Monday night because of the weather. Yes, it is still snowing in April. Boo.

The kids tolerated the ride really well. They watched movies, read books, and stayed pretty entertained. We got to our hotel in Bloomington at around 10:00pm, and basically just settled in and went to sleep. The kids were pretty wound up, but it didn't take too long to settle everyone down.

On Tuesday, we headed over to Mall of America after breakfast. The kids were so excited by everything. We headed straight to Nickelodeon Universe, got wristbands, and the kids were off and running. We did rides basically all day. We took a short break to eat lunch at the Rainforest Cafe, which was a blast. The kids loved it! There was so much to look at, and listen to, they were entertained through the entire lunch. Then, it was back to the rides.

Emma of course loved all the rides. She went to Mall of America a couple years ago and did rides, so she was experienced and had fun. She was also big enough to go on a big rollercoaster, which she loved and went on about 8 times. She also did an awesome job driving the bumper cars this year, she could drive that car all over the place. The only ride she didn't like was the Ghost blaster ride because it was too scary, but she went on every other ride she could possibly go on.

Elliott also had a good time. He was a little overwhelmed at first at all the activity and hustle and bustle of the mall. He was a little nervous on a couple of the rides, but once he got used of them, he loved them and couldn't get enough. His favorite rides were the Fly Boat, the ferris wheel, and the Log Chute ride. All four of us went on the Log Chute ride about 6 times, and had a great time.

It was a long, fun day of rides and entertainment. We were all pretty beat by evening, so we headed back to the hotel to do some swimming, eat some pizza, and just relax.

On Wednesday, we started off the day by going to Sea Life, which is the aquarium in the lower level of Mall of America. The kids were pretty impressed by the sting rays, jellyfish, and sharks. They loved looking at all of it. It didn't take us too long to make it through the aquarium, and then we had an afternoon to fill, so we ended up going round 2 with rides at Nickelodeon Universe. The kids had a great time again with rides, and were really tired by the end of the day. We ended up getting back to the hotel pretty late, so it was pretty much straight to bed when we got back.

We started Thursday off with a trip to Edinborough Park. The park is a giant indoor playground with tunnels, slides, and jumpy houses. The kids had so much fun. There was also a gym with scooters, basketball hoops, and other fun things. They burned off so much energy at the park. We probably didn't leave enough time for the park, and before we knew it we had to leave so we could head to Target field for the Twins Home opener.

We parked at the Mall of America and rode the Light Rail to Target Field. The kids though the "train" ride was amazing, and loved the entire experience. The Twins game was really cold. It was about 34 degrees, with a pretty strong wind. It was chilly. We were pretty bundled up, and still were cold. I couldn't feel my toes by the end. The kids actually fell asleep while we waited for the game to start, which was perfect timing. Although Elliott is getting too big to fall asleep on my lap, and my left arm was killing me by the time he woke up again. But both kids needed a little nap to make it through the day. We ended up leaving after 5 innings since it was so cold. The Twins ended up winning the game against the Seattle Mariners 5-2. It was a fun experience, but it would have been nice if it could have been a little warmer out.

We made it back to the hotel at around 6pm, and did some more swimming, which the kids loved. John went out and picked up some supper, and then we swam some more and called it a night.

Friday was basically our traveling day. We got packed up, and headed out on a very cold and windy day. It was about 18 degrees, and felt like 5 degrees with the wind chill. On April 5th. It's been a miserable spring so far. We stopped at Cabelas on our way home, and the kids enjoyed seeing all the animals and fish.

We got home at around 3:30pm on Friday. After unloading and doing some laundry, we enjoyed just hanging out at home. It was so nice to be home and sleep in our own beds again.

On Saturday, we took the kids to play at the Gym while we got in some much-needed workouts. The kids had fun running around, and we burned off some of the calories we had consumed over the duration of our trip. In the evening, we took the kids bowling. They loved it. They were so excited to knock over their pins, and they really did a good job staying focused on the game. It was fun.

Today, it is a blizzard outside. A literal blizzard. It's April 8th, and it's blizzarding out. I am hoping someday we can see spring again. John took the kids to a bowling birthday party, so I am enjoying some quiet time. First time in over week I have had a little time to myself. And I am loving it.

Overall, our vacation was really fun. The kids handled all the traveling and walking really well. There were a couple of times when the kids got a little crabby from lack of sleep, but overall they did great. It was really fun to show the kids all these fun things on the trip. I can't wait for our next family vacation!