The family of four flew in early on Saturday morning, and we spent most of the day relaxing, with an afternoon visit to a neighborhood park. It was super hot and Josh had to institute a five-minute shade break for Loco and Lala, who are six and four. (Wish and I held down a patch of grass in the shade the whole time.)
On Sunday, we geared up for a day at the Mall of America and the amusement park inside the mall. Mandatory stops included the American Girl store (which made me want to reread those books all over again, especially Molly, Kirsten and Samantha) and Legoland.
At the amusement park, Lala was thrilled to run into Dora:
One afternoon, we went to a local pool and waterpark. It was recently renovated and was very fun, but it was one of those days that was 72 degrees, partly cloudy and perfect for sitting outside - and a little cool for flopping around in the pool. By the end of the afternoon, I think all of the swimmers in our party were chilled. Here's Lala, all bundled up, with Josh:
We also popped over to the Science Museum one night, where we saw the new Omnitheater movie "Under the Sea." I think the reviews from our group were mostly thumbs-up. The cinematography was totally astounding and the scenery was gorgeous, but the fish-being-eaten parts were a little too much for the 6-and-under crowd. Loco's favorite part was when a symbiotic relationship was demonstrated with footage of a crab carrying a jellyfish above him (thus wearing the jellyfish like a "construction helmet," he said).
And, of course, trips to Target Field figured prominently into the itinerary. It was Loco and Lala's first major league baseball game!
Here's the proud uncle with his niece and nephew:
The kids loved TC Bear. "Is he a real bear or a costume?" Loco asked. You be the judge.
Speaking of beloved characters, I didn't expect the kids to learn quite so much last week about Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox, starting with a scary rendition of the duo inside the log chute ride at the mall. I had become oblivious to how entrenched this story is in Minnesota culture! Little references popped up what seemed like everywhere we went. Initially I think Loco was almost fully convinced that Paul Bunyan lives at the end of a dark hallway in our home. By the end of the trip, though, both kids were clear that Paul B. uses his powers for good, and they also know him as the guy responsible for creating the Mississippi River with his ax (and possibly all of the lakes, too). Folklore!
The weather rained out some of our plans - no trips to the Minneapolis lakes - but the food itinerary was not harmed by rain. We tried out our new grill twice, visited the local Punch Pizza (and Jimmy John's!) and made sure that our guests experienced the frozen yogurt trend sweeping the Twin Cities. (I tried salted caramel frozen yogurt for the first time. YUM.)
And there was lots of play time inside our apartment, too. Lala and I got matching manicures. Loco's wrestlers held down the fort in our kitchen for the week. Lala made sure to grab her time with them, too.
One night, my mom and brother came over for dinner to meet everyone, and my mom arrived equipped with toys. She and Lala enjoyed the bubbles while the guys played with a set of velcro mitts and a tennis ball.
Before the trip, Josh and I had a blast brainstorming activities for the family (even though the week ended with probably half of the items still on our list), and we loved showing them around town. The crew is back in Colorado now, and my hope is that they got a hearty introduction to these cities we love, balanced with enough downtime to just hang out with us at home. It was a good, good week.
It's our turn to visit next, but I hope they'll make a return trip sometime soon!
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