It’s a Mommy Day

In a house dominated by 5 year olds, we often differentiate days of the week by calling our weekends, Mommy/Daddy days, and Monday – Friday as school days.  When my boys were 4 months old, I had the opportunity to work a part-time schedule until they were 3.  Those days during the middle of the work week were called Mommy Days, and that extra time spent together was popular with us all.

Now that I’m back to work full-time, I cherish any extra Mommy days that we might get with vacation time or spring break.  Because this extra time is sometimes few and far between, I do my best to jam pack them with kiddy activities.

So for those of you who might be enjoying a spring break “staycation” or need a refresh with some Mommy day fun outside of the house, see below for how my boys and I like to pack in a day’s worth of special activity time together.

• Pinstripes in Edina – During the week Pinstripes offers a fun morning out of Mom and Tots bowling.  Kids 12 and under bowl for about $5, and parents bowl for free.  The food is great and is both adult and kid friendly, so plan to grab a bite when bowling.
• St. Paul/Grand Avenue Excursion – I love any opportunity to support the local businesses of good old St. Paul.  Choo Choo Bob’s on Marshall Avenue is a great store filled with train tables to excite the young and not so young.  If your kids are older like mine, try to go mid-day when the younger tots are home napping.  We love to extend our time out and about by swinging by Creative Kidstuff and the Red Balloon Bookshop on Grand Avenue.  Time out on Grand Avenue is usually topped off by a trip to Grand Ole Creamery for a yummy ice cream treat and maybe a slice of cheese pizza for a late lunch.

• Children’s Museum of Minnesota – This is an obvious choice, but did you realize that the local library allows you to check out a Passport  to Play which is good for up to 4 free admissions?  Passports can be used Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday from 1:00 pm – close.  Don’t you think that with the money saved, you should take the kiddos out for a special lunch ahead of time at Mickey’s Diner?
• Good Times Park in Eagan – We have mentioned this place before, but it’s so great that it should be discussed again.  Plan to go with snacks and/or lunch ready, because your gang will want to stay for hours!  This park is awesome for a wide range of ages, and is on my list for so many reasons.  I love the open floor plan concept of this place.  Too many times, I have been the mom to climb through all of the vertical mazes and traps to find a crying child that is having some sort of trouble.  This 25,000-square-foot indoor playground looks just like your outdoor park.  To top it all off, there is a Panera with a drive thru right by the park, so this mama gets her latte before heading into play so that I have the energy to keep up with my guys.

Other items on my “Mommy Day Bucket List” include the following.

• The Works Museum in Bloomington – It sounds like a great place for curious minds, with the opportunity to engage in science.
• Vertical Endeavors – This indoor rock climbing facility sounds like a great place to burn off some energy.

So how do you spend those precious days with your kiddos when you need to get out of the house and try for something out of the norm?  I would love to hear your thoughts and add them to my list.  And here’s hoping that the weather will start cooperating so that we can really chat up some fun outdoor activities soon!