Road Warrior Momma: Day 32

Day 32 – June 29, 2012

Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN

Are you bored yet? I think we are…either that, or it’s just Minnesota. Really not much going on here. I’m tired too…and hot.

We hit the State Capitol first…missing the tour by 10 minutes, due to downtown St. Paul roads being torn up. So we perused the pretty building by ourselves, for just a little while. Next stop of our tour was the Mary Tyler Moore statue in downtown Minneapolis…which meant nothing to the kids, but I thought it was cool. She (the character) was one of my childhood heroes, I wanted to work in a news room….it’s the reason I ended up at Loyola, in New Orleans, studying communications…before I chickened out. (Long Story.) But every time I moved to a big city…New Orleans, Fort Lauderdale, Atlanta…I thought of her when I caught sight of the city’s skyline, when driving up to the city, for the first time.

Next, the Minnesota Sculpture Garden….LAME! Then I went to the house that served as Mary’s home (when she lived in the little apartment in Phyllis Linstrom’s house & Rhoda was her neighbor). Although, it’s a private home and there were all kinds of police signs warning you not to park….blah, blah, blah. Got my picturesJ.

Speaking of parking…I am happy to report that I did not pay for any parking today! For all four sights, in the city….I parked illegally & got away with it! Feeling like a rebel (and NO, I didn’t not admit my crimes to the children, I may be devious, but not dumb). So, either the universe is paying me back, for spending a small fortune in Chicago Philly & Boston….or I’ve got some bad parking karma coming down the road…with three more cities to go.

Next, the Mall of the America. Depending on how you look at it, it was a good or bad thing that this destination is at the end of the trip….tired and broke doesn’t bode well for shopping. This did not affect the kids. I’m not sure if the purpose of this mall is to promote retail shopping or serve as an entertainment complex for children. They got to ride a roller coaster & a water flume. Plus, all the Nickelodeon characters were walking around (which terrified Camden). It was a mini Disney World.

Below are the pictures of all of us, on the water flume…look at Barrett’s picture. I laughed so hard when I saw it, I started crying. The girl who printed it out, doubled over in laughter and wiped her tears….she said it was, hands down, the funniest picture she’s ever seen, from the ride. Poor Bear Bear…

There were tons of kiosks, with those pesky sales people, who accost you as you walk by. One guy gave me a free sample of lotion and tried to get me to stop. I explained I couldn’t because I had four kids. Audrey piped up and said that wasn’t the reason….she explained that I don’t do that anymore because the last guy who stopped me tricked her mom into spending a hundred dollars, and that (with all the Audie-sassiness she could muster, hands on her hips) wasn’t going to happen again! Swear to God. I was speechless, and so was the guy.

We once again had some discipline issues. I was in a store, which I cannot name, because I was there for Rich (remember we missed his birthday). The kids were all segregated to an area by the door, and told to sit and behave while I checked out. At one point Audrey did something, that led to one of the store clerks asking me if I minded if she stopped her from doing what she was doing (of which I was unaware). I told her I absolutely didn't mind...have a go at her! After that, I reminded the kids that there was no monkey business or we were leaving…last warning. Well…you know how this ended. We left the mall (“The greatest mall ever!” according to their cries)…with three of the four CRYING, begging for one more chance. It's a sad day when Barrett is the best behaved of the bunch (of course, he was experiencing post traumatic stress from the ride).

I was glad to leave, because honestly, they were going shake me down for something. Those rides weren’t free. We stopped for a late lunch, on the way back to the hotel, and they were still crying/pouting. The waitress walked up and gave me a tentative look….she asked me if everything was alright….I assured her that I was fine. She asked me if I needed a cocktail…I laughed and told, yes, but no thanks. Then Audrey , hiccupping, explained (to the waitress) that it was all her fault and she should never have been born. Nice, huh? Drama, drama, drama...

Back at the room…I’m reading & watching TV & no one is talking to me, it’s awesome! But I guess I’ll have to make-up with them before dinner.

I guess next year, I better keep the trip to just 4 weeks.