Once again we are in a hotel room and I am the only one awake. We are currently in Sioux Falls, SD. It was a travel day today,,,,but I should bring you up to date on Minnesota.
When we arrived we went straight to the Mall of America. It really is a shopper's paradise- or a "really boring place"(according to Danny). While I would have liked to spend more time shopping, our primary purpose was to go to Nickelodeon World and get in a few new coasters. Maggie, Ian and Rich rode all five. I opted out of the two loopers since I already had a headache. I did get three new coasters and Danny has two. There were no lines for any rides, which was nice since we didn't get there until after 5:00 PM and we didn't want to have to go back the next day. We did walk around part of the mall, but it really is enormous!!! For my Bergen County friends- it puts Garden State and Palisades to shame. I stopped in a few "Minnesota" themed stores and every salesperson I met was so nice and willing to offer tips for our journey. Rich has perfected his Minnesota accent, so feel free to ask him to demonstrate when we get home.
The next day we went to Valleyfair! Amusement Park. Like other CedarFair properties, this one is pretty well run. It really cannot compare to any Six Flags park I have been to. Unfortunately I had a pretty miserable day. The temperature had to be at least 105 and it was very humid. I managed to go on three coasters (High Roller, Mad Mouse and Wild Thing) before the heat really hit me. I couldn't stay out of the shade for more than 10 minutes without feeling sick. Once again- the others were lucky- the park was very quiet (I guess we were the only fools to be out in the heat) and Rich and the kids were able to ride everything they wanted. Danny was going to go on High Roller with us- but his nerves got the better of him. He did go on the bumper cars three times in a row!
We were able to complete the park by 4:15 and went back to the hotel. We all went to the pool to cool down. Even I made it in. (For my Westwood friends- Danny wants everyone to know he went under 26 times- and the last time was at least 2 minutes - or 5 seconds in real time). Rich stayed with the kids and I escaped to our room for a little nap. After a nice dinner at Granite City Brewery we called it a day.
Thankfully, today was so much cooler. We left Eagan, MN around 11 AM to head to Sioux Falls. While driving on the interstate I saw a billboard for Walnut Grove. Being the crazy "Little House" fan that I am we decided to detour off the highway and make a stop. I am so glad that we did. Our first stop was in a small town of Nicolet, MN. We saw a huge sign for Schmidt's Meat Market and couldn't resist stopping. This place was a sausage lover's paradise!!! I never knew there were so many different kids of sausage. Rich and I sampled some and purchased cheese curds and snack sticks for the ride. I would have loved to bring some sausage home for a certain Schmidt on Roosevelt Ave but as I still have almost three weeks to go I couldn't.
Next stop was Walnut Grove and the Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum. It was really neat to see- although once again I know the kids didn't share my enthusiasm. Maggie and I played this foot-pumped parlor organ. After exploring the buildings there we were back on the road to South Dakota. The ride was beautiful. There were farms as far as you could see. We even passed a big wind farm near the border. Watching the windmills turn was fascinating and for me, remarkably soothing. They looked graceful- for lack of a better word.
We got to Sioux City around five, checked in to the hotel and then took the kids to play mini golf. For the entire ride from Minnesota Danny kept asking when we were going to go. We then went to dinner and Falls View Park. The Falls were great. You were able to climb down on the rocks right to the edge of the river. At 9:30 PM they put on a laser light show about the history of Sioux Falls. The history buff in me loved it- the kids thought it was a little long. After the show we walked around the park more. The Falls are lit beautifully at night.
Now we are back at the hotel, gearing up for another travel day to Rapid City tomorrow. We will be stopping at the Corn Palace (which I am really looking forward to).
I am going to attempt to upload some pictures now that I have my laptop- couldn't figure it out from the iPad.
See you soon!!
Wish I could see the Mall of America-- just to see commercialism heaven once! Sounds like a great time overall, but I hope the heat lets up for you (for all of us- it's crazy hot here, too).
ReplyDeleteNever even knew Walnut Grove really existed- how cool is that?
Glad you're getting to have this family time together-- have fun!