Wake up and go to IKEA

Before I let Andrea tell you how much she liked taking her 18-month old twins to IKEA, I want to mention her new business, little uni. She is selling handmade baby clothes that are simple and sweet, with modern appliques. Her babies Mira and Will are modeling for us in these pictures.

Andrea lives in Chicago, where its been freezing and snowing for the past few months. Her kids just moved to one nap a day, so they are always looking for good morning activities. She writes:

My husband and I planned a trip Saturday morning to IKEA to buy a kid-sized table and chairs. I was not looking forward to a day in the suburbs at a crowded IKEA. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find that if you get to IKEA early, it is not crowded at all.

We put each kid in one of their odd stroller/shopping bag holder contraptions. The kids loved being pushed around in them, and we loved not pushing a heavy double stroller or 2 cumbersome full-sized shopping carts.

The kids section is really amazing. Besides the unique, colorful toys, bedding and furniture, they have a play
area set up in a maze of child-sized, completely furnished rooms. I bought a great set of plastic, colored plates. We also let each kid pick out a stuffed animal. The kids loved riding the glass elevators, and saying “Hi” every time they heard the beep of the doors opening. Because it wasn’t crowded, we could really see and appreciate the well-designed room displays. The kids pointed out lights, doors, windows, balls, beds as we walked around.

Lunch in the cafÃ© was excellent. The modern, white highchairs were neatly stacked and easy to find. There was plenty of space at the table for 2 toddlers and 2 adults. I set up the kids and my husband went to get the food. He got mac and cheese and Swedish meatballs from the kids menu, of course served on the wonderful plastic plates. I think the mac and cheese was $.99. The kids gobbled down every bite.

After a couple of awkward trips to the car carrying table parts and babies, we headed home just in time for their naps.

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Whitney

RookieMoms.com co-founder Whitney lives with her husband, son, and daughter in the San Francisco Bay Area where she writes about parenting, crafts, and activities that moms can do with babies in tow. She and Heather also publish 510Families.com, a site for East Bay parents.