My sisters and I decided to drive over to Orlando yesterday to experience firsthand the bliss they call IKEA. None of us had ever been before and what an adventure it was! For those of you who don't know much about the store, here is a little background. IKEA began in a small farming village in Sweden 6 decades ago and has now taken up residency in 34 countries. This particular store we went to is more than 309,000 sq. ft. and has anything and everything you could ever need, want, or dream of having for your home....and then some.
There is a playroom where you can drop your children off while you shop. I peaked in the window to see what it was like and I have to tell you, I wanted to go jump in and play!
Oh, and if you work up an appetite while doing all your shopping, no problem! Just stop by the restaurant right inside the store and grab a refreshing drink and a bite to eat!
We were IKEA rookies, so we had gone out to lunch beforehand. But, I hear the Swedish meatballs are amazing! They also have a Swede Shop where you can buy all sorts of yummy Swedish goodies.
One of my favorite things about the children's section of the store was that there weren't really any shelves. Most things were hanging from the ceiling in colorful displays. It was kind of like shopping with a kid in a candy store. We walked into the children's area and immediately the "OOhhhh, look at that!!" and the "Oh my gosh! That is so cute! Go over there!" started. 
The thing I found most amusing about the store was something I came across in the bathroom. Hehe...did I get your attention with that one?? IKEA is all about being environmental friendly. So, when you go in to use the restroom there is a little sign on the back of the toilet that says "Toilets are specially designed to save water. Please push handle up for liquid waste (less water) and down for solid waste (more water)." I laughed. The funniest part was that then, I couldn't help but listen to the flushing toilets and had to refrain from looking at the lady that came out of the stall that had obviously (from the sound of things)pushed the handle down and saying "I know what you did in there!!" I figured she wouldn't see the humor in it though. So, as usual, I just chuckled at myself and went on shopping.
It was fun and we got lots of great stuff. After we were done shopping we decided to go over to Disney and play their miniature golf course. I will be blogging about that in the next day or two. But I will tell you I don't think any of us have a pro (or even amateur) golf career in our future.
Sunday, December 2, 2007
IKEA
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14 comments:
That's the problem with hanging out with small children all day - you start thinking poop and pee jokes are funny.
I love IKEA too. I grew up in Ca. but we finally got one here in Utah. You must try the meatballs, they are divine!! Love the potty joke!! I would have though the same thing =)
Christina
We have an Ikea in nearby Pittsburgh. I love it. I have bought many things there. I got great bookshelves for my daughter's room. I even love their toilet bowl brushes! I never noticed the flush in the bathrooms, though. I don't think they have those in Pittsburgh.
I have never been to IKEA but by your description of it, I am going to have to check it out!
Your bathroom joke was funny... I thought so anyway...LOL
I love that store! The closest one to me is still several hours away so I only make it there about once a year. You got me wanting to go back.
Ikea is my connection to home in North America. I often just go to the Swede store for groceries (but then, I live closer than you do, by the sounds of it).
Those toilets? All over Europe, not just at Ikea's. It's the new thing here. I've gotten over it now, but in the beginning, it was a bit odd.
Heidi
I love IKEA! I've only had the pleasure of shopping through the catalogs. There was a rumor one was coming to St. Louis, but I fear the rumor was not true.
There's an IKEA around here (in Germany). We haven't visited it yet, but we want to!
The first time I ever went to IKEA was about 6 months ago. My parents took me, with my kids, because I was a rookie too. We saw the play area but my daughter was too short to meet the height requirement there. Poor thing...she was so sad because she had seen all the neat stuff inside. But we still had fun. Seeing as how I went with seasoned pros...they bought me lunch on the second level. I bought a lot of little things and I want to go back soon and buy more. My favorite places were the children's section and the kitchen department. I got this set of frying pans that was 2 for $1 (small) that I use all the time for eggs. Can't beat that price!! :)
One of my favorite places to go. But not on weekends or in the evening, or... Your play place is WAAYY more fun than ours. No balls in CA. It a good place for a little retail therapy, cause you can get a whole lot for a whole little!
I find IKEA overwhelming. We don't live next to one anymore, but when we did I took my kids ONCE. After promising the NEARLY 3 year old and 4 year old they could play, I found out they have to BE THREE before you can drop them off. He cried hysterically while his brother got to play. They gave me a free ice cream cone coupon for the cryer(standard procedure). We had a cart we had to put away because we couldn't find an elevator to go upstairs to redeem the ice cream cone in the cafeteria. When we got to the cafeteria, we found out the ice cream cones are in the snack shop downstairs! This all took around 25 minutes. The childcare has a one hour limit. So, my crying 3 year old continued to cry while I said we didn't have time for the ice cream cone. To make it up to him, I let him play in the little children's houses they have set up throughout the store while I browsed for my furniture. I realized after it was getting late, that you have to go through a warehouse area to pick up any larger furniture items and you had to grab the tag for the correct aisle number where you first found the item. I had to pick up my 4 year old before I do this since my hour was up. So, I had to basically go back through the whole store with BOTH BOYS, now. Then, I had to try to maneuver this flatbed cart with two hungry, unhappy boys and about 79 pounds of unassembled tables through the checkout.
But, I love my tables that I purchased. But, we went to McDonalds after that. They needed a playland. Swedish Meatballs were not going to do the trick.
KEEP BELIEVING
Hi,Valerie - what fun! I love IKea = but we don't have one near my house either. We have to go to Houston or Austin to visit one and it's been a while. Glad you had fun.
OMG, the meatballs. The meeeaaatballlls. They are so good. I sort of look at IKEA as a store like Costco, though...you almost always spend about a hundred dollars there, every time you go.
what? no pic of the environmentally helpful toliet? I would most definately be a "full flush" girl. LOL
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