IKEA with kids

It's only been open for a few months, but I've been to the Ikea in West Chester twice now, and my house is definitely looking more Ikea-ey: there's the funky orange duvet cover on our bed, for one, and of course I had to get matching orange curtains... anyway, other than a general warning that shopping there could be hazardous to your household budget, there are some things to keep in mind when trekking to the only Swedish shopping wonderland in Ohio.
The first time we went was on a Saturday night; the crowds were manageable, but it took us 30 minutes -- maybe an hour -- to check out. The second time, I went on a weekday afternoon; checkout took no time at all.
You've probably heard about Smaland, the free childcare service at Ikea. Here are some things I learned, after checking my 2- and 5-year-old boys in recently:
1. Your child must be potty trained and meet a height requirement (no less than 37" tall and no greater than 54" tall) to get in. SS, almost 3, was just a hair too short, but they let him in anyway.
2. Budget 10-15 minutes to get your child checked in, or perhaps longer on a busy day when you may have to wait for a spot. Before standing in line, look on the nearby wall for forms to fill out, and grab a bin for shoes.
3. Once inside, the children can play on the fun-looking play structures (I seem to recall a giant high-heeled shoe and a ball pit). They can also color or go up into a loft to watch a kid-friendly movie (Ratatouille was playing recently). My older son seemed perfectly content, but my little one was distressed because checking him out took so long, and he couldn't understand why the staff wouldn't let him through the emergency glass door to get to me, pronto.
4. Ikea will babysit the children for about an hour, which should be enough time to get your shopping done if you already have a pretty good idea of what you need (and you don't ponder all your choices in the "Marketplace" for too long). Parents receive a pager in case of emergencies. Don't forget to reserve time for checkout.
If you've got a craving for Swedish meatballs, there's a lot of kid-friendly food at the food court, starting at 99 cents... but you probably already knew that.
The drive from Oxford takes about 45 minutes, but you can combine an Ikea trip with several other excursions. See our entries (coming soon) on "Sharon Woods" and "Fossil Park."
Happy shopping!
Store info:
LINK: http://www.ikea.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/IkeaNearYouView?storeId=12&catalogId=11001&langId=-1&StoreName=west_chester
Address:
9500 IKEA Way
West Chester, Ohio 45069
Phone: 513.779.7100
Store Hours:
10 a.m. - 9 p.m. Daily
Directions: From Oxford, take 130 into Hamilton. Turn right onto Main St. (177) and go through downtown Hamilton. Continue on High St. Continue on Michael a Fox Hwy. Take exit 21 for OH-747 toward Middletown/Springdale. Turn right at OH-747/Princeton Glendale Rd. Turn left at Union Centre Blvd. Turn right at Allen Rd. Look for the giant Ikea sign.

Ikea side-trips (with Fossil Park AND Sharon Woods Park)

Here's some great options for sidetrips when you make your way to Ikea. We investigated today, and were really pleased with everything. It was a fun daytrip.



1. Trammel Fossil Park, Tramway Dr., Sharonville, OH (45-50 minutes from Oxford)

This is a nationally reknown fossil park that is--FREE, and chocked full of great fossil finds. We were there with very small kids and they each had their little buckets full in no time. Not much shade and the terrain is rocky (hence the fossils), so we recommend okay shoes for walking/climbing around. And it's probably best to stop here first in morning, or last in evening, to avoid the hot summer sun.

Directions from Oxford:

Mapquest took us 27 south, 275 North, Sharonville exit (just past the exit for I-75). Turn North (which I think is left) on Lebanon rd. Take first left onto Hauck Dr. Go half mile to Tramway Drive and turn right. It is two blocks up on Tramway Drive.


2. Sharon Woods, Sharonville, OH (45-50 minutes from Oxford--5 minutes from Fossil park)


They have a fantastic indoor play area. It costs $2.50, but if you buy 4 entries you get one free (to be used at any time- including that day--for the next year). The center is clean and we liked that you could use big people stairs to go up to the top level of the play area. I also noticed a handicapped accessible lift that could take people up to the top level. It has climbing and tubes, a ball area. Oh, and air conditioning. We had to drag our kids away. We did have a few heart-stopping moments when we tried to locate one of the kids who were in one of the non-see-through tubes. But there is only one way in and out of the play area, so that is reassuring.



There is also a pioneer village, outdoor sprinkler playground, nature center area, and several outdoor playgrounds.



Directions: From the fossil park, go back out to Lebanon Rd. and turn right. The park will be on your left after about a mile. (also can turn right onto Lebanon Rd. from 275 if skipping fossil park).


Directions From Sharon Woods TO IKEA (10-15 minutes)-- Go right on Lebanon Rd., then left on Kemper. At Reading Rd. turn right. This turns into Cincinnati Dayton Rd. Turn left on Allen Rd. and you'll see Ikea's flags almost immediately.


EXTRA: BANANA's Inflatables
If you are taking 129 to and from IKEA, you'll be also going right past Banana's. I can't blog much on it, since I haven't been there. But I hear it has big inflatable jumping stuff for kids. And it's indoor's. I have seen it on 129 near the 129/I-75 interchange (going west on 129 from I-75 it's on your left).

Lunar Mini Golf

The kids and I were looking for a way to kill a Saturday afternoon while Rich was away at a conference, so we wound up at the Cincinnati Mills Mall, where we haven't been in ages. It's a little disconcerting to see that so many of the stores there are now empty. Still, it's a fun place for little ones to burn off some energy indoors. There's a PBS Kids playground, which is good for 20-30 minutes of jumping around. The big draw, of course, is the Wonder Park, a Chuckie Cheese-like place with pizza, tons of video games (most of which cost at least 50 cents to play), and kiddie rides that range from $1 to $3.
But what really got the boys excited this time was Lunar Mini Golf. Right next to the Wonder Park, we discovered an indoor mini-golf course that offered so many things my boys enjoy: sticks, balls, and stuff that glows in the dark. The indoor course isn't fancy -- there aren't windmills or hippos bathing in waterfalls -- but there are two courses with 18 holes each that are challenging but not too frustrating for children. The gimmick is that the entire operation takes place in the dark, except for blacklights that set off the fluorescent course in an otherworldly sort of way. (In fact, SH thought we were playing "Alien Hockey").
Kids 5 and younger can play up to three rounds for only $3 (the man behind the counter let SS, age 2, "play" for free). Kids 6-12 pay $6 and adults pay $8, but there's no requirement that the adult has to play. SH, SS and I spent a really fun hour knocking little glowing golf balls around, all for three bucks. I highly recommend it.
What: Lunar Mini Golf
Where: Cincinnati Mills Mall. Take 27 to I-275 E. toward Dayton. Take the Winton Rd. Exit, #39. Turn left. The mall will be on the right. Takes about 40 minutes from Oxford.
When: 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday

Hueston Woods Family Fun

Hueston Woods is an Ohio State Park located just North of Oxford, OH. http://www.dnr.state.oh.us/tabid/745/default.aspx

You can get there from Brown Rd., or by following Todd Rd. (beside Walmart). Check out the website for better directions.

The nature center is free and has some cool animals (inside: snakes and turtles. Outside: a bobcat, cougar, bald eagle and owls). During the summer, their calendar of activities is worth checking out. We happened to catch an animal feeding, and the boys loved watching the cougars, bob cat, and bald eagle, getting fed. Check the website for their hours of operation, since it changes depending on the season.

Nearby there is a fenced deer area, where you can stop by and feed the deer. The deer will come right up to the fence and my kids always love stopping by there to see them. I've heard they like corn. We discovered they don't like apples.

And just a bit further down from that is the playground on the beach. Swimming on the beach is free. Just be prepared to get really filthy. The water is kind of sludgy (geese? algae?)

The playground is really fun but, we always have to do baths afterwards because the sand makes them so dirty. If you don't mind that, it's a good time.

There are a lot of trails, but we have found a few that we love for our family.

Cedar Falls Trail: You can find it on the trails map online. It follows a creek, and when it’s been dry and the creek is low it makes good creek bed exploring with some fossils. The trail is a little rocky though, so it can be a tough hike for especially small. Our 5 year old does just fine.

Hueston Woods Nature Preserve/West Shore Trail (we kind of stumbled on this one):

Drive past the Nature Center and Beach/playground as far as you can go in the parking lot. There should be an orange chain thing blocking a large path (so cars can’t drive down) on the farthest end of the parking lot. Walk that path until you come to a sign that says “You are now entering Hueston Woods State Nature Preserve....” We discovered after hiking it, we weren’t on the West Shore Trail for most of it. When you cross an old bridge, look to your left and there are wooden “stairs” going up a hill on a more woodsy path. Continue on this trail, turning right when it “T”’s, until you cross a road. After crossing the road, continue straight, and when the path again divides go straight toward the lake (not right). You’ll hit Action Lake and the actual West Shore Trail. Turn left on West Shore and that takes you back to the parking lot. The entire thing took us about 1.5 hours of walking. That was with a 5 year old walking and our 2 year old on a carrier on his dad's back. But it was a cool nature trail. Some things to look for (if going with your kids you can see if they can spot them)

A swinging vine in the middle of the path
A huge, fallen, completely hollowed out tree.
A broken tree that looks like it has “hair”
A whole lot of carved initials. Either there are a lot of Deans, or Dean loves a lot of people Sullivan started counting when he saw hearts.

Playgrounds

Where do you take your kids to play in Oxford? or outside of Oxford? What are your favorite parks? How do you get there? Where do you go when the weather's horrible? Let's post our ideas here.