Kids + Family

Summer Fun in Winter
Kids’ Meal
Place to Go with a Babysitter
Baby Apparel
Arcade
Playground
Toilet for Kids

Summer fun in Winter
A dip in a pool, a ride down the world’s tallest indoor water slide, and a float in a lazy river are just what families need in the cold Minnesota winter.  Head to the always-balmy Water Park of America. Located in the Northwoods-themed Radisson, the park features a spectacular array of tube and body slides, a wave pool, a Flow Rider surf simulator, and a river with caves and alcoves where parents can hide from their kids, and vice-versa. 1700 American Blvd. E., Bloomington, 952-698-8888 [top]

Kids’ Meal
Say goodbye to greasy hamburgers and mystery meat nuggets. Ikea has three inexpensive children’s meals that don’t involve a fast-food drive-through. Our favorite is a kid-sized version of the retailer’s famous Swedish meatballs, priced at only $1.99! (Just try not to lose the little tyke inside Ikea’s massive marketplace.) 8000 Ikea Way, Bloomington, 952-858-8088 [top]

Place to Go with a Babysitter
Instead of trapping the kids at home with a ’sitter, send them all on a trip to the Minnesota Zoo. It’s open year-round, so there’s never a bad time to check out the monorail, tasty eats, special events, and, of course, the more than 2,400 animals. Next door, the Imax offers a much more eye-popping experience than watching a video at home on the tube. 13000 Zoo Blvd., Apple Valley, 952-431-9200 [top]

Baby Apparel
Find hipster baby apparel, wooden toys, nursery décor, gifts, an impressive selection of upscale diaper bags, and more at Pacifier, located in the Old Saint Anthonyneighborhood of Minneapolis. No Twin Cities baby—our future fashionistas– should be without an item from this trendy boutique. 310 Hennepin Ave. E., Mpls., 612-623-8123 [top]

Arcade
Gameworks, located in downtown Minneapolis’s Block E, is the über arcade you wish existed when you were a kid. Besides the latest video and virtual reality games, it’s got one of the coolest bowling alleys in town, great food, and two bars. So if you haven’t handled a joystick in a while, sneak down at night, order a pint, and get some practice in before risking humiliation in front of the kids. 600 Hennepin Ave., Mpls, 612-656-7300 [top]

Playground
Kids have a blast when they play, slide, climb, and swing at the Creative Play Area inside Hyland Lake Park Reserve. Known by the locals as “Chutes and Ladders,” this 16,000-square-foot playground is the top spot in town for kids to expend some of their endless energy. Plus, there’s a 1,500-square-foot play area made especially for children under age five. 10145 Bush Lake Rd., Bloomington, 763-694-7687 [top]

Toilet for Kids
Four out of five child psychiatrists confirm that a lack of entertainment value dissuades young children from going to the bathroom until it is crisis time. But you’ll have a hard time getting them to “do” anything else once your little angels experience the Southdale Family Toilet—Kid’s Suite. At this anteroom to the Southdale family bathroom (under P.F. Chang’s, basically), everything is at the height of, and sized for, a three-year-old. You’ll never again worry about her falling into the toilet—once you build a duplicate version at home. Southdale, Edina [top]