I Like the Mall of America

I've got a deep, dark secret that I haven't wanted to admit to anyone before (especially myself): I like going to the Mall of America.

From time to time, I'll take my kids to Toddler Tuesday at the Mall. This is rather absurd given that not a one of my three children is actually a toddler, so we probably look a little bit foolish casting ourselves amongst the 2-3 sect, but I don't care. I like it anyway.

I haven't wanted to admit this because it is seemingly against my temperament. It's not crunchy. It's too commercial. None of my friends are doing it. I don't care. I'm tired of labels. I'm trying to embrace every part of my being. And I LIKE going to the Mall of America.

I like the way my kids start skipping spontaneously when they're walking in front of me. I watch them from behind and I think, My kids are happy. I'm doing something right.

I like the way the Mall is not crowded on a Tuesday morning. I like places that are quiet when it seems like they're supposed to be busy. Like walking through Target on a weekday morning. Or the time we saw the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade in NYC... when we walked the side streets afterward everything was empty and quiet. It was like we were the only ones there in the whole wide world.

There is this one section of the mall, on the fourth floor, that I call my favorite place in the mall. It is a quiet hallway, right past Hooters, that adjoins the movie theater to the rest of the floor. I like it there because we're away from people and it makes me think that we're all alone. Just me and my kids. There are movie posters on the wall, and I breathe in the scent of new movies. Alice in Wonderland, I'll have to see that. Then my kids sit in the D-Box thing and watch/feel the preview for an upcoming movie. This time it was too scary because it had people shooting guns in From Paris With Love so the kids didn't want to watch more than 10 seconds.

I like how we go to Teavana on the first floor and sample all of their teas. Six of them. And then we take escalators up to the third floor and sample the tea at Tea Source (but today the samples weren't put out. Bah). And then we go to the Air Traffic store and spend 20 minutes there playing with the toys.

I like building cars out of Legos with my kids in the Lego area at the Mall. I made a real long one today and called it The Long One.

I like how baby Peace is excited about seeing everything. I like how she's interested in the world. I like wearing her in the Moby wrap and having the normals look at me like I'm doing something special.

Yep, I'll admit it. I like the Mall of America.