I put the I in IKEA!
Well, I did it. They said I was crazy, but I took the kids and my brother Ernie and we camped out for two nights at Ikea Orlando to be in line for the grand opening. Yes, we did win a chair (one for me, and one for Ernie) and got some other free goodies (pillows, toys and stuffed animals for the kids, water bottles and frisbees and t-shirts), but honestly, I didn’t take two kids cement camping just for a $90 chair.
The event had its UPS (meeting other Ikea fans, and realizing how broad their demographic is, and how much we all have in common, despite our differences) and DOWNS (some over-tired children, a limit to how much fun you can have in a parking lot, and sleeping on concrete when our air mattress sprung a leak). But, overall, it was rewarding to be with a bunch of other people who are also excited about Ikea, and surprisingly fun to have two full days without TV, with only books, a couple of toys, a frisbee and each other for fun.
I think it would be awesome to do this kind of experience without the kids too. In fact, we were pretty much the only people camping with kids. We were interviewed by lots of media – and apparently we showed up on the news a few times. I’m glad I didn’t see those.
The opening was AWESOME! And, Max got to be the first official child in the play area – the first jump into the ball pit! He was so excited about that!
Now, I’ve got to cut it short because I am running low on energy after the last two days. I’ll try to post pics tomorrow.