Who stole the cookies from the cookie jar? (And other things we loved about Country Inn & Suites)

Who me?

Yes, you!

There are a lot of things to love about the Country Inn & Suites, Bloomington at Mall of America. The room was beautifully clean and comfortable. Now that we're traveling with small children, we spend quite a bit more time in the hotel room. It's so nice when it's a relaxing and worry-free spot for the kids to play and rest. I love the roomy nature of the suite. The bedroom area was available for napping children during the day, while we could play games, read, and watch TV in the living space. The fold-out sofa in the room was really well designed, too, in all one piece that didn't require moving cushions (or finding strange things under them.) It had a strap and folded forward easily to become a bed that was perfect for our 5 year old. When we needed a travel crib, one was delivered to our room within 10 minutes of our request, and "Smallest" slept well and happily in it.

The free breakfast included something for everyone (just give me another one of those waffles and I'm a happy gal!) Breakfast was served until 10:30 a.m. even on weekdays, and there were plenty of highchairs available, even when the breakfast area was at its busiest.

The hotel staff was friendly and incredibly helpful. The pools and fitness area were nice (okay, no workouts on this trip, but it looked nice), the on-site TGI Friday's and IHOP restaurants came in handy, and the proximity to the Mall of America was amazing. The only concern that this location may present for some was a little bit of plane noise now and then because of its proximity to the airport. It didn't bother us, though, and being so close to the mall and a short ride from other activities in and around the Twin Cities was well worth it.

And cookies!

The fresh-baked cookies in the lobby were a wonderful treat enjoyed each day of our stay. In fact, it was pretty hard to pass by the jar any time we happened to be in the lobby...and I'll admit to making a few extra trips down there just to check on the cookie status. The chocolate chip cookies were good, but the sugar cookies were my favorite. Cookies in the lobby were a sweet surprise, and a nice indulgence while on vacation.

Another thing we loved about our stay here was the Read It & Return Lending Library that Country Inns & Suites features. As a school literacy specialist, I love innovative programs that put books in the hands of children and families. Each Country Inn & Suites has a library of adult and children's titles that guests are invited to borrow.

If you can't finish the book during your stay, you are encouraged to take it with you and return the next time you are at a Country Inn & Suites. How cool is that? We didn't have to pack bedtime stories, and enjoyed a board book for the girls, and my son and I started reading Stuart Little. Country Inns & Suites also makes a donation to Reading Rainbow for every book returned. We enjoyed a book right in the hotel's lobby.



We were also really impressed by this little find at the front desk. In addition to ice cream treats available for purchase, we found cold bottles of water always available on ice. The cost for the water was a minimum $1 donation to the World Childhood Foundation. How refreshing (pun intended) to see a hotel provide a way for its guests to contribute to a cause it supports, and have the opportunity to enjoy cold water without paying something outrageous like $3 for a bottle. (But...you could if you wanted to, here. It's for a good cause!)



We really appreciated some of the innovative things that Country Inns & Suites is doing to make sure that your stay there is comfortable and fun. We're looking forward to a few more fun adventures in Streams & Shores Country before our return home tomorrow.


We were given a free stay at Country Inn & Suites, for the purpose of reviewing their family-friendly road trip itinerary and hotel features. No other compensation was provided, and the experiences and opinions presented are my own.

We shopped 'till we dropped at the Mall of America

We took in the first of our destinations on the Shores and Streams Itinerary. We went to the Mall of America. Although the Country Inn & Suites offers a shuttle every hour, we loaded up the stroller and walked right over there! It was an easy, 5 minute walk from our hotel.

The Mall of America is amazing - and a bit overwhelming. You can shop, see a movie, eat a meal (or a day's worth), ride a roller coaster (or a bunch of coasters), play with legos, and see sharks all under one roof.

Wait...Did she say "sharks?"

Yup...and they are swimming right over your head.

We also were able to touch starfish and giant crabs....reluctantly.

When we were done at the aquarium, we spent some time experimenting with vehicle design:


Then we walked back to the hotel and enjoyed dinner at the TGI Friday's right inside our hotel. After a quick stop in the lobby for a snack of bedtime cookies, we were ready to wind down and recharge for tomorrow's adventures. It was so nice to be able to do all this within close walking distance of our hotel.

It was a great day!

Enjoying Road Trip Country at the Country Inns & Suites

Well...we're here! The drive was pretty uneventful, with blue skies, very little construction, and lots of naps.

We've actually spent night one already in our home-away-from-home, The Country Inn & Suites at Mall of America. When they say "at" - they mean it! This is the view from the front of the hotel.


See? It's close! We could walk over there, but the hotel also offers a free shuttle every hour, and I've heard it's worth saving your feet. That's one big mall.


We had WAY more luggage than this.

We got settled in last night, and unfortunately, I came down with something. Bad. Very, very bad. So, I ended my evening very early, and everyone else enjoyed the yummy cookies and had dinner and some winding down time in the room. My son and his daddy popped a bag of popcorn with the microwave right in the room, and were nice enough to close the door so I could rest and didn't have to smell it. Staying in a suite is wonderful.

I'm sure we'll eat at least one meal in the TGI Friday's that's right in the hotel, and if the kids are not experiencing a restaurant-behavior friendly evening, they deliver to the room, too!

I did feel well enough this morning to have a waffle for breakfast. They were a big hit with the kids, too.

We're off for some adventure today! We're going to go look at the Streams and Shores itinerary, and we'll figure out what to experience first. Any suggestions?

We're taking this show on the road!

We love to travel, but haven't gotten out a whole lot since baby #3 joined us in January. Honestly, just the idea of packing up all of the gear, and clothing, and the mountain of snacks we would need and heading somewhere else seems like we'd just be relocating our circus of daily toddler acrobatics, daring diaper changes, and fantastical feeding feats. We've talked about it all summer, but hadn't mustered up the courage to venture too far from home. After all, even my carefully baby-proofed living room is like an amusement park for my toddler, who tries dancing on the coffee table and riding the back of the couch like a horsey. Our preschool-aged son never. stops. moving. Ever. And baby girl smallest is rocking back and forth on hands and knees, trying to crawl way earlier than the other two did just to keep up.

Still, every few days one of us will ask the other "So...do you want to go anywhere this summer?"


And yes, we do. We might be crazy. But I know it will be fun, and full of laughs, and new adventures, great memories and goofy pictures. Recently, Country Inns & Suites offered our family some FREE nights so that we could enjoy road trip country this summer! We're heading out in a couple of days and we'll be sharing some highlights of our trip along the way. We'll be going to Streams and Shores Country, and taking in many of the suggested sites on the itinerary as we visit the Twin Cities. We'll be staying really close to the Mall of America, and we're bound to find some outdoor fun at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum and the Walker Sculpture Garden, too. We'll also be enjoying some great amenities at our home away from home.

Minnesota, here we come!

So tell me...

What’s your idea of the best last-minute vacation?