AIBU to think IKEA is a top parenting hack?

Furniture Village still do coffee and cookies.

Who mentioned anything about trashing the place? Weird.

OP - you’ve been living under a rock? Everyone knows IKEA is a top day out for dc’s - then cheap meatballs n chips in the cafe. Mine are grown now and I don’t set foot in the place but yes…fond memories of mine running amok and trying out all the tiny furniture in the kids section. I still have the blue and orange plastic puppy cups and lunchboxes from there - mid-2000’s!

You're a right laugh at parties, aren't you?

I like sofa 'shopping', think it might have been Furniture Village who used to do freshly baked/ warm cookies and coffee (think they stopped it after covid). People always look at me strangely when I curl up on the sofas but I don't tend to sit bolt upright at home!

Can i also suggest anywhere that sells fish for hobbyists. Mom and Dad used take me and my brother to Shirley Aquatics as dad kept fish. i had a great time nosing around all the tanks.. it's like a whole aquarium for free.

This!

I'm laughing as I had DN (age 2.5) for the day mid-week. We had an awesome morning at Decathlon (massive sports & outdoor store with tents/ canoes) & then IKEA. He came back, had food & crashed. Woke 2 hours later happy as Larry for some play on the floor before daddy came to collect. I loved it!

Used to take my kids then later my dog on trips to pets at home to look at the animals (ddog loved the chinchillas). Anything to wear them out that was free

My 14yo still insists on popping into Pets at Home to say hello to the animals.

Oh wind your neck in. People will literally try to be superior about anything on here.

It’s set up so that people can try out the furniture. If you’ve got kids literally bouncing on the beds or throwing stuff about then yes, obviously not OK. But if they are playing in the rooms and laying on the beds etc they are doing nothing wrong. It isn’t the actual furniture that people are going to buy, it’s for testing and display.

YANBU OP and you’ve given me a good idea for a day out next weekend 😂

I love taking our toddler to ikea. We try out all of the furniture amd have a play with all the appliances. He loves looking at all the different cuddly toys they have. And they have a little play area/kitchen in the cafe.

Definitely- we used to love it when ours were little. Like a big playground for them and then great cheap cafe!

When they were old enough to enjoy it we used to leave them in the crèche and have a miraculous 45 mins to ourselves - we used to head straight for the mattresses dept and lie down 😀😀

i have done it with my kids, and i love seeing kids have fun while there.. just one request. please limit the running around when walking between places.. as someone who uses crutches, i've been kicked/tripped over/bumped into by some many under 5's in that place its a hazard for me.

We used to do this with my eldest when she was small, it was great! And then a cheap lunch in the cafe.

My Dad used to take us to the village mart 50 odd years ago where we would pet the sheep in the pens and look at the cows and pigs. Loved it.

Aww this thread brings back memories! Yes yes yes to IKEA, garden centres and toy shops! We also had a place that sold play equipment for the garden. Children could test the slides, tree housees climbing frames while the parents came round after fainting at their prices.

They had a very smart marketing bod creating that, as it made you believe that a business is more interested in your children than your bank account.

It's L'Oreal - because you're worth it - for the sleep deprived.

Deeply sad, I know, but I see IKEA as a play park for adults, too. Well. This adult. I love it! 😂

I almost got knocked over by a feral child in IKEA. I was walking around on my crutches when they came flying round the corner not looking where they were going. The parents were nowhere to be seen, either.

People should remember they’re in a shop not a fecking playground.

Just don't eat the meatballs.

I love IKEA. I was there this past weekend in the Midwest USA. They have a sign in the elevator that reads….
CHILDREN ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT PEOPLE IN THE WORLD.

in the past year my combined family has bought a desk / table/ 4 outdoor chairs /multiple shoe racks /plastic seal bags /bamboo storage containers/trash bins/ kitchen utensils and accessories all because I love them for that sign

Last time I went to IKEA, there was a young kid running about. They suddenly doubled over, threw up everywhere. Parents stuffed them in the pushchair and ran out the shop. No effort to clear up or even alert a staff member. I went and found the nearest staff member who was in eyeline but hadn’t actually seen what happened.

People like the OP and her feral kids are why I hate going out these days.
No social awareness whatsoever and a sense of entitlement.
Wondering if this post is just a goady wind up

I’ve taken mine to the local Chinese wholesaler lots of tanks of lobsters and crabs to look at and strange things in freeers and heated displays Also think garden centres with animals and sheds is a good one especially if they have a nice caffe or ice cream van.

Another one was Costco when it’s not rammed. Kids loved riding in the basket and the “try-stalls” as my little one named them. Visit to the cafe on the way out and asleep in the car on the way home 😀.