NYC: Times Square Toys R Us

Visiting the Toys R Us in Times Square was a highlight of our trip to NYC! (Really!) Kate had a ball--and even after spending around two hours in the store, we could have stayed even longer! Kate and I arrived mid-afternoon--she had just woken up from her nap in the stroller.


Riding the gigantic Ferris wheel in the middle of the store was a must--so we wasted no time in getting our tickets. Speaking of ... the tickets were only $4 each, which wasn't as expensive as I thought they would be for NYC. Also, I read on our ticket stubs that proceeds from ticket sales go to the Toys R Us Children's Fund.


The Ferris wheel has different kid- and toy-themed cars/seats/whatever they are called. Most all of them are pretty cute, and I thought this E.T./Geoffrey one was especially cool. Even though it wasn't busy *at all*, the worker-guy said that we couldn't pick which themed car we got. Whichever two cars were available when the Ferris wheel stopped on our turn is what we could choose from. (That sentence sure could be worded better, but I am too tired to rework it right now.)


Anyway, I was really, really hoping that we would be able to ride in the Little People school bus because Kate loves her Little People, and she loves school buses, too. And guess what?! The school bus was one of our options. YAY! Isn't it amazing the things we get excited about as parents? :o) I was so happy and thankful. Some people might think it is silly, but I think God loves to delight His children with surprises ... large and small.


A little while later, we were pleasantly surprised when Tanna met us at the store after his meetings. He wanted to ride the Ferris wheel with Kate, too--and they got the M&Ms car. Another great one! YAY! We do love our M&Ms around here.


So cute! (BTW, Kate is wearing an apple outfit to commemorate her first trip to the Big Apple.)


Kate had a BLAST riding the Ferris wheel and still talks about it. When we pass Toys R Us here, she will say, "Ride the Ferris wheel?" I have tried to explain to her that there isn't a Ferris wheel in the toy store here, but she still brings it up from time to time. I guess it made an impression on her. :o)


We enjoyed all of the fun store decor. The candy area is so fun and colorful!


I took this photo for my brother. He loves Transformers--has since he was a little boy! (Side story: He had just gone to see a midnight showing of the Transformers movie that came out in 2007 when he got the call that we were on our way to the hospital to have Kate. He ended up walking out of the movie and driving to ATL that night with my sister. They arrived just around the time she was born--6:13 a.m.)


I didn't know if Kate would be scared of this guy, but she wasn't really. The T-Rex didn't seem to bother her, either. hahaha


The big Barbie house. Not sure what the hype on this is about. (I read that it was supposedly a big attraction in the store, but to me it wasn't a big deal--just a giant display holding Barbie merchandise.) It's cute and all, but ...


Walking around the store are various costumed characters. It took me a minute to figure this out, but the store has photographers to take your photo with these characters--for a "small" fee. Here's Mr. X with Spider-Man in the background ... obviously snapped by yours truly. (You also get your photo taken upon entering the store. You could probably spend $100+ on these types of photos alone. Fortunately, they aren't too pushy with them, so at least there is that.)


Before I caught on to the whole photo deal, I had asked a nice family to snap a photo of Kate and me with Geoffrey. When Geoffrey deliberately would not look at our camera and kept turning in the other direction when the family guy tried to take our picture ... I started to put two and two together. Oh, and then the store tried to sell me a picture. No, thanks--especially after I had just bought one of Kate and me on the Ferris wheel. Normally, I can be a sucker for those types of things--but for some reason, the whole character/photo thing really rubbed me the wrong way that day. Oh, well. We still loved our Toys R Us visit. AND we got a decent enough Geoffrey photo anyways.

I definitely recommend hitting Toys R Us in Times Square if you're there with kids. So much to see and enjoy--even if you are just browsing. We had a blast--and I found a few cool bargains, too! Score!