Mommy and Me Mall Walking: A Review of Plano Area Malls

Wisebaby and I have been mall walking every day unless there is something pressing to keep us from going. It has been one of my strategies to lose the baby weight, and it has worked great. Beware: Mall walking has also been known to reduce the weight of your wallet. We've walked all three Plano area malls, and I can tell you that each has its own advantages. Here's my breakdown, and you can be the judge of which will best fit your style. For each category, I'll name first, second, and third place, and then I'll the totals from subcategories to determine the top slot.

Collin Creek Mall
Initial Impression: 3

• This mall is the oldest and most run down. It's obvious just driving up. Many store fronts are empty.

Shopability for Mom: 3

• The only stores that I would even consider shopping at are Dillard's and Macy's, and they're much less nice than the ones at other malls.

Shopability for Baby: 3

• There are the department stores and a gymboree, but not much else. Most of the stores in this mall seem targeted towards teens on a budget, all very off-brand.

Parking: 2

• The parking lots are very empty, so you're close to the door, but there isn't much shade, and no cover from the elements.

Walking Distance: 2

• There is a good bit of walking to be had at Collin Creek, as there are two stories in all of the four department stores, laid out on five spokes. It would be better if the old Mervyn's was not Amazing Jake's, which I don't think you're free to walk through.

Ease of Bail-out: 1

• The spoke design makes it easy for you to return to your car from any point in the mall, as long as you remember from which direction you came. You're never that far from where you started as the crow flies, which is nice.

Playground: 1

• This playground has cute animals and was not at all crowded on a weekday.

Snack Options: 3

• Most of the name-brand chains are no longer in the food court, so you either need to be adventurous or willing to stick to Sonic or Chick-fil-a.

People Watching: 2

• There are an interesting collection of people at this mall. There were a lot of intense mall walkers and a surprising amount of adult men, but not in a creepy way.

Air Conditioning in Main Hallway: 2

• It is muggy in this mall during the heat of Texas summer, which is disappointing since there aren't that many people in it, and it has the least amount of natural light.

Walkability: 2

• The mall was not crowded, but the department store floors are kind of junky which cuts down on the ease of walking.

Total (the lower, the better): 25

Willowbend Mall
Initial Impression: 1

• This mall is so pretty and fancy, and the store brands are top notch. I especially love the Neiman Marcus.

Shopability for Mom: 2

• For department stores, you have Dillard's and Macy's. I also shop at Ann Taylor Loft, H&M, J.Jill--their stretchy pants are the bomb diggity for a postpartum body--and Crabtree and Evelyn, where I never, ever buy anything, but I always, always use their La Source Hand Cream.

Shopability for Baby: 2

• The department stores are there, but the real baby gem is H&M. How is it that their stuff is so cute, fashionable, child-friendly, and affordable? I swear everywhere else carries the same Carter's stuff or clothes that are too expensive.

Parking: 1

• Empty parking garages, oh my! You don't have to worry for your lives getting to the door, and the car stays cool and out of the elements in a garage. Perfection!

Walking Distance: 3

• Willowbend only has three department stores, and those have three levels, unlike the mall. Because of this, I never remember to go up to the third floors, so the distance walked in the department stores is short. You would also have to walk outdoors to get to Crate and Barrel, so I avoid that. 

Ease of Bail-out: 2

• It's a small mall, so even if you're clear at the opposite end of it from your car, you can power walk it in a few minutes.

Playground: 2

• The playground is heavily trafficked, and the medical theme could be a little scary. It's popular and directly next to Auntie Anne's, so it earns the second spot.

Snack Options: 1

• Om, nom, nom. You can get a cupcake from Sugar Queen, a hot cookie from Which Wich, ice cream from Haagen Daas, nuggets from Chick Fil A, tots from Sonic, a pretzel from Auntie Anne's, or free samples from any number of place. I especially enjoyed my bite of philly cheese steak from one of the booths the other day. Plus, the food court is pleasantly quiet, and you can watch kids body board while you eat.

People Watching: 3

• There aren't many people at Willow Bend, and they are all just so waspy and boring.

Air Conditioning in Main Hallway: 1

• Oh, glorious air conditioning! They're keeping the high end shoppers happy, and the crowds aren't overpowering the AC.

Walkability: 1

• This mall is not crowded, and the mall is well-appointed. You can easily power walk at a good clip without having to dodge people or objects.

Total (the lower, the better): 18

Stonebriar Mall
Initial Impression: 2

• This mall is the most popular mall, and for good reason. It's high ceilings and variety of well-maintained and stocked stores are appealing to the masses.

Shopability for Mom: 1

• I will shop at Dillard's, Macy's, Nordstrom for shoes only, Dick's Sporting Goods, Ann Taylor Loft, the Gap, Soma, Fossil, and Barnes and Noble.

Shopability for Baby: 1

• They even have a Pottery Barn for kids and Hanna Anderson. Must I elaborate?

Parking: 3

• Holy crowding, mama! It is hard to park here, especially in the one teeny, tiny, covered parking area.

Walking Distance: 1

• At six department stores, this one is a no brainer. 

Ease of Bail-out: 3

• It's just one long mall, which makes bailing out a real challenge.

Playground: 3

• It made such an impression that I had to Google whether or not it had one at all. Thus, it earns last place. It might be lovely, but I have no way of knowing.

Snack Options: 2

• The food court has tons of options, and you can totally get Sugar Queen Cupcakes, but it loses points for how massive, hot, and unpleasant the seating in the food court is.

People Watching: 1

• Mall walkers! Mahjongg players! Kids of all shapes and sizes! It's a suburban playground!

Air Conditioning in Main Hallway: 3

• The high ceiling, burning natural light, and crowds make the whole thing pretty unpleasant in the summer.

Walkability: 3

• It's really quite crowded, which slows you down. The department stores are nice to walk through.

Total (the lower, the better): 23

The winner, for me, is Willowbend Mall, but I challenge you do your own scientific study and decide for yourself!

Courage: Part 2 or Courage in Pregnancy

A RECAP: The first time that I held Wisebaby, I didn't cry. I did feel like my heart was about to leap out of my chest and do the happy dance that my feet, numb from an epidural, couldn't perform. That feeling of a happy heart has repeated itself over and over again in the short time that I have been a parent.

Because I have been thinking a lot about my heart, it made me remember that the Latin word for heart, cor, is the basis for the word courage. To be a parent, you have to have a lot of heart. 

Your heart needs to be made of steel, willing to withstand challenges unconditionally. Your heart must also be made of softer stuff, ready to melt at the mere thought of your child. Your heart will need to be strong in order to adjust to life with a new and overwhelming identity; you do not discard your former self, but instead you subjugate it to an all-consuming identity overnight. Your non-parent self is still in there, but it has taken a permanent backseat to the little babe cradled in your arms. 

I'd like to discuss some of the things that require(d) a great deal of courage for me, and I realized that it might need to come in multiple parts, owing to the fact that there is a lot to say and having a babe makes my time to blog sparse. I plan to break it down into the following parts for now: Courage to Conceive, Courage in Pregnancy, and Courage as a New Parent.

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Pregnancy, especially your first, requires a lot of courage. From the moment that you find out you are pregnant, you are bombarded with information that could freak the hell out of even the most steely. You learn about how you could easily miscarry in the first 20 weeks; the statistics are positively frightening. Up to  20% of women who know they are expecting experience miscarriage. 

Once you're freaked out of your mind that you could lose the baby you already love more than words can explain, you start to learn all of the ways you could damage your baby in sometimes unmeasured and often irreparable ways. Your doctor swears you off of many medicines that you have grown to know and love. I lost ibuprofen, which sort of makes my world turn on its axis since I suffer from two bad knees and chronic sinusitis. What's a girl to do without her most formidable weapon?

Then, you hear about the dangers of certain foods. The list was astounding to me. I knew that I'd have to avoid raw fish, which makes sushi a bummer, and alcohol--bye, bye, margaritas, wine, and (most sadly) beer. Then I tragically discovered that I also had to give up unpasteurized cheese--do you know how many delicious things use unpasteurized cheese?--and limit my tuna fish sandwiches to once a week, which was difficult as I craved tuna fish sandwiches my entire pregnancy. 

"Quit Zumba and tap and running," says my OB, "all that twisting and bouncing is a fall hazard." There goes my favorite forms of exercise for winter months. 

Once you start telling people you are pregnant, things get even hairier. This is when you get to hear every horror story about being pregnant and delivering a baby possible. I always countered with my mom, who gave birth to my brother in the front seat of a Chevy Cavalier, which helped, but it didn't stop me from sitting up at night worrying that my epidural wouldn't take, like my sister, or that I might have a serious case of appendicitis that requires an emergency C-section and appendectomy, like a friend from growing up.

Oh, and I don't even get me started on the "My morning sickness was all day sickness, and I puked four times a day my entire pregnancy" stories. Vomiting is THE WORST.

IS YOUR BLOOD PRESSURE SKY ROCKETING YET?!?! Good, because that can cause you to go into pre-term labor. ***Evil cackling ensues***

All of these anxieties can hit you before you even get to the good stuff, before you even feel or look the slightest bit pregnant, which, of course is when things really require courage.

The first time I went to Motherhood Maternity was positively frightening. I avoid the only local mall that has a Motherhood store in it because that is where my students shop, but I decided enough was enough. Even though I was still being private about my pregnancy with my students, I had to try to sneak in and out of the maternity store unseen. Once I was in, I thought that I would relax, but then the sales ladies made fun of me for shopping in the Plus section, which I didn't even know was a thing in maternity wear. I had no idea what size I was, or what I would need or want when my belly was bigger. I even tried on one of the bumps, which just freaked me out more. Holy hell! my body was going to look like that?

About the time that I had conquered my fear of a belly band and my burgeoning bosom, it was time to sign up for classes at the hospital. You can choose to go in blind and ignorant, which might work for some people, but Jeff and I went the other direction. We decided that "Knowledge is power" in getting ready for the biggest change of our life. 

Classes were when the scary factor shoots up exponentially. Prepared Childbirth prepares you to know how horrible child birth can go. Baby care reminds you that you will have to care for a creature that wants to eat every couple of hours--measuring from the START of the feed, eep! Infant CPR/Safety/First Aid frightens you with the horrible ways that your home and the wares peddled at baby stores can kill your baby. Breastfeeding makes your realize that you're going to have to figure it out on the fly, and there is no way to prepare for it. Don't even get me started on Car Seat Safety! I'm such a horrible snob now about how tight to strap your baby into the carseat, and I probably won't let Wisebaby ride facing forward until he's forty.

In short, I was more scared coming out of the classes than going in. No one is ever prepared to be a parent, and that was made abundantly clear to me while I was trying to become prepared.

The list of things that required courage during my pregnancy could go on and on, but that's not really helpful to anyone who is or may become pregnant, nor was it helpful to me.

A few thoughts that helped me have heart to face the daily challenges of pregnancy included the following:

• We tried so hard to Conceive Wisebaby, and I can't go back on it now, so I might as well relish this experience. It may be the only time I ever get to do this.
• Childbirth has to happen, so there is no point in fearing it.
• Childbirth is how we all got here for thousands of generations, so it's be proven that it can be done.
• Likewise, caring for a newborn and breastfeeding have all been accomplished for thousands of generations, without the help of modern science or Dr. Google, and most often by people stupider and less familiar with developmental psychology than myself and Jeff. 
• Most importantly, God put it in my heart to be a parent, and He will sustain me through the trials of pregnancy, childbirth, and the dreaded fourth trimester.

In the end, everything has gone super smoothly from the moment we Conceived until now, except for my migraine freak-out trip to the emergency room that turned out to be no big deal.*** Who knows, if I hadn't had the heart to stay calm in the face of stretch marks and a dilating cervix, maybe my blood pressure would have skyrocketed and caused me to go into preterm labor, ruining my super smooth pregnancy? Regardless, I write all of this to say to anyone who is or may become pregnant, "Have heart. It will be what it will be, and it is ok to feel this way."

***I thought that I was having a stroke which was super scary at the time and required no small dose of courage to keep from shitting my pants and demanding that I stay overnight at the hospital [maybe a story for another post?]. 

Courage: Part 1 or Courage to Conceive

The first time that I held Wisebaby, I didn't cry. I did feel like my heart was about to leap out of my chest and do the happy dance that my feet, numb from an epidural, couldn't perform. That feeling of a happy heart has repeated itself over and over again in the short time that I have been a parent.

Because I have been thinking a lot about my heart, it made me remember that the Latin word for heart, cor, is the basis for the word courage. To be a parent, you have to have a lot of heart. 

Your heart needs to be made of steel, willing to withstand challenges unconditionally. Your heart must also be made of softer stuff, ready to melt at the mere thought of your child. Your heart will need to be strong in order to adjust to life with a new and overwhelming identity; you do not discard your former self, but instead you subjugate it to an all-consuming identity overnight. Your non-parent self is still in there, but it has taken a permanent backseat to the little babe cradled in your arms. 

I'd like to discuss some of the things that require(d) a great deal of courage for me, and I realized that it might need to come in multiple parts, owing to the fact that there is a lot to say and having a babe makes my time to blog sparse. I plan to break it down into the following parts for now: Courage to Conceive, Courage in Pregnancy, and Courage as a New Parent.

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People must have incredible courage to Conceive a child--I use the capital C to designate the difference between conception as an accident and Conception as a willful act of love and sacrifice. All of my life, I have witnessed and been witnessed to about the challenges that having a child entails. One day, I accepted that the scary parts of becoming a parent were far outweighed by the desire to create a life and commit to raising that life in a way that brought light into the world. It wasn't easy. In saying, "Yes! I want to Conceive a child with my husband," I committed to some pretty scary stuff:

• Watching my body change drastically in many ways, some of which are irreversible
• Raising one child for eighteen years, not including college, will cost us roughly a quarter of a million dollars
• Permanently giving up my opportunity to sleep in and nap at will, heavy stuff for someone like me
• Doing more housework than I can possibly conceive
• Accepting that my body, my house, my job, my hobbies, my friendships, etc..., would all become secondary to something that weighs a mere seven pounds
• Raising a child as a Christian

On top of it all, like 10% of American women, we experienced challenges with infertility. Once we had our diagnosis after an early miscarriage and a long period of trying, we had to commit to Conceiving a child again (IVF cycle 1) and again (IVF cycle 2) despite some additional challenges:

• The financial burden of IVF, which I will not spell out in particular details, but I will say, that it cost more for us than the national average of $12,440.
• The physical burden of IVF, which involves sticks and pricks and raging hormones and invasive procedures and ovaries so swollen that they seemingly merged once during an ultrasound; our second IVF cycle and subsequent pregnancy required 368 self-administered shots
• The emotional burden of IVF, which cannot be quantified, but it definitely took its toll.
• The knowledge that all of this could yield no results other than a drained bank account and a broken heart.

Luckily for our hearts, we were able to tap deep into our well of financial, physical, and emotional resources and Conceive our Wisebaby. When we saw that the embryo had turned into a fluttering heartbeat via sonogram, our hearts grew three sizes that day.

How time flies - a palindrome

• 10 years ago, I was a freshman moving into the dorms at OU.
• 9 years ago, I decided to break up with my high school boyfriend to pursue Jeff.
• 7 years ago, Jeff asked me share his life with him.
• 6 years ago, we created our family of two.
• 4 years ago, we stopped avoiding pregnancy.
• 3 years ago, my niece was born, and Jeff and I started trying to conceive in earnest.
• 2 1/2 years ago, our world was rocked by losing a Wisebaby in miscarriage.
• 2 years ago, our world was rocked by our diagnosis of infertility, followed by a failed IVF cycle.
• 1 year ago, we decided to try again.
• 11 months ago, we started our second IVF cycle.
• 9 months ago, we found out that we were expecting a Wisebaby.
• 6 months ago, we found out that Wisebaby would be a boy.
• 1 month ago, I went into labor a week ahead of my induction date.
• Yesterday, our little Wisebaby had his one month birthday.
• 1 month from now, Wisebaby will be two months old.
• 6 months from now, Wisebaby will celebrating his first Valentine's day.
• 9 months from now, I will celebrate my first Mother's Day with a babe in my arms.
• 11 months from now, we will celebrate Wisebaby's first birthday.
• 1 year from now, Wisebaby will enter the toddler class at day care.
• 2 years from now, Wisebaby will be walking and talking.
• 2 1/2 years from now, Wisebaby will hopefully be potty training.
• 3 years from now, Wisebaby may be swimming independently.
• 4 years from now, Wisebaby will be working on Kindergarten readiness.
• 6 years from now, Wisebaby will be entering the first grade.
• 7 years from now, Wisebaby will be entering the second grade.
• 9 years from now, Wisebaby will be a fourth grader.
• 10 years from now, Wisebaby will be a fifth grader.

Milestones

It's amazing how quickly newborns hit different milestones in their development. Within a few weeks they're already holding up their head or are able to focus their eyes on objects. Wisebaby had already hit milestones quicker than we'd have expected him to. Yesterday we decided he was big enough to retire his Newhorn-size clothes, move up to Size 1 diapers, and move the straps in the car seat up on notch. All of these changes are very exciting when you consider all the concern and effort that was our into improving how small Wisebaby was in his first week if life. We used to be scared that he wasn't eating enough, and now he's already moving out of newborn clothes at only 4 weeks old!  With all of these changes I've been able to see and experience a parent's feeling of wanting to slow down time. I'm really going to miss my little baby newborn boy!  He was so little, so innocent!  I'm excited to keep growing and hitting our milestones, but I already miss the past just a little. 

Mindful of my emotions

I started crying tonight in between our last feed before Mommy and Daddy go to bed and pumping. Jeff was shaving, and so instead of being able to hand off Wisebaby to him for burping and swaddling, the duty fell to me. I realized at that moment that the SwaddleMes--so handy--and other swaddling blankets were either in the laundry or the nursery, and that the Pack and Play needed a new sheet. Of course, I didn't want to put down the sleeping angel for fear of his 10-Midnight screaming fest from several days in the last week to commence. To make matters worse, my top was still hiked up from nursing, leaving me exposed in a very maternal way, and I felt sort of like a piece of livestock at that exact moment.

I was frustrated, but I had to remind myself that it wasn't anyone's fault, especially not Jeff's. It would be easy to blame him--why didn't he shave earlier? why didn't he notice there weren't any swaddling blankets or sheets for the appointed hour? why wasn't he there to tend to me when I was feeling vunerable. It would be easy to blame the baby--why can't you put yourself to bed? why do you cry for no reason? why don't you wake during the day and sleep at night as God intended?

I have to be mindful of the flood of emotions and remember that the post-partum period is ROUGH. I'm exhausted from making a baby, a process that started eleven months ago for us. I'm exhausted from recovering from delivering a 7 lb 3 oz, 19.5 in., watermelon and healing from that trauma. I am exhausted from being up every few hours. I am exhausted from constantly feeling like I have no idea how to do basic Mommy things--how do you refill a diaper pail? Play with a baby? Read diapers like a fortune teller?, etc... I am exhausted from nursing--really you can't eat enough to keep up with this physical energy sap. I am exhausted from the pressures if trying to be the best mommy possible.

I can't let myself get bitter about the shortcomings of myself or Jeff during this period. I have to be mindful of the exhaustion so that I can have a good cry and then appreciate all of the little moments that we worked so hard to make a reality.

Date night

Daddy and I let Wisebaby crash date night because he promised to sleep the whole time. I put on a pre-pregnancy knit dress that barely fit over my huge nursing boobs, and we hit the town. After feasting at our favorite local pizza place, we went to get a scoop at our favorite local ice cream shop. It was the most that I've felt like myself in a long time, proving that there is life with a baby!