Home Depot (sweet) home

There aren't a whole lot of public places where Max feels completely comfortable; noise and other kinds of sensory OD wig him out. The park: yes. The mall: not so much. Restaurants: just a select few (the jury's still out on The Original Pancake House). Supermarkets, maybe, depending on his mood; Target and other superstores tend to be too crowded for him, and he wails.

Home Depot? HEAVEN.

Max thinks it's The Best Place In The Whole Wide World.

The aisles are extra-wide—especially in the lumber area—and amenable to kids who, say, like to zoom a shopping cart down an empty one like they're in the Indy 500. Not that I know any kids like that.

The tools, screws, chains, and bazillion other objects are interesting to touch and encourage Max to explore and use his hands and fingers (requisite disclaimer: I am not advocating Home Depot as a place to hang out if your tot likes to taste everything and anything).

The big, burly guys roaming around always think Max is cute, and none of them seem to mind when he dashes up to them because they are wearing brown pants and pats their butts (requisite disclaimer: I am not advocating this, either).

Last year, HD debuted a new eco-friendly paint line and they had spin-art for kids; Max made four paintings and tried to persuade me to let him sleep at the store.

I love to roam around the Gardening section and pretend that I am one of those women who actually has time to grow things. Dave likes to fondle the barbecues and pretend that I am going to buy him a new one for the holidays, even though the one on our deck is perfectly fine.

Bonus: Our local HD has a Dunkin' Donuts, my favorite kind of coffee (iced, light, two Equals).

Anyone else out there love HD? Which places do your kids most love to visit on weekends?