Minnesota's Mimi and Papa's Place becoming big selfie park destination

WINDOM, Minn. — Eagles, pigs and aliens are three things that don't typically fit together. But at Mimi and Papa's in the far-southern Minnesota town of Windom, there's a lot that doesn't quite fit together.

Believe it or not, Curt Wieneke, aka Papa, dreamed up a lot of the creature concoctions on display. He collected so many that five years ago he and his wife Darla, aka Mimi, opened a selfie park off Highway 71.

"They say, 'It's amazing! It's cool! Where do you get the ideas?' Then I point at him. He lays awake at night thinking of stuff. I sleep (laughs)!," Darla Wieneke said.

"What's a little bit odd? I think when you came in you saw a fork in the road, so I literally have a fork in the road," Curt said.

It's a stab at humor. The fork is surrounded by giant fishing lures and boom boxes, ferocious bears and lions, and hungry alligators and dinosaurs.

Unlike other parks, everything here is for sale. The Wienekes have friends who help them make a lot of their oddities. Sometimes a local business will donate extra parts.

"We have a lady who does beautician school and when they're done doing their hair, she takes them out and drops them off at our place," Darla said.

But they also acquire their yard art in other ways. For instance, they traded a bunch of eagle statues to a Sioux Falls pawn shop for a helicopter. It's big enough for a family of four to have dinner inside it.

Summer is their busy season, and Curt and Darla have had visitors from 49 states and six countries.

"There are people now driving their families four or five or six hours now to come down," Curt said.

"They work us into their vacation route," Darla said.

When they're not wheeling and dealing, the Wieneckes spend time painting and doing touch-ups on their alien ant farm. It's one of the few places in Minnesota where you'll find a mouse trap in the middle of a tourist trap.

"We meet a lot of great people. A lot of wonderful people come through here," Darla said.

"The world is kind of a crazy place right now, and when they come in they seem to forget all that and have a great time," Curt said.

The name Mimi and Papa's comes from the nicknames Wieneckes' grandchildren gave them.

Mimi and Papa's is open Thursday through Saturday and by appointment.