BEMIDJI — Some 20 years ago, Bailey Weller’s footsteps could be heard pitter-pattering on the floor of the former Exhaust Pros space that her uncle owned.
Over time, the space located at 1426 Bemidji Ave. N. would house other entities, most recently Accra Homecare. When Accra closed up shop out of Suite 3 in the strip, an opportunity would arise for Weller to take advantage of the space she frequented as a child.
Right next door in Suite 9 is her husband AJ’s tattoo shop, Xquisit Ink. In conversations with Xquisit clients, Weller noted a common theme.
“Because a lot of our clients are moms and dads, aunts and uncles, they’ve always said that Bemidji needed more family-friendly things,” Weller said.
Annalise Braught / Bemidji Pioneer
Alongside these conversations, Weller reflected on her pre-Xquisit Ink life when the couple and their kids spent a year in Dallas, where AJ has family friends. Given its status as a major metropolitan area, family opportunities abounded.
“They have anything and everything that you can imagine,” Weller said. “They literally had around 15 (play spaces) just in the area that we lived in, and they were all completely different.”
Now, as a part-owner of Xquisit Ink, Weller’s next business venture presented itself with Accra’s closure: the Blue Ox Playroom.
Annalise Braught / Bemidji Pioneer
“One day, the manager of Accra knocked on our door and was like, ‘Hey, they’re shutting down our branch, do you want any furniture?’” Weller recalled, adding that Accra’s former location was an adjoining suite to Xquisit Ink. “And our landlord was like, ‘Well, I’d like (Accra’s former space) to stay with you guys.’”
With the space secured, Weller noted the couple’s initial plans to expand the tattoo shop. Eventually, opening a children’s play space would be the final decision.
“I was like, ‘Let’s just do something completely different,’” she said, “so we landed on the playroom.”
Annalise Braught / Bemidji Pioneer
‘My turn to build’
Weller’s pursuit to open the Blue Ox Playroom is not only a shift from her prior work, but a different chapter in her life.
Weller met AJ, originally from Belize, in 2016. The couple settled down in Grand Rapids before deciding to make the big move to Dallas.
AJ has served in the U.S. Army National Guard as an infantryman for the past 10 years, and while in Dallas, was approaching a deployment year.
Annalise Braught / Bemidji Pioneer
“We had two kids at the time, and I just thought I couldn’t be down in Dallas by myself with no family support,” Weller recalled. “Our friends were amazing, but I needed to have family to turn to.”
The couple returned to the Land of 10,000 Lakes, specifically Bemidji, where Weller was born and whose dad is a lifelong community member.
Weller had worked in nursing homes right out of high school and as a nursing assistant in the Intensive Care Unit at Sanford Health for around four years. She decided to step away from healthcare to focus on growing Xquisit Ink — and now the Blue Ox Playroom.
Annalise Braught / Bemidji Pioneer
“We’ve been building up the tattoo shop for the last three years,” Weller added, “so now it’s my turn to build this.”
A calming space
The Blue Ox Playroom has so far offered soft openings, serving as a sneak peek of the space for community members as well as a “test run” of operations for Weller.
The space provides toys tailored to ages 0 to 5, though older kids won’t be turned away if a parent or guardian is unable to leave them at home. A separate smaller room is reserved for those 2 and younger — a space free of choking hazards.
Weller noted plans to offer a sensory room, as well, and some play stations will rotate on a monthly basis. As a means to alleviate child meltdowns, a free library will allow children to pick out a book or board game to take home with them once it’s time to leave.
Annalise Braught / Bemidji Pioneer
Seating areas are provided, as parents and guardians are expected to stay on site with their children as they play. Weller emphasized that she’s not licensed as a daycare provider, and the Blue Ox Playroom is not a drop-off center.
Space is also limited, Weller said, adding that the space has capacity for 25 people. She hopes to keep numbers under 10 kids at any given time, as parents will be counted in the capacity.
“People have already asked, ‘When are you going to expand? You’re going to grow out of this space,’” she said. “The Blue Ox Playroom is going to stay small because parents have been looking for a calmer place, especially for kids that are more introverted.”
Weller noted discussions with AJ about the possibility of opening a Blue Ox Gym, a higher-energy space for older kids that may include a Ninja Warrior-type course and related activities.
“That’ll be the crazy, wild adventure,” Weller said. “(Blue Ox Playroom) is calm and serene.”
Annalise Braught / Bemidji Pioneer
The cost to play is $10 per child per 90-minute timeframe. Caregivers are admitted free of charge, and reservations will be required given the limited space.
Play sessions are scheduled and announced in advance on the
Blue Ox Playroom Facebook page,
with 30 minutes between each session reserved for cleaning.
Full-circle moment
Ultimately, Weller hopes to foster greater community connections via the playroom, taking after her dad to an extent.
“My dad has lived here his whole 66 years, and you can’t go a single place in town where he doesn’t know somebody because he used to sell cars,” Weller said. “That’s kind of the feel I want to have in our community, that I’m always running into somebody that knows (AJ and I) either from the tattoo shop, the playroom, or future businesses we want to open.”
Annalise Braught / Bemidji Pioneer
As Weller continues to iron out the details of the playroom, she reflected on the serendipitous nature of her next venture and exciting opportunities to arise moving forward.
“I was running around this (Blue Ox Playroom) as a car shop 20 years ago, and now I own two businesses in it,” she left off. “It’s really weird how it all transpired.”
More information and updates can be found on the