Nothing Says "Happy Birthday" Like Bowling At Boondocks...

Tonight we celebrated your youngest's birthday. We asked what he wanted to do and he said he wanted to go bowling. Thankfully, there's a bowling facility in the next town over. On Mondays they have a family special--perfect timing!

Bowling is one of those activities where, I believe, going too often can be too much. Plus, I don't know if my body can do a lot of bowling anymore--it's what happens when you get old.

Tonight was fun, except we had a haunted lane. It broke down, gave us more points than we earned, robbed one of us a sure strike, and kept us guessing the whole time. Haunted bowling--give it a try sometime.

The whole family went. There are now three teenagers in the family. Most families don't even have three kids and when they think of having three teenagers, it's enough to make father lose his hair. Luckily for me, that happened decades ago. But I wouldn't have it any other way.

Yes, family bowling--like I said, too much and it ruins the experience. Glad we were able to go.

Experiencing The Rush Funplex...

Today, because of family obligations and other issues, I found myself taking two of my kids to an activity center called The Rush Funplex. I've been to similar places in the past, but this one wore me out.

The Rush Funplex is like a smorgasbord of things to do. This place had not just one bowling alleys, but two, the north and the south. It had inflatable jumping places for kids, mini-golf, golf simulators (that appeared to be closed...), a game called the Battlestar Blaster, Laser Tag, and an indoor go cart track--that was what blew me away. It was located over the south bowling alley.

I went on the cars once--they were quick little things, but it's just more proof that I'm getting old. It made my stomach a bit queasy.

We bowled. My three fellow bowlers--all under the age of 13-- bailed on the game when the pins feeder froze and didn't work quite right. I was able to get the game going, so I ended up bowing four frames for me and my three missing bowlers. I'm sure my left arm will be very sore tomorrow.

Another fun activity was the Laser Tag. The technology is decades-old so I'm sure most of you either know about it or have played it yourselves. We played adults (2) vs. kids (4). The entire arena was flooded with black lights so all white clothing glowed. Unfortunately, I wore my white Xchyler baseball cap that was like a huge beacon for the opposing army. I not only had to concentrate on getting the gun to shoot correctly, but I had to also hold my hat in my hand.

We only had a three-hour pass, but I was so worn out by the time we climbed into the minivan and headed home. The Rush Funplex is not something I could do everyday, but once in a while, it's just good fun.