For Ethan's birthday this year he decided to head to Quincy Illinois with his friend Jack in lieu of the whole birthday-party-at-my-house activity. I think he chose this option because I told him I'd give him and his friend 10 bucks each to waste in the arcade at
Going Bonkers. (I really struggle with the planning involved in home parties even though I do them sometimes anyway). After school we all got in the car ready for the 1 hr. 20 min. drive it actually takes to get to Quincy. We were all pleased that Shawn was able to attend this glorious event with us. The kids were all very surprised to see him behind the wheel as they piled in. Sad, but true. When we pulled into the city it w
as 5 o'clock and the kids were hungry. We decided to forgo the Bonkers cardboard style pizza and bring in our own happy meals. As we entered Bonkers and I started to count kids and money the cashier let me know that no outside food was allowed. I looked behind me at 5 children each with a happy meal box, then back to him and said, "Do you want us to go eat in the lobby and then come back in when we are done?" By lobby I mean the small, cold space between the outside doors and the inside doors. I must have looked pretty pathetic because he told me I could eat inside just this one time. (I guess I failed to mention that
I've brought food in the 2 other times I've visited this establishment and nobody has ever questioned me.) We were finally in. The kids paused long enough to set there food on a table and the excitement obviously trumped the hunger. Ethan and his friend grabbed their cash and headed upstairs to turn it into tokens. The other 3 started climbing the enormous equipment, and Shawn and I ate a peaceful Arby's dinner at a table alone. Lovely. It wasn't long until Shawn decided to he
ad upstairs to make sure the boys were okay. He got waylaid and ended up addicted to a game himself which he spent entirely too much money playing. He was able to win a lot of tickets which helped add to Ethan's collection. The tickets can then be redeemed for prizes. Ridiculous. 25 tickets only buys you a small packet of sixlets. Ethan had 1,011 in the end and wound up with a lunch sack full of novelty gifts. His friend came away with the same amount of loot. Then all 5 kids climbed and chased for another hour before exhaustion set in. Exhaustion of the parents that is. The kids could have lasted longer I'm sure. The funnest part of this trip for me was watching Landon maneuver through the massive structure. Last time we visited Bonkers he didn't even know how to turn around to get himself down the slide. This time he was a seasoned climber. I'm glad Shawn was finally able to see the place for himself. And that this was Ethan's choice for his birthday celebration.
For Ethan's birthday this year he decided to head to Quincy Illinois with his friend Jack in lieu of the whole birthday-party-at-my-house activity. I think he chose this option because I told him I'd give him and his friend 10 bucks each to waste in the arcade at Going Bonkers. (I really struggle with the planning involved in home parties even though I do them sometimes anyway). After school we all got in the car ready for the 1 hr. 20 min. drive it actually takes to get to Quincy. We were all pleased that Shawn was able to attend this glorious event with us. The kids were all very surprised to see him behind the wheel as they piled in. Sad, but true. When we pulled into the city it w
as 5 o'clock and the kids were hungry. We decided to forgo the Bonkers cardboard style pizza and bring in our own happy meals. As we entered Bonkers and I started to count kids and money the cashier let me know that no outside food was allowed. I looked behind me at 5 children each with a happy meal box, then back to him and said, "Do you want us to go eat in the lobby and then come back in when we are done?" By lobby I mean the small, cold space between the outside doors and the inside doors. I must have looked pretty pathetic because he told me I could eat inside just this one time. (I guess I failed to mention that
I've brought food in the 2 other times I've visited this establishment and nobody has ever questioned me.) We were finally in. The kids paused long enough to set there food on a table and the excitement obviously trumped the hunger. Ethan and his friend grabbed their cash and headed upstairs to turn it into tokens. The other 3 started climbing the enormous equipment, and Shawn and I ate a peaceful Arby's dinner at a table alone. Lovely. It wasn't long until Shawn decided to he
ad upstairs to make sure the boys were okay. He got waylaid and ended up addicted to a game himself which he spent entirely too much money playing. He was able to win a lot of tickets which helped add to Ethan's collection. The tickets can then be redeemed for prizes. Ridiculous. 25 tickets only buys you a small packet of sixlets. Ethan had 1,011 in the end and wound up with a lunch sack full of novelty gifts. His friend came away with the same amount of loot. Then all 5 kids climbed and chased for another hour before exhaustion set in. Exhaustion of the parents that is. The kids could have lasted longer I'm sure. The funnest part of this trip for me was watching Landon maneuver through the massive structure. Last time we visited Bonkers he didn't even know how to turn around to get himself down the slide. This time he was a seasoned climber. I'm glad Shawn was finally able to see the place for himself. And that this was Ethan's choice for his birthday celebration.
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