Luke's Bowling Bash

Luke turned six on the 2nd of June, an even-numbered birthday, which around here means "friend party" birthday.  Over two months later, August 13th, we FINALLY got around to celebrating with his pals!  I feel like a totally lame mom!  I don't know what took us so long, but Luke wasn't really pushy about it, so it just kept sliding back.  Perhaps it was fate, and not pure laziness, because his dream 6th birthday party was to take his friends to Brunswick Zone for a bowling party, and Family Fun Magazine featured a bowling party in the August issue.  When I saw that it was pretty much spelled out for me and that all I had to do was throw a few things together, I had no more excuses!  Plus, I really wanted to get it done before school started so we could go during the day, so it was time to get 'er done.

A couple of weeks before the party I contacted the four kids he wanted to invite to find a day when they could all be there and the date was set.  Most of the party was thrown together in a couple of days, thanks to Family Fun's great ideas!  Simplest party I've ever put on, seriously.  I have to say that this is the second time we've done tees as a take home gift and I love it!  So cute and usable; so much better than chintzy toys that most moms just want to toss the day they come home from the party or a lot of candy that you don't really want your kid to consume--and that all ends up costing about as much as the shirt does, all said and done!  Do it.  You will like it. 

Other than feeling pretty terrified that someone was going to stick their hand in the ball return and go home a couple of fingers fewer, it was a GREAT party!  Gabriel, Kieran, Cooper and Reagan all arrived for cupcakes and present-opening in the mid-afternoon, which went quickly, and then we set off for Brunswick Zone.  We bowled one game (during which I was grateful, one, for Zac's helpful presence and, two, due to 6-year-old boy spazziness, that we were all alone in our booth/lane area!), bumpers always up, sometimes using the ball ramp, sometimes not.  Then I gave each of the kids  a card with a few bucks worth of points to play in the game center.  It was perfect.  They all left the party with a t-shirt, a few treats and whatever their game-winnings earned them from the prize zone at the game center.  I think all the kids had a great time, but most importantly, even though the ball got heavy for him after frame five, Luke loved it.  He felt celebrated and had a wonderful day with his friends.

Awwwwww!!!

Cooper, Gabriel, Luke, Kieran and Reagan