Oh Mai Family: Bowl-o-Rama

Sunday was Kael's long awaited, much anticipated birthday bowling party. It was a co-party with his buddy Josh as (1) they both turned 4; (2) their actual DOB's are only 2.5 weeks apart; and (3) they know pretty much all the same friends.

All the kids were very excited to bowl and while we (the parents) envisioned a great party, we really didn't know what to expect as no one had done a bowling party before. Quite honestly, the concept of "bowling with 14 preschoolers" could have turned into a recipe for disaster in a flash.

Luckily our vision proved true and the kids had a great time. A really great time. We had a hard time convincing the kids off the lanes to come eat pizza and they immediately abandoned the dining tables, leaving remnants of cupcakes to bowl some more. Originally we had 2 bumper lanes for kids and 1 lane for adults. It very quickly became clear that we needed another lane as the kids were piling on top of each other, wanting to bowl first. So in the end, the kids took over all 3 lanes, the parents either supervised or caught dropped balls, and the congestion eased up a bit. That did not however prevent many incidences where we saw 2 bowling balls rolling down the same lane (oops!).

I was the Mai Family photographer and my spot was straddling the lanes, in the gutter, facing the kids so I got to see a lot. I noticed a definite gender propensity for bowling: most of the girls gently rolled the balls down the lane, either Granny style or off the side. Most of the boys (at first) would hoist the 6 lbs. ball on their shoulder and try to lob the thing down the lane (imagine shot-putting a bowling ball). It was at once both hilarious and hair-raising (I was in their line of vision) as some of the boys (Ryan Irwin, for example) are very big, strong kids. There were moments where I felt real fear. After a few very loud thunks, we quickly showed the boys the proper way of bowling.

My favorite part of watching the kids bowl had to be watching them watch their ball slowly roll down the lane.
And watch.
And wait.
And watch some more.
Some of their best rolls were so agonizingly slow that the ball stopped mid-way down. I had to walk in the gutter to give the ball a final push to finish the journey. One ball actually started rolling back right as it neared the strike zone. It was hilarious. However, some kids proved the fact that bowling is not always about speed - it's about precision: they actually rolled strikes (Emma) and spares (Adriana) despite the ball taking about a minute to finally get to its destination.

All in all it was a great time. No injuries despite many dropped balls, kids jockeying for position in front of the ball return, and Erin bowling in her flip-flops.

(Pictures are posted in I Spy.)