Where a Kid Can Be a Kid

TV ad executives work hard to set simple slogans firm in the minds of people. $5 dollar footlong is a song commonly heard at my house.They insist I need those globes to put in my plants to help water them-- even though I don't have any plants! Or, the boys will talk about why I should switch to Geico. However, I hadn't truly realized how effective the ads were until about a month ago when I was talking to Brendan.

It was a day where the kids were just bumming around the house, and I said to him, "Go have fun. Be a kid. Run around!" He said back, "Well, if you want me to be a kid, take me to Chuck E Cheese- It's where a kid can be a kid." I giggled then immediately offered a resounding No Deal.

Yet, this week being Spring Break, I thought I would break down and treat them with a mini trip to the hallowed grounds of Mr. Cheese, the big Chuck E. Having done my research, I knew that Chuck E Cheese actually opens long before they begin serving their cardboard pizza for lunch; they open at 9am. The boys and I were only the second group to arrive at 9:30. I almost laughed at how quickly the boys ran through over 100 tokens on the various games.They played some of our classic favorites like throwing the football and rolling the ball. (What is that called? The name is escaping me. . .)They also played a few new games. One of my favorite was where a machine takes your pictures and puts it on a credit card looking thing with cool words around it. Brendan and Evan each left with four of them! Let's hope that doesn't spur a future obsession with credit cards.

Of course, we can never leave there without a few rounds on the overhead play area. The boys love crawling around there and hiding from me, especially when it is time to leave.
At the end of each trip, I always dread standing with my meager ticket totals looking at the prize counter, explaining to the boys that our 500 tickets will only yield us a plastic toy that will break in two seconds or a few handfuls of candy. I coerced them into saving them for a greater prize. Who knows if I can stash the tickets safely, but I felt good about it.

Ultimately, we did have a good time. I suppose that Chuck E Cheese actually lives up to its slogan. For the morning, my kids found a great place to just be kids.