Where a Kid Can Be a Kid (8-5-11)

Calling a visit to Chuck-E-Cheese with my family a date might be a little bit of a stretch, but we're going with it. We did kind of have a double date with Will and Diana walking around temple square the day after Chuck-E-Cheese, but I failed to document that excursion. So Chuck-E-Cheese it is.

Chuck-E-Cheese was often frequented by the Thomas family for each of our birthdays growing up. The fond memories of watching a giant, creepy mouse lurk among unsuspecting children always makes me jump at the opportunity to return to the big cheese.

We couldn't let the kids have all the fun. There were many competitions of skee ball, air hockey and football throw to be had. And I don't think I won any of them.

It doesn't matter how old you get, you still go running back to your dad with your hands cupped begging for more and more tokens.

It took us a while to find the jackpot ticket giver, but once we found it, Jeff and Ben got to work earning tickets for all the kids.

I wish we would have gotten a picture of the man who played the basketball game for two hours straight. I am fairly certain he and his wife count Chuck-E-Cheese as their date night every Friday night. Or a picture of the woman with hundreds of receipts from all the tickets she's won, meticulously adding her earnings on a calculator. I'm still left wondering what prize she's saving up for. There are some hard core Chuck-E-Cheesers out there.

Jeff High: Watching the basketball arcade game all-stars shoot hoops for two hours straight.

Jeff Low: The food.

Sarah High: All the kids went in front of the green screen to dance and be on TV. Eli was happy to be a part of the commotion and before long his little body was wiggling with the best of them. It was cute to watch him imitate the older kids.

Sarah Low: Also the food. But it's all part of the Chuck-E-Cheese experience.