Friday Patrick had 3 of his cousins and a friend from church come over to celebrate his birthday. I took 5 of the 6 boys (Patrick, Aaron, Loren, Morgan & Chris ) to Bullwinkle's in Wilsonville. Corin, the 6th boy, met us there. I bought the "All-Night-Birthday Party-Bash, which includes a 1-hour all-you-can-eat pizza & soft drinks, and unlimited go-karts, laser tag, bumper boats and mini-golf.
I was a bit concerned - one adult among 6 boys, but it turned out really good. I smiled so much watching those boys enjoy themselves, my face still hurt the next day. Aaron was a bit short for the go-karts, so I asked if they'd let me drive for him. The guys working there were really nice and let me, even though I hadn't bought tickets for myself. Aaron really enjoyed it and so did I. I had never driven a go-kart before. It was raining almost the whole night and the activities, with the exception of the laser tag, were all outside. Thankfully it wasn't a heavy rain and not too terribly cold. When it was our turn for the go-karts, I gave my coat to one of the boys who didn't have one. I was wearing a vest, too, so only my arms got cold, which was ok. With the rain on the track it made the driving even more exciting; lots of skidding/sliding around corners and all. Mini-golf ended up with a few extra "water hazards" which were fun to watch the boys play through. Watching them on the bumper boats was fun, too, but the boats didn't go very fast so they got bored with that pretty quickly.
Near the end of the night the boys decided they wanted to play some of the arcade games that they had there. So, I bought a bunch of tokens and off they went again!
It was a really nice night for me, seeing my "baby" as a more mature young man. Patrick had fun with his cousins and made a good friend in Corin. The age range of boys was essentially 8, 10, 12, 13 & 14, but they all played and had a fun time together. Even the ride home was pleasant.
Patrick's birthday isn't until Tuesday. I still can't believe it's been 13 years ago that my mom and I were walking and walking all around old-town Pocatello during the Cottages & Cranberries celebration hoping to get my labor started. So much has happened and changed since then. It doesn't seem that long ago, and yet, sometimes it seems a lifetime. I thank God every day for my precious son...who not only changed my life, but saved it.
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2 comments:
Happy Birthday to Patrick! Someday, I want to hear the rest of your story about how Patrick saved your life. Glad he had so much fun and that you got to ride the go-kart too.
It is a bitter-sweet story - the ending is a happy one, because the ending is Patrick. It's a bit too personal for here, but maybe next time I see ya'all I can share. The go-karts were SO much fun. I honestly didn't think I'd have a very good time with 6 boys :)
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