I am so happy the first day of spring is here! Warmer weather brings so many more toddler friendly activities to the option list! Early spring, however, can still be pretty chilly so I wanted to shout out this classic indoor activity that was surprisingly fun for my toddler.
I wasn't totally sure how bowling would go for my two-year-old. I called ahead to Ocean Lanes in Lakewood to explore how they set-up their lanes for little kids. She mentioned that they have automatic bumpers and they have dragons! (dragons?!) Then she added that she has toddler sized bowling shoes! Sounded adorable so off to the alley we went along with my parents.
We arrived at the earlier side of open bowling to be sure we didn't have to wait long for a lane (I called ahead to determine the available times). The group of us hadn't been bowling in ages and were happily surprised that the space looked really clean and that the shoes even seemed pretty new! My little guy's toddler shoes fit perfectly. I still can't believe they make bowling shoes that small!
We got our lane and my mom put all of our names in while I grabbed our dragon. The dragon is a big kid-sized dragon that little kids can use to roll the ball down. It doesn't give you a lot of speed, but if you set-up right in the center, it can help keep the ball straight! (Pro-tip: Carry a heavier ball over to the dragon for your toddler and have them push it down the dragon. Works better than the lighter ones and they aren't carrying their own ball anyway).
We notified the front desk when we needed the bumpers after a few times of bowling without them. We added the bumpers for my son's turn and for mine so he could bowl during both turns. The bumpers automatically go down after those turns so everyone else was able to bowl bumper free! Between the bumpers and the dragon, my toddler was even able to knock down pins. The first time the pins fell, he did the cutest celebration dance!
When I was younger and we used to go bowling with friends, we usually did two games or so. With a toddler, one game was enough for his attention span. Towards the end, he wanted to go on walks to explore the building. While there, we played pinball and a crane game where we won a few rubber duckies (and we are BIG fans of duckies!).
Honestly, bowling went a lot better than expected and we had a really fun time! It's a great activity for a cold or rainy day (or heck, one of those super HOT summer days) and I am happy to add it to the list of fun family activities we all enjoy. Shout out to Ocean Lanes in Lakewood for a really nice family experience!