Royal Ranch Royalty

Good Morning!!! I hope you all are having a wonderful weekend.  I had hoped we would be camping this weekend, and that I would possibly be downloading pictures from one of our spectacular state parks.  Well, next weekend.  In a move that I would normally really support, Park County Government has closed all offices on Fridays in an effort to save money.  I really wish the clerk that I talked to on Monday and said that I would pick up my plates and proof of insurance on Thursday or Friday would have told me that, but I guess that was too early in the week or something.  Tom didn't take me up on the idea of faking temporary plates, darn him, so we decided to take Nathan bowling for his birthday instead.

So, this is where the big decision comes in.  Do we head to the big city of Denver, or go to Fairplay?  In general, if given a choice, the kids always want to go to the city; I mean these kids live in the mountains.  But, my poor husband on the other hand, commutes to the city at least four times a week and will do just about anything to get us to not go back down there on the weekends!  When I reminded him about the bowling alley in Fairplay, he was on the phone in no time flat- checking prices, menus, etc.  Lucky for him, we are a very food oriented family and the menu in Fairplay sounded much better than anything we could get at a bowling alley in any city.

So we climb into the truck and head toward South Park, yes, that South Park, and yes, it is very much like the show from what I gather.  Mother Nature really put on a show for Nathans birthday; we saw a very large herd of antelope which is rather unusual, a huge herd of elk which is usual, and of course the occasional deer.  The drive up and over Kenosha Pass is one that I even remember from when I was a child, coming into South Park is quite a spectacular view, you can see for miles.  I think it may be one of my favorite places in Colorado, it is also a popular aspen viewing destination in the fall.

Yes, this is where I finally get around to announcing Royal Ranch Royalty, it is hands down, South Park Bowl!  (Sorry, no link, couldn't find one) This place went all out to make sure that we had a wonderful evening, which we absolutely did.  I think it must be a husband /wife team, and they both work their butts off, but still took they time to ask Nathan things like "what's the best thing about being 14 that's better than being 13?"  And they had the kids go through their music collection to put on whatever they wanted, you know, a real small town place.

As for the food, oh lord, did we make the right choice.  The specials were beer battered shrimp and ribs.  We had already decided on the way up that we would each order one item and then share everything.  Yup, that's two full racks of ribs we ordered and two orders of beer battered shrimp-YUM!!!  It's funny, because in my family we have a rib competition going; my nephews say I make the best ribs in the world, so my brother-in-law is always coming up with some crazy new way to try and beat my recipe, which he has not done so far according to the nephews.  Isabella and Nate say Fairplay's ribs come close to mine, boys!

After we ate, we got right down to some serious bowling.  I did some real butt kicking on my family and then we went home.  Okay.... I can't tell a lie... I came in fourth out of four, but I had a lot of fun trying!  The family says they are going to use the bumpers for me next time, can you imagine the gall of them?-Ha!  Tom who hasn't bowled in years, had the entire bowling alley beat and crowed about it the whole way home!!!!  (I'm sure this is why I did so poorly, I was just being support for my macho husband---I almost laughed myself right out of the chair typing that one!!!  Sometimes I just kill myself!)

Anywho, we really did have a great time bowling.  The people around us were a lot of fun, some were local families, but we were a little surprised that people had come over Hoosier Pass from Breckenridge to bowl as well.  I guess bowling is a popular sport and draws a crowd.  But it was when we were done bowling that the tears started flowing.  The waitress brought Nathan a brownie sundae while a Happy Birthday song blasted over the entire sound system while everyone in the whole place sang to my fourteen year old little man.  It was exactly what my middle son needed.  He was the center of attention of the entire family, restaurant, heck he had given the entire town of Fairplay reason to celebrate it felt like!

So, if you are ever in our neck of the woods, and have the urge to knock a few pins over, head to South Park.  On the way there you will have your breath taken away by a view that you'll never forget, chances are you'll see a huge herd of elk, too.  If you are really lucky, like my son Nathan appears to be, you might even see a herd of antelope!