Zoe's been bowling since the day she turned 13 months (hey, it was MY birthday present to myself, thankyouverymuch), so that hardly qualifies as news. I had planned on letting her start leagues this September, but the age of the other kids is SO young that I decided I couldn't really give her the attention she'd deserve and it would take away from the experience for the other kids if I tried.
Then there was the added argument she had not completed a full game alone yet. Now anytime anyone is practicing (Mario, me, Michael, or half a dozen of the kids or adults we might be watching), at some point Zoe mooches in a couple of shots with assistance. But that is not bowling, yet.
Just a couple of weeks ago, though she pulled out two, separate one-game stints. Her first game was at Rocket (as it should be, since she recognizes when we're going there from 3 blocks away), and her score was a nice, even 40. Later, at Corbin she managed a 53 or something close to that. The nice thing about Corbin is they have the ball speed monitor and Zoe comes in at a blistering 2.6 mph. Yes, she uses bumpers. Can she carry the ball herself? She can, but since it's more than 20% of her bodyweight, I prefer she not. She kneels at the foul line and away it goes. Slowly. If we had fingers drilled in it, there would be that distinct "wah wah" as it rolled over the thumb hole. But for now, there's no audio accompaniment.
Her current ball of choice is a 6 lb. Power Puff Girls Viz-A-Ball, but she will use a house ball or one of Daddy's 16 lb. monsters if she can get a shot in with it.
So she will no doubt be ready for league when we decide to put her in, but I'm not gonna rush it.
Posted by Angel Zobel-Rodriguez at October 15, 2003 11:39 AM