I spent some of Friday evening wasting time and scrolling through Facebook, largely ignoring most of the updates and shares, but pausing for photographs until I happened upon an update about someone taking her child to visit the Fun Factory.  Now I can’t even remember whose update I read with this location, but it sparked an idea in my head.  After a few minutes of searching, I found a Facebook page and a Cookeville location.  I learned that the Fun Factory is a giant indoor playland for children, mostly available for birthday parties and so on, but more importantly, they have open play hours!  $6 for open play (roughly a 3 hour period) during non-peak hours.  Adults play free!

This morning, Ian woke up and quickly decided to be a beast –he’s taking that Super Beast title from his gymnastic class as his fulltime persona.  Tia, one of my basketball gals called it immediately: Superbowl hangover.  This little boy experienced too much excitement in one evening without enough time to wind down before bed.  After wrestling with Ian, who had taken to following us around the house all morning and crying at our feet every time we stopped moving, Brinn finally asked, “What were the hours of that play place again?”

Generally taking Ian outside to play will ensure instant satisfaction and he drops the crying and wining immediately.  This magical fix would not be available today, with the near freezing temperatures, rain, and ice.  Brinn would have to find some other to pacify a raging toddler.

I headed off to work while Brinn dressed and packed Ian for a morning of play, hoping that the large building would substitute for Ian’s addiction to the great outdoors. On pre-school days, Ian can go play in the giant gymnasium at the church if the weather is bad.  Our 1600 square foot house just doesn’t have the same openness that invites running and horseplay, not that he doesn’t run around and scream at home anyway.

Brinn started sending me pictures almost immediately after arriving at the Fun Factory.  It didn’t take Ian anytime at all to decide that he fully approves of this establishment.  First he ran to a three-wheeler to wheel himself around.  Ian discovered a tricycle at Brian’s (one of Brinn’s good friends) house Saturday evening.  Brian’s little boy brought out his tricycle and bicycle out for Ian to play with while we were out for a visit.  Ian couldn’t coordinate his feet to peddle, but he did understand that these toys would eventually provide him with mobility and he wants to know how.  After that visit to Brian’s, Ian is obsessed with two and three-wheeled toys.  After a short while walking himself forward on the three-wheeler, he jumped over to the Flinstone-esque car and took himself for a spin.

While Ian can exercise diligence and attentiveness to one idea when he becomes fascinated with a project he largely jumps from task to task or toy to toy like a squirrel on caffeine.  So it didn’t take him long to start exploring everything else the factory had to offer, including large cushioned jungle gym type structures for him to climb through and over. Ian also discovered the ball pit early in his adventure.

It didn’t take long before Ian was jumping into the balls.  I guess he’s not much for dipping his toe in the pool.  He does tend to be an all or nothing type kid.