Game on

 It was scripture mastery day in seminary Friday, so we played a modified version of "4 on the couch" or "the couch game." This is a pretty harmless parlor game which surprisingly stirred up some intense competition in my "It's-so-early,-these-are-the-first-words-I've-spoken" students.  They hadn't played this game before so it was just a "practice round," but as their understanding of the strategy increased, so did the glint in their eyes. The students' concentration magnified as the win drew close within their grasp. It was a battle to the last 5 minutes as the "hats" claimed victory over the "no hats". Rematch was demanded as the resolve to "get 'em next time" burned in their heart.

Which is why our family plays a lot of games-I love rabid competition. Well, not really. It's just that I believe in games. I mean, I played games.  My parents played games.  It's the American way, right?  Right.  My parents played "Rook" and "Pit," both card games.  My mom tells great stories about my funny uncles cheating at Rook with signs during the bid to tip off their partners.  We played "Pit"during many a family night growing up.  Later I learned that my Dad doesn't like "Pit." He says he never wins.  Well, it's no wonder with him sitting quietly and calmly, softly calling, "two...two..."How's he going to get any trades with that approach? He's got to yell and grab and fight for it. Which reminds me of the parable of the Monopoly game.

I actually have no pictures of them playing games together
but isn't this one great?

 Dad told of brothers playing a game of Monopoly, one cheating, one having fits of anger, and one playing fairly and kindly.  The game ended, the cheater won, or did he?  They all carried on with their life, but one brother was a little more trusted than the others. One brother was a little more prepared to earn an honest living and treat people fairly and was rewarded with treasured relationships and real success. Apparently life is like a Monopoly game.

Eliza, Amanda, Brandon, Trevor, Nathan, Amy, Daniel, Abigail

Then there's Nathan's philosophy, "Remember it's just a game, but play to win." We're especially good at that second part, not necessarily winning, but really wanting to win.  But that is what I like about games, we improve our skills, many of the skills apply to life, and we learn how to win and lose and play without having our family members feel like they want to slap us silly.  That really applies to life.  We all need to work on our charm.

Board games are in the same category as sports equipment, movies, books, and music...a family just can't have enough. We always get games for Christmas and then we buy more in the summer at yard sales and then we do the same thing the next year and now our game closet looks like this:

This is inside the closet. (The Tide box contains Jenga blocks)

The family's current favorites stay out on the shelf always at the ready.
This is progress from when we used to stash them more-visibly-than-
was-attractive under the couch.

I invited my family members to share a favorite game, and by favorite we all mean a game that we're good at, and disclose the secret to their success. This blog is always open so if you have a game and a success secret send it to me.

Polly, Jacob, Abigail, Gwen, Trevor, Andrew

Paul-Battleship:Listen to your opponent's response as you call the shots.  A quick answer means you're way off, a slow deliberate answer means you're close. Watch for patterns.  People can't help but place their ships in a pattern.  Never position ships on the edges or in the very middle.

Laurie-Scrabble:Points, points, points. High point letters on colored squares only. Solfege notes are found in the dictionary so "Do, re, mi, fa, sol/so, la and ti" are all legal words.

Moods-play with your children. They're easy to read

Daniel-Risk:Selective logic with regards to alliance deliberation. Then advantageous alliance breach to cover the earth with little black risk pieces. Then going out first on the next game because no one trusts you.

Brandon-Stratego: Sacrifice man for man until you are one up.
Lord of the Rings Confrontation: Outwit your opponent or wake them up in the middle of the night for a rematch if he beats you:)

Nathan-Perudo: Learn some conditional probability and adjust your bid based on what others are bidding, then make bids you know are right or at least close that seem outrageous to everyone else that didn't do the math. Then get lucky at the end of the game.

This was electronic Stratego.  It made happy little trumpeting
sounds.  But not everyone thought it was so happy. Grandpa Stoker
(not pictured) once told Nathan he'd pay him a dollar to stop playing.

Aaron-Tenzy: Roll fast. Only pick up re-rolls and move roll to clear space. Try to avoid pull-outs.

Jacob-Blokus: You think it's about blocking people, but it's actually about sneaking around them. You play off your corners. Spread your territory. A really good block will hurt you too.

Epic Duels: Memorize the cards. Play defensively until you have enough cards to last a round.

Alexa-7 Wonders:Make sure you play the best card according to what you have.
Perpetual Motion-You can't be casual. Be in it to win it.

Eliza-Pretty Pretty Princess: When you land on "Pick any piece" always choose an earring. There is one space with each type of jewelry, but you have to get two earrings to win. Don't choose the crown unless it's your last piece. Someone will inevitably take it before it is your turn again, and then you've wasted a move. You can also take the crown to prevent someone else from winning. Be the prettiest princess and you will always win;)

Rebecca-Dutch Blitz: Go fast. Monitor the whole board including the other players' hands. If you are short, stand up so your arm can reach the whole table faster.

Blokus:block everything but don't block yourself out. Play the 5 piece first. Think a couple steps ahead.


Gabe-Rummikub:Stay organized. Think ahead.

Remember, play to win, but it's just a game...a game to show how loving you are, right everyone?

PS. Here's a list of our families all time favorites: Risk, Stratego, Hero Quest, Acquire, Perudo, Moods, Guess Who, Magic The Gathering, Connect 4, Kings in the Court, Othello, Chess, Battle Masters, Lion Heart, Racko, Skipbo, Pretty Pretty Princess, Don't Break the Ice, Moods, Blink, Dutch Blitz, Rat-a-tat, Cat, Epic Duels, Hungry, Hungry Hippos, Yahtzee Jr., Luck of the Draw.