Mooch's marker and a question
November 26, 2007
Thanks to a tip from Lisa H., we found the perfect marker for Mooch. Plus, it was on sale.
Sabian's marker is in the foreground; Mooch's is in the back about to pounce. It fits more than you can imagine.
The lighting effect is courtesy my camera and all of its many magical settings. Seemed appropriate for a burial site.
The Mooch is dead. Long live the Mooch!
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And, now, a completely unrelated question - does anyone know of any good games for a 5-year old? Board games or card games would be preferred. Please save me from another round of Candyland. Please.
And, now, an unrelated, self-promotional link: my feature on local toy trends in the almost-daily.
Trouble, cooties, ants in my pants, hungry hungry hippos...but those ALSO will drive you mad.
Perfect markers. I love them.
Posted by: thordora | November 26, 2007 at 02:55 PM
Seeing *my* dude play "Pretty Pretty Princess" certainly has its appeal. And I played regularly for a while. Not bad. Of course, princess, blah blah feminism blah blah, but I remind you I played with Barbie and even had the townhouse.
Posted by: anna | November 26, 2007 at 04:31 PM
I second "Ants in the Pants."
Posted by: Debra | November 26, 2007 at 04:43 PM
I love the markers, too.
My kids (granted, they're 6 and 8) just love Sorry. And adults can tolerate it pretty well. And I cannot recommend Hullabaloo enough. Though not a board game (it's an action game), it's awesome in that it completely occupies kids from 3-10(ish) without ANY ADULT HELP. Woo! The old classic Guess Who is also fun. And almost anyone can learn to play Uno, especially if you take the Draw 4s and Reverses out (there's a "younger" Sesame Street version, too). Connect Four. Memory (the game you won't have to try to let your kids win, ours pretty much always clobber us).
Posted by: Heidi | November 26, 2007 at 05:56 PM
"Colorama" is a great game for younger kids, especially if they're into tactile stuff, because there are so many geometric shapes to handle. No reading or math necessary.
I second Uno as well. My kids also enjoy a board game called Frog Pond Fractions.
Candyland is the devil. I "lost" ours when we moved.
Posted by: kcb | November 26, 2007 at 06:28 PM
Memory is good, Old Maid, Clue (sometimes the little ones need to be "partners" with a grownup) . . . My son, who's six, really likes Sudoku -- the easiest level available.
Posted by: Tim | November 26, 2007 at 07:09 PM
The markers capture rainy November perfectly somehow, too.
Max keeps begging to play "Crain" (Cranium) Uh, riiiiight. He does, however, adore Blokus. I'm not quite sure he fully grasps how to play, but I bet a 5 year old could:
http://www.henrybear.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=820
(The linked to store has a lot of great stuff.)
Also, do you have Mancala? Simple enough for a 5 year-old, but not at all boring.
Posted by: karrie | November 27, 2007 at 05:20 AM
Gobblet Jr is a fantastic game: http://www.blueorangegames.com/gobbletjr.php
My 5 year old got it for her birthday and loves it, particularly as she can beat me fairly at it, which is a humbling experience for Mom. We liked it so much in my household that I got the adult version for my birthday too.
There's another card game my kids really like, but I can't remember the name of it (kinda like Uno, but not) -- I'll find the name and post it later.
Posted by: Ellen | November 27, 2007 at 10:45 AM
The card game is Skip-Bo -- I think it's aimed at 7 and up, but any child who can recognize numbers 1-12 can play.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SKIP-BO
In my house, we also tweak the rules of some games to play cooperatively (by totalling all players scores to beat the house record for example, instead of comparing individual results) rather than competitively so that games unsuitable for younger players (like Carcassonne or Settlers of Catan) can be include younger folks provided they have the attention span.
And of course, there's also Gulo Gulo: http://www.funagain.com/control/product/~product_id=014377
where little fingers do have an advantage.
Posted by: Ellen | November 27, 2007 at 01:20 PM
Goodness Ms. Thing will be 6 in Feb and can't sit still long enough to play most board games. We do a homemade game of obstacle course. I give her a list of about 4 or 5 things to do, she runs off to do them, I get 1-2 minutes to knit a row (cook dinner, sort laundry, etc,) and think of the next course. Mr. Man at 3.5 years can participate too. If she does have a quiet moment, playing "homework" is also fun. I'll write letters and she copies them. Another good game that we do, and I can't remember the name, involves a deck of cards with questions like "What are things you would find at the airport." Again, the whole family can get in on that one, it's not too mind numbing, and you can knit while playing.
Enjoy.
Posted by: Sarah | November 27, 2007 at 01:51 PM
Holy cow. You guys know your games.
I have ordered Uno (which I'd forgotten about) and one of the Cranium games. I had a childhood trauma that involved Skip-bo (long story) but will put it on the list, along with all of these other awesome suggestions.
I might have to get Carcassonne for the hub and I to play. Because we are geeks.
Anyone have opinions on the Ravensburger games? I'm tempted by Junior Labyrinth.
The Diva seems to really dig games and can sit through hours of playing them. I'd rather get her some games for Christmas that we can play en familia, especially during the holiday when we'll all be home.
I don't know that the Boy will ever play board games. Do any board games involve smashing stuff?
I was a big Barbie fan, too, and seem to have survived. I do have a fondness for Project Runway, which is a feature, not a fault.
Bratz dolls, however, are verbotten.
Posted by: Adrienne | November 27, 2007 at 03:08 PM
Groovy Girls are a good Bratz replacement. Funky, but not tarted up and ready to walk the streets at a moment's notice. (I was holiday shopping yesterday for my nieces who are 3 and 5, so have girlie gifts on the brain.)
And you really do not want to know how little boys play with board games. Trust me!
Posted by: karrie | November 28, 2007 at 08:40 AM