When you don't have cable,

And you live in the palouse, board games become very handy. We often spend Sunday evening playing board games. They are good entertainment, and a great way to learn to love your neighbor. We have a states game, which requires reading skills. My brilliant husband made some minor rule changes to accommodate our kindergartner. It allowed him to be competitive, but caused all kinds of claims about fairness from the older crowd. It was a wonderful teaching opportunity. The older kids got to work on not giving back-chat, and the Soso got to work on being a gracious winner.

I played The London Game with the B girls. It is a fun way to learn about the London Underground, and a little history as well. We no longer play Monopoly as a family. Bk is the Monopoly queen, and none of us can beat her, ever. One of the family favorites is Settlers of Catan. It requires strategy, but there is enough chance that even with strategy it is a toss up.

We have all learned not to play games with Beach Grandma. She does not like to lose. When I was growing up we usually ended Monopoly with my brother throwing the board across the room. It was really funny, and still is. We didn't play as many board games, due to an extremely competitive spirit in our home. We also had t.v. which made for a more peaceful evening. We did all enjoy the Farming Game, which is one I don't have for my kids.

It is a lot of fun to play with the kids. It is another advantage of our children's growing maturity. More game options are available, and character is being built. It's also inexpensive. Our other family favorites are Chinese Checkers, and Scrabble.