Games We Love to Play

Over the past few months our children have finally reached the ages where we can truly play family games together.  We enjoy many of the classic games such as Sorry, Uno, Old Maid, and Go Fish.  We've also found some of the newer games to be a ton of fun.  My personal favorites so far are Bananagrams and Blokus.  (Okay, so I'll admit Bananagrams is waaay over our children's heads.  Mostly they just try to spell a word or two out of the letters.  My husband and I enjoy playing Bananagrams enough for the whole family so I felt it worthy of being included on this list.)


Side Note: Our six year old has recently discovered the game of chess.  I've played against him several times over the past couple of weeks and frankly I'm floored that he actually understands all the movements each piece can make.  (I don't think I understood chess until I was well into middle school).  An adult playing against a six year old in chess isn't exactly challenging, but the point is he learns from his mistakes so each time he gets a little bit wiser and thus plays better.

Now, back to the other games... 

If you haven't played Uno in a while (like 20 years or more) then I must remind you that this is not a quick game.  Though a couple of times we've played a game in about 20 minutes, most of the time it takes almost 45 minutes to an hour to play just one game.  Several times we've just had to set a time limit and call it quits.  :-/

Sorry can be equally long and painful at times.  It's a bit easier to manage because if you want a shorter game then just play with 2 pawns per player instead of the full 4.

Blokus

Old Maid and Go Fish are both pretty quick and simple games.  Perfect for filling in the dead time while waiting for food at a restaurant or for waiting in a doctor's office.  I haven't tried either of these (yet) but that's about the time it takes to finish one game.

Blokus... Now this game can take as little or as much brain power to play as you want to put into it.  It's colorful and engaging for the children, but challenging enough for adults to keep our interest too.  The goal is to play all of your pieces, but it's not as easy as it looks.

If you enjoy Scrabble then you will surely like Bananagrams.  There are several different ways to play and the instructions include a shorter version of play as well.  My husband and I can typically play one game the regular way in about 25 minutes, or we can play the shorter version in about 5 minutes.  This one really makes you use your brain but the challenge is worth it!

Blokus photo by Greg Aleknevicus
Bananagrams photo by CenturyHouseGifts.com

Healthy Fast Food Restaurant... Would You Eat Here?

Why do 99% of American fast food restaurants offer french fries as a side item?  Because people BUY them.  In recent years some of the more popular fast food chains have begun offering apple slices or a fruit cup in exchange for the fries, but only when you buy a kids meal.  If I want fruit instead of fries I would have to bring my own because it's just not an option at most restaurants.

Below is my ideal menu for a healthy fast food restaurant.  (Note: This restaurant does not exist, yet.  Perhaps you the reader will be interested in opening one?)

I'll start with the side items.  You may be wondering why.... well because these are the items that need to change the MOST to make fast food healthier. 

Roasted Chickpeas
photo courtesy of Maggie Hoffman

Healthy side items:

sweet potato fries
apple slices

mandarin oranges

raw baby carrots
yogurt cup

lime seasoned roasted chickpeas

chili seasoned roasted chickpeas

Healthier dessert choices:

pumpkin chocolate chip cookie

applesauce oatmeal cookie

cranberry white chocolate chip cookie

Healthy entree choices:

Turkey burger on whole wheat bun

Garden burger on whole wheat bun
Grilled chicken sandwich on whole wheat bun
Vegetarian pita sandwich - hummus, lettuce, tomato, onion, green pepper, feta cheese and provolone cheese on toasted pita bread

Grilled cheese sandwich on whole wheat bread 

Healthy topping choices for burgers and sandwiches:

Fresh Spinach
photo courtesy of Clearly Ambiguous

turkey bacon

fresh spinach leaves

fresh romaine or red top lettuce (no iceberg lettuce found here)

fresh green bell pepper strips

fresh purple onion strips
fresh diced tomato
hummus

organic ketchup (no high fructose corn syrup, no artificial
colors or flavors)

lite mayonnaise

lite ranch dressing

low fat white American cheese
low fat provolone cheese

low fat pepper jack cheese

So, would you or your family eat here?  Would you even miss the french fries with so many healthy choices?  I know our family would love these foods and would likely eat here several times a month if it were available at a reasonable cost.

In addition to the above, I would love to find a family friendly restaurant that not only offers healthy, wholesome foods, but offers food without any artificial food colorings, artificial flavorings and no high-fructose corn syrup.  Think it's not possible?  Well I think it IS possible.  We the consumers just have to demand these types of foods.  The stores track what we purchase and therefore stock more of what we purchase.  Restaurants do the same.  Items that don't sell very well won't remain on the menu.

Choose to eat healthier foods.  You and your family will be happier and healthier for it.

Queen of the House

This was taken before her injuries.

Nap time together.
This was taken before her injuries.

Those who know even a little about me quickly realize I am an animal lover.  I've posted before about the number of farm cats we have (most are rescues).  This blog post is honor of our miracle cat, Paisley.  She's like a furry member of our family.  Or as our 3 yr old would say, "like a person in a cat suit."

When she was just ten months old she was hit by a car and sustained three broken legs.  After many hours of surgery, ten weeks of cage rest, physical therapy, hydrotherapy, and a ton of prayers our sweet cat was eventually able to walk again.  It took another 4-6 months before she was able to run, climb and jump.  All of this was accomplished through the daily prayers of our young children, my husband's willingness to spend a whole LOT of money on a cat, my dedication to doing the physical therapy & hydrotherapy (it's true that cats really don't like water) and the dedication of the veterinarians at Bit & Spur Animal Hospital.  She not only survived, but has surpassed the veterinarians' highest hopes.  Though Paisley is left with a limp due to her right front leg being shorter than her other legs, it doesn't seem to bother her and it certainly doesn't keep her from jumping on dressers, or climbing around behind the entertainment center.

Just 2 weeks after surgery.

Paisley is now a little over two years old and is living the good life of being ruler of our house.  We love her and in exchange she brightens our days by getting in her favorite "dead cat" sleeping position right in the middle of a walkway so we have to step over her.  She sleeps where she chooses, in whatever position she chooses and brings great comedy to our family.

Best friends watching cartoons.

Her favorite way to sleep post-surgery.  I think she became so
accustomed to sleeping in odd positions due to the external
pins on her front leg that she just prefers this now.

Lying right in the middle of Luke's school work.

This cat truly sleeps where she wants, when she wants.  She was sound asleep in the pictures above until I disturbed her with the camera flash.  Far left she's in the bathroom sink, middle she's on top of my dresser and far right she's laying in a basket of clean laundry (note the paw lifted up to block the camera flash from her eyes).