Hi bud.
So here's our first entry! You got some games for your birthday and we've played them a few times already. Since you're still getting the hang of things like rules and taking turns and talking, I figured we should probably keep it simple for now. The name of the game with this group is "DEXTERITY".
I put a lot of thought into what your first official board game should be. I knew it should be something with barely any rules, quick and easy to play, and colorful. Look no further than the classic marble muncher, Hungry Hungry Hippos! Honestly, it's barely a game but boy is it fun. We opened this on your birthday and you seemed a bit mystified by it. You knew it was for you and the bright, colorful box art definitely had you curious but you didn't quite know what to do with it. Even after we had put it together and showed you how it worked, you seemed mostly content and amused to watch us frantically gobble up the elusive little pearls rolling around the board.
A few days later, we pulled it out again, just the two of us, and you knew what to do. Since it was just me and you this time, we each controlled two hippos. The tray has these little built in reservoirs for the marbles, one for each hippo and you have to push this little black button to make the marbles enter the tray one at a time. If you tap the button hard enough, the marble actually launches pretty high. Unsurprisingly, you seemed more excited about that part than the actual game. We played for about 20 minutes. I think you like this game and I hope we can play again, this time with 4 players!
The next game we played that day is a lot like the first, another colorful game of dexterity, quick to play, and involves aquatic animals. Let's Go Fishin'! You've always really liked fish, so this one was immediately exciting to you. Once we got it set up and on the table, Nonna taught you how to snag some fish with the little plastic fishing pole. Side note: I seem to remember this game having magnets on the end of the pole but I guess it changed over the years. However, it's still just as fun. As with Hippos, you were more interested in watching us play and we were happy to oblige. We must have fished for a good 30 minutes before we got tired of it but you wanted us to keep going. We promised we would play again soon.
Sure enough, the next morning you asked for "fish game." We've played it a few times since then and you're still struggling a bit with the little fishing pole. It's hard! Those little fish move around fast, especially on the outside! You've got to time it just right and be patient. It's definitely tougher and more frustrating than gobbling up marbles but in time, you'll get the hang of it. I had an idea the other day to put little number stickers on the bottom of each fish to give them point values so some day, when we start keeping score, that will make it a bit more interesting!
The last game I introduced you to was a slightly lesser known game. During my birthday shopping travels, I kept finding games from this German company, HABA, which specializes in classic wooden toys and kids games. A lot of these games do have some rules so I thought maybe next year and then I saw this one. Animal Upon Animal. It's a stacking game and the idea is to try and stack as many animals as you can. It reminded me a bit of that scene in Aladdin where the Sultan is trying to stack his little animal menagerie and then Jafar comes in and it all falls over. I digress but this one looked just right for you.
As soon as I took them out of the box you instantly began stacking. It's actually quite a testament to how well designed the pieces are that you just inherently knew to stack them without being shown. The wooden pieces feel great and look adorable. Your favorites are the snake and the penguin (waddle waddle!) According to the rules we are supposed to take turns placing an animal one at a time but we had just as much fun making a little tower together or two little towers next to each other. We haven't managed to stack every single animal yet but with a little time and a steady hand, we'll get there. We both love this game and I am absolutely going to get more from HABA.
And that's it. These were your first games. I have a feeling we will be playing these a lot more and I am already thinking about more games to add to your collection. I'd say you're ready for Chess or Risk next? Maybe? Maybe not. Probably some more dexterity games. As I write this, you are only a few weeks into Pre-K so maybe we can try some simple games with rules? Either way, I look forward to it.
Thanks for playing,
Love Dad
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