Madison and I recently tried the Briarpatch’s I Spy Memory Game.  This game will help your child develop their memory, matching, critical thinking, reading and oral language skills.  It also teaches them to take turns, follow rules, and sharing.  The object of this game is to match pairs of cards.The great thing about this game is that you can really tailor it to the age of the child you are playing with.  The directions had several different versions depending on the age of the child you were playing with.  Right now, Madison (who is 4) struggled a tad with this.  The cards that you are trying pair are not identical.  The object itself is identical.  However, the two cards may have a different background or with different lighting.  That being said, I do like the detail on the cards.  They are great pictures.  The basic memory game is played with the blue cards.  You are able to play a riddle game with the red cards and the blue cards (this would be for an older child).  The red cards all have riddles on it like “A dish on a duck, a bow on a bell, a bird in a cage, a pearl in the shell”  Then on the bottom of the card that you should find the 4 cards that match this riddle.  Some of these riddles Madison was able to do.  This is just one version of how to play with both sets of cards.  There are a couple of other versions that can be played also.  Madison and I ended up making up our own rules and games with this which was just as fun!  We counted clocks and toys and matched colors.

I would highly recommend the I Spy Memory Game!  We had a lot of fun with it, and I can see it being a game that your children will enjoy playing as they grow older.

MarioKart for the Wii has been a great addition to our games. It is a game that both kids and adults can play. The game comes with a steering wheel, but you can also play it with the controller (which at times I actually prefer. There are several races that you can play. You can play against the machine, against up to 4 players, or in a battle.  Using the WiFi connection, you can even play with up to 11 online characters!  You are able to play using your own Mii character or play using some of your favorite Mario characters!  There are so many tracks to do that you can have hours and hours of fun with this game!  Have no worries, you don’t need a Garmin GPS to figure out these tracks either. There are a couple I struggle with myself, but I am looking forward to playing online against some other others when I get really good.  If you have this game, let me know your thoughts, but we are truly enjoying it here!

Summer heat in Chicago has been so hot lately (yes, I am complaining about those 90 degree days with 90% humidity).  With our newly remodeled basement and the Wii we just bought, we are definitely have some fun down there.  Since we have no games for our newly acquired Wii, we headed over to the nearest game store.  I luck out that we live less than five minutes from mall.  I also luck out that we have two Gamestops in our mall (one on each end).  We checked them both out.  One did seem to have more kid games; the other more adult games.  We are not sure if this was on purpose or just happened to be that way when we were there.  I liked that we got to check out the Wii there before buying it.  Madison immediately picked up a controller and started playing a Sonic game, so we knew she would adapt quickly.  The other thing I really liked about Gamestop was that you can buy used games.  You don’t have to spend an arm and a leg on games then.  We don’t care how old the games are as long as they are fun.  I was afraid that they wouldn’t work, but we were assured that they were guaranteed to play.  We were also told that we could bring in some of our old games and get credit to buy some new ones (and we have a stack of games nobody ever plays!).  I found that the workers behind the counter at both stores were extrememly helpful, and they didn’t mind too much that my four year was picking out ten games she wanted us to buy (we settled on Wall-E).  I would highly recommend Gamestop as your one stop game shop (they also have gaming systems and accessories, so you can get those there too!).

One of Madison’s favorite toys is the LeapFrog Leapster TV Learning System. Now, if you read the reviews on this either you love it or hate it. The biggest complaint is that the graphics stink. Well, I agree. The graphics aren’t the greatest. However, I have a 4 year old who really doesn’t care about that. She loves the playing the games, and I love that the games are educational. She is learning and doesn’t even realize it. The other part that I love is that all the Leapster games work in here. Right now, this is the only Leapster system we have. However, we have been eyeing up the handhelds ones for the long car rides to Green Bay. The fact that those same games will work in here is a huge plus for us. The system is extremely durable. Madison plays hard with all her toys and we’ve had this over a year, and she hasn’t broken it yet! Each game has multiple levels, so when you child gets better at they can still play the game.

If I would let Madison write my blog, this would top her list of favorite things for all time. If you liked Lego Star Wars, then you will love Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy. How does the Lego version differ from the regular Star Wars games? Well, they are rated E (for Everyone). They are also easier for kids to play. Also, you have unlimited lives. If your character dies, it just starts back up again. There is some humorous scenes like when you walk in on the Storm Troopers taking a bath (they have swim trucks on!) and you get to see the innerworkings of the Death Star with all its bulk cable and metal and stuff (you have to blow it up too). Bill even loves this new games. There are so many new levels and tricks you have to learn to get through it! Madison is only 4, and she can beat most adults at this game (she’ll also tell you exactly how to play it). Granted, it isn’t the most educational thing for kids. However, it makes a great reward. It keeps their attention (both kids and adults). It isn’t too hard for either age group either. It is pretty easy to figure out and is very entertaining. This is a must have for any Star Wars fan!