Othello

My daughter and I play Othello a lot.  Initially, some time back, she only played with the vertical and horizontal directions for valid flips.   We let the game go for a while but we're back playing in full force now.  When we got back into it it took her a bit to get caught up on the strategy.   Or I suppose we were both learning strategies together, finding out what made bad moves and what would set the other person up for a great move that made you wonder what you were thinking with your last move. 

We're both getting better every game and I'm not playing easy for her, mostly because she's good, but also because learning how to lose gracefully is something she needs practice in.   Interestingly, we have tied a number of times.  

It took us a good while to play initially, but we're getting faster and faster.   We were targeting a ten minute game tonight—something I knew we weren't going to make.   I decided to let the game go to the end because we were moving faster than we had in the prior games.   She won.   She killed me.  

The Big Boy Update:  My son had another night terror just now.   He is so confused when it happens and he doesn't seem to fully wake up, even though it seems he's awake in many ways.   He finally settled down, let go of my hand and went back to sleep peacefully. 

The Tiny Girl Chronicles:  My daughter was so upset at the middle part of our Othello game tonight.  She was trying to control her frustration but it was hard.   When it was clear at the end that by me having so many pieces available, she had a lot more to flip, she was able to easily win.   She felt sorry for me and was trying to go easy on me.  I told her she should play to the best of her ability.   When I lost (badly) I did not pout or even complain.   She was a gracious but not boastful winner.  On the balance, it was a good game in many ways.