Memory

Tom and I have been playing Memory with Will since he was about Hallie’s age. Learning to play Memory is a gradual process – match just a few of the cards facing up, match all of the cards facing up (Hallie’s in this stage right now), match just a few of the cards facing down, and finally match all of the cards facing down. Will graduated to the final stage, which is of course actually playing the game as it was intended to be played, a couple of months ago.

While both Tom and I will admit to altering the outcomes of board games – I’ve definitely stacked the deck in Candyland and blown on the spinner in Chutes & Ladders to bring ridiculously long games to a close – we’ve never done so while playing Memory. Whoever has the best strategy and the best memory wins. “Deal with it, Will – Mom and Dad rock at Memory.” (For the record, Tom and I’ve never actually said that to Will. But after a long day of losing every single sword fight, running race, and basketball game in which we’d been involved, we may have said it to each other after he went to bed.) Until last week, that is, when for the first time, neither Tom nor I had the best memory.

Here’s a picture of the victorious Will with his slightly-taller-than-my-pile pile of matching cards.


Embarassing.