Poker = Old Maid

Wolfie and Tulip have discovered Old Maid, the card game.  Have you played Old Maid recently?  It's like poker for children.  I think.  I don't know much about poker except that you should not let your opponents know what cards you hold - thus the "poker face".  In Old Maid, you should not let your opponents know that you have the Old Maid card. 

Have you ever watched a four or six year-old's face while they try to hide something you should not know.

It's hysterical!  A total giggle fit.  Eyes bugging out.  Hands slapping over mouths.  And then there are the diversion tactics like saying, "I don't think you are suppose to know something..."  The stifling giggles are just so contagious.

This afternoon I was playing Old Maid with Tulip and Wolfie and Wolfie originally had the Old Maid card.  Tulip picked it from his hand.  The funny thing is that you are not supposed to want to have the Old Maid card but for some reason this card is so funny that both of my kids want to have it.  So now that Tulip has it, Wolfie wants to pick it back.  He reaches right for where he saw her tuck it in her hand (which was on the end) and she pulled her fan of cards away from him and said, "No, no!  I have to mix up my cards."

You understand she wants to hide the Old Maid card in her hand.  What does she do?  She turns around.  Logical for a four year old to turn around to hide something in her hand from her brother, right?  But this is cards so by turning around she is in essence showing Wolfie her entire hand.

His eyes are bugging out, he's wriggling around, trying so hard not to giggle at the fact that he can see, right over her shoulder,  exactly where that Old Maid card is.

He reaches forward, springs up off the floor and is doing a flying lunge towards Tulip's hand of cards.  She heads him off with a right foot extension.  A sort of karate kick in the air. 

It's full contact Old Maid.  As with any game, it turns into whatever it takes to fall onto the floor and roll around.  Wrestling.  Giggling like crazy.

That Old Maid got the kids so riled up we had to play Crazy 8's just to settle down.