Bubble boy

Matt has been dying, for months, for an all-out Mario Brothers family Wii session.  One of the really special "daddy" things he does with the girls is play Mario while the girls watch climb all over him and excitedly shout out advice.  He has been imploring me to join him, despite my general disinterest in video games, because he was so sure it would be a dream come true for the girls.  And, because he has been challenging my video game and ball catching skills for quite some time now--basing his [somewhat offensive] belief that I would be unable to pass UPT on my slow and skittish reflexes when it comes to those two things.

So, tonight we had a LOT (as in 2+ hrs worth!) of fun playing Mario Bros, and about an hour into it, the girls decided they wanted to play.  Our 3yr old wasn't quite able to get the hang of it, so she stuck to what she does best: pointing out what cards to flip over in the bonus rounds.  She got a great workout to boot--climbing up on the entertainment center to point out each and every card on the screen--and climbing back down in between each turnover!

Our 5yr old, however, got the hang of it pretty quickly--and developed her own little play strategy.  Not really knowing what all the buttons do, I found myself frequently and inadvertently floating around in a little invincible bubble.  Matt soon figured out that if you press (A), you pop into a bubble and float through the game, following the other character.  It is a great way to save yourself if you're about to fall off a ledge or drown.  However if the other guy goes into a bubble or gets defeated while you are still in the bubble, the level restarts.  Our oldest got a huge kick out of riding the bubble through thick and thin, occasionally popping out to collect coins in enemy-free bonus levels, and popping back in every time one of us jumped on her character, accidentally releasing him.  Cute quotes for the night include: "I'm doing a great job staying in the bubble!"  "I'm staying really safe!"  "Look, [Mom/Dad], your character died, but mine didn't, because I'm in the bubble!"  She also loved retaining special powers (e.g., fireball, spinny hat) without actually using them--just seeing her character wearing the gear in the bubble.  ;o)

We had a great evening of family fun, and much to my surprise, I actually enjoyed a couple hours' worth of gaming.  ;o)  However, I do think Matt's tri-weekly game sessions with them will be forever changed--as bubble boy Mario or Luigi will be accompanying his character from here on out.  :o)