I drove up to my grandma's house in northeast Iowa on Friday for the Christmas weekend. There's been maybe three days that I missed doing something new. One of them was when I was at my grandma's. This time I came prepared.
My family likes playing different games together. As I was Christmas shopping, I spotted Scrabble Slam. I'd heard of it before and remembered wanting to try it out. So I picked it up thinking it would be a great family game. I was right! My grandma and I played a couple of rounds as we waited for everyone else to arrive. She liked it because she said even she could understand the rules. How it works: Pick any four-letter word and spell it out on the table, deal out all the cards to the players, then as fast as you can lay down one card at a time to change the word until you're out of cards. However, once we played with everyone else, it was a little fast-paced for her. I blame my brother. He's just too good at it. All my cousins, sister, brother-in-law, and even dad had fun. I'd recommend it for your next gathering.
And of course, no card game is quite as fun without alcohol. I picked up Twisted, a zinfandel, the week before and (surprisingly) never got around to drinking it. I had low expectations once I realized it didn't have a cork, just a cap. But, I gave it a try (it was the only wine in the house). It's sweeter than my cabs, but I liked it. It stood well on its own without a meal. I don't have any other zinfandels to compare it too, though. Looks like I've got a new assignment...
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