Life without the Williams sisters at Sony Ericsson Open
With the Williams sisters injured, players such as Caroline Wozniacki and Kim Clijsters are in the spotlight
Read more on Miami Herald
Huge learning curve as twins sample life at top
Fresh from the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi, the twins, and the rest of the Welsh table tennis squad, were in Sheffield for the biggest competition of their young careers so far.
Read more on Denbighshire Free Press
Life lessons from our children
As parents, it is our job to teach our children and mold them into fine, upstanding young men and women who will one day be parents themselves. Along the way, though, we’re lucky enough to learn a thing or two from them ourselves. After 13 years of being a parent, here are a few of the lessons I’ve learned from my kids and from their friends and classmates along the way.
Read more on The Record
Drzewiecki: Xbox Kinect brings new life to sports gaming
If you can pull yourself away from answering the Call of Duty, there are some interesting new sports titles worth checking out.
Read more on The Bristol Press
India check in, say life ain’t so bad in Village
Minutes before boarding the bus for the Commonwealth Games Village, a bunch of players representing the host nation looked perplexed, wondering whether they were being made guinea pigs.
Read more on Hindustan Times
Growing up my parents made it clear that enjoying time with family was very important! They didn’t come out and say it all the time and they didn’t need to. They did it with actions and as the saying goes, “Actions Speak Louder Than Words”. They did this by turning their basement into a home game room. It was done before I was born and games came and went all in the name of good old fashioned family fun! Now I’m the last of 10 children, 8 boys and 2 girls and I tell you this, our home game room worked wonders in keeping this family close!
When I was young just about every weekend I remember my brothers and sisters who weren’t living at home anymore, visiting. We’d play pool, pinball, pachinko, cards and more all the while listening to golden oldies on the jukebox. Before you start thinking we were rich, don’t, we were just a large middle class family. My dad worked very hard, often seven days a week and made just enough money to keep a roof over our heads and food in the fridge. My mom worked even harder taking care of us! The home game room functioned on it’s own keeping us at home base on most weekend nights!
The games were all bought second hand and didn’t work when my parents acquired them. Luckily my dad and a few of my brothers could fix them. That’s how we ended up with pinball games, a jukebox and an old bowling machine in our basement. Those were some of the best times in my life. Playing pool and games with my brothers and sisters into the early hours of the next morning.
Of course not every moment was perfect. We had our fights. Sometimes they were HUGE FIGHTS! But usually by the following weekend things were back to normal and we’d play together all night once again. On many nights we had to swallow our pride!
Those games taught us many life lessons right in our own home. They taught us about winning and losing graciously. Although tempers flared at times someone would step in and remind us that it’s just a game. We learned that cheating was wrong, especially with so many siblings watching over the games. We were taught to respect adults and that they would play first and we’d get our turn if we waited! Also that helped us to learn patience. There were so many life lessons learned in our game room that I’m probably only touching on a fraction of them.
We had so many great times in that game room with family and friends. On some nights you’d be the winner and others you’d be the loser. It’s the same as in life as an adult. Sometimes you win and sometimes you lose but you have to keep your head up and try harder the next time.
All of those experiences made us become closer as a family. We learned how to deal with the different personalities of each family member and it’s kept us close to this day. No a home game room won’t solve every problem in the world. And it may not work for every family. But I firmly believe that “Families That Play Together, Stay Together”. That is coming from my own life experience.
Home game rooms are good for another reason also. They teach some great skills to children. From the hand-eye coordination from playing pinball to the angles, cut/slice shots and bank shots in pool. Those coordination skills come in handy when you’re older and are great to learn as a kid. With pinball you learn how to count numbers and keep score. In billiards alone you learn how to hold a stick, aim and shoot the balls and rack them up afterwards. Also for the youngest of children the pool balls are different colors with different numbers. I’ve never seen a child who didn’t LOVE to sit on a pool table and roll the balls into the pockets. (Just make sure you’re watching the child closely so they don’t fall off). Every table game is good for learning skills. That includes ping-pong, air hockey, foosball and shuffleboard also. You’d be amazed at what a child can learn by playing those basic but fun table games.
It’s a good idea to turn off the computer and video game once in a while and play a “real” hands-on game! Invite family and friends over on the weekends. Sure it doesn’t have to be every weekend but a couple times a month would be great. Show them your new trick shot. Have some laughs! And maybe a few tears will even be shed? No matter what happens it’s getting family together and sharing experiences what counts. And playing games with family and friends in a fun setting like a home game room is something every family could learn to enjoy!
In closing I’d like to say that “no” my family is nowhere near being the perfect family. We have our problems like every family does. We argue and we disagree on many things but we can still stay close. Somehow having a game room and playing games with family and friends seems to relieve that stress and tension and can make even the biggest of problems go away, at least for the moments we’re together anyway! So I’m convinced from my own experiences that:
“Families That Play Together, Stay Together”
Visit http://www.game-room-decorating-ideas.com to find fun and interesting information on creating a Family Game Room in your home.
Visit http://www.game-room-decorating-ideas.com/avoid-arguments.html directly get some useful ideas on stopping game room arguments before they start.
Relay for Life of Boone County this Friday
The Boone County Relay for Life kicks off this Friday at 6 p.m. at Goeppinger Field in Boone, and based on the schedule of events, from dusk until dawn there will be events happening every half hour to keep participants, and their children, entertained and motivated to continue their efforts.
Read more on Boone News Republican
Life on Board a Gulf of Mexico Oil Drilling Platform
The people of Ursa, Shell’s $1.45 billion oil-and-gas platform, live 65 miles offshore, in an environment that is demanding and dangerous, and that could drive them crazy. Here’s how they work — and how they cope. This story was originally published in September 2000, but it offers an insight into a aspect of the Gulf oil spill coverage that’s been overlooked in recent coverage: life on board …
Read more on Fast Company Magazine
Product Description
Hank thought that getting through summer school to get to the fifth grade would be hard enough, but little did he know that it would get worse! Everyone in the fifth grade is starting to focus on a sport—and they’re really good. Everyone, that is, except Hank. When Papa Pete suggests that Hank take up Ping-Pong, he decides to give it a try but keeps it top secret, as he thinks the other kids will tease him about it not being a “real” sport. Hank is so good… More >>
The Secret Life of a Ping-Pong Wizard #9 : Hank Zipzer The World’s Greatest Underachiever
In today’s world, as parents, we need to make an extra effort to keep our kids active and to teach them to interact with other people face to face. This is something that parents used to do without giving it much thought. But today, many youth spend a lot of time watching TV or playing video games. Many of the interactive games they play online keep them sedentary and anonymous. A lot of the communication comes through online chat, games and texting instead of face to face. There are many things that parents can do to help their children in these two areas, but one solution to both problems, that your kids will enjoy, are game tables. These fun game tables come in many forms, so you can find something that the whole family can enjoy. Let’s take a look at some of the options available.
The air hockey table has been around since the 1970’s. This great game was an instant hit and quickly appeared in homes around the country. It only took a few years before it became competitive with world championships. A miniature version of actual hockey, the puck floats atop a layer of air that is blown through holes on the table top. You score by hitting the puck into your opponents goal. Though the concept is simple, there is also much skill that is employed in the top levels of the sport. This is a fast action game that people of all ages can enjoy. It is highly competitive and will have your kids returning over and over again, keeping them very active.
Foosball makes for very fun game tables and have been around since the mid-twentieth century. A table top version of soccer, it is also very competitive. It can be played with two players or in teams of two for a total of four players. This allows more people to interact at a time.
Pool tables have been around for a couple of hundred years and offer a myriad of games that can be played. You can play games that involve anywhere from two to many players. Though not as active as the previous two games, it is great for having fun and interacting with other people.
Of all the fun game tables out there, one of my favorite is table tennis. This game can be very active and can be enjoyed by players of all experience. You can play one-on-one, with pairs, or around-the-world which can involve as many players as you wish. Though around-the-world starts out slow, it definitely picks up pace as people drop out of the game.
If you cannot decide which table is best for your family, or each member has a different opinion, then you should go for the All-in-1 fun game tables. A variety of number of games can be available in different tables, but some of the higher quality tables have two or three games. These types usually involve tables that flip over, with a different game on each side. Such as pool on one side and air hockey on the other (a pockey table!). Most will at least include a third game, usually by placing a removable table top onto the pool side, you then have ping pong. Other tables will have up to 10 games, but a majority of them are smaller games like backgammon and poker, not active games as we have discussed.
It is obvious that any of these games will allow your kids to be more active, but it also encourages great personal interaction between the players, and as an added bonus it promotes good sportsmanship. So if you would like to teach your kids some of these essential skills in life, then an investment in any of these fun game tables could be just what you need.