Ice Cream, Lollipops, and Licorice

Short days and long, dark evenings set the perfect stage for playing games. 

I have fond memories of raucous games played with my siblings and parents, and from what I remember,  they were played almost exclusively in the winter time. 

I remember fiercely competitive games of Monopoly that stretched on for several days. Uno, Skip-Bo, and Dutch Blitz were among some of our favorite card games.  

Yesterday while the rain fell outside, the girls and I pulled Candy Land off the shelf. We set up three little gingerbread tokens and began our journey down the brightly colored path toward the candy castle. 

The board has changed since I was little. The Gumdrop Mountains are now the Gummy Hills and the Molasses Swamp is no more. 

Kami picked a blue card right away and sailed ahead through peppermint pass. We pretended that our gingerbread tokens were snacking on gummy bears and stealing little licks from the ice cream slopes.

As we played, we snuck past Lord Licorice, and sighed with delight at Princess Lolly. 

The game still holds its charm and I suspect we shall be playing it often this winter.