Playing Tough

We had a very nice day yesterday. After church we finally went out to the Japanese steakhouse to celebrate Lily's report card and my ordination. A couple of families from church joined us, which was very nice. The kids all enjoyed the show, though Noah was a little scared about the fire. It doesn't get much more fun than a volcano coming out of an onion tower. It even smokes nicely after the oil finishes burning.

The weather was nice and mild, so Noah and I played outside while Lily rode her bike and then played with her friend Katie. We threw the football, practiced his bike riding, and played catch with what he calls "target ball." This is where you hold a plastic disc that has velcro on the inside and use that disc to catch a particularly fuzzy tennis ball. Noah is not so good at catching, but the boy can bring it. He's still not that good on his bike either, but we are very thankful for the balance buddy loaned to us by his friend Scott's family. Given his general athleticism, I'm kind of surprised that he is not taking to bike riding more quickly, but we'll keep practicing.

Amanda took a little nap and did some reading while I watched Searching for Bobby Fischer with the kids. My hopes were realized when Lily decided that she wanted to play chess after watching it. We set up a game where she got 10 minutes and I only got 2. I beat her the first time, but lost the next two on time. She's really enjoying this so far. She liked the bit in the movie where when you take the opponent's queen you hit the button on the clock with the queen. Since we're using my phone to keep the time we won't be doing that.

I certainly don't expect her to be a USCF champion or anything. I doubt she'll ever play in a tournament. But I do think that she could be fairly good since she has a sharp memory and is good at spotting patterns. It may help her learn a little patience too.