Just a little unfriendly competition

I have not won a board game, video game, card game, or ANY type of game against my husband in 20 years. If I think about it beyond 5 seconds my whole focus and goal in life becomes to beat him at something. Anything.  But I have serious bad luck when it comes to games.  Four of us play Yahtzee tonight.  But in my head its all about me and Chris and me beating him. My mom and Sarah are non existent in this game. I get a yahtzee, I don't have to put 0's in any of my spaces. I am doing a happy dance on the table.  Chris does NOT get a yahtzee, he has to put a 0 in his large straight and he STILL beats me by 2 points.  In fact, I come in last place among the four of us playing.  Then right after that, me and Sarah play and she gets 4 yahtzee's! Who gets 4 yahtzee's in one game?!?! (I'm taking back her Christmas presents!)



Jonathan feels my pain. He has had some unfriendly competition with his dad also. Both of them revert back to a couple of 5 year olds who call each other "cheater!" So for a nano second he has a ounce of compassion for his mother. He is seriously trying to figure out something that I could beat Chris in.  He starts coming up with a plan to teach me how to improve my skills in ping pong. He tells me we are going to practice the entire week Chris is at children's camp so when he comes back I can beat him. By the tone in his voice and the crazed look in his eyes  I'm thinking he really means it.  He starts taping magic markers standing up straight to our dining room table. (This is the same dining room table that nail polish remover has been spilled on, deep scratches mysteriously are in, rings from water glasses abound etc... so I am way past caring about some scotch tape.)  Then he strings all this yarn between the two markers.  He finds old DS game boxes and tapes handles to them.  Then he braves our wasp infested shed in the dark, with just the light of his cell phone to find some old plastic golf ball.  He comes in, lays it all on the table and says, "mom, training begins NOW!" 



Oh. my. goodness.  He is serious. I will join him in Ping Pong boot camp tomorrow. (Mind you, we don't even own a ping pong table.) Even though yes, I would love to beat Chris in some ping pong - tonight, I love my sleep.  Jonathan and Sarah actually played some ping pong with what he rigged - I was quite impressed with his invention and enjoyed hearing the laughter as plastic cases were hitting a dented ball.



"My joy and delight may be in you, and that your joy and gladness may be of full measure and complete and overflowing." John 15:11

Can I pray, "Lord, my gladness would be complete if I could just beat Chris in any game just ONE TIME -please Lord? You understand that this is about to become an out of control obsession in which I could possibly end up on the 5:00 news for?..."  Okay, I won't pray that.  I am thankful tonight for laughter in my family.  Winning or losing, if there is laughter and love what more do I need?