The Cat in the Hat - I Can Do That! Game

As of today, there's about 6 inches of snow on the ground outside my window and the temperature is hovering right around 0 degrees F. So much for hanging out with my kids at the playground after school (my favorite strategy for getting us all some exercise and avoiding too much TV time).

The good news is I have a new tool in my arsenal of "stuff to do that requires you to NOT sit around on your butt." It's a new game called I Can Do That!, based on one of my favorite books to read aloud: The Cat in the Hat. It's a simple premise: Can you, the player, do some of the crazy stuff the Cat might do, like balance a boat on your nose or a cake on your knee? While also jumping up and down or doing the limbo?

The game comes with small, sturdy cardboard or plastic game pieces (the cake, the rake, the fish, the gown, and so on), activity cards, and the "trick-a-ma-stick" foam bar (the yellow thing in the picture, which comes apart for storage). The trick-a-ma-stick adds extra challenges to several of the game actions--you may have to go over it, under it, or around it, for example.

We found it easy to grasp (no spending 20 minutes reading the instructions before you play, while the kids spontaneously combust) and fun to play for a 3-, 6-, and 30something-year-old. (It's recommended for ages 4-8, because of the small pieces and the fact that bigger kids/parents won't fit under the trick-a-ma-stick!) A nice bonus was that my 6-year-old got some reading practice by reading the to-dos on the cards for everyone.

One minor caveat: Even though this game doesn't use a board, its box is a little bigger/taller than your typical board game box. Just FYI if storage is an issue for you (although you could probably stash all the parts in a large plastic zipper bag and it would take up less space).

Thanks to I Can Do That! Games for letting us try this one out. They've also given me a second game from their line (Horton Hears a Who - You to the Rescue!) to donate to a needy child. I plan to deliver it to the same organization that will receive our Mrs. Goodbee Caring Corners dollhouse (post to come on that soon).