Uglydoll Card Game

If you have a gaggle of grandchildren, chances are that you have at least one who likes Uglydolls, the stuffed toys with a distinctive look. Even grandchildren who aren't Uglydoll fans will like the Uglydoll card game. A simple matching game, it's easy to learn and fun to play, so that it's relaxing for grandparents and non-stressful for kids.

The rules are simple: Shuffle the cards and spread them face down on a table. Take turns turning over cards until three that match are revealed. Snatch up the matching cards. If two players grab one card, the first one to shout "Mine" gets the card. When all of the cards have been turned over and matched up, the player with the most cards wins.

Like most good games, this one lends itself to modifications. When I played this game with my first-grade granddaughter, she turned over the first triplet of matching cards and objected mightily when I claimed them. The player who turns them over gets them, she declared. So we played the game her way, and it worked quite well.

Part of the fun is learning to recognize the Uglydolls and call them by their names--Icebat, Uglydog, Ox, Babo, etc. The rules of the game don't require that players learn the names, but I am sure that inventive grandparents and grandchildren could further modify the game to reward players who are on a first-name basis with the Uglydolls.