Teach your kids to gamble

Friday, April 09, 2010

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If you haven't spent hour upon hour in the cave-like environment of a Las Vegas casino drinking watered down vodka tonics with your new BFFs stroking the smooth colorful felt beneath your fingers, then I'm providing the rules of Black Jack HERE.

The laid back Black Jack mojo we had going all week was one of the best "family game night" situations we've ever experienced.

Black Jack is simple enough for kids to learn quickly, with a lovely risk-taking element my boys totally dug. At one point Truman bet his whole pot two times in a row getting 21 on the first hand and then beating the dealer again on the second. I mean come on, that kinda drama just does not happen in Clue.

If you're still not convinced that teaching your kids to gamble is a good idea, just think of it as math homework. With every round your little gamblin' machines have to add their cards up quickly to know whether to hit, stay, or double down. And then there's the probability factor...It's practically gifted education.

I seriously wish my mom would have gambled with me as a kid, as I can still be caught counting on my fingers under the table from time to time. So, the next time you're at Costco or Target, get yourself a set of poker chips, a few decks of cards, a bottle of Tequila for the dealer, and let the family bonding begin!