The night before last, the girls stayed with Grammy and Andrea and I found ourselves with a Saturday pretty much all to ourselves. We ate up the morning with a massive game of Carcassonne, including the River, Builders and Traders, The Dragon and the Princess, and Inns and Cathedrals expansions. Later that day, Jane and Larry invited us over to see our Scotland photos on their big HDTV, sweet. The kids all played upstairs while we got in another big game, this time with The Count expansion (which is great). It was fitting to play a game set in France, as they faced Italy in the World Cup Final today. Too bad Zidane tainted the whole experience with a tasteless headbutt to the chest of an Italian player. By the time they lost in a penalty shootout, I had lost the urge to cheer for them. Zidane just eclipsed Rooney for the most disappointing World Cup performance. But it was still a great ride, even if it was full of disappointments and surprises.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"