Couchball

I have invented a game. It's called "Couchball." It is well-suited to those times when your child wants to play but you're not feeling particularly energetic.

As a bonus, it also teaches counting skills, hand-eye coordination and adherence to rules.

Equipment needed to play the game: 1 couch, 1 soft baseball-sized ball.

Starting position: lie down on your couch, sort of halfway on your right side, with your right elbow resting comfortably on the couch. You need to be able to move your right forearm along its full range of motion. Your child can stand or sit any comfortable distance away from the couch.

Rules: Your child needs to throw the ball to you so that you can catch it without lifting your elbow from the couch. Final decision on whether you have lifted your arm rests with you. The child retrieves any drops or misthrows.

Scoring: If you catch the ball without lifting your elbow, your child gets a point. If you have to lift your elbow, you get a point. If the catcher drops the ball, the thrower loses a point--the scoring rules assume that any failure to catch is the result of a bad throw. Scores cannot drop below zero. A game ends at 21 points, but the winner must win by at least two points.

Obviously, the scoring is heavily juiced towards the kid winning, but that's okay: it's fun.