Houston, Wii have a problem

Allie has been enjoying our new Wii, challenging her daddy to contests of bowling, tennis, and ping pong. Unfortunately, it's wrecking her life.

For the second evening, at bedtime, Allie came up the stairs from the basement crying. Actually bawling. Daddy won their contest.

We've worked for years to get our children to be good losers, but according to Allie, when you lose a competition on the Wii, a sign comes up that calls you a loser, and a face appears and makes a sad face at you.

So twice now at bedtime, she's been full of tears and with her face swollen and her nasal passages full of whatever and then she can't get to sleep. Last night, she was still awake at 10 p.m., now upset because she could see how late it was getting and she was worried about being tired in the morning. Somehow, she's gotten the idea that if she's tired in the morning, life as we know it will be over.

She gets out of bed repeatedly to tell us she's still awake. She cries and snuffles into tissues. She tries to count sheep or count her breaths and she practices Daddy's relaxation technique, none of which work. Last night, she said she couldn't stop thinking. She asked me to give her something else to think about. I told her to plan her next birthday party, from food to decorations to guests to cake and presents.

I'm guessing this means we can start planning on building a stable next January.