In preparation for my family reunion, I turned 11 mice and one (cat) bowl.

To play:

1. Each player has several tokens. Little chocolate candies are my favorite.
2. All mice are placed in the middle of the playing area. Each player holds on to their own mouse’s tail.
3. One player is the cat. The cat has five chances to roll a single die.
   1. If the roll is a six, then the cat pounces on the mice with its bowl trying to capture as many as possible.
   2. When a mouse is caught, that player gives a candy token to the cat.
   3. If the cat pounces when it should not, the cat gives each mouse a candy token.
4. After 5 die roles, a different player becomes the cat.

Many variations adapt the game to older or younger players.

In the past, I tied small corks to string to be mice. We used a cottage cheese bowl for the mouse.

This time, I turned the mice from pen blanks. Each is a little different to provide unique personalities. I used acrylic texture paint for eyes and noses and plastic lace for tails. However, plastic lace is too stiff, string would be a better tail material. I sanded the bottom of each mouse so it could sit up and pay attention. Mice are finished with friction polish.

The cat bowl is turned from a small chunk of apricot that has been drying in my shop for two years. The cat is finished with walnut oil.