Enjoy a Family Game Night
By Joan Whetzel
When I was growing up, my parents would occasionally turn off the TV and pull out the board games and playing cards for a family game night.. Of course, back then, there wasn't as much on TV, so there wasn't as much to miss. But it did force us to find alternative forms of entertainment. I enjoyed those family game nights, I even held a few of them with my own kids when they were growing up. There's not much to do except pick a night when your whole family can be home (or as many as possible) and pull out some games you know everyone will enjoy playing.
Online or Play Station Games
Find multi-player games for computers, x-box ant the like, which allow for one "game station." If the games are such that the players can change out from time to time, even better. The never-ending games aren't as fun for the whole family, so try to find games the whole family can have fun with. Or, make this a true "game station", where family members can choose to play the online or Play Station game, or switch out to play one of the other game choices (i.e. board games, card games).
Board Games
Since most board games only accommodate 4 to 6 players at a time, make this another "game station." Here's a list of some of perrenial favorites that people have enjoyed for decades.
- Monopoly
- Blokus
- Parcheesi
- Twister
- Sorry
- Chinese Checkers
- Life
- Candy Land
- Chutes and Ladders
- Scrabble
- Clue
- Yahtzee
- Dominoes or Chicken Foot (a form of dominoes)
- Jenga
- Jigsaw Puzzles
Yes, jigsaw puzzles makes the list because any number of people can play at them and because they challenge the mind, visually. The particularly difficult ones could turn into all nighters, or all weekend events, with everyone vying for the position of being the person to put in the last piece. There are, of course, lots more games that should be added to the list, I just couldn't add them all or the list would go on forever.
Card Games
Card games allow for a few more people to join in the fun, as there are no real player limits. Some of the card games that accommodate multiple players include: Hearts, Spades, Bridge, Poker "for peanuts," Uno, Go Fish, and Crazy Eights. And yes, I know I'm missing some card games here.
Take the time to pull out a few games again this year and have a fun family night. BTW, if you have any suggestions for other games I'm all ears. Feel free to leave suggestions in the comment box.
