Basket Hurdles Balloon Obstacle Race

Making these hurdles are fun and easy! You just need 2 laundry baskets per hurdle and some kind of dowel or stick or broom handle to stick through the slats.

To play the water balloon obstacle race, you first need to fill up a bunch of water balloons and get a tablespoon (used to carry water balloons) for each person.

The object of the game is to get the most water balloons in the basket at the end by going over the hurdles. You can assign each player a balloon color in order to easily count at the end of the race. You could also set a timer so they are forced to run over the hurdles, making it a harder race than if they are allowed to walk it.

Have fun!

Glow-in-the-Dark Basket Ring Toss

Another idea on how you can use those laundry baskets. Idea #2 Make Glow in the Dark Ring Toss. We assigned them points (1, 2, & 3 with the closest being one point). Initially we had taped the glow sticks (3 of them put together) on paper plates because I thought they might need more weight when we used then outside, but that was not the case. The ended up coming loose from the tape and we just used the glow stick rings. We played this both inside and outside. I think this might become a fun game we play at the cabin in the winter.

Basket Balloon Toss

For a few Thursdays now I am going to show you how you can use some cheap laundry baskets from the Dollar Tree for a variety of things. I bought them in red white and blue so that we could use them over our summer holidays and be patriotic.

So this first idea is to make a basket balloon toss. Balloons are cheap and can be bought at the dollar store as well or you could use lightweight play ball for this activity as well.

The object of the game is to score 10 points first. The first row, which is red, is worth one point. The second row of white is worth 2 points and the third row of blue is worth 3 points. Each child was given a pool noodle to use as a bat to hit their balloon in from the starting basket. They each we're given two balloons to hit and would take turns and keep working through turns until someone scored 10 points.

A couple of tips if you are playing outside is that potentially the balloons made up when they hit the grass but this works well inside as well. It might be a fun game to play in the winter and using balloons keeps it safer from potentially wrecking anything in your house that is breakable. The other two is that you may need to adjust how you play if it is windy. They started out using pool noodles as bad but then it was windy enough they could just stand there and let it go and see what happens. If he comes more of a game of chance in that case instead of skill.

FREE Road Trip Paper Game at McDonald's

Are you taking a road trip with your kids? Or maybe you are are just driving an hour to take them to a zoo or museum or to visit grandma. Well, next time you are in McDonald's check or ask to see of they have this road trip game "There's a Red One!"

The top part separates in to 2 game pieces for 2 players and the bottom has 2 vehicles that pop out and fold together to make 3D vehicles.

I picked these up at the McDonald's in Aitkin, Minnesota.

Messy Outdoor Twister Fun

Do you have a Twister Game sitting around your house? 

Why not get it out and play it outdoors and have some messy fun!

I used a full container of shaving cream and about 10 drops of each color of food coloring to make the shaving cream dots.

We invited the neighbor girl to come over and join my kids (trade off was she had a large kiddie pool out that the kids could rinse off in afterwards, otherwise I had our Octopus Kids sprinkler ball ready for them to use).

The kids couldn't resist getting messy and after they finished playing. Yes, it took longer for me to gather supplies and set everything up than the actually made it through playing but with a 5 year old boy who wanted to get messy I knew that was par for the course.

Review: Last Mouse Travel Game by FoxMind

My Thoughts:

This game, Last Mouse Lost, came just in time for a delivery to my children in their stockings from St. Nick.We have already play this game a few dozen times already just since they opened the package on Saturday. It is a simple game to play that even my preschooler can play it. And the games are quick that you can play a game in about a minute. What I love most about this game is that is completely portable and it just one rubbery piece, so there are no pieces to get lost. This is going to be perfect to have in the car to play as we take road trips for the the holidays. My kids often like interact with me while my husband drives, but I get sick from turning around too much, but with this game I can just reach back and grab it. This game is also quite affordable and costs under ten dollars, in fact at the time of this post it was $7.95. I also like that since this game is all rubbery, it can easily be washed, even in the dishwasher.

Buy Last Mouse Lost on Amazon

Product Description from FoxMind :

FoxMind's Last Mouse Lost Game is Easy, Affordable, Addictive Fun Make sure that you're not lost without FoxMind's new game, Last Mouse Lost. The quick, easy, and smart game without any loose parts and unique design, is an affordable, perfect stocking stuffer, executive desk gift, waiting room game, and coffee table conversation piece. It's technically a quick thinking reasoning, math strategy game that can have planned moves, but with every turn, the trap can be set and your next move might be the last mouse - and you lost. The new Last Mouse Lost game (MSRP $7.99) is a self-contained two-player game that is perfect for passing the time while traveling or used simply for stress relief because it is quite relaxing to squish the mice . The circular rubberized board has rows of puffed up bubble-like mounds with pictures of mice on each one. Players take turns pressing down any number of mice in a single row trying to avoid being the player to press down the last mouse. As soon as the game is over, just flip it over and it's ready to go again. It's even dishwasher safe.

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Bug Tic-Tac-Toe

This was a fun little project to do at our new cabin with the kids to let them help create an outdoor activity. We have several stumps in the yard, so why not put some to use and with this one we made a Tic-Tac-Toe board. My kids painted all the markers that are ladybugs and bumblebees. They used acrylic paint on flat black river rock (purchased for $1 at Wal-Mart).

Isn't this just too cute!

GIVEAWAY and Review: Finders Keepers Game

Disclosure: I got this product as part of an advertorial.

Today I am telling you about the game Finders Keepers from GEOtoys that I have reviewed with my family. We have played this as a game with all four of us; my children's ages are 4 and (almost) 8. I have also played with just my son. This was definitely a games that we could play as a family and spans across all ages. I have friends that ask for game suggestions with having kids that are teens as well as preschoolers and this would really fit the bill for that need. Everyone will have fun.

There is no reading involved so it is great for the younger ones, but still a challenge for everyone. The basic premise of the game is if you find the "right" card, you get to keep it and the person at the end with the most cards wins. You start with the youngest one drawing a card and everyone has to look for the card that has the image(s) pictured in the green (go) and not the image(s) pictured in the red (stop). Simple enough. There are several cards that could match that description so everyone really does have a shot, but what it comes down to is fastest reflexes. My husband even commented that his reflexes just are not as fast as they used to be and we would have continually gotten our butt kicked by our 8 year old if we hadn't asked her to let up so that her younger brother could find some and not get so frustrated.

About Finders Keepers from GEOtoys

Finders Keepers is a fast-moving two-sided card game where players try to find a card that contains one or two specific images, but not another. The whole deck of cards is spread out, and the race is on to find a match. With colorful, comical images, Finders Keepers combines hand-eye coordination and visual learning with lightning fast reflexes. Easy to learn but a different game every time, it can be enjoyed by all ages 3-103. Inventor: Martin Nedergaard Andersen

You can buy it on Amazon.

ONE LUCKY READER WILL WIN FINDERS KEEPERS FOR THEIR FAMILY

enter rafflecopter form below

a Rafflecopter giveaway
I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

GIVEAWAY and Review: Pancake Pile Up Board Game

Disclosure: I got this product as part of an advertorial.

Recently we received the game Pancake Pile-Up Relay Game to review. This has been such a fun snow day game and any one who lives in Minnesota knows we have had plenty of snow or cold days that school has been cancelled. What I love is that it is a movement game and we have really needed that with being cooped up inside so much this winter. But it's just not movement, it is also identification and pattern recognition as well as fine and gross motor skills work. And if you do it as a relay it works on teamwork and any way you play it there is the opportunity to work on good sportsmanship skills.

I have played this game with my daughter the most. She couldn't wait to open it up and was begging and begging the couple days we had it sitting on the table unopened. Then 8" of snow happened with blizzard conditions. We don't have many movement board games, so this was a welcome change. I have played this with my son too, but he hasn't liked playing against his older, competitive sister. I do hope to play it as a family relay soon.

And if you look at the picture from the company of them playing outdoors, well, let;s just say I have fond ideas of making an obstacle course relay using this game involving hula hoops, a kiddie pool, plastic cones and sidewalk chalk. Wanna come over to play this summer?

Product Description from Educational Insights

Order up! It’s a busy day at the diner, so don’t dilly-dally. Help your customers get just what they ordered
by racing the other servers to the grill, relay style, and piling up pancakes in precisely the right order in this stack ‘em high, serve ‘em up, relay race game!

Shh… They’re learning! Develops gross motor skills, balance, and coordination Teaches following a sequence, a beginning math skill Encourages social skills from teamwork to being a good sport Cut to the Chase Players race, relay-style, to stack and serve the pile of pancakes that matches their menu cards Fun and physical – a great energy outlet! Active-play game builds skills for school success For ages 4 and up. SRP: $17.99. Available at www.educationalinsights.com and specialty stores.

Find out more information about Educational Insights online:

Website

Facebook

Twitter

YouTube

Pinterest

Be sure to sign up for their newsletter on the Educational Insights website to get a 

10% off coupon!

ONE LUCKY READER WILL ALSO RECEIVE THE PANCAKE PILE-UP GAME!!!

ENTER RAFFLECOPTER FORM BELOW

a Rafflecopter giveaway


I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

GIVEAWAY and Review: Piczzle Puzzle

I am so happy to share with you our Piczzle Photo Puzzle of our family. When my kids saw this they were very excited to know what the new photo I had was for and when I told them it was a puzzle of us, they started begging to put it together right away. My kids love puzzles, so this was such a fun surprise for them. We did a photo puzzle as a gift once, but never had one of our family.

The top picture you can see how it comes in a box with the picture on the outside. Our puzzle a a size medium with 48 pieces. I had wanted something that was a bit of a challenge for my 3 year old so I went for the 48 piece size instead something smaller. If you want even more of a challenge they have puzzles with pieces of 99, 308, 550, 1000, and 2000. The 2000 piece one is a giant one that is 26.5"x35.5". The large of the dimensions is only a couple inches shorter than my son! What a hoot it would be to have a life size puzzle of him.

This is a picture of the puzzle as it appears inside a bag in the puzzle box. I do like that it came inside a bag as well.

You can also find Piczzle Photo Puzzles on Facebook and Piczzle Photo Puzzles on YouTube.

Here you can see a couple pictures of my kids putting together the puzzle on their own. I think this puzzle will be a treasured family item, like our photo books that the kids often take out and look through.

ONE LUCKY READER WILL WIN THEIR OWN SMALL CARDBOARD PICZZLE PUZZLE!

ENTER THE RAFFLECOPTER FORM BELOW

a Rafflecopter giveaway


I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I did not receive any monetary compensation for this post.

Gingerbread Dice Game

This can be a fun little game that helps preschoolers identify numbers and count dots on the dice.

I have included a .pdf file below if you want to print off the ones I drew, but really this is easy enough to draw your own.

To play the game, take turns rolling the dice and placing a dot on the number that you roll. If all of that numbers are filled that you rolled than you cannot go and must pass on the dice. First one to fill in all their numbers wins.

Click HERE to Download the Gingerbread Dice Game Template

Gingerbread Man Game on Starfall.com

Don't worry about missing this week's Thrifty Thursday - because I am about to tell you about a free game (well, whole site of educational games).

Today kicks of my "5 Days of Gingerbread"!

Let your kids play the FREE Gingerbread Man Game on Starfall.com. It is a fun little game that helps toddlers and preschoolers to identify both 2D and 3D shapes, as well as colors.

Starfall.com is loaded with a ton of free games and learning activities for toddlers, preschoolers and early elementary grades. They do have even more for a paid subscription, which my kids enjoy and we purchased after doing my Review of Starfall.com. 

Come back to check out all my gingerbread ideas:

• Gingerbread Man Game
• Gingerbread Latte
• Gingerbread House
• A Gingerbread Man & Woman Craft Kit
• Gingerbread Cookies Recipe
• Gingerbread Martini (this will be later this month when I share some drink ideas)

GIVEAWAY and Review: The Nutcracker Music Game for Children

We had the opportunity to review The Nutcracker Music Game from Art and Music Games. I was really excited after I learned about all the awards that they have been honored with including:

• 2004 "Mom Tested" Software of the Year Award from Parenting Magazine
• Dr. Toy's "10 Best Software" list and the "100 Best Children's Products"
• Discovery.com's Award of Excellence
• and many more.....

Thanks to the my daughter's music teacher's love of The Nutcracker that has influenced my daughter's interest, paired with my daughter's love of the "Barbie in the Nutcracker" DVD, she was thrilled to get to play a game on the computer that was The Nutcracker.

Some of the time I had to play it along with her in order to help her identify sounds, but I was impressed with how well she learned to distinguish the different instrument sounds. The Nutcracker Music Game has really helped her hone her music listening skills. She would get really excited every time she got it right and didn't want to stop playing until she had mastered a game. 

The game itself is comprised of nine different games. Each game has different activities and tasks that need to be completed to earn a magical key. My daughter has not completed all of them but she is excited to master the games and earn all the keys. 

This would make an excellent educational gift for any child ages 4-10.

From Art and Music Games:


This computer game gives children an outlet for exploring their own appreciation of music, while sharpening their listening and problem-solving skills and improving understanding of the basic concepts of music. The Nutcracker Music Game is a magical adventure that celebrates music by challenging kids through interactive participation and exciting game play.

The premise of the program is to save the Nutcracker by earning nine golden keys through a series of musical games and activities that teach students about differences between sounds, exercises their memory skills, and increases their music vocabulary.

The Nutcracker Music Game offers exceptional teaching tools, such as the ability to demonstrate, in the classroom, every instrument of the orchestra and its interaction with other musical instruments. But above all it teaches children to love and appreciate music.

The program features a multitude of innovative musical games, puzzles and riddles, as well as an animated Encyclopedia of Musical Instruments, an extensive Listening Room, Tchaikovsky's biography, the Nutcracker story, the History of the Nutcracker ballet, music trivia and more. 

ONE LUCKY READER WILL WIN A COPY OF THE NUTCRACKER MUSIC GAME ($29.95 VALUE!)

Be sure to check out the FREE SAMPLE DOWNLOADS Available!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.