This last Sunday afternoon, the kids and I were about to head outside and enjoy Denver’s long-overdue early summer weather, when Denver weather did what it loves to do this time of year: it changed. The temp dropped, the wind picked up, dark clouds rolled in, and one didn’t need to check a weather app to know that precipitation was soon to follow. So much for heading outside.
What to do…what to do. I wanted a Plan B of the non-screen variety. Kids hadn’t gotten too hyped up about heading outside, so a low-key alternative could work.
A box on the shelf caught my eye: Sequence. “Hey, guys – want to play a board game?” They did. “Let’s do it!”
My nine-year-old decided she could fend for herself while my six-year-old plopped on my lap and teamed up with me. A quick refresher on the rules, and we were off…and a good game ensued…and concluded.
What now? I went back to the gaming well: “Want to play another game?” They did. “You choose.”
The six-year-old raced to snag Sleeping Queens (a card game we love) and her handy card holder, shuffling took place, and we were off…another good game ensued (Dad got trounced in this once; I’m a subpar Sleeping Queens player)…and concluded.
The weather outside was still cold and wet; the indoor afternoon must go on…and it did so in a gaming fashion.
We went with Oh Snap!, a solid age-leveler that allowed us to pull my four-year-old into the action. We were captivated for several games in a row, and rule…er…discussions were pretty tame. Winners varied, fun was had…and it was meal time.
Pretty simple…a board game afternoon. We kept screens off (mine included), utilized items readily available on the shelves, and had a great time.
It was a good reminder for me: sometimes it doesn’t take much planning in order to find some fun. What can we all do together? What’s on the shelf? What’s something the kids enjoy that they haven’t done for a while?
When weather turns and plans change, I highly recommend ad-libbing into a board game afternoon.
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We mention several of our favorite board games above; other favorites can be found here.
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Photo by Robert Coelho on Unsplash