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Prehistoric, Caveman or Dinosaur Family Reunion

Monday, May 7th, 2012

I love this family reunion theme! It’s so flexible- with some minor tweaking your prehistoric reunion can become a dinosaur or caveman party.

A “prehistoic” theme can be the perfect choice for someone celebrating a milestone birthday and adds some good natured fun to your celebration.

One of the first family reunions I ever planned was a dinosaur reunion back in the early 80’s. We made large, plywood dinosaur cut outs to decorate our reunion site. We served Brontosaurs burgers and went on a hike to find giant dinosaur eggs.

To throw the perfect caveman party, you will need to look the part. You can find fun Caveman or Flintstones costumes and accessories at costume store or online. (A good resource for Flintstone costumes is http://www.flintstonecostumes.com/) You can also fashion your own out costumes out of fake fur, and animal-print fabrics. Don’t forget unkempt hair, bare feet, bone necklaces and hair bows, clubs and spears!

With this fun family reunion theme you can plan a Saber Tooth Tiger Cateye hike in the dark or challenge family members to work together to make a prehistoric pipeline. Prehistoric “baseball” is a silly way to enjoy America’s favorite pastime.

A fill in the blank invitation is included along with recipes and ideas for "Good Things to Eat". Don’t forget to print off the dinosaur Bunko score card and the dinosaur trivia printable and leave dinosaur footprints all over your reunion site with the footprint printable pattern. Reunion activities for one day or a weekend of prehistoric family fun!

For $19.95 you can let loose your families’ inner beast with family reunion helper’s Caveman theme package.

Prehistoric Reunion Activities include;

Invitation printables
Dinosaur riddles
Dinosaur Trivia printable Game
Baking Soda Volcano instructions
"Lost World" Obstacle Course
Pet Rock Instructions
Dinosaur cookie decorating
prehistoric baseball
prehistoric pipeline
Dinosaur footprint painting
Dinosaur Bunko
"Good Things to Eat"
children’s games and activities
team building activities
dinosaur egg hunt
fossil painting
Slime recipe
costume helps
Saber Tooth Tiger cateye hike. A night time hike with flashlights.

Tags: caveman party, caveman reunion, Dinosaur party, dinosaur reunion, dinosaur riddles, dinosaur trivia, family reunion theme, prehistoric party
Posted in Family Reunion Fun, Family Reunion Games, Family Reunion Ideas, Games, Planning a Family Reunion | No Comments »

Saddle Up For an Easter Egg Hunt on Horseback

Friday, March 23rd, 2012

Our Stewart family’s horseback Easter egg hunt has become a tradition that we have celebrated for the past seven years, ever since we moved to Bear River City. Easter is one of my favorite holidays and horses are my favorite animal, so it just seemed natural to put them together.

I tell my adult children, “I don’t care if I have to share you on Christmas and Thanksgiving, but I want you for the Saturday before Easter.” And they come, sometimes bringing friends or other family members. Each year it seems our family changes and grows and we plan our Easter egg hunt around those changes.

To make things more fair for the inexperienced and younger riders, Uncle Steven and I hide the eggs according to color. Each rider has a different color or style of egg. For instance, last year we had basketball eggs for Kory, purple eggs for Megan, football eggs for Ryan, chicken shaped eggs for Brynna, pink eggs for Janie, and so forth.

We’ve been collecting eggs for years, and since we ask everyone to leave their eggs and just take the candy home, we have quite a collection. Assigning each rider their own color makes it possible for us to hide the eggs according to the rider’s ability. Uncle Steven especially likes to hide eggs in unusual places- like hanging them from tree branches.

A few of our family members are experienced riders and we love hiding their eggs in difficult locations- over ditches, in trees, through gates and around obstacles such as wood piles and water hazards. For our lower level riders, we have a rule that you have to be touching some part of your horse when you pick up an egg. This makes it possible for riders with less experience to get off their horse to get an egg.

Last year we added “jumbo” sized eggs to the hunt and they sure made things more challenging and interesting .

After the riders find their designated colored eggs, they are allowed to hunt for the prized golden eggs, which hold items like movie tickets, gift certificates and money.

This is the most exciting part of the hunt, as riders become a little more daring and often find themselves racing for the same golden egg as another rider.

Last year we had more little ones, so we did a hunt for them before the adult riding hunt began. We have to work the hunt around the weather, so it usually begins at about 11:00. Following the hunt, we usually play with the horses, give them their annual vaccinations and worm them, eat barbecue and potato salad and play badminton.

This year we add a new son-in-law and grandson to the mix so we’ll need two more colors of eggs and two more chairs at our Easter table. And as our family continues to grow and change, so will our Easter Egg hunt.

As for our horses, they aren’t too fond peanut butter eggs or jelly beans but they do receive their own prizes in the form of carrots, apples and other treats.

Aunt MO

Rules of Chocolate Easter Eggs

If you get melted chocolate all over your hands, you’re eating it too slowly.

If calories are an issue, store your chocolate on top of the fridge. Calories are afraid of heights, and they will jump out of the chocolate to protect themselves.

Chocolate covered raisins, cherries, orange slices and strawberries all count as fruit, so eat as many as you want.

Tags: Easter Egg Hunt, Easter Egg hunt on horseback, Easter games, Equine fun, horses
Posted in Family Reunion Fun, Family Reunion Games, Family Reunion Ideas, Games, Holiday Family Fun | 1 Comment »

Game Night!

Friday, March 23rd, 2012

Invite tons of your friends or family to a “game night”! Begin by setting up game stations. Let your guests choose a game they would like to play and when everyone has made their game choice set a timer for 15 minutes and let the fun begin. When the timer dings everyone rotates to a new game whether they have finished the game they have been playing or not.

This is a great way to mix up family members at your family reunion and help them to get to know each other a little better.

According to a Hasbro press release, a 1999 article in Psychology Today asserted that you can learn more about someone by playing a game than going on 10 dates. And you can learn more about yourself by playing a game than you can from several therapy sessions.

You can make signs to help your guests easily find the game they would like to play.

Board game suggestions for your game night party:

Monopoly
Clue
Cranium
Life
Jenga
Sorry
Candy Land
Shoots and Ladders
Scrabble
Apples to Apples
After rotating through four games (approximately one hour of game playing time) have everyone come together to play one giant group game. Some game suggestions are:

Trivial Pursuit
Bingo

Taboo
Pictionary
Outburst
Trash or Treasures

Scattergories
Minute to Win it

For refreshments, set up a fun candy station that guests can help themselves to during their game playing or ask everyone to bring a treat to share.

You must invent your own games and teach us old ones how to play.
Nikki Giovanni

Tags: board games, famiily reunion fun, family reunion games, Game night, jenga, party games, scrabble
Posted in Family Reunion Fun, Family Reunion Games, Games, Party Fun | No Comments »

We Want Your Family Reunion Photos!

Sunday, March 11th, 2012

We’ve all got them- those great family reunion photos where you, by either luck or skill, capture the perfect family reunion moment. Well, now you can use those photos to receive $5.00 off any family reunion theme package and a chance to win a FREE familyreunionhelper.com theme package.

Submit Your Family Reunion Photo for $5.00 Off

Just for submitting your favorite photo you will receive $5.00 off any reunion theme package. (Does not apply to “Pipe Chimes” or “When You Were My Age” packages.)

Family Reunion Helper Photo Contest Rules

Photo must be of 2 or more people at a family reunion or party.

Include- name of the family reunion, descendants of, date and location the photo was taken.

Photos do not need to be recent, they can be old photos from a family reunion photo album.

You must be a family reunion helper subscriber. Subscribe to familyreunionhelper

So go on, take your best shot and email it to auntmo@familyreunionhelper.com
for your $5.00 off coupon code and your chance to win a free family reunion helper theme package.

Aunt Mo

Tags: family photos, Family reunion contest, family reunion photo contest, family reunion theme ideas, photography contest
Posted in Family Reunion Contest, Family Reunion Fun | No Comments »

Baby, Bronco, Backpack

Tuesday, February 28th, 2012

If you’re looking for a fun game that any number of people can play and that doesn’t need a lot of advance preparation or props then “Baby, Bronco, Backpack” is the game for you.

Gather your group together and have them split into groups of two. It’s usually best if groups are fairly evenly matched- same size and strength etc. but mismatched teams can add to the fun.

Explain the three poses teams must be able to form.

If the leader of the game says “BRONCO” one person in each group of two will jump down on all fours and the second team member will sit on their back as if they are riding a horse.

If the leader says “BABY” one of the players in each team of two will jump into the arms of the second team member as if they are being cradled like a baby.

If the leader says “BACKPACK” one of the players in each group of two will jump on the back of the second player like they are getting a piggy back ride.

The last team of two to form up the combination is out of the game and teams are eliminated until there are two teams left and the winning team is determined.

For larger groups you may need to say that the last three are out.
As teams get a little more experience you can make the game more fun by yelling out combinations of movements such as “BABY, BRONCO, BACKPACK, BABY, GO!” The teams of two will frantically go through all of those until they perform the last “BABY.”

BABY!

HINT: One rule that may help you keep some control of the game is to explain before hand that the teams can not move until you say “GO!”

Tags: Baby Bronco Backpack, family reunion activities, family reunion game, games
Posted in Family Reunion Fun, Family Reunion Games, Family Reunion Ideas, Games | No Comments »

Family Reunion Road Rally Scavenger Hunt

Wednesday, February 22nd, 2012

A road rally scavenger hunt can be a fun activity at your next family reunion or party. A road rally scavenger hunt is really nothing more than an scavenger hunt using cars.

There is no limit to the number of teams you can have with a scavenger hunt just be sure you have a seat belt for each person in your car and an adult driver for each car. Give each team team a digital camera or ask teams to bring a camera on your invitation to the reunion. Require that photographic evidence be taken of each task that is completed.

Create a list of tasks that are safe and time friendly. Give each task or challenge a point value. The photo that would the hardest to get should get the highest points. You can award additional points for creativity or for extra effort.

Set a time limit for the group to be back. It should be reasonable-anywhere from 1 to 2 hours, enough time to get the amount of photos in the scavenger hunt.

When the group comes back, compare pictures. It is most fun to project the pictures up on a large screen or wall so that everyone can see the photos the other teams took. There will be lots of cheering and booing but being able to view all the photos just makes the activity that much more fun.

Award prizes to the winning team and consider giving the driver of the winning car a gas card.

Road Rally Scavenger Hunt Ideas

Below is a list of suggestions for your road rally scavenger hunt:

1. Find a gumball machine and buy one gumball for everyone in your car. Take a picture of everyone blowing a bubble- score 1 point for every bubble in the picture.

2. Find an out of state license plate take a picture. Score 1 point, 2 points for an Alaska or Hawaii plate. Or perhaps license plate with the letter "Q" on it.

3. Make a human pyramid in front of the fountain at the Mall. Ask someone to take a picture for you.

4. Take a picture of someone walking a dog.

5. Find someone to dance on Main Street and take their picture.

6. Do a Chinese fire drill at a stop sign.

7. Take a picture of a moon. (This photo scored extra points for creativity because the team went into a book store and found the moon on a book.)

8. Find a phone booth. See how many of your team can fit into the phone booth. Have someone take your picture. Score one point for each person in the booth.

9. Go to a Department Store and act like mannequins until someone notices you. Get a picture in the store.

10. Go to a gas station and put 1.00 worth of gas in your car- take a picture of the pump with $1.00 on it. Deduct one point for every cent you are over or under.

11. Go to a motel or hotel and take a group photo by room number 222.

12. Go to the slide of the nearest playground and get of picture of each team member going down it.

13. Go to a convenience store like 7/11 and have everyone walk in backwards up and down the aisles. stop at register, buy a candy bar and walk out backwards. Take a picture of the 7/11 door.

You can also ask teams to get pictures of a spire, school or perhaps a sign with your family name on it. If you are getting together during a holiday season ask teams for pictures of holiday decorations- for instance, a turkey at Thanksgiving time or someone sitting on Santa’s lap during the Christmas season.

NOTE: You can also plan a scavenger hunt using public transportation but will need to budget more time for the activity.

You can find more automobile themed party ideas in a blog Aunt Mo wrote about a Family Reunion Hot Wheels Party.

Tags: family reunion scavenger hunt, famiy reunion road rally, photo scavenger hunt, road rally, sacavanger hunt, scavenger hunt ideas
Posted in Family Reunion Fun, Family Reunion Ideas, Party Fun | No Comments »

Shoe Box Floats- part 2

Monday, February 13th, 2012

Looking for some inspiration for your shoe box float? Here’s some fun and creative floats- a picture is worth a thousand words.

Tags: Shoe box floats
Posted in Family Reunion Fun, Parade Floats, Party Fun | No Comments »

Shoe Box Floats for Your Family Reunion

Monday, January 30th, 2012

It seems everyone is making “shoebox floats” for their Mardi Graw celebrations and it got me thinking- how about a shoebox parade as a family reunion activity.

A shoe box float is just a shoe box flipped over with the lid attached to the back to form a backdrop. These boxes are then decorated like a parade float.

To decorative your shoe box float gather objects such as glitter, buttons, costume jewelry, feathers, sequins, tissue paper, scrap paper, small shells or rocks, tinsel, foil, markers, paint, crayons, photos, pipe cleaners, buttons, dolls or action figures, or small toys.

Place the large part of the shoebox upside down and attach the lid of the shoebox at one end. Paint the boxes, or cover with paper and decorate.

Choose a theme for your shoebox float parade. At a family reunion, you could ask participants to decorate their float to represent themselves- a great “getting to know you” activity or assign each family an ancestor to research and then decorate their float to represent that ancestor.

Rules you might want to consider for your shoebox float parade:

1. Do not place the shoebox on a piece of cardboard larger than the shoebox.

2. Do not create a diorama float using the inside of the box.

3. Float dimensions: The shoebox float must be made of a cardboard shoebox no larger than 13” x 9”. A completed decorated float should not exceed 15 inches in height..

Of course, you’ll want to give out a few awards for the “Most Beautiful”, “Most Creative Use of Materials”, “Judges Choice” and Most Unique floats.

I found a great website for step by step instructions for shoebox floats that might be helpful.

http://blog.mardigrasoutlet.com/2011/02/create-mini-mardi-gras-parade-float-out.html

When planning your 2012 family reunion consider a shoebox float parade and see just how creative your family can be.

Aunt MO

Tags: family reunion ideas, family reunion parade, shoe box, Shoe box floats, shoebox float
Posted in Family Reunion Fun, Family Reunion Ideas, Parade Floats | No Comments »

Glow in the Dark Volleyball

Friday, January 20th, 2012

Anything you can play on the dark with glow sticks and black lights is sure to be a huge success at your family reunion or party.

Played in the dark, the net, ball, out-of-bounds line and related equipment come alive with the glowing magic of glow sticks, bracelets, tape and black lights!

You will have to do some advance planning and gather the following equipment for your glow in the dark game.

Purchase glow in the dark tape to wrap around volleyball, beach ball, plastic play ball or purchase a real glow in the dark volleyball available at Family Reunion Helper.

Glow Bracelets

Buy lots of glow bracelets. You will need them for the net and for everyone to wear. Glow bracelets are pretty inexpensive- a hundred for under $10.00 in the Family Reunion Helper store. Glow sticks are also fun to hang on the net.

Black Lights

You can rent black lights for about $10.00 a day but we found black light strips at Walmart for under $20.00 which included the light bulb and stand. We only needed two lights to light up our small gym.

Other black lights as are available. Tape to the wall for added fun. Don’t forget extension cords for all these lights.

White T-shirts

Ask family members to wear white t-shirts for extra fun. Some will forget but it won’t interfere with the game. Most shirts that are 100% cotton will glow in the dark under black lights.

You can play glow in the dark volleyball using just glow sticks but adding black lights really gives the game an illuminating boost!

For refreshments serve glow in the dark lemonade- the secret to glowing food is tonic water (diet tonic water works too). It contains quinine, and guess what happens when you expose quinine to black light yep, it glows! Tonic water can have a bit of a bitter taste to it so use as little as possible. Hint: Serve glow in the dark Jell-O by replacing some of the water with tonic water.

“It’s better to illuminate than merely to shine.”

Aunt MO

Tags: black light volleyball, famiily reunion fun, family party, Glow in the dark, glow in the dark. family reunion games, volleyball
Posted in Family Reunion Fun, Family Reunion Games, Games | 1 Comment »

Recipe for Ooey Gooey Gax

Sunday, September 4th, 2011

I was going through some old family reunion papers and found this fun recipe for Ooey Gooey Gax- some people call it “slime”. Kids love Gax/slime and it’s a perfect family reunion craft especially if you’re outside. It’s a great Dinosaur reunion or party craft- just call it swamp goo.

Ingredients:

2 Tablespoons white glue
2 Tablespoons water
3-4 drops food coloring
1 Tablespoons Borax – usually found in the laundry detergent section of your grocery store
Plastic bag for storing Gax

Directions:

Mix 1 Tablespoon of Borax powder to 1 cup warm water. Stir until all the powder has dissolved. This makes sodium borate.
In a smaller separate bowl, mix 2 Tablespoons glue and 2 Tablespoons water and stir well.
Add 3 drops of food coloring to the glue/water mix and stir.
Add 1 Tablespoon of the sodium borate to the glue/water mixture.
Stir and let sit for a few minutes and then it will be ready to play with.
Place in an airtight container (Bag).

Hints: Don’t leave Gak on fabric, vinyl or wood. Do not eat Gak. Make a batch of Gak before getting to your reunion so you know how it works.

This recipe only makes a small batch.

To make Glow in the Dark Slime: Add several drops of glow-in-the-dark paint during the mixing in stage 1.

Tags: family reunion craft, gak, goo, Ooey Gooey, slime, slime recipe
Posted in Family Reunion Fun | No Comments »

Archive for the ‘Family Reunion Fun’ Category

Prehistoric, Caveman or Dinosaur Family Reunion

Saddle Up For an Easter Egg Hunt on Horseback

Rules of Chocolate Easter Eggs

Game Night!

Board game suggestions for your game night party:

We Want Your Family Reunion Photos!

Submit Your Family Reunion Photo for $5.00 Off

Family Reunion Helper Photo Contest Rules

Baby, Bronco, Backpack

Family Reunion Road Rally Scavenger Hunt

Road Rally Scavenger Hunt Ideas

Shoe Box Floats- part 2

Shoe Box Floats for Your Family Reunion

Glow in the Dark Volleyball

Glow Bracelets

Black Lights

White T-shirts

Recipe for Ooey Gooey Gax

I was going through some old family reunion papers and found this fun recipe for Ooey Gooey Gax- some people call it “slime”. Kids love Gax/slime and it’s a perfect family reunion craft especially if you’re outside. It’s a great Dinosaur reunion or party craft- just call it swamp goo.

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