Silver Dollar Game for Your Independence Day Party

Posted on July 1, 2019 by Aunt Mo

4th of July Games

We have a Independence Day tradition in our family- Whenever we get together for a family or reunion or party around Independence Day we play the “Silver Dollar” game. The Silver Dollar game is a game my Mom invented to encourage us to remember our American history and important United States facts.

Mom would ask a US history question and the first one to get the answer right would get a sliver dollar. Mom has a fun way off tossing the silver dollar to the winner- I’m not sure how to describe, it but basically she just tosses it to the family member that has the correct answer to the question.

Plan to play the Silver Dollar game at your Independence Day family reunion or party. Don’t have Silver Dollars? How about using 50 states quarters, red, white and blue taffy, or patriotic pencils?

Warning: If your family is competitive, like mine is, you may have to assign someone to be the judge and determine who is the first to raise their hand and watch out- even if you do get the answer right someone may just reach out and snatch your prize right out of the air, Oh well, it’s just part of the game and family fun!

Below are a list of questions you can use for your Silver Dollar game:

1. What is the title of the National Anthem?
Answer: The Star-Spangled Banner

2. Which right is guaranteed by the first amendment
Answer: Freedom of Religion

3. What is the title of the head of a city government
Answer: Mayor

4. Who has the ability to declare war?
Answer: The Congress

5. How many full terms may a Senator serve?
Answer: No term limits for Senators

6. How many full terms can a President serve?
Answer: 2

7. How many years is a full term for a Representative?
Answer: 2

8. Which amendment sets the minimum voting age to 18?
Answer: 26th

9. Who becomes President if both the President and Vice President die?
Answer: The Speaker of the House

10. On July 4th, 1776 we declared Independence from whom?
Answer: Great Britain

11. How many branches of government do we have?
Answer: 3

12. Which is part of the Judicial branch at the federal level?
Answer: The Supreme Court

13. Who elects the President of the United States?
Answer: The Electoral College

14. How many states are there?
Answer: 50

15. How many stripes are there on the American Flag?
Answer: 13

16. Who was the President of the United States during the civil war?
Answer: Abraham Lincoln

17. What is the introduction to the Constitution called?
Answer: The Preamble

18. Who is the President of the United States?
Answer: Donald Trump

19. Who is the current Vice President of the United States?
Answer: Mike Pence

20. Why did the Pilgrims come to America?
Answer: to find religious freedom

21. How many total Senators are there?
Answer: 100

22. The Constitution has how many Amendments?
Answer: 27

23. Who was the main writer of the Declaration of Independence?
Answer: Thomas Jefferson

24. According to the Constitution, a person must meet certain requirements in order to be eligible to become President. Name one of these requirements.

Answer: Must be a natural born citizen of the United States; must be at least 35 years old by the time he/she will serve; must have lived in the United States for at least 14 years.

25. How many Presidents have been impeached
Answer: 2 Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton.

26. What is the Official Language of the United States?
Answer: None

27. Who was the first Vice President of the United States?
Answer: John Adams

28. Who said “Give me liberty or give me death?”
Answer: Patrick Henry

29. How many Presidents were assassinated while in office?
Answer: 4 Abraham Lincoln, James Garfield, William McKinley, John F. Kennedy.

30. Is it ever appropriate to fly the flag upside down?
Answer: Yes, but only in an emergency. “The flag should never be displayed with the union down, except as a signal of dire distress in instances of extreme danger to life or property.”

31. What is the tallest mountain the US?
Answer: Mt McKinley, located in the state of Alaska it reaches 20,320 ft (6,194 m) above sea level.

32. Who was the first man to walk on the moon?
Answer: American Neil Armstrong (July 21, 1969).

33. What ocean is off the Florida coast?
Answer: The Atlantic Ocean

Five Things Reunion Planners Should Stop Doing Now

Posted on April 12, 2019 by Aunt Mo

Aunt Mo shares her reunion planning advise with Reunion Workbook magazine readers.

Family Reunion Helper is proud to partner with Reunions Workbook magazine to bring you, “Five Thing Reunion Planners Should Stop Doing Now”. http://reunionsworkbook.com/five-things-reunion-planners-should-stop-doing-now/

Family Reunion Brag Badges

Posted on March 27, 2019 by Aunt Mo

The Ultimate “Getting to Know You” Game for Your Family Reunion

A family reunion “Brag Badge” is a small tag, somewhat resembling a “military dog tag” that represents the hobbies, interests, occupations and accomplishments of members of your family.

Collecting Brag Badges is so much fun that quite often children in the family will see a badge they want to earn and they’ll run off looking for a family member that will help them earn badge they desire and they’ll connect with a new cousin, aunt or uncle or be surprised by the accomplishments or interests of a favorite relative.

With Brag Badges, family members will have fun discovering their relatives that love ice cream, pizza and dancing. They’ll find relatives that drive trucks, teach school and relatives that have been to Hawaii. They’ll find relatives that are Eagle Scouts, Veterans and couples that have been married for 50 years. They’ll discover relatives that share their same birth month, like to read, play baseball and so much more.

Brag Badges are a perfect way for your family to to show off their interests, talents and achievements and are great way for family members to get to know each other!

When I use Brag Badges at a family reunion I require that badges are signed before they can be earned so that family members will always remember who the relative was that helped them earn the badge.

I display my brag badges at our family reunions in needle craft organizers you can purchase by following the link below. I like to leave the badges on a table and let reunion goers supervise themselves. You can purchase the needlepoint cases in the Family Reunion Store. If using all of the badges included in this download you will need to purchase several cases.

The graphics on these badges are so cute your family will love them! Over 60 different “Brag Badges” are included in this digital download- all in bright COLOR! There are 4 of each design but you can print as many copies as you need- depending on the size of your family. You don’t need one of each design for everyone in your family- it makes badges more valuable if the the number is limited.

Print the Brag Badges on card stock, laminate, cut and punch a hole in the top of each badge. The hole is for the ball bead chain to wear around your neck and to display the Brag Badge discoveries you have made. You can purchase 50 chains in the Family Reunion Helper store for less than $8.00.

This fun family reunion resource includes over 60 brag badges in color and printer friendly version. Brag Badges help family members connect in a way they will never forget. You can purchase a complete set of Brag Badges in the Family Reunion Helper Store

Aunt Lynn’s Camping Match Game

Posted on October 16, 2018 by Aunt Mo

Aunt Lynn’s Camping Match Game has been a favorite activity at our family reunions for over 20 years. You play this game like you do most match games but instead of only one winner, everyone that finds a match receives a prize.

To play the game lay the cards face down on a flat surface.

Youngest player goes first.

Players take turns turning over 2 cards at a time.

The cards must be turned over completely so that all players can see them. A player makes a “match” if the two cards turned over are identical. (When printing the cards you will need to make two copies)

When a match is made the player puts the pair of cards beside them and takes the prize associated with that match. (see list below) and the next player takes their turn. We don’t let the person that finds a match continue to make matches until they don’t make a match. That way more people are able to earn prizes.

Examples of prizes for matches include-

Hike- Rocky Road

Logs- Tootsie Roll

Mosquitos- Slap Stick

Mountains- Mounds

You can give a grand prize to the player with the most matches if you want to.

You can download the complete printable game here.

Lynn’s camping gamez.pdf

Punch a Bunch Party Game- DIY

Posted on April 5, 2018 by Aunt Mo

My family is really enjoying punch boards. A punch board is an exciting way to award prizes. This game show activity allows each person to punch through the tissue paper to find a toy or treat, or whatever you decide to put in it. We have even put gift cards in them. Punch boards are perfect for family reunions, especially if your theme is a circus or carnival theme.

You’ve seen punch boards on the popular TV game show, The Price is Right, but a punch board can be a fun addition to your family reunion. A punch board is a fun way to distribute prizes bit you can also use a punch board to make assignments or choose what activity you will do next.

A larger board can also be a fair way to divide into teams- for example- write families names on slips of paper (Aunt Geri’s family or Uncle Dan’s family etc.) Punch two or more holes- those families join together to make a tug a war, softball or family skit group. You can use the same strategy to assign seating for meals to mix things up a bit.

We have one punch board at our house that we change to fit the theme of the party we are having. If you’re having a super hero party or reunion the punch board becomes the perfect- Smash Hulk board.

Creating Your Punch Board

To create your punch board you will need:

sturdy poster board or a piece of cardboard
tissue paper
Plastic disposable bowls, lunch sacks or sandwich bags
prizes
tape & hot glue
The first punch board we created we used one sheet of tissue paper to cover the entire back of the board. Since then we have found that covering each hole with individual squares seems to work best as punching one hole may pull the paper from around other holes. Tape each square securely around individual holes.
Behind the Punch Board

There are several options for hiding prizes behind your punch board. My favorite option is plastic bowls. Carefully run a line of hot glue around the rim of your bowl and attach it to the inside of the tissue covered holes, with the prize inside. Be sure and put your prize or secret message inside the bowl before attaching it to the board. Other options include taping a lunch sack to the back of each hole or plastic sandwich bags.

Punch boards also make fun advent calendars. Create yours with 24 holes and 24 prizes. Punch out one prize each day to help count down days until Christmas or your favorite holiday.

It wouldn’t be fair if I didn’t admit to you that building your own punch board may drive your crazy. Taping all the bags on the back and making sure the prizes stay in place can be frustrating so if you don’t want to go through the hassle of making your own punch board you can purchase a reasonably priced board by following this link.

https://www.shindigz.com/personalized-prize-punch-game/p/GAMPAB?gclid=CjwKCAjwypjVBRANEiwAJAxlImgxyEZ7zdpjd0JzEVlt4UsIbx24ynwBLB78oJ53fDilfdoFGewT2xoCFD8QAvD_BwE

Personalized Prize Punch Game

Shrink, Shrank, Shrunk

Posted on April 2, 2018 by Aunt Mo

ShRink Art for Your Family Reunion

I’ve been a Shrinky Dink fan for probably 30 years or better, way before they had the fancy kits they have now. When I first started making Shrinky DInks we called them Shrink Art and we used either plain sheets of plastic or clean or clear #6 plastic we got from the bakery.

In case you don’t know what I’m talking about, Shrink Art is made with thin plastic sheets that shrink down about 45% when you put them in the oven. Not only does the material shrink, but whatever artwork you draw/print on them will also shrink with it. So, you can draw and color a design in it’s large form where it is easy to see and work with and then shrink it down so it is more the size of a charm or an ornament.

I love to use shrink art for family reunions and parties. They make great dog tags, charms, pins and beads. Our Oz inspired family reunion includes a template to be used with Shrink Art. We had so much fun making the dog tags and our family loved wearing them during the reunion.

To make Shrink Art,preheat your oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit

Trace your design on the plastic using a permanent marker such as a Sharpie marker. You can draw your own design or trace a clip art picture you found on the internet or use a coloring page.

Color your picture with permanent markers or colored pencils. If your plastic has a rough side, color on that side.

Cut out your picture and if you will be putting it on a string or chain punch a hole in it. You will not be able to make any holes or cuts once your picture has baked as it will be too thick.

Line a cookie sheet or tray with foil or baking paper. Arrange your pictures,color side up on the tray.

Bake in the oven for 3- 5 minutes. Keep your eye on them as they bake (that’s half the fun). At first your pictures will curl up but don’t panic, they will flatten out again. Once they flatten out bake for a few more seconds then remove from the oven. If they aren’t quite flat you can flatten them by pressing them a little more with a hot pad or wooden spoon.

When cooled remove them from the pan and you’re ready to use and enjoy your Shrink Art.

The Shrinky Dinks brand makes some fun pre-printed designs that you can purchase if you want to try out the process before striking out on your own. You can purchase the pre- printed Shrinky Dink designs or sheets of plain Shrinky Dink plastic by following the link below.

What is a Reunion Theme Package?

Posted on March 8, 2018 by Aunt Mo

At Familyreunionhelper.com we sell reunion theme packages. What’s a theme package you ask? Most of our digital downloads include 45 or more pages of invitations, name tags, water bottle labels, games,activities, templates and printables that compliment the theme you have chosen.

The following is an example of a name tag from our Heritage Reunion.

This cute invitation is from our Circus reunion. Just print it off and then fill in the blanks with your personalized reunion information.

Our Caveman reunion invitation is sure to get the kids excited about attending all the prehistoric fun.

Water bottle labels are a wonderful way to address your reunion theme and if everyone writes their name on the label, bottles don’t get mixed up or lost as easily.

Our theme packages also include pages and pages or games and activities that go along with the theme you’ve chosen. You can spend hours searching the web for your ideas but these have been tried and tested and we know they work. Here’s a page from our Superhero reunion.

Our reunion theme packages include tons of extras like these certificates from our Medieval Reunion and printable signs from our “No Place Like Home”, Oz inspired reunion.

Each of our reunion theme packages includes printable games and puzzles that go along with your theme. Like this Valentine’s game that is part of our “Home for the Holidays” reunion.

Our reunion themes also include food ideas that compliment your theme. Check out this recipe for “Parrot” (tastes a lot like chicken”)- it serves 100.

Barbeque Captain’s “Parrot”

Serves 100.

2 1/2 cups chicken stock
2 ounces dehydrated onions
7 pounds 3 ounces catsup
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 pound 8 ounces brown sugar, packed
48 pounds chicken, cut-up

For barbecue sauce: Simmer chicken stock and onions over medium heat for 5 minutes. Add catsup, garlic powder, and brown sugar. Simmer 15-20 minutes, stirring frequently. Set aside.

Rinse chicken in cold water. Drain well. Arrange 25 pieces of chicken on each sheet pan (18 x 26 x 1 inch). Brush 3/4 to 1 quart of barbecue sauce over chicken in each pan. Bake uncovered until tender, checking frequently. Cook in conventional oven at 425 degrees F for 45 minutes.

Many of our themes have printable food tents like our Western Reunion food tent featured here.

We’ve tried to think of everything we could to make your reunion planning easier and less stressful. Check out Family Reunion Helper.com today and choose the reunion theme package that best suites your family. You can be sure that each package is jammed packed of ideas, game, activities and printables to get your creative juices flowing. Click on our logo below and follow the link.

Olympic Crossword Puzzle

Posted on February 13, 2018 by Aunt Mo

Check out this fun Olympic themed crossword taken from the pages of our Olympic themed family reunion and party.
http://familyreunionhelper.com/products/products.php…

The Ultimate Guide For Choosing a Family Reunion Theme

Posted on February 12, 2018 by Aunt Mo

Excite family members by using a reunion theme!

Are you looking for a way to excite family members and stir up interest about your next family reunion? Choosing a reunion theme is a great way to build excitement for upcoming and make it more likely family members will want to attend.

A reunion invitation that invites you to a “Prehistoric” reunion for Brontosaurs burgers and a dinosaur egg hunt is more interesting than an invitation that invites you to a family reunion at “the park” for hamburgers.

A reunion theme helps to drive your reunion and with a little imagination food, games, activities, invitations and just about every other aspect of the reunion becomes a memorable event.

Themes are inexpensive to implement and can inspire the creative side of many members in your family. Ask for their theme ideas, brainstorm and see what they come up with. Our best family reunion themes have come from brainstorming about themes. When a “Caveman”, Mafia and Oz theme were suggested in one of our brainstorming sessions I was kind of worried about what we would do but those themes are some of our favorites and have left us with some amazing reunion memories. Below are just a few family reunion themes that you may want to consider for your next family event.

All- Sport or Olympic Themed Reunion

Get away from a boring sit around and just visit family reunion and jump into some action-packed fun with an All-sport or Olympic themed family reunion.

Activities- Soccer, volleyball, “whiffle” ball, Whacky miniature golf. Hold a cheerleader camp for the girls in your family and a sports camp for the boys. Go bowling or hold a family 5K. Give a family reunion MVP award. For fun variations of these favorite sports- whiffle ball, soccer, bowling, swimming and volleyball plus lots of great ideas for your sports themed reunion.

Food- Smoothies, “Breakfast of Champions” or “Long Jump” lunch hoagies.

Wear– Favorite team jerseys and t-shirt. Make a family t-shirt fashioned after a sports jersey.

Decorations: Pom, poms, pennants, sports balls, sports posters and plastic tablecloths.

Family History or Family Heritage Reunion

If your family reunion is held near where the family originated, then schedule a trip to the old family homestead, church or cemetery. You can use this as an opportunity to share family memories, or go a step further and recruit the clan to clean up the ancestral cemetery plots or research the family in old church records. Hold your reunion at the family home if available or in the town where one of your ancestors were born, raised, married or buried. You can find more Family History ideas for your family reunion at wwwfamilyreunionhelper.com.

Food – Use an ancestor’s home country as theme for your meals. Use recipes from that county and set tables with a centerpiece of memorabilia and a picture of your ancestor. If your people come from Italy, serve a spaghetti dinner, from Mexico, serve tacos, enchiladas or tamales. Box lunches are a fun idea to share an old-time tradition.

At our Family Heritage reunion, the girls in the family designed and decorated shoe boxes at home. We provided sandwich fixin’s, individual chip packages, fruit snacks and drink boxes along with cookies for dessert. The girls made lunches for two and put them in their box. We gave each box a number and the guys in the family each drew a number out of hat to determine which lunch they got to eat and which girl they ate lunch with. In a few instances, we had more girls than guys and so doubled up.

Activities – Play “classic” games at your reunion such as “3-legged race, gunny sack race, Annie I Over. Create a huge wall chart of your family so everyone can see how they are related. Take “old-time” photos and have everyone dress up. Make a family “time capsule”.

Dress – In the ethnic costume of your ancestors.

Ancestor Coloring Book- Making a heritage-coloring book about one of your ancestors is a monumental task but it’s a wonderful way to make family history come alive for the little ones in your family. If you have an artist in the family, then designing a coloring book will be much easier for you. If you don’t have a talented artist in the family a great resource is http://store.doverpublications.com/by- subject-coloring-books.html.

Sun, Sand and Surf Reunion Theme

If your reunion is in the summertime then it’s the perfect time for a Sun, Sand & Surf family reunion theme. Merge your beach reunion ideas with your Hawaiian reunion ideas for double the fun.

Invitations: Consider sending “Message in a Bottle” invitations to encourage family members to attend your family reunion or write out your reunion invitation on a beach ball with a permanent marker.

Activities: Sand candles and castles, sand art, volleyball variations and swimming pool games.

Aquatic Obstacle Course: Use sprinklers, Slip-N-Slides, baby pools, limbo sticks and hula hoops to create an obstacle course for wet and wild reunion fun!

Food: Sub sandwiches, fruit trays, shish kabobs, fruit kabobs, gold fish crackers.

Decorations are easy for a beach themed family reunion. Use beach umbrellas, Beach towels, Beach balls, Paper party lanterns, Paper Palm trees and party lights on a string. travel posters, flowers, straw skirt table. Don’t forget to use pink flamingos in your decorating and be sure to include music from the Beach Boys to round out your reunion theme.

Wedding Anniversary or Significant Birthday Family Reunion Theme

Planning a family reunion around an important wedding anniversary or milestone birthday makes for an easy but memorable family reunion.

Invitation – Put two photos of the honored couple on the invitation: their original wedding photo and a current photo.

Food – Finger foods and a “wedding” cake.

Activities- “When You Were My Age” A Celebration of Life’s Memorable Moments. This is such a fun program, fashioned after a Bill Cosby Show episode and was called, “When Mom Was my Age.” We have done variations of the program for 70th and 80th birthdays and 50th wedding anniversaries. Each time we do “When You Were My Age” everyone is a good sport and excited to be a part of the celebration. Everyone has a part on the program and an opportunity to highlight world events and significant family happenings throughout the life of your loved one. Download the “When You Were My Age” from Family Reunion Helper or write a “This Is Your Life” program for your reunion celebration.

Decorations –Photos and other various memorabilia of the couple’s life together.

Three Ring Circus and Carnival Reunion Theme

Begin your reunion with a circus parade and invite everyone to dress in fun costumes and march around your reunion site.

Food –Circus food- corn dogs, cotton candy and popcorn.

Activities – As your family arrives, have then guess how many circus animal cookies or peanuts are in a jar. The person who guesses closest to the actual number wins the jar full of treats. Have a carnival. Assign 6- 10 family members a carnival booth. Children earn prizes at each booth. Face painting, fishing booth, fortune teller, Plinko, Dart Throw etc. Consider renting a bounce house for the little ones in your family. For more ideas check out the family reunion “circus” theme at www.familyreunionhelpercom/

Decorations – Balloons, tents and circus animal cutouts.

There’s no place like home- Wizard of Oz Theme inspired theme

Oz Themed Activities

Design an obstacle course depicting famous scenes from the movie. Run through a tissue paper poppy field, jump over bale of straw etc. Make bottle tornados and make a yellow brick road out of scrap lumber. Plan an activity that represents each Oz character such as paper plate lions, red glitter shoes and

Decorations- Make flying monkeys from black poster board and hang around your reunion location. Use rainbow colored tablecloths (one color per table).

Food- “Ding Dong” the witch is dead Ding Dong cakes, rainbow lollypops, Lions, Tigers and Bears animal crackers and melted witch treats.

Western Themed Reunion

Western Reunion Themed Activities

– Make ponies from dollar store pool noodles and have a pool noodle rodeo. Shoot at targets with rubber band guns or pvc pipe bow and arrows. Make a family totem pole or try some line dance.

Food- Call the food you serve” vittles”. Have a chili cook off., have a Texas Straw Hat food bar or serve barbeque, spareribs or grilled hamburgers. Use tin pie plates, mason jars with handles and lots of bandanas.

Decorations- Put up a large ranch sign at the party entrance. Print off some wanted posters. To make it more fun, get hold of some photos of the guests and put them on the posters. Place some paper or real horseshoes on the path leading to the party entrance. Create a teepee out of a large sheet and some wooden dowels. Create a large cactus out of a cardboard box or even buy some inflatable ones. Cover the party food table in a red and white checkered cloth and hang up a sign saying “SALOON”.

Candy Bar Game

Posted on February 6, 2018 by Aunt Mo

How well do you know your chocolate bars?

Whether you are in charge of planning a party for family, friends, co-workers or you church, here’s a fun printable with a twist. Instead of identifying candy bars by their name or wrapper you try and recognize your favorite bars by how they look on the inside. You can download a printable copy of the game below.

Chocolate candy bar game.jpg

Answer Key

Image result for candy bar png

Although the candy bar game printable is lots of fun you can take your party to a whole new level by letting you guest actually EAT the candy bars.

Divide the group into teams. In advance, cut several well known candy bars into bite sized pieces. The object of this candy bar game is for the blindfolded person to guess the name of the candy bar by taste alone. No peeking and no hints allowed! Each player only gets one guess so give them a little time to come up with the correct answer. If the blindfolded player guesses the candy bar correctly, their team gets a point. The team with the most points at the end of the game is the winner. And what do you give as prizes- why candy bars!

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Category Archives: Family Reunion Games