Superhero Reunion Theme

Posted on March 9, 2017 by Aunt Mo

Family Reunion Helper proudly announces the completion of their latest family reunion theme- Superhero!

Now you can bring all the action-packed adventure and excitement of your favorite superheroes to your family reunion!

A superhero reunion will appeal to family members of all ages. Superheroes have unique skills, wear awesome costumes and save the world on a daily (sometimes hourly) basis.

A superhero family reunion lends itself to action-packed games, superhero training and fun activities.

This reunion theme package includes a fun printable reunion invitation, secret super power cards, water bottle labels, superhero training cards, “what’s my super power?” activity, Kapow!, Boom! and Zap! signs and fun printables for napkin rings and table decorations.

Our superhero reunion is jam packed with more than 35 pages of ideas for many of your favorite superheroes: Batman, Spider-man, Thor, Hulk, Captain America, Iron-man, Flash, Hawk-eye and even Aqua-man.

With the Superhero reunion theme your family will want to save helpless citizens, fight the forces of darkness and defeat the evil villains. Plan a superhero reunion and let your families’ powers shine. Whether they’re saving the planet or saving your family, a superhero family reunion or party will be a memorable reunion for anyone who has ever yearned to make right what’s wrong in the world.

You can find the superhero reunion theme at Family Reunion Helper.com and by clicking on the link below.

Piñatas- a Smashing Good Time!

Posted on March 5, 2017 by Aunt Mo

Piñatas are a fun activity for birthdays, celebrations and family reunions and because they’re made with paper Mache paste and newspaper strips they’re inexpensive to make though can be expensive to fill. You can make your own piñata or buy one in any shape or design that will add to your party’s theme.

Traditionally, to play the piñata game,you blindfold the first child in line and turn them around three times, and give them a wooden stick so they can swing at and if lucky, hit the piñata.

Piñata Fun with Dice

At a recent family reunion we did a fun variation of smashing the piñata by using a large dice made from a square box. Each child rolled the “dice” to determine how many swings with a stick they would have at the piñata. If they roll a four they try to hit the piñata 4 times.

HINT: When planning to use a piñata as one of your activities be sure to have a plan for how you will hang it up- tree, a beam if inside or 2 adults could hold a rope or a pole with the piñata hanging in the middle. For safety’s sake keep everyone away from the person swinging at the piñata.

Pull Piñatas

”Pull” piñatas are perfect for small children or for times when sticks may not be appropriate. Fill them with treats as you would a classic piñata and instead of hitting it with a stick just choose a ribbon and pull to release the trapdoor and the treats.

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Piñata Cakes

One of the most clever ideas I’ve seen on Pinterest recently is a piñata cake. No smashing involved with this piñata but you will find plenty of treats inside. Below are some quick instructions but for more detailed information click on the photo below- they’re the real experts.

A piñata cake is simple to make- just make a 3 layer, round cake. Leave two of the layers intact for the top and the bottom. Frost the bottom layer.

For the third layer, the middle layer, cut the center out and place the remaining ring on top of the bottom layer. Fill the center of the cake with small, unwrapped candies such as M and M’s or Skittles. Make sure you fill the cavity to the top with candy. Frost this layer then top with the remaining cake layer.

Frost and decorate the cake as desired.

Human Piñata

If you haven’t already, don’t forget to read about “HUMAN” piñatas. Just follow the link below to read about all the crazy fun!

What’s Your Leprechaun Name?

Posted on March 2, 2017 by Aunt Mo

Post a copy of this printout at the entrance to your St Patrick’s Day Party along with name tags and markers. Party goers figure out their “Leprechaun” name, write it on a name tag and go by that name during the party.

I put my 1st grade aged grand-daughter in charge of this activity at our St Patrick’s Day breakfast. She really had fun helping everyone’s leprechaun name and carefully wrote it on name tag stickers.

This was a very simple activity that was actually very fun and good for a few laughs. My leprechaun name is Merry McMagic. What’s your leprechaun name?

An Easter Hunt Twist

Posted on February 26, 2017 by Aunt Mo

Get Your Plastic Easter Eggs Now!

Now is this the perfect time to purchase plastic Easter eggs- not only for Easter egg hunts but for other themed parties you may have throughout the year.For instance, fill eggs with small plastic dinosaurs for a prehistoric or dinosaur reunion or fill eggs with small plastic dragons for your medieval reunion or princess party.

Moana and HeiHei Fun!

With all the excitement over Moana you could also fill plastic eggs with HeiHei memorabilia or pictures. (Take a picture or HeiHei and then cut into puzzle pieces. Hide one piece in each egg and when all the pieces Are found you can put the puzzle together.) These eggs would be perfect for a HeiHei egg hunt. I purchased them at Walmart.

How to Play

Hide the eggs around your reunion or party location. Tell the kids that they must find all the eggs before they hatch. The person that collects the most dinosaurs or dragons (or Easter themed prize) is the winner. This may not be the child that finds the most eggs as not every egg will have a prize in it.

A fun twist is to tell kids that if they find an egg that is empty, they have to put it back for another player to find. This way, the hunters will have to remember which eggs they’ve already checked…which adds to the mystery and suspense of the hunt.

Going Away Party For Your College Bound Student

Posted on February 22, 2017 by Aunt Mo

If you have a high school graduate that is looking forward to graduating and heading off to college you might want to plan a going away party. As part of the “Aloha” fun plan a fun “ Day in the Life” relay race.

Use your imagination and personalize challenges to your student’s situation. For instance, you might want to use the following challenges:

Doing Laundry Challenge
Have a couple of dish towels and clothespins that must be hung on the line before moving to the next challenge.

Garbage Challenge
Make several newspaper “balls” by squishing newspaper together. Place a garbage can several feet away. Before moving to the next challenge you must toss 3 newspaper balls into the garbage.

Gym Time Challenge
Pick up a couple of 5 lb. weights and run from point A to point B.

Grocery Carry Challenge

Put a few canned goods in a grocery bag- carry the bag from point A and point B.

Hot Tub Challenge
Use a low bucket with warm water- time ends when BOTH feet are in the “hot tub”.

The person with the fastest time receives a gift bag of apartment cleaning supplies.

Aquaman Super Hero Training

Posted on February 9, 2017 by Aunt Mo

Who is Aquaman and why should he be a featured hero at your superhero reunion or party?

Aquaman is the king of all things aqua. He can breathe underwater, swim at tremendous speeds, and telepathically communicate with sea life. Being able to withstand ocean depths, he gets bonus points on land with his superhuman strength, enhanced senses, and nearly impenetrable skin.

I never knew there was a superhero named Aquaman but I’ve got to tell you- if you’re around a pool or lake or some other water source, Aquaman gives endless opportunities for water competitions and games. Try some of our favorite Aquaman training activities:

Aquaman Treasure Hunt

Collect a bunch of pennies, nickels and other coins and throw them into the pool. Be sure to throw coins in different depths of the pool to accommodate all swim skill levels. Line kids up on the side of the pool and on the word go they jump into the pol and collect as many coins as possible. When all the coins are found, count them and add up the value. The one with the most money is the winner.

Aquaman Underwater Training

Participants line up on one side of the pool, On the word “go” they jump into the pool and swim as far as they can under water. Depending on the size of the pool and the abilities of the swimmers, they may be able to swim more than one lap.

Aquaman Enhanced Senses Training

Use a pint water bottle with a white cap and filled it with water from the pool. Line the swimmers up on one side of the pool facing away from it. When they hear the bottle hit the water they can jump in and begin hunting for it. The swimmer that finds the bottle is the winner. You can play this game over and over.

Of course swimming races are fun and since Aquaman can swim at tremendous speeds, a real natural for your superhero training.

Be sure and check out more superhero family reunion ideas by clicking on the picture below.

Thanksgiving Gumdrop Turkeys

Posted on November 18, 2016 by Aunt Mo

Thanksgiving gumdrop turkeys for your Thanksgiving table.

I’ve searched all over the internet for gum drop turkeys as cool as the ones my brothers and I made when we were growing up, but it appears those turkeys were one of a kind creations from my Mom.

My Mom always put her four children in charge of making the 30- 50 gum drop turkey favors for our Thanksgiving family gathering. The turkeys were so simple to make that we required no supervision and popping a few raisins or candy corns in our mouth as we were creating them took the edge off our Thanksgiving hunger. In fact, making gum drop turkeys soon became a tradition at my house when I had children of my own.

Over the years I exchanged the raisins we used to use for Craisens and brown toothpicks for brightly colored ones. Hint- always use Braches candy corns- they are softer and don’t crumble as easily when you stick a toothpick in them. Large gum drops can be difficult to find, but after extensive searching, I was able to find some on the bottom shelf, hidden behind a garbage can, (no kidding) on the Wal-mart candy isle.

As I was writing this blog, my 32 year old son walked into the kitchen where I was taking pictures and said, “Gum drop turkeys, I remember making those!” Just proves that something doesn’t have to be expensive, complicated or elaborate to make a lasting family memory.

Gobble, Gobble, Gobble!

Aunt MO

May your stuffing be tasty
May your turkey plump,
May your potatoes and gravy
Have nary a lump.
May your yams be delicious
And your pies take the prize,
And may your Thanksgiving dinner
Stay off your thighs!

– Author unknown

Have a Trail Mix Buffet

Posted on October 30, 2016 by Aunt Mo

A trail mix buffet is a fun option for your western or rustic themed reunion or party. If your occasion is more formal you can dress up your buffet with glass apothecary jars for a fancier look which lends itself to fancier parties such as wedding receptions or anniversary celebrations. A trail mix buffet is also a fun treat idea for a movie themed or kid themed party.

For our family reunion of 100 guests we used large tin foil pans to put the many treat options in but using a variety of glass jars, tin buckets, and baskets are great for holding all the delicious goodies your guests can choose from. .

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Serving guests is a breeze and everyone fills their own containers (paper sacks, sandwich bags, party treat bags, boxes or paper ice cream cups) with their favorite treats.

You can use healthy ingredients for your buffet featuring raisins, nuts and seeds or a kids favorite buffet using cereals, M & M’s and gummy bears. Use your imagination when selecting treats for your buffet.

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Here’s a list of possible options for your buffet:
nuts- almonds, peanuts, pecans, cashews etc.
pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds
cereal such as Cheerios, Trix, Chex, Fruit Loops or Captain Crunch etc.
chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, vanilla or peanut butter chips etc.
candy- M&M’s, candy corn, gummy worms, milk duds, sour patch kids etc.
granola
marshmallows
coconut, banana chips
pretzels, goldfish crackers
raisins, Craisins, chopped dates, yogurt raisins
Popcorn makes a great filler.

Make signs for ingredients your guests may not recognize. Custom labels, mini chalkboards and cardboard tents designed to support your theme will do the job. Print off the following food tents for your trail mix buffet.

Provide serving scoops such as ice cream scoops, oversized spoons or measuring cups- you’ll need one for each treat in your buffet. Smallish scoops help control serving size to assure that there is enough if each treat for all your guests.

Pool Noodle Ponies For Your Western Reunion

Posted on October 30, 2016 by Aunt Mo

At our western themed family reunion we created our own pool noodle ponies. Everyone, no matter what their age, made a pony until we had a whole herd of them. DIY pool noodle ponies are a great activity for a multi day reunion. We had the whole first day to create our ponies and used them for fun activities on the second day.

For each pony you need one swimming noodle the skinnier ones work best and you can usually find them for $1.00 at dollar stores.

twine or yarn
felt (9 x 12 sheets work well)
large wiggly eyes
low temp glue gun and glue
scissors
Permanent markers
Decorations

For your ponies head, bend the end of your noodle over and use twine or yarn and tie tightly to hold in place. This will be the ponies bridle. Attach a longer piece of rope to make the reins. You may want to braid this part of the bridle or add bows etc.

For the mane of the pony make a slit, about 1/2-1 inch deep, into the pool noodle with a box cutter, pocket knife or one side of a pair of scissors. Cut felt so it is fringed on both edges then stuff the felt (center first) into the slit.

The felt will stay put without gluing.

Image result for pool noodle horses

Cut another strip of felt with points on both ends to make the ears. Put the ears under the bend of the head and pull upward.

Encourage pony creators to be creative. Provide permanent markers, stickers and jewels and see what they create. We have found that the more time you give them the more creative the ponies got. We even got a long necked giraffe (made from two pool noodles).

Finally, put together a rodeo or horse show for your horses to compete in. Give prizes for

Helpful hint- If you have a large crowd making ponies, write names on your trusty steeds. Although each is unique they may still be difficult to pick out of the crowd.

For more fun ideas for your western themed family reunion or party check out familyreunionhelper.com

Human Piñata Chase

Posted on October 23, 2016 by Aunt Mo

This fun variation of the traditional piñata may very well become the highlight for the kids at your next family reunion or party.

One of the highlights of our 2016 reunion was the human piñata chase held for all the children. It’s an interesting and fun twist on the traditional piñata game.

To prepare the human piñatas hot glue onto the front and back of a t-shirt. You will need one shirt for every piñata. Use old or cheap shirts because they will be destroyed in the chase. Use small snack sized candies, fruit snacks and small cookie snacks with a full sized candy bar thrown in for good measure.

You can also glue money on the piñata shirts if you put it in a zip lock bag. Pencils and small toys can also be glued to the shirts.

To play, divide children into age groups. Ask for someone to be the piñatas. You may do 1 piñata at a time (1 piñata for each age group) or let all of your piñatas be chased at the same time but put a time limit for each age group. Give the human piñatas a head start then send the kids out to collect their treats. When they get close enough kids grab hold of the prize and pull it off. Some can be hard to pull off but that is just part of the fun.

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