Sonlit Acres

It seems television and video games are in the modern lime light and doesn't very often involve all of the family having fun times together. These are also fun games to play when the power goes out.

Some of the simplest things can be so much fun and can involve every family member. We will post simple family fun things to do on this page from time to time.  

Enjoy

Hide and seek is a timeless game that has been played by children throughout the ages. It isn't only children who enjoy it - a natural instinct for parents is to play a facial form of hide and seek with their children from the earliest age, as it teaches children about attachment and detachment in a safe and caring environment. Leaving aside the psychology, however, the outdoor game provides wonderful interaction among children, is easy to play and never gets boring.

Select the players.

 At least three players are needed to play the game. Naturally, however, the more players you have, the better. Set down rules.

If you do not set down rules, you will have people running to places that have maybe things like antiques or private things. And, people may run outside when everybody's inside. Block off rooms like the attic, parent's bedrooms, any room that holds heirlooms, and bedrooms. Or let people hide in those places, just say things like, "All right, you are allowed to hide in my bedroom, just don't mess up the bed and put everything back in it's place."

Find a suitable location.

An outdoor location works best, although indoors is fine for rainy days. It will be necessary to set boundaries for hiding or you will have players running off to too many far-off locations.
 
Determine who will be "It".

Working out who is "It" can be done a variety of ways, for instance - the youngest person might be "It" first; or the person whose birthday is next might be "It" first; or use an elimination word game, such as "One Potato, Two Potato" or similar game, or pick a number out of a hat, and #1 is "It". 
 
 Counting, 1,2,3

Begin the game.

 Once the person who will be "It" has been chosen, he or she stays at home base, closes his or her eyes and begins counting out loud to a number from about 10 to 100. The number you choose should be based on how many people are playing the game and the distances to hiding spots. The more people, the higher the number should be.

Hide.

 All of the players who are not "It" should run off and quietly hide from the player who is counting. The person who is "It" is not allowed to peek at the players hiding from him or her.

Begin the seeking.

Once the player who is "It" has finished counting, he or she yells "Ready or not, here I come!". At this point, the player who is "It" must try to find all of the other players who have hidden. The players who are hiding can not move or switch hiding places.

Change the person who is "It".

 The player who gets found first becomes "It" in the  next round

Place a milk bottle (or other jar with a small opening) on the ground or floor. Let each child try dropping ten clothespins into the bottle. See who can make the best score. Note: You can still buy clothespins in the supply section of most grocery stores.

The players form a circle and the person who is "it" leaves (or closes his/her eyes) while the others pass a "button" or another object around the circle. One person hides the object behind his/her back. All the other players put their hands behind their backs, too. Then "it" is allowed three guesses as to who is hiding the object. If "it" guesses correctly they exchange places and a new person is "it".

Jackstraws, or pickup sticks, have been played for hundreds of years.  All you need is a pile of straws or wood splinters, although fancy versions of the game with whittled sticks in different colors can be purchased or made.

1.  Hold the bundle of straws perpendicular to the ground (the straws point straight up) about 1 foot off the ground.  Drop the straws, letting them land in a messy pile.

2.  Players take turns trying to remove one straw at a time from the pile. You can only move the straw you are trying to pick up.  If any other straws wiggle or fall, your turn is over.

3.  The player who has the most straws when the pile is gone is the winner.