Cheap Family Fun Ideas

Family Game Night - Make a date with your family to play family games once a week. If your family is small you may opt to invite grandparents or a sibling and their family. The idea is to make this a family function that the kids can participate in and enjoy.

Don't worry if you don't have a large collection of board games. Playing different card games like Go Fish or Memory with a regular deck of cards works well, too.

If you do decide to buy some games there are inexpensive games like UNO, dominoes, and checkers that can be purchased very reasonably. Try to purchase games that your family has played and enjoyed. This ensures that you will get the most out of your investment and can reap the enjoyment for some time to come.

As a side note, my younger children tend to scatter my board games. My oldest is really into Playstation. So, as a solution I tried out various board games on our gaming systems and found one that my whole family can really enjoy, LIFE. The Playstation version of LIFE is very fun and entertaining. We choose the enhanced option on the menu. It is multimedia rich and more entertaining than the board game.

Board games are lots of fun and I recommend them on game nights. However, for games like LIFE that can be too difficult for the really young, I recommend checking out the game system versions if you have that option. Rent them so you can try them out. This way you can find a game truly worth buying.

Trip to the Zoo - Zoos generally have inexpensive entrance fees which are excellent if you can stay away from snack stands and gift shops. I recommend avoiding the gift shops altogether.

Feed your family before you leave home and if possible avoid snack stands altogether. The smell of cotton candy and candy apples can be very enticing to little tummies. If you plan on making the most of your time in the zoo you may want to carry some snacks in your purse. Take a snack break near a water fountain or bring along a couple of half frozen bottled waters.

If your zoo has a petting zoo or some other area where your children can feed animals then you may want to save this excitement for last. The feed tends to be very cheap however, this exciting task can lead children to continually ask for money to "do it again". Also, if your child has never been to a petting zoo they may become overwhelmed and afraid as the animals tend to gather really quickly to eat.

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