Tiddlywinks. Tiddlywinks? When I think back to my childhood games, the first thing that comes to mind is Tiddlywinks. Do you know this game? A small mat, some large plastic pieces, a smaller plastic piece, and that’s it. My memories of the game have less to do with the game itself and more to do with what my family did when we played the game.
I was 8 or 9 when I played the game. We were living at my Grandma’s where space was limited. All my toys had to fit in a box behind the living room sofa. There was no playroom. I shared a bedroom with my sister. My grandmother was a stickler for putting everything in its proper place. On the nights we played this game we came together as a family. My mother, sister, grandmother, and sometimes my dad would play. We would cheer each other on. Laugh and joke. Have fun. We enjoyed a rousing family game night before the phrase #familygamenight was even thought of.
Tonight I was tasked by Collective Bias with a mission. A mission with games. A family game night mission. No need to ask whether I hesitated upon being asked to do this mission. Nope, I jumped at the chance to find a game for my family. I’m all about seizing family time at this blog: Musings from Me. I love carrying on the playing game tradition set by my parents. Now to find a game…
…that EVERYONE in my family will love. Eeek. And Yikes. And well finding a game for a mom, a dad, an 8-year-old who plays any game whatsoever, a tween who wants to play games but only games that she chooses, and a teen who would rather hang in her bedroom and listen to music. Will I bury my head in the sand? Will I give up before I even start shopping for a game. NO!!! I know I am up for the challenge of finding a game that all 5 of us will play.
First stop is a look at the games we already have…
- Monopoly Jr. — too babyish for the tween and teen
- Monopoly — too long for mom
- Balloon Lagoon — fun, but we have played it over and over again
- Twister — uh, my right hand can go on the red spot while my left foot is on the blue spot, but there is no way I can get my hand to the green spot without crushing my kids in the process
- Chess — a hit with the boy, but no one else
- Scrabble — the teen and dad would clean up at this game
Next I checked out a bunch of games we don’t have. Some we have played before. Others not.
So, my mission was to find a game that all of us will like. As long as everyone has a little fun I will be happy. We don’t all have to love the game I choose. The game should not be too babyish, but not be too old. So a game for 8 or 10 and up would work. A game designed for adults would be a bust for the two younger kids. A board game would be better than a game like Twister where I could injure someone by falling on top of them. Ahem.
Want to know what the winning game was? 20 Questions is the winning game. We can all have fun with this game. I cannot wait to play the game tonight!
This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias. #CBias The opinions expressed in this post are my own. I follow the tenets of Blog With Integrity.
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