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Family Game Night: The Top 20 Board Games

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No one knows when school is starting back up, but one thing is for sure. Game night will be there for bored families until it does. Here’s our 20 favorite games to keep the family fun going at home for a while

Pie Face Game – The winners are the players who manage to avoid getting whacked in the face with a dollop of delicious cream, but this is clearly the type of game where when hilarity ensues, everyone wins. New versions include Pie Face: Cannon and Pie Face: Sky High. Hasbro.com • Ages 5+

Pictopia Disney Edition – If your family is like most American families, then you’ve probably seen your fair share of Disney movies and visited a Disney theme park at least once or twice. This game features 1,000 trivia questions to test players’ knowledge of everything Disney, and it’s usually a hit with both kids and adults. WonderForge.com • Ages 7+

Noodle Speedoodle – The tagline reads: “Grab a noodle and draw a doodle!” And that’s exactly what you do in this cooperative picture-guessing game for families. Like many games from Peaceable Kingdom, everyone works together and plays as a team, and there are no winners or losers—just lots of fun. PeaceableKingdom.com • Ages 8+

Dixit – Children are natural-born storytellers, and this is the type of game where the gift of creative storytelling comes in handy. Players take turns making up brief tales and their opponents must correctly guess which card describes each tale. It’s definitely a winner for kids and parents alike. en.Libellud.com • Ages 8+

Hoot Owl Hoot – This game is a real hoot for the kindergarten crowd, who take turns helping owls fly back to their nest before the sun comes up. Kids will learn numbers, counting, colors and teamwork. PeaceableKingdom.com • Ages 4 -7

Move & Groove – This game is a top pick for toddlers, with simple rules and no skill required. Simply roll the cube, grab a card, then boogie down! Little ones will learn colors while building their confidence, improving coordination, and having a blast. ThinkFun.com • 18 months-5 years

Zingo – This twist on the classic favorite Bingo has the added value of vocabulary recognition for younger players. While Bingo relies purely on luck, Zingo requires more work than simply checking off numbers on a card –which keeps everyone from losing interest quickly.
ThinkFun.com • Ages 4-8

Robot Turtles – If you think your child is too young to learn how to code, think again. This game teaches basic programming concepts to players as young as four years old without even using a computer screen. ThinkFun.com • Ages 4+

Apples to Apples Junior – Fans of the popular party game Apples to Apples can play this fun comparison game with their whole family now. The recommended age is 9+, but many reviewers claim to enjoy the “Junior” version with kids as young as five or six years old.
MattelGames.com • Ages 9+

Spot It – With over 3,000 five-star reviews on Amazon, it’s hard to imagine anyone wouldn’t like this fast-paced matching card game. Simple instructions make it easy for younger players but fun for the whole family. Switch it up with different game versions, like Spot It Sports, Disney, Animals, Halloween, etc. There’s also a Junior version for younger players. BlueOrangeGames.com • Ages 7+

Sneaky Snacky Squirrel Game – The rules are basic enough for early preschoolers to grasp, which helps young children understand basic concepts of board game play. Players get to use tweezers to grab acorns, which helps with developing fine motor skills as well. EducationalInsights.com • Ages 3-7 years

Ticket to Ride – Frustrated by games that rely on pure luck? This fun and educational game incorporates strategic thinking and decision-making with a little bit of geography. Players collect and match train cards to claim railway routes throughout North America. DaysOfWonder.com • Ages 8-12

Qwirkle – Upon first glance, this game looks like Scrabble for preschoolers. But don’t let the tiles fool you, the two are nothing alike. In this simple yet engaging game, players build lines by matching tiles based on either color or shape. Although recommended for ages 6 and up, it can double as a simpler color and shape matching game for the younger ones. But it’s also a hit with adults, making it truly fun for all ages. MindWare.com • Ages 6+

The Dinosaur Escape Game – Dinosaurs are big hit with any preschool crowd, so it’s no wonder a game where kids get to manipulate big dinosaur game pieces along a game board has become so popular. Players work as a team to save the dinosaurs from a volcanic eruption and everyone wins. PeaceableKingdom.com • Ages 4-7

No Stress Chess – The rules of chess can sometimes seem complicated for adults, but this game teaches chess in smaller, simpler steps. The board is two-sided, so once players have a thorough understanding of the game, they can switch from the beginner side to the standard chess side.Winning-Moves.com • Ages 7+

Labyrinth – Incorporate fantasy with moving mazes for the perfect family game that’s easy enough for players as young as 7 or 8 up all the way up to teens and adults. Ravensburger.us • Ages 8+

Headbanz & Hedbanz Jr. – This engaging guessing game requires players to wear the answer on their head – literally. Spinmaster.com • Ages 5+

Watch Ya Mouth – Don’t let the title fool you; this game is 100% family friendly. Players take turns wearing mouthpieces and reciting phrases. And yes, it is as hilarious as it sounds. Wymgame.com • Ages 8+

Blokus – Game time is less than 30 minutes, making it the perfect length of time for kids. Even better? There is just one rule, so it’s pretty easy to get the hang of. Mattel.com. Ages 7+

Little kids can play cards too!  Card games can be for everyone, but sometimes young players have trouble mastering the fanning technique required for grasping a whole handful. Gamewright’s Little Hands Playing Card Holder solves that problem for the tiniest card players with their handheld paddle that keeps cards in place. Learn more at gamewright.com or buy it on Amazon for $5.

Updated Classics – If you’re a big fan of the classics, try versions that include popular characters or simpler rules for younger ones—like Clue: Harry Potter Edition; Disney Monopoly; The Game of Life Junior; Connect 4: Super Mario; and Candyland: Princess Edition.

By Jeannine Cintron, Staten Island mom of two and the family’s reigning Scrabble champion.

Where to Eat In Staten Island During COVID-19

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Did you know Staten Island restaurants are open for takeout and delivery during the coronavirus pandemic? Although bars and restaurants are currently prohibited from allowing patrons inside, you can still enjoy their offerings at home.

Want to know if your favorite spot is open for business during the COVID-19 crisis? The Borough President’s office has put together and is constantly updating a list of local restaurants you can order from.

When you order in, you’re not just enjoying a delicious meal you didn’t have to cook. You’re supporting businesses that are likely struggling through an economic crisis caused by the coronavirus.

There’s never been a better reason to put the pots and pans away and have dinner delivered.

Super Snacking

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Snacks are a way of life for people of all ages, but especially children, who consume about 25% of their daily calories from snacks, according to research published in the “Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior.” Providing nutritionally balanced snacks for your children at home can make for a happy and healthy day.

Planning snacks that are as delicious as they are healthy is a winning solution, and snacks are a simple way to add more nutrition to your child’s diet.

Red, White and Blue Greek Yogurt Bark

Prep time: 5 minutes
Servings: 12

  • 3          cups plain non-fat Greek yogurt
  • 1/3       cup honey, plus additional for drizzling (optional)
  • 1          teaspoon vanilla
  • 1/2       cup strawberries, sliced into rounds
  • 1/2       cup blueberries
  • 1/2       cup raspberries, halved
  1. In medium mixing bowl combine Greek yogurt, 1/3 cup honey and vanilla.
  2. On parchment paper-lined baking sheet, spread Greek yogurt mixture to 1/4-inch thickness. Press strawberries, blueberries and raspberries into yogurt. Freeze at least 3 hours. Break into pieces upon removing from freezer.

Peanut Butter Yogurt Dip

Prep time: 5 minutes
Servings: 4

  • 3/4       cup vanilla Greek yogurt
  • 1/4       cup peanut butter
  • 1          dash cinnamon
  • apples, graham crackers or other dipper of choice
  1. In bowl, six Greek yogurt, peanut butter and cinnamon until smooth.
  2. Serve with apples, graham crackers or another dipper of choice.

Good Morning Yogurt Parfait

Prep time: 5 minutes
Servings: 1

  • 1/2       cup sliced or diced fruit, any variety
  • 6          ounces low-fat or fat-free vanilla yogurt
  • 1/4       cup granola or other cereal (optional)
  1. In small bowl or cup, layer fruit and yogurt, starting with fruit on bottom. Top with cereal or granola, if desired.
  2. Note: This recipe can be made using low-fat or non-fat cottage cheese sweetened with honey and cinnamon.

Frozen Banana Pops

Prep time: 2 hours
Servings: 8

  • 4          large bananas, peeled
  • 8          wooden ice pop sticks
  • 2          cups vanilla non-fat Greek yogurt
  • 1/2       cup creamy natural peanut butter
  1. Cut each banana in half and carefully insert wooden ice pop stick in bottom of each, about one-third into banana. Place bananas on large baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Freeze bananas until partially frozen, about 30 minutes.
  2. Carefully dip each banana in tall pint glass of vanilla yogurt to coat, leaving 1/2-inch at bottom of banana uncoated. Return yogurt-coated bananas to parchment paper-lined baking sheet and freeze until completely firm, about 1 hour.
  3. Microwave peanut butter until smooth and creamy, about 30-45 seconds. Drizzle peanut butter evenly over bananas then place on baking sheet to freeze until peanut butter is firm, about 30 minutes.
  4. Serve immediately or wrap each banana in plastic wrap and store in freezer up to 3 months.

Get more ideas to get kids cooking and snacking smart at milkmeansmore.org.


SOURCE:
United Dairy Industry of Michigan

The Best Quarantine Songs

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It’s a fact: laughter is helping us get through this global pandemic. Without the endless Instagram memes, YouTube clips, TikTok videos, and Facebook stories, who knows where we’d be? Well, we’d be in the house, of course. But we wouldn’t be laughing half as much.

We rounded up some of the best quarantine songs floating around the internet. We highly recommend you watch them all. It’s not like you have anywhere to be!

Has there ever been an Adam Sandler song that we didn’t like? This song, which debuted on Jimmy Fallon, mixes Adam’s classic humor with humble gratitude for the workers on the frontlines.

From princesses to villains, the creator of this video clearly spent A LOT of time on these quarantine-themed spoofs of everyone’s favorite Disney characters. Ok, maybe not ALL favorites. No one likes Gaston, right?

Even pets are making parodies. Set to the tune of “I Will Survive” this cute little guy is going on seven walks a day lately — and loving every minute of it.

Just like the original version, you’ll be singing this for days after hearing it once. But “Mama Mia, Mama Mia wash your hands” are lyrical instructions everyone could use.

The gym is closed, but you still gotta get that exercise in. Paula Pupkin’s Quarantine Workout will keep you fit, socially distanced and sanitized. Seriously, the more you watch this, the funnier it gets.

Like everyone else, the Holderness Family has no idea what day it is. Frankly, unless it’s the day we’re finally allowed out of our house, we don’t care anyway.

We can’t get enough of the Holderness crew. Their videos NEVER disappoint. This clip features a lot of catchy, familiar classics — including Kelly Clarkson’s “Since you been home, I gotta teach for the first time.”

Chris Mann is a lot more bored than we are — I assume he’s not doing the homeschool thang — but this video is hysterical nonetheless. He’s FaceTiming pantless on the couch to the tune of “Hello” by Adele. Enjoy.

Virtual Meetups for Sober Moms

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In the midst of wine memes and virtual happy hours, moms in recovery need a safe space to share about the challenges.

Professional recovery coach Emily Lynn Paulson noticed a disconnect of virtual support groups for moms—she saw groups for women, alcohol-free lifestyles, and 12-Step programs, but no communities for mothers. So she teamed up with fellow sober mom influencers and formed Sober Mom Squad (bit.ly/sobermoms). In just one week, 600 moms have already signed up!

Sober Mom Squad Virtual Meet-Up takes place Wednesdays at 6 p.m. EST. It’s a safe space for moms who are alcohol free (or those who desire to be alcohol free) to laugh, cry, connect, and share tips on how to keep each other sane, sober, and strong.  Moms can sign-up here.

Paulson had this to say about her new Sober Mom virtual meetups:

“I offered my book as a freebie for two weeks so people would have something to read, and I thought to myself, “What else can I do?” I’m a Certified Professional Recovery Coach, a SHE RECOVERS Designated Coach, and I’m being certified as a Naked Mind Coach, so I certainly have tactics to help, and as a writer and woman in recovery, I also have a great deal of experience to draw from.  So, I posed a question on my Instagram page, a community of mostly women, many moms, many in recovery, “What else do you need? What can I do?”

“There was an overwhelming response for meetings for MOMS. There are numerous meetings for recovery, and women in recovery, but there wasn’t anything out there specifically for alcohol free moms.  Being a mom during this pandemic has its challenges for sure, and attempting to keep an alcohol-free lifestyle adds another layer of difficulty that can’t be compared or understood unless you are going through it. In the midst of wine memes and virtual happy hours, we wanted a safe space to share about the challenges. We also wanted a safe place to share about those challenges, without fear of being shamed for, “not being grateful” about the children we are blessed with. 

“Four other fellow sober influencers wanted to collaborate, and between the five of us, we have different paths of recovery, different recovery time, and a dozen children from infant to teenager and everything in between. The thing we have in common is that we are all moms who want to stay sober, sane, and strong during this pandemic.  So, we picked a day that would work for all of us.  We decided, even if it was just the five of us chatting, it would be so worth it! 

“I whipped up a signup page, with no real expectations of who or how many would be interested. Within a few days, we had almost 300 women sign up! Our first meeting had about 50 women in attendance. It was a lovely safe space to share our unique struggles, strength, ask questions, and offer helpful tips during this time. Today we have over 600 women signed up! I’m sure we will evolve and offer more meeting times to adjust and accommodate, but it’s very exciting to be able to find a need and fill it so quickly. 

“Some people who were leery of in-person meetings are now attending meetings for the first time. Meetings can be tailored to fit your schedule. You don’t need to get childcare to attend.

If you are a mom who is trying to be alcohol free right now, the Sober Mom Squad Virtual Meetup is the right place! Meetings are limited to 100 people, and it is absolutely OK to have little ones around, we just ask that you use headphones to protect little ears from potentially mature shares from others. Signup at bit.ly/sobermoms.”

Here are some additional virtual meetings recommended by Paulson:

• Sober Mom Squad: bit.ly/sobermoms: For moms who desire to be alcohol free.

• SHE RECOVERS: online meetings: sherecovers.co. For anyone who identifies as a woman and is in recovery. We are all recovering from something (alcohol, drugs, trauma, anxiety etc.)

• In the rooms: https://www.intherooms.com/home: A vast array of meetings of all types, all day long. 

• 12 step online meetings: https://www.12step.org/social/online-meetings/

• Work It Health: https://www.workithealth.com/blog/online-recovery-meetings/

• We Connect online meetings: https://www.weconnectrecovery.com/free-online-support-meetings

• Mara International: https://www.mara-international.org/

• Recovery Dharma: https://recoverydharma.org/online-meetings

• Laura McKowen online meetings: https://laura-mckowen.mykajabi.com/virtual-sobriety-meetings-with-laura

• SMART RECOVERY: https://www.smartrecovery.org/smart-recovery-toolbox/smart-recovery-online/

• Carly Benson online meetings. http://www.miraclesarebrewing.com/hangover-free-club-offer/

Paulson is a certified professional recovery coach, speaker, and a member of the long-term recovery community, and author on a mission to raise awareness on the dangers of the drinking mom culture. She has been featured on outlets including The Doctors,  Today Online, Huff Post and Parade, sharing how her Instagram portrayed her as a perfect mother of five children and multi-million-dollar network marketer­, but her photos didn’t reveal her slurred voice. Paulson authored Highlight Real: Finding Honesty & Recovery Behind the Filtered Life (Light Hustle Publishing).

Employee Benefits You Never Knew You Had

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For many American workers, how they do their jobs dramatically changed with the spread of COVID-19. Some have shifted to working from home while others moved to part-time or reduced hours.

With uncertainty abound, now’s a good time to take stock of your physical and mental health and familiarize yourself with the resources available from your employer.

As part of a report on mental health, employee benefits company Unum found nearly three-quarters (74%) of working adults feel big life events can have a major impact on their mental health. Some top mental health triggers include a person’s health (69%), finances (67%), relationships (59%) and job satisfaction (52%).

“With so many people experiencing major shifts in not only their work lives, but also potentially their health, finances and personal lives, now is a good time to know what resources are available,” said Laurie Mitchell, assistant vice president of global wellbeing and health at Unum.

Often linked with a health care or disability plan’s coverage, employee assistance programs, telemedicine or tele-behavioral health and app-based programs are low-cost solutions that allow people to connect with a professional on their own time when they’re experiencing a problem.

Employee Assistance Programs
An employee assistance program (EAP) often offers free and confidential assessments, short-term counseling, referrals and follow-up services to people who have personal or work-related concerns. EAPs address a wide range of issues affecting mental and emotional wellbeing, such as alcohol and other substance abuse, stress, grief, family problems and psychological disorders. Many EAPs also provide services to help caregivers, assist with financial planning or offer child care resources.

Telemedicine and App-Based Mental Health Solutions
Telemedicine services can make accessing medical and mental health resources easier. There are even apps that can target specific mental health needs, and people can access them on their own time when they need the services. These types of tools can be effective complements to traditional care and help with everything from increasing positivity and efficiency to reducing stress and anxiety.

“Employees should ask their human resources department what resources are available and be supportive of colleagues who may be struggling as well,” Mitchell said. “Especially during this time of uncertainty, offering support to others and knowing where to direct them can improve lives and help create a more inclusive work environment.”

In addition, the report found 93% of human resources professionals say their companies offer an EAP, yet only 38% of employees said they’re aware of the resource. More than half of human resources professionals also said they offer financial counseling, legal services and telemedicine services, but only a fraction of employees reported being aware these services exist.

As businesses chart new ways of working, these types of tools can help employees establish new ways of interacting with support services when in-person options may not be available. Even if you’re not struggling now, as you navigate this uncertain time, consider asking your employer what resources you have access to that can help support your physical and mental wellbeing.

To download the mental health report and learn about other employee benefit resources, visit Unum.com/workwell.

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