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Classic Board Games with a Christmas Twist

October 30, 2020 by Katherine Wolfe 8 Comments

{This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our Disclosure Policy for details.} 

If you’re anything like our family, you have quite a collection of BOARD GAMES taking up space in your basement cupboards.

We love BOARD GAMES so much that I tend to buy too many. So many, in fact, that there are several that have not seen the light of day in years. And, just like with many things in life, it’s the old, classic versions that get neglected while the hip, cool versions get played.

So, in an effort to make space for new BOARD GAMES during the upcoming gift-giving season, I’ve been going through our game cupboard. 

But, much to my neat-freak husband’s disappointment,  instead of finding some to get rid of, I’ve found new ways to reinvigorate some of the old classics for this holiday season!

And we had so much fun with these CHRISTMAS-TWISTED BOARD GAMES that I wanted to share with y’all! 


ONE: UNO

UNO is such a great game for several reasons, not the least of which is it’s easy for all ages to play! And, it turns out that UNO  has nearly endless possibilities of ways to give it a fun CHRISTMAS-TWIST. 

Here are just a few suggestions:

  • Play a red card =  get a red M&M
  • Play a green card = get a green M&M
  • Play a 2 on top of a 5 {25} = get a Hershey Kiss
  • Play a red card on top of a green card = get a mini candy cane
  • Play a green card on top of a red card = take a sip of hot cocoa 

Or if sweets are not your style:

  • Play a red card =  sing Rudolph
  • Play a green card = wear the Santa Hat until somebody else plays a wild card
  • Play a 2 on top of a 5 = speak in an elf-voice for the rest of the game
  • Play a red card on top of a green card = move an ornament on the tree
  • Play a green card on top of a red card = act like a snowman melting in the sun 

TWO: SCRABBLE 

SCRABBLE is a staple in most homes but it is probably often over-looked as too educational {aka: boring} for some. But, with this CHRISTMAS-TWIST, everybody will be asking to break out SCRABBLE this holiday season! 

Play SCRABBLE like you normally do but every time a word is played, the player needs to use that word in a CHRISTMAS-TWISTED sentence. Your family can decide if the sentences need to make sense or not {personally, we like nonsensical things around here but we do expect the parts of speech to be used appropriately.} You can come up with your own sentences or use these suggestions:

  • For Christmas, I really hope Santa brings me a ____.
  • It’s so cold outside that I am ____.
  • The Christmas carolers are ____ on our porch!
  • ____ will be our new Christmas tradition. 
  • Oh my gosh! Look! Santa stuffed your stocking with a ____.
  • All I want for Christmas is a/an/the ____.
  • Rudolph, with your nose so bright, will you ____ my sleigh tonight?
  • This Christmas, we’re only going to hang ____ on the tree. 
  • For Christmas morning, we are going to eat ____.
  • I’m going to leave Santa some milk and ____. 
  • Instead of a tree, let’s hang ornaments on a ____. 
  • Frosty, the ____ man was a jolly, happy soul. 
  • Jingle ____, jingle ____, jingle all the way! 
  • Santa put your present ____ the tree. 
  • Oh, we wish you a ____ Christmas!
  • I wrapped all of the presents with ____. 

THREE: PICTIONARY

Whether you have the classic version or the new one that includes small whiteboards, using CHRISTMAS-TWISTED PICTIONARY cards is an easy and fun way to rejuvenate this classic game for the holiday season.

You can snag a CHRISTMAS-TWISTED PICTIONARY PACK here for FREE. The cards are color-coded to work with all versions of PICTIONARY but can also be used with your own family’s homemade version of the classic picture-drawing game. 

FOUR: TWISTER

TWISTER is never boring, that’s for sure, but with these CHRISTMAS-TWISTED ideas, your family will surely enjoy the game like never before!

  • Play the entire game with knit gloves on!
  • Everybody has to wear a Santa hat and keep it on their head or they’re out!
  • Or everybody has to wear a Santa hat but it doesn’t matter WHERE you wear it!
  • If you are touching a red spot, you must sing Frosty the Snowman until you move from that spot.
  • If you are touching a green spot, you must sing  Jingle Bells until you move from that spot. 
  • If you are on a green and red spot at the same time, you must say “ho ho ho ho ho” until you move from one of the colors

FIVE: HEADBANZ

If your family doesn’t own HEDBANZ, you should seriously consider getting it! My son has outgrown the original intent of the game but we still use it for spelling and vocabulary review all the time {with our own words}.

And with the CHRISTMAS-TWISTED HEDBANZ PACK, it’s super easy and FREE to turn this silly game into a great option for the holidays. You can grab the CHRISTMAS-TWISTED HEDBANZ PACK here.


So, whether you decide to try out CHRISTMAS-TWISTED 

UNO, 

SCRABBLE, 

PICTIONARY, 

TWISTER

or

HEDBANZ, 

your family is sure to enjoy making some new memories with some old games! 


And for some other great CHRISTMAS ACTIVITIES, check out these posts from some of my amazing fellow homeschool blogging mamas…

1. Don’t let your learning stop over the holidays. My teenage kid will DEFINITELY be doing some of these Holiday-Themed Science Projects from Homeschool On the Range!
2. And, here’s a GREAT math printable for the littles! Christmas Cakes One More One Less Printable Worksheet from The Art Kit.
3. I collect natitivies so this might be TOO CUTE to eat but we definitely want to make one of these Gingerbread Nativities from Hess Un-Academy!
4. We use our fireplace ALL THE TIME during fall and winter so I really hope my teenager wants to make me some of these DIY Firestarter Gifts from Making Room 4 One More.
5. I LOVE grapevine wreaths and have many sizes to use for different seasons. And after seeing this craft, I want to get some teeny ones to add to my collection! Such a cute ornament from Woodland Birds Ornament from Heart and Soul Homeschooling!
6. Whether you NEED new Christmas traditions because 2020 just ain’t allowing for your norm or you WANT to add something new, you should consider this Cultural Family Night: Christmas edition from Stand Up, Reach Out!
7. Are you BIG stocking stuffer people? We are! My husband often wonders if we spend more on stuffing stockings than we do stocking the pantry for the holidays, but it’s so hard NOT to scoop up all the cute little things! This year I plan to use some of these ideas for Easy, Cheap, Stocking Stuffer Ideas for Kids from Julie Naturally!
8. I’m always looking for cute, personalized ornaments but this year, I think I will MAKE them. Check out how stinkin’ cute these are! Scrabble Tile Christmas Ornament from I Choose Joy!
9. I’m one of those moms who takes the easy way out and buys the expensive Star Wars Lego Advent Calendar each year but I REALLY WISH I could make the switch to something like this Simple Christmas Family Traditions: An Advent Tree from Whole Child Homeschool!
10. Here’s another SUPER CUTE handmade ornament to hang on your tree this year! Handprint Candy Cane Ornament from Homegrown Motherhood
11. If you live in a cold-weather climate, here are some great ideas for how you can STILL get your family outside! Outdoor Christmas Activities for the Whole Family from An Off Grid Life
12. I collect nativities, and they’re not always cheap nor CHILD-FRIENDLY, so I really wish I had known of this option when my kid was little! Nativity Set for Kids to Make and Play With from Orison Orchards
13. If you love all of the creative and clever ideas to make the holidays happy and bright but you are short on TIME, check out this great list of Simple Christmas Activities for Busy Working Homeschool Moms from Thrive at Home!
14. How about THIS for an original yet meaningful craft!?!?!? How to make a fork painted manger set from Our Crazy Adventures In Autismland
15. Again with the TOO CUTE nativities! This one is not only cute, it’s easy to make and you probably have every single item sitting in your craft tub right now! Heart Nativity Paper Craft from My Joy-Filled Life

Filed Under: Holidays, SUGGESTIONS Tagged With: Christmas, Educational games, family time, Games, Gameschool, Holiday Fun, Holiday Traditions, Homeschool

Handy Dandy Guide to Streaming Family Christmas Movies

December 4, 2019 by Katherine Wolfe 32 Comments

If your family is similar to ours, you look forward to snuggling up and watching CHRISTMAS MOVIES together throughout the month of December. 

But, have you noticed that as the number of streaming services has increased, it has become more and more confusing to figure out where to watch which movie?

Me too!

So, in order to best prep for the month {after all, December is always the busiest month of the year,} I spent some time searching for the best CHRISTMAS MOVIES and noting which service will be showing them this month. 

I ended up with a list of more than 70 CHRISTMAS MOVIES {with Amazon Prime, Hulu, Netflix and Disney+ included} and put it all together in this handy dandy guide! 

Hopefully, this guide will bless you this season. At the end of the guide below, you will also find a cute copy that you can print. Please enjoy!

 


 

AP = Amazon Prime   D+ = Disney+    HU = Hulu    NF = Netflix

Abominable Christmas

NF

A Christmas Carol

D+

A Christmas Carol {in color}

AP

A Christmas Tree Miracle

AP

A Frozen Christmas

HU

A Frozen New Year

HU

All I Want for Christmas Is You

AP

Alone for Christmas

HU

Alpha and Omega—The Big Fureeze

HU

Alpha and Omega—A Howliday Adventure

NF

Angela’s Christmas

NF

Babes in Toyland

AP

Barbie—A Perfect Christmas

HU

Barbie in a Christmas Carol

HU

Beauty and the Beast Enchanted Christmas

D+

Benji’s Very Own Christmas Story

NF

Bigfoot

HU

Bob’s Broken Sleigh

NF

Christmas Cartoons

AP

Christmas Cartoon Extravaganza

AP

Christmas Cartoon Wonderland

AP

Christmas Chronicles

NF

Christmas Inheritance

NF

Christmas in Wonderland

AP

Christmas with the Kranks

D+

Click, Clack, Moo—Christmas at the Farm

AP

Costume Quest Christmas Special

AP

Curious George—A Very Monkey Christmas

HU

Elliot, the Littlest Reindeer

NF

Fairly Oddparents Christmas

HU

Forty-eight Christmas Wishes

NF

Frosty, the Snowman

TV

Get Santa

NF

Holiday Inn

AP

Home Alone {1, 2, 3}

D+

Home for the Holidays

NF

How the Grinch Stole Christmas {classic}

NF

How the Grinch Stole Christmas {live action}

NF

Ice Age—A Mammoth Christmas

HU

If You Give a Mouse a Christmas Cookie

AP

Inside Lego Christmas

AP

It’s a Wonderful Life

AP

Jack Frost

AP

Kid Songs—Christmas Songs for Kids

AP

Klaus

NF

Legend of Frosty the Snowman

TV

Legend of the Christmas Witch

AP

Madagascar—Holiday Classics

NF

Marvel Super Hero Frost Fight

NF

Mickey’s Christmas Carol

D+

Mickey’s Once/Twice Upon a Christmas

D+

Miracle on 34th St {color}

AP

Muppet Christmas Carol

D+

Nightmare Before Christmas

D+

One Magic Christmas

D+

Pete the Cat—Groovy New Year

AP

Pink Fong Christmas Carols

AP

Polar Express

TV

Prancer

HU

Puppy Star Christmas

NF

Ritchie Rich’s Christmas Wish

D+

Rudolph +  Classics

AP

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

AP

Santa and Me

AP

Santa Buddies

D+

Santa Claus Presents a Children’s Christmas

AP

Santa Clause {1, 2, 3}

D+

Santa Claws

NF

Santa Pac’s Merry Berry Day

NF

Santa Paws {1, 2}

D+

Santa’s Apprentice

NF

Saving Christmas

HU

Scrooge {in color}

AP

Super Monsters Save Christmas

NF

The Borrowed Christmas

AP

The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About Christmas

AP

The Christmas Dragon

AP

The Christmas Project

NF

The Christmas Star

D+

The Grinch

NF

The Least of These

AP

The Magic Snowflake

NF

The Snowman

AP

The Star

NF

The Wiggles– Go, Santa, Go

HU

Tiny Christmas

HU

Twelve Days of Christmas Eve

AP

Twelve Dog Days Till Christmas

HU

Twelve Dogs of Christmas

AP

Troll’s Holiday

NF

Ultimate Christmas Present

D+

White Christmas

NF

Handy Dandy Guide to Streaming Family Christmas Movies by The WOLFe Pack PrintableDownload

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: amazon prime, Christmas, christmas movies, disney plus, family activities, family movies, family time, hulu, movie night, netflix

Nine Ways ALEXA Has Improved Our Lives

November 25, 2019 by Katherine Wolfe 48 Comments

{This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our Disclosure Policy for details.} 

We’re a family of four and we have nine Alexas in our home. 

Four people with nine Alexas. 

That’s more than twice the number of Alexas than people! 

Why so many, you wonder?

Because having Alexa available in several rooms throughout the house has IMPROVED OUR LIVES IN MANY WAYS. 

We started with one Echo in the living room and were so impressed that we added eight more Alexas over the course of a few months. 

Our Alexa army currently includes the following…

a Dot on my vanity {Mama Wolfe}

a Dot in my mom’s suite {Train Gampen}

a Dot in our son’s bedroom  {The Lone Wolfe}

a Dot in our son’s playroom/office {The Ploffice}

a Dot in my husband’s home office {Alpha Wolfe}

an Echo in the basement family room {The Wolfe Den}

a Dot in my workspace in the basement {the Wolfe Sanctuary}  plus

a Dot in the boringly named Kitchen and an Echo in the Living Room. 

But, why so many?!?!?!

Alexa has way more to offer than just random trivia bits or info on what time the local grocery store closes. She has a long list of skills….so long that we have just begun to scratch the surface. 

Below are NINE WAYS ALEXA HAS IMPROVED OUR LIVES so far.  

ONE: {Alexa has TAUGHT us a lot.}

Our son, who will soon be 13, definitely uses Alexa more than anybody else in our family.  He is homeschooled and will ask Alexa for definitions of unknown words he comes across while reading. He checks his math problems {after he computes them on his own, of course}. He confirms correct spelling as he is writing. He even asks Alexa to read long Bible passages for Bible history.

But, he’s not the only one who uses Alexa to learn new things. If the family gets into a debate over a historical fact, some random bit of trivia or whether Columbus Day is a federal holiday, we ask Alexa to settle the debate.  All we have to do is say her name and ask the question. She instantly reports what she finds on the Internet. She has TAUGHT US A LOT!

BONUS: Anything that is asked of Alexa instantly appears in the app on my phone. So, if the 12 year old is seeking inappropriate information, I would instantly know. 

TWO: {Alexa has GIVEN us peace of mind.}

My elderly mother lives with us. and she has an Alexa next to her bed that she uses anytime she needs help. She can either drop in  on one of us and ask directly for help with something or she can make an announcement  which goes out to every Alexa in the house at the same time. Being able to easily ask for help when needed  has allowed her to have continued independence and GIVEN US PEACE OF MIND. 

BONUS: My mom also uses Alexa to help in other ways, including turning her lights on/off, setting timers, controlling her TV and more. 

THREE: {Alexa has DECREASED hollering.}

Our house is not huge but it is big enough that in order  to communicate with with one another, we used to do a lot of hollering. From room to room. From upstairs to downstairs. From one end of the house to the other. But, with Alexa’s drop in  feature, the hollering has come to a halt. Now, we just drop in  on one another. If I need to check on whether our son is showered and ready to roll, instead of hollering upstairs, I can just drop in  on him in his bedroom and gently ask. Or, if I’m in the kitchen and my husband is in his basement office but I want to find out if he wants meatloaf or burgers for dinner, I don’t need to scream. I can just drop in  on him and ask {or remind him to take out the trash, hang the Christmas lights, call the plumber….} So, Alexa has DECREASED HOLLERING and increased calm conversations. 

BONUS: Whomever you drop in  on cannot ignore you and pretend they don’t hear your question. When you drop in,  it opens a two-way conversation so you instantly hear everything in the other room while the other room can also hear you. It truly allows for calm two-way conversations. 

FOUR: {Alexa has ORGANIZED our lives.}

Alexa is amazing at organizing things. She can make lists, set reminders and assign chores. And she does all of those things with a simple command.

Our son is actually pretty good at doing his daily chores but struggles to remember things that are only required of him once or twice weekly. But by assigning “trash” and “dog doo” to his chores, Alexa reminds him {instead of me nagging him}. She even offers him praise when he completes the chore. 

She can also keep track of grocery lists and tasks  to do. From anywhere in the house, I can simply ask Alexa to “add peanut butter to my grocery list” and she does. Or, if I’m brushing my teeth in the downstairs bathroom and suddenly remember that I need to change the kid’s dentist appointment, I can ask her to add that to my tasks  for tomorrow and she does. I’ve always been a fairly organized person, but Alexa has ORGANIZED OUR LIVES even more so!

BONUS: She has an amazing listening range and can pick up commands even when not in the same room.

FIVE: {Alexa has SAVED us time.}

One of my favorite ways to use Alexa is to ask her for weather and news updates  while I am getting dressed to start the day. When I use my phone to check for those details, I always get sucked into the blackhole of FaceBook or get stuck swapping texts back and forth with a friend. But, with Alexa, I can easily listen to a quick weather report  or news update  while still putting on makeup or getting dressed. It’s as easy as can be and has saved me countless precious minutes each morning. And who doesn’t want to SAVE TIME? 

SIX: {Alexa has REVAMPED our sleeping habits.} 

We are a family of night owls, which means we find it hard to fall asleep at a decent time and then struggle to wake up early in the morning.  But Alexa has helped us REVAMP OUR SLEEPING HABITS. Our son’s personalized playlist  helps him fall asleep each night and his alarm  wakes him each morning.

I don’t like to sleep to music but I utilize Alexa in a different way each night. I like to read in bed until I feel sleepy but now I use Alexa to read to me! All I have to do is ask her to read my choice from the Audible Library. She uses her soothing voice to read the next chapter of my book until I feel sleepy enough to finally fall asleep. All I have to do is say, “Alexa, stop” and she does. 

BONUS: From the app, I can change the volume of my son’s music or stop it completely after he falls asleep. I can also verify that his alarm is set, change the time of his alarm or cancel the alarm altogether. She also offers several different types of alarms. Some are downright hilarious {Sharknado!} And you can even ask her to wake you up with your personalized playlist. 

SEVEN: {Alexa has ENHANCED our days.}

Our son loves to listen to music…while he works, while he plays and even while he sleeps and having Alexa and unlimited Amazon Music  has been a game-changer for him.  It does not matter if he is doing his school work on the couch, at his desk or in the basement, he is able to access an unlimited array of songs instantly. Not only can he listen to some upbeat tunes during his math lesson, he can also listen to various samples of whatever classical composer we are studying at the time. He can even access the songs we use to memorize Scripture. The offerings on Amazon Music  are truly vast and the instant access to such a variety of music has ENHANCED OUR DAYS in a big way. 

BONUS: With the Alexa app, I can control the volume, stop the song and filter his choices. It also shows me everything he has listened to {in the off chance I did not HEAR it firsthand, ha ha!}

EIGHT: {Alexa has CREATED a peaceful space.}

This one might be unique to just our family but, I can definitely say that Alexa has CREATED A PEACEFUL SPACE for this Mama!  Our son has a Ploffice for his school work and elaborate Lego collection. My husband has a home office in the basement. My mom has a large suite with loads of privacy. But, until I carved out a little sanctuary in the storage area of the basement, complete with comfy chair, big desk and Alexa, I did not have a work space to call my own. But, now I have a private, quiet, peaceful place to work on blog posts and TpT products.    And because Alexa is a part of that equation, I can work diligently in my little sanctuary without feeling guilty for shirking my household duties or concerned that our son is ignoring his school work. My mom can reach me if she needs something. Our son can too. 

NINE: {Alexa has INCREASED family time.}

The best thing Alexa has done for our family is INCREASE FAMILY TIME.

Between jamming to tunes while cleaning the house together and reminiscing about the “old” music my husband used to listen to, Alexa has used music to INCREASE FAMILY TIME. 

Then you add in the GAMES that she offers, with or without game buttons, and Family Game Night has taken on a whole new dimension. 

For a family Christmas gift, I plan to get an Echo Show for the kitchen so we can easily pull up recipes, catch the news and watch lunch-time documentaries!

My husband uses the Alexa app to drop in on the entire house on his way home from work. This allows us to put away the school work, quickly pick up any messes and be ready to greet him when he walks in the door. This habit has changed the dynamics of weekday evenings for the better in an immense way. 

And with the increased communication throughout the house {including cutting into the gaming headphones}, making plans to spend more time together has never been easier. 

And that’s something that everybody deserves! 

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: REVIEWS, SUGGESTIONS, Supplies, Tips Tagged With: Alexa, family time, Homeschool, Momming, review, smart home

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