Funk Family Game Night

With vacation on the horizon (CAN’T WAIT), we’ve been putting together a stack of games that we thought would be good to take with us.  Our vacation is mostly a beach/sun/outdoor vacation, but I’m sure when we’re tired from a long day of playing, we’ll be looking for ways to settle in and relax.  And I’d MUCH rather play some games than flip on the TV!

My personal goal in choosing games to take was three-fold:

1. Quick, lite, easy-to-play — We’re not going to be having marathon gaming sessions.  But I can see us playing a few hands of something in the evening or too cool off in the A/C or while waiting on people…
2. Small — we’re going to be sardines in the car, so…  Smaller is better!  (Though I was the only one that went small in my choices…)
3. Easily replaceable — I get a bit anal about keeping my games in decent condition, so I want to take games that I can easily replace if things get lost/left/wet/etc…  🙂

So, the games I, personally, decided to take with us are: (in no particular order)

• Rat-a-Tat Cat — We’ve had this game forever, and it’s still something the girls enjoy playing.  It’s light and fun and quick and has been a family favorite…
• Something Different — A party game that I Kickstarted, this should be a lot of goofy, hectic fun.
• Ugh! — I haven’t played this, yet, but hear good things.  Looking forward to giving it a try.
• Hanabi — Cooperative!  The perfect game for when we just want everyone to get along!
• Spot It (Travel)! — Spot It is one of Brynna’s FAVORITE games.  The addition of the travel rules (matching real objects outside the car) makes this a win!
• Gloom — We’re taking the girls’ summer nanny, Mara, with us.  I think with her creativity, this will be a great time to introduce the girls to story-telling games.
• Farmageddon — Love me some 5th Street Games.  This one is always a good time when we play, and has some fun take-that mechanics.
• Council of Verona — A bit more serious of a game, but still easy to play.  Great game in a small package!
• Love Letter — (Tempest) Nothing really to say, here.  Brynna loved the Kanai edition, and I think this one will be even more fun for her.  Can’t wait to introduce everyone else to it.

Along with the games I chose, I told Jenn and the older 2 girls to pick out anything they want to take.  Apparently, size wasn’t a concern for them..  So…

• Dixit — Abby chose this one.  It’s probably her favorite game.  We recently got another deck (we have original and Journeys), so we’ll have twice as many cards to play with this time!
• Reverse Charades Jr. — I hate this game.  Really.  Brynna wanted to bring it.  If she hadn’t said “so Mara can play with Abby and I”, I probably would’ve “forgotten” it.  Sorry, Mara!
• Telestrations — I find Telestrations a lot more fun with more people, but Jenn assured me it would be a blast with the 5 of us that are old enough to play (poor Maddie, always left out).  Love the game, hope she’s right  🙂

I have no illusions that we’ll play every one of these games.  And PART of me hopes that we’re so involved with spending time with each other outdoors and in other ways that we have no time to play these at all.  But I think the variety we’re taking will be a nice complement to our other activities and give us a chance to just kick back, relax, and enjoy some inside time together without the TV blaring.

If/when we get a chance to play, I’ll try to write up some session reports.  🙂

If anyone reads this…  What are your go-to travel/vacation games?  What games do you never leave home without?  Maybe I’ll add some more to our pile…..