We enjoyed being outside with the family on those hot days, playing sports and just being together. To really increase your fun this next summer, try creating your own personalized games. By using old, run-down wood and other recycled materials you are one step closer to bringing fun and games to the next level. BiologiQ, a manufacturer of eco-friendly plastic with plastic resin pellets, has put together this great list of ways to recycle old wood.

Try out these creative ways to turn old materials into something brilliant and exciting!

Corn Toss Game

How to Build a Cornhole Toss Set

Who wouldn’t want a Corn Toss game in the backyard? This simple and easy game has been one of the most famous wood games around. Whenever you go to the fair or a carnival, there is always a Corn Toss game somewhere. Create a fun and unique game that the kids and even the older ones will love. Start by creating the board to fit any desire or imagination you want, plus involve the little ones on how it should look. Use this idea to have a start on your board. To make this project even more creative and fun create the bean bags yourself and fill them using plastic pellets. There are plenty of designs and ways to create the bags, you will also become a pro at sewing.

Connect 4

The classic game of four in a row has been bringing fun and smiles for many years. A competitive game of quick wit and skill that can bring out the master in you. Try taking this classic game to another level by revolutionizing it to fit your outdoor needs. Looking around the house, and especially grandpa’s house where you’ll find old wood pallets that can be used to make the board. Get creative when building your game or follow this example.

Shooting Range

Last but certainly not least, a homemade shooting range. Grab your old Red Ryder Carbine-Action Two-Hundred-Shot Range Model Air Rifle and take to your backyard. You already have a Connect Four and Corn Toss game for the kids, but you also should have your own fun. Creating a homemade shooting range is easy, but be careful not to shoot your eye out. Find an old pallet board, print off some targets and pin them or glue them to the board. It is that easy! Take the experience of other posts on our blog, use them as a way to find inspiration!

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Harvest was an incredible time to ask a girl on a date. There are always amazing events and activities available. But now that the time for corn mazes, pumpkin carving, and haunted houses are behind us, it’s time to find fun ways to enjoy dating this winter.

It is no surprise to many of us that winter is a hard time to plan or go on dates. We get busy during the winter, important holidays come up, and soon it is the new year. Where did the time go, and did we even do anything this winter? It doesn’t have to be this way, however, with a couple of dating ideas, you will find that this miserable and cold winter could bring about great memories.

Christmas Movies

Netflix Is Releasing Another Christmas Movie This Weekend

The norm would say that watching movies on a date would be the worst date scenario, but if you make the right choice of a movie then you never know what could happen. During Christmas, there are plenty of movies that fit the mood of any date. Grab some hot chocolate and pick out a nice movie and get to snuggling, to keep warm of course.

Gingerbread Houses

How To Build An Indestructible Gingerbread House

There is nothing quite like a situation where you are on a date, and decisions must be made, and no one can make up their mind. When you create gingerbread houses together you and your date’s creativity and imagination come alive. It is fun to see a different side of someone, especially their creative side.

Shopping

Shopping would probably not even make it onto this list, but when you make shopping for one another a game then it can get interesting. Take the example of Stephanie, 21 who went on a date with her boyfriend. Another great idea is to find an organization that is doing a ‘giving tree’ and go out with your date to find what the family or person needs.

Snowball Fights

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If you want to have a date that is more on the friendly competitive side, take your date outside where it is snowing and show them your snowball fighting skills. If you go on a group date, turn a casual snowball fight into an all-out war. Split into teams, where you’re with your date and begin strategizing what you could do to win!

These ideas and many more will turn the holiday season into a year to remember. Just be creative, have fun, and enjoy the time with your date.

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1. Thankful Tree

Gratitude and giving thanks is what this holiday is all about. Try this fun little thankful tree from The DIY Mommy this Thanksgiving season. Let your littles explore outside for the perfect fallen branch to be the base for their tree. Find a cute bucket or vase to place it in, filled with marbles, moss or dirt. Help them cut out leaves on which they can write down the things they are thankful for. Hang the leaves on the tree and you’re done! You can even have your child think of one thing they are thankful for each day and add a leaf every day.

2. Paint Chip Turkey

This is a fun one. Pick up some paint chips from the store, or let your kids pick out some color. Then use those for the turkey’s tail feathers. Have your kids write or draw what they are thankful for on the paint chips. You can pull these out at the Thanksgiving dinner table to have each child read off what they are thankful for this year. Find the full tutorial at Preschool Alphabet.

3. Wreath of Gratitude

Make a wreath with your child like this one from Parents.com. Pick up some colored paper and a styrofoam wreath from the dollar store. Have your kids write down or draw what they are thankful for and pin their leaves to the wreath. You could even go on a nature hike and find real leaves to add to this project.

4. Thankful Dry Erase Boards

With this craft, let your child pick out a picture frame and frame a paper that says “Today I am thankful for…” with some space to write what they are thankful for. Each day have them write down with a dry erase marker what they are thankful for. Let them decorate the frame with pompoms, glitter, leaves, or whatever their little minds can imagine. You can find some free printables for this craft at Bren Did.

5. Thankful Pie

With this fun craft, all you need are some paper plates, a bracket, paint (or markers), and something to write with. Turn one of the plates into a pumpkin pie with the paint, cut out a “piece” of the pie, and write the words “I am thankful for…”. On the bottom plate, have your child write the things they are thankful for. Attach both plates with a bracket in the center so they can turn the plates to show what they are thankful for each day.

6. Grateful Rocks

Find some rocks on a hike, or pick some up from a craft store, and let your child paint, write, or draw what they are thankful for on them. This is a great activity for the entire family to participate in. For a fun activity afterwards, you can even let your kids hide the rocks around the house (inside or outside) and try to find each other’s rocks. Find the tutorial for these rocks at Teach Kids Art.

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