When Hasbro's new Star Wars: A Force Awakens Monopoly set came out in late 2015, fans discovered something was missing . Well, some one was missing: Rey . And one 8-year-old wasn't okay with that. (And honestly, neither were we.) So Anni…
When my kids get bored over the summer, their go-to entertainment, other than the Xbox (of course), is board games . So when we got a chance to try out the new Beyond Tablet -- an electronic, but screen-free, tabletop gaming system -- in…
My kids' playroom has a bookshelf with piles of board games taller than me. So yeah, you could say we're fairly avid tabletop gamers at our house. But, even so, we're still always on the lookout for fun new games. If they're really affor…
Last week, my son and I visited the Innovator's Fair here in Philadelphia and discovered our newest board game obsession: Maze Racers . It combines creativity and building with mazes in a super fun way. Let's just say, we're all addicted…
My family loves to play board games. I'm talking, big, involved, takes-three-hours-to-play board games. And what better time to play than when we're on summer vacation? But, it can be tricky to travel with big boxes full of a zillion pie…
Summer break will be here in just a minute, but there are some things you can start planning now to help make sure your kids don't hit the summer slide on their reading and math skills over the break. Research shows that most kids lose a…
When I look back at some of my biggest parenting fails, most of them have occurred when I haven't taken the time to consider my kids' emotions or help them process their worry, anger, fear, or whatever else it is they are experiencing ri…
Now that Thanksgiving is in the rearview mirror, it's really starting to feel like Christmas to me. And as much as I love the shopping and the hot cocoa and the decorations, my favorite part is the parties. Instead of sending the kids to…
With the massive popularity of Cards Against Humanity, it was only a matter of time before someone created a G-rated (ok, G-rated-ish) adaptation that pays homage to its irreverent mastery. Enter Not Parent Approved , a truly hilarious, …
If your family is divided by the word nerds who love Scrabble and the strategists who love Monopoly, then we've found the family tabletop game for you. It's called Word Domination , it's on Kickstarter now, and it's already winning gamin…
During the summer I usually let my kids stay up late, but we ditch the screens and play board games together instead. So, each year I keep my eye on the Spiel des Jahres award-winning board games to find the best new board games that are…
Now that my kids are old enough to play "real" games -- you know, the ones where I don't have to let them win -- I love finding new clever and fun options for when we all gather around the table to play. So I was really excited to learn …
The school year is winding down and I'm looking forward to nights with no homework (yay!) and fewer extracurricular activities on our calendar (double yay!). That means board game night. So I started to track down the best board games fo…
Kudos to my sister-in-law who scored with arguably the biggest hit of all the gifts this holiday season, Telestrations . Or actually, credit may go to my 9-year-old niece who saw it in a store and said, "hey, that looks fun" which was th…
When you think back to the best toys of the year (and other playful gifts for kids) you probably think about tech, tablets, and things that require cords and batteries. And yet there's so much more, from wonderful board games, to handmad…
This is a sponsored message from SimplyFun board games With Thanksgiving break coming up this week and Hanukkah and Christmas not far behind, it's a great time to be thinking about getting a few family game nights on the calendar. You pr…
We've got a strong competitive gene in my family, which means when we all get together, we like to hang around the dinner table playing board games. The kids get in on the action too, but that doesn't mean we're relegated to playing kidd…
Two of my kids have now outgrown some of my own favorite childhood board games like Candy Land and Chutes and Ladders -- classic versions only, please. (And yes, I admit I do like Candy Land. Don't ask why.) My kids are now into the kind…
Hey, wait a minute. Is that you, August? How did you get here so fast? I know I'm not the only one who feels like this. Wasn't it April just yesterday? Instead of trying to wrap our collective heads around the theory of relativity, let's…
Yes, wishing Monopoly money were real may be the biggest cliché, but close behind it is wishing you had more of the fake kind. At least if you're like us and somehow manage to lose it over the years. So I'm not sure why I never considere…
Anyone who’s dealt with a picky kid (and who hasn’t?) knows that feeding a picky eater is the opposite of fun. And I've found two new parenting resources—one a book, the other a game—which aim to change that. Both were developed by moms …
From amazing dolls to cool new games and imaginative toys, there have been so many fantastic options out for kids at play this year that encourage things we love, like creativity, imagination, building, interest in STEM pursuits, defianc…
When the holidays--and the cold weather--hit, it's the time I make sure our games are in good shape. As in, half the cards from UNO aren't missing and there is actually Monopoly money in the Monopoly game. As opposed to the play kitchen.…
My husband comes from a family of players. Game players, that is. The next time we host a family dinner, I'd love to pull out this gorgeous four in a row wood game to engage in a bit of healthy competition. (Spoiler alert: I've always be…