New Mom Accuses MIL of Giving Her Newborn a Cold Sore
Kanye West Announces He's Running for President in 2020
Mom Feels 'Violated' When Babysitter Quit After She Read Private...
20 Series to Watch This Summer That Are Generating Buzz
20 of the Most Rewatchable Movies of All Time
When your kids head out into the yard to play, it probably triggers some memories for you -- of epic hide-and-seek games, or heroic victories playing Capture the Flag. Ahh, those were the days, right?
So if your kids are whining that they're bored or don't know what to do, pick your own favorite game from your childhood and show them the ropes. Here are a few oldies but goodies to get you started.
We think #8 will never go out of style -- how about you?
Image © bikeriderlondon/shutterstock
-
Image via Pavel Lysenko/shutterstock
It doesn't get simpler than kids chasing each other around a backyard, does it? And that's the charm of freeze tag ... plus the fact that you can be "freed" by another player keeps the game going on and on.
More from The Stir: Helicopter Parenting Ruins Your Child's Imagination
-
Image via Ruben Pinto/shutterstock
Good ol' Kick the Can: All you needed was an empty soda and a few willing participants. From there, it was a lot like Hide-and-Seek, with the only difference being that those who got "home" got to punt that piece of tin. So satisfying!
-
Image via Gelpi JM/shutterstock
In this nighttime version of freeze tag, kids could "tag" each other with the beam of their flashlight. It was like a low-tech version of laser tag, and far more fun and affordable, doncha think?
-
Image via BestPhotoStudio/shutterstock
This simple game is by far the funnest way to learn the difference between "red" and "green" lights -- pure genius in terms of traffic safety! But it also helped us hone our reflexes: Stopping and going at the whims of your designated traffic controller was tough work!
More from The Stir: The 18 Best Mom Comebacks to 'Will You Play With Me?'
-
Image via Ollyy/shutterstock
This game combined the thrill of freeze tag with pop culture: To be freed from being "tagged," you yelled out a TV show. Which sounded simple enough, only you couldn't repeat the same show twice, so you'd better have watched a lot of TV!
-
Image via Anna Omelchenko/shutterstock
If you ever played Capture the Flag, you know it involved some serious strategy and teamwork: Each team has to find their flag and bring it back to home base, all while keeping the other team from doing the same. The whole yard became a battlefield of epic proportions!
-
Image via Diego Cervo/shutterstock
This game isn't as popular as it once was, most likely due to a few dislocated shoulders ... still, though, it was a grand old time. Each team clutched each other's hands, then invited a member of the other team to try to break through. The team with the weakest links lost!
-
Image via Velazquez77/shutterstock
This age-old game is still popular today, and for very good reason: It combines the thrill of hiding, seeking, and being caught or "home free." What more could a kid want?
More from The Stir: The 10 Playground Hazards Most Dangerous to Kids
-
Image via Tom Wang/shutterstock
The premise was so simple: We asked "Mr. Fox" what time it was; if he said "four o'clock," that's how many steps we took toward him. Yet as we crept closer, he'd eventually announce it was "dinnertime." Time to flee!
-
Image via Voyagerix/shutterstock
You've gotta respect a game that teaches kids manners! It may seem so old-fashioned now, but Mother, May I? was good stuff -- a gentler, more familial form of Simon Says where the designated "mom" ordered everyone around. This is definitely one to bring back, like, now!
More from The Stir: 25 Things Every Kid Should Do Before Kindergarten
