It’s the end of summer, and my kids are too exhausted even for a trip to Applegate’s for three-scoop sundaes.
In fact, the very concept of family togetherness is frayed around the edges these days, with sibling arguments erupting more frequently than mosquito bites, and way too many hours logged onto Minecraft and Club Penguin.
Fortunately, a few items I’ve found around town are helping us savor these dog-eared days of togetherness a little more.
Normally, we are huge fans of Pit Deluxe (Aunt Jean’s Toys & Treats, $18), a commodities trading game that makes the recent rowdiness of the stock market seem positively lackluster. Our entire extended family can play Pit without worrying that younger kids will be outdone—my sweet-natured daughter has been the reigning champ since she started playing at five!
A less raucous alternative to Pit is Sushi Roll ($14). My kids love sushi (minus the cucumber, avocado, and fish), so this immediately scored points. The rules of Sushi Roll are simple: The first person to match four of the cards in their hand with all four wooden dice wins that round. Like a dollop of wasabi on a California roll, there are various special cards you can add to the game to spice things up. Sushi Roll, like Pit, requires minimal (if any) reading skills.
If you’re looking for a less competitive way to inspire family togetherness, check out 19 Art Mysteries Every Child Should Know (Montclair Art Museum Gift Shop, $14.95). Unlike many of the other art books for children I’ve bought, this one hooked every member of our family. It includes intriguing stories about various artists and artworks, from the Mona Lisa to graffiti by Banksy. My husband read it cover-to-cover while standing at the kitchen counter, and even my skeptical ‘tween was fascinated by the enigma of Van Gogh’s unfortunate ear! The book also includes activity suggestions and intriguing questions to enliven dinner table discussions.
I’ll be making a pit stop to Williams-Sonoma on Valley Road for the new OXO Cherry and Olive Pitter (Williams-Sonoma, Valley Road, $13), which gets kudos from online reviewers. My daughter loves cherries, but hates the “rocks” in the middle, and my son the chef appreciates a good kitchen gadget…Voila! A few minutes of sibling solidarity. (And I might even be inspired to make a real cherry pie.)
Finally, as our last hurrah to summer, I plan to buy an inexpensive scrapbook and some adorable summer-themed scrapbooking supplies from Rock, Paper, Scissors. I especially like the clear stamps with expressions like Off the beaten path… and Are we there yet? ($15 for ten), the Just for Kids stamp pads ($3.50 each), and the pearls and gems self-adhesive stickers ($3 per package).
I’ll print out a pile of summer photos, and let the kids choose how they want to contribute. My son might be the editor, picking which pictures to include and writing the captions, while my daughter assumes the role of graphic designer, choosing the themes and decorating accordingly. Someday (soon!), we’ll look back on those long, lazy days as the best in our lives…
Suzanne Moyers is a former teacher and professional writer who is working on a young adult novel. Her children are 10 and 7.
We’ve had great success with Wise and Otherwise, which has you start with, say, an old Cameroonian saying–“when you only have one cow…” Each person finishes the sentence and then you have to guess which is the original. I can’t remember the correct answer on this one, but I remember my son’s response: i”f you only have one cow don’t say you have more than only one cow.” it made me laugh so hard I almost choked on my Cappu-scream-o. Maybe you just had to be there.