Do you and your family love to play games? With the weather (finally) starting to get cooler, one thing is clear. Game season is just around the corner. Woohoo!
So let’s get those games and puzzles organized so you can make the most of family game night. Sound like a plan?
Store your games so they’re easy to get your hands-on, making game night a more likely (and more enjoyable) event. Whenever possible, keep your games (or at least the family favorites) in the room where you play games. Store them in a family-room cabinet, on a shelf on your coffee table, or tucked inside a storage ottoman. If you play games at the kitchen table, carve out some space in a nearby cabinet, pantry or even on top of the fridge. The closer you store your games to where you play them, the more likely it is you’ll get them out to play and put them away when you’re all done.
Consider storing games sideways to make them easier to slide out at game time. Just make sure the lid will stay put so contents don’t spill. 😉
Corral small games like card games and pick-up sticks into a long, narrow box. By storing these games vertically it’s easy to see what you have. Flash cards and other educational card games can be tucked inside a basket.
Keep score-keeping pads and pencils, or even dice and playing cards inside a brightly colored bucket.
If one puzzle is good…eight must be better, right? Right. Until all eight get dumped on the floor at exactly the same time. If you’ve sorted one too many puzzle piece in your lifetime, try this trick. Assign each puzzle a number, and label the backs of each puzzle piece with that puzzles assigned number. For example, the United States map puzzle pieces are all labeled with a #1; the fruit puzzle pieces are labeled with #2 and so on. If pieces from more than one puzzle get mixed together, it will be much easier to sort by numbers instead of trying to distinguish the colors, patterns and shapes on the front of the pieces.
Happy game playing…and remember to sign up for the “Organize Your Kid’s Room” teleclass for even more ideas on how to keep your life with kiddos organized and fun! I can’t wait to see you in class. 🙂
It’s official!! I’m moving in with Aby. No – not with my kids, just me. I can live all nice and cosy in one of those clean, organized shelves or even in the “new tubby toy” colinder. I’m pretty easy. I swear I won’t take up much room. With that said, great idea about the games…and LOVE the idea about numbering the puzzle pieces. Why didn’t I think of that? But that’s what makes Aby so Aby! Gotta love her!
Okay, I’m a lurker, but your puzzle tip just made my year!!!! I have an entire basket of puzzle pieces that taunt me every day, I can’t wait to do this!
Thanks!
Hi Aby – My friend gave me a neat tip on storing puzzles – when they are done slip them under the cushions on your sofas. They don’t seem to get squashed and the kids can get to them easily. Bye for now Angela
Hi Aby – My friend gave me a neat tip on storing puzzles – when they are done slip them under the cushions on your sofas (between the cushion and the base). They don’t seem to get squashed and the kids can get to them easily. Bye for now Angela
This is AWESOME Aby! I love it… me and puzzles have this love hate thing going on! I have tried the disposable Glad containers for puzzles. They come in different sizes but they stack really well! What a fun little cabinet you got there!
LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the idea of numbering the puzzles. My kids aren’t quite old enough yet to really get into puzzles, but I know they will someday. Great idea!!! And yes, once I get my kitchen closet cleaned out, I’ll be moving the games and puzzles into there so it will be closer to where the games would be played.
oh my goodness, the puzzle numbering is genius!!! when my boy gets big enough to start playing with puzzles im definately gonna have to do that!
I have done the puzzle organizing such as you mentioned for a classroom. Guess how many puzzles I have: *Rhetorical Question~ I am a teacher after all, so it is a LOT* Another great extension of the same idea is to place the same label/number that you have assigned to each puzzle ON THE INSIDE OF THE TOP AND BOTTOM OF THE BOX. (Not yelling, just emphasizing the hint extension ;~D )