Head Outside For Some Fun Yard Games!

Liven up your next BBQ, camping trip or family afternoon with some fun yard games.

I have many fond childhood memories of being outside a lot with family, not only doing farm and yard work, but playing endlessly. We spent many hours playing croquet, lawn jarts and all kinds of hide-n-seek, and Mother May I favorites.

As the weather warms, and the winter activities are slowing down, it is the perfect time to prepare for the spring and summer - and that means more time spent outside. Not only are yard games a wonderful way to spend time with family, they are also a way to help little ones develop eye / hand coordination.

When looking online for some new ideas for outdoor games, I was pleased to see so much variety - there is something fun for everyone!

I had never heard of this game until about a year ago at a family member's BBQ. This is a really fun game that can be played by two opponents, or in teams. The racks of three tiers are placed about 25' away, and the players toss balls tied to a thin stretch of rope to score points, which depends on which rung the balls end up on. The rules are simple, and is great fun.

Originated in Italy, the Bocce game has become popular worldwide. A match is conducted between players, or two teams of two, three, or four. Once the small "jack" is tossed, it is the work of the teams to bowl the larger balls as close to the jack as possible. Knocking the jack or another ball further away is all part of the play.  Both natural turf, and asphalt work well for the game.  You'll find many hours of enjoyment with Bocce.

Croquet is played both as a recreational yard game, and as a competitive sport.  The game's oldest set of rules date back to 1856, but is mentioned as a game called "Pall Mall" played in England in the early seventeenth century.  Croquet is played by striking a ball with a mallet through arches embedded in the ground.  There is a pattern set up across the yard, ending at the finishing poles, and often back to the finish to complete the game.  We wore out a few sets of this game growing up - it is a favorite for many.

Badminton is a racquet sport easily set up and played in the yard by either two, or a pair of opposing players. A "shuttlecock", or "birdy" is batted back and forth over a net until the birdy hits the ground, and the round is ended. Badminton has been an Olympic sport since 1992, and is played either indoors, in the yard, or beach. This is a great game for promoting aerobic stamina, and agility.  This is a great game for family and friends!

Disc golf is a game where players throw a flying disk, much like a frisbee, into a basket target.  A winner of this game wins when traversing a course to the end with the fewest number of disk throws.  Disk golf has become a very popular game, with more than 3,000 disk golf courses established as of 2010.  Disk golf players have been enjoying this fun sport as early as the 1960s, but the courses weren't actually set up until the early '70s.  The golf discs used are much smaller and heavier than traditional frisbees, which were first introduced by Wham-O's flying disk.

The game, Washers, is quite similar to horseshoes and involves two players, or teams taking turns tossing washers toward a washer box.  You score points in a few different ways, depending on where the washer lands - whether in the a box, the can that is in the box, or within a foot of box.  A simple game that has entertained for many years, and has quite a create variety of game pieces available.