4 Ideas for a Fun Family Night In

It's impossible for me to plan anything with my friends on Friday evenings. Somehow, this night was universally reserved for Family Night Out - a concept I cannot fathom.

Not in the sense of "Why would I want to spend Friday nights with my kids?", but rather "Go out??" You see, my children behave like complete hooligans whenever we leave the house. Well actually, they behave like hooligans at home too, but at least I'm not publicly humiliated by the goings-on.

The only place my kids can be counted on to set aside the 98% of the DNA we share with chimpanzees and use higher reasoning with the other 2% is at MacDonald's. The simple reason their behavior seems to blend in with public expectation at McD's is because the other children at the restaurant are also behaving like hooligans.

So, when the rest of the world is enjoying a quality meal at the local Chuck E. Cheese's, we stay home. Another hidden benefit of hugging home base is the magical moment when you see them begin to crash, you can pop them into bed immediately and they'll actually accept it.

In our experience, there are 4 sure wins for a great family night in.

1. Movie Night

With the age range in our family, it has to be something we can all enjoy. One of our big favorites is The Swiss Family Robinson - action, romance, ostrich racing, and dueling with pirates. What more could you want?

Unless, of course, it's The Princess Bride. I really shouldn't think it so funny, but I get a kick out of Rascal's Inigo impression as he brandishes his Dark Bayder lightsaber: "You keel my favver. Prepare to die!"

A recent addition to our DVD library is Ratatouille. We've watched it many times already and love to pick up the little nuances those clever Pixar folks include. We're also big fans of Cars.

2. Games Night

Candy Land is one of those classic games you should have around. Rascal's been playing it since his 3rd birthday and can go several rounds before he's bored. Every Christmas we expand our game selection, particularly the classics.

Carcassone is better for older kids because it requires some basic strategy, yet it's a quick game to play (especially compared to, say, Monopoly). You can buy expansion sets to make the game more complex.

Uno is a must-have in our house. We actually own 3 different sets (Princess for Tweenie, Sesame Street for Rascal, and an aged classic version from who-knows-when), and nothing gives our kids more pleasure than when they can wallop Husband or I with a Pick-Up-4 Wild Card.

3. Book Night

Sometimes we're in a more mellow mood, have the fire going and are drinking tea or hot chocolate. The kids love when I read them a book (with character voices, obviously). We've been reading the Narnia series, which has just enough adventure but not too scary to give nightmares later on. The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe is undoubtedly the best of the bunch.

A friend recommended The Polar Express to us one year. It's a sweet story, but I love it for the amazing illustrations. It's Christmassy though, so we don't usually pull it out any other time.

I started collecting Dr. Seuss after some unscrupulous marketer called me during my Tweenie postpartum days. I had the opposite of PPD; I was so elated to be a new mom that I was unusually friendly to telemarketers and ended up signing on for several children's book collections. I don't regret the Dr. Seuss club though, and our copy of Green Eggs and Ham is in desperate need of replacement. Not only are the books humorous enough, but they are fabulous for new readers.

4. Baking (and eating!)

This can happen on its own or together with another activity. With Tweenie I can bake something special from scratch, but once Rascal was old enough to figure out something fun was going down without his participation, we have had to change our strategy some. Now Kye is at the right age to join in, and so we have defected to Pillsbury. The pre-cut cookies are the easiest for everyone to help with, and you can usually find a generic brand (although not in the variety of flavors).

Another idea we like is to take a cake mix and make cupcakes. I buy the most outrageous muffin cups I can find (after-season is great) and always have icing and food coloring on hand. Depending on how elaborate the creations get, the kids may be distracted for a few hours.

5. Crafts Night. . . NOT

This post is labeled "4 Ideas for a Fun Family Night In", not 5. That's because there is nothing fun about doing crafts with my children. There is only so much tidying up I am willing to do after everyone's in bed, so we leave the craft stuff for the community center. Or if I'm at my wit's end and wiping glue and glitter off of baseboards seems more appealing than any other alternative.

Any more ideas out there? I always like to have a few alternates planned, in case my evening goes horribly horribly haywire.