Board games have always been a family tradition. We’ll play them at Thanksgiving and on Christmas day, on rainy days or snowy ones. As long as we’re gathered together, we’ll play them on any occasion, really. Dave and I carry on this tradition and often host friends over for game nights. Staying in and playing games is such a great alternative to going out, especially when the weather is cold and yucky. We seriously have the best times during game nights. We’ll split into two teams, boys against girls, and we’ll battle out who’s the smarter/greater gender. And well, it’s usually the ladies. ;) Our friends will sometimes stay until 2 a.m. and we’ll finally call it quits once everyone’s tummies hurt from laughter and our eye lids are too heavy to keep open. Here are some games we’ve played during our game nights. We highly recommend them, they’re all huge hits!

Taboo

• How it works: You get a card with a word on it and you have to describe that word to your teammates without using the 5 Taboo description words. It can get pretty tricky and definitely requires you to think outside of the box.
• Example: Drum is the guess word. You have to describe drum to your teammates without using the description words: instrument, band, stick, beat, music.

Smart Ass

• How it works: This is a fast paced game where one person describes clues to a Who, What or Where Am I question. All other plays try to guess the correct answer first. It’s a fun one because you never have to wait your turn to yell out the answer. As you can imagine, it gets very competitive.
• Example: The clues are: I am a capital city. I am in Asia. I am dangerously polluted. I hosted the 2008 Summer Olympics, etc. The answer is Beijing.

Dirty Minds

• How it works: I’ve got to admit, this game is naughty but equally hilarious. One person reads the filthy clues and if it’s your turn, you have to try and guess the answer. The dirty clues point towards innocent and clean answers so it’s better to be naive in this game.
• Example: The dirty clues are: After you lift up my top, you can start to play with me. When I’m flat, no one wants to play me. Elton John loves to use his fingers on me. The answer is piano.

Battle of the Sexes

• How it works: This is a really fun game to play when you have an equal number of boys and girls. It’s the ultimate men vs women game and it includes trivia and other fun challenges. The girls have to try and answer questions that boys would typically know and vise versa.
• Example: The girls would ask the boys a question like, “What wardrobe staple does LBD stand for?”

The games listed below are also favorites, however I didn’t have them at my apartment with me, so that’s why they’re not pictured above. They’re just as fun though, I promise!

Pictionary

• How it works: Pictionary is a family favorite. It’s like charades but instead of acting out what’s on your card, you have to draw it for your team to guess. I think everyone has a little artist in them so it’s really fun to see what creations your teammates come up with.

Scattergories

• How it works: This is Dave’s favorite game but I’m not going to lie, it sometimes frustrates me because it can get fairly hard. Basically, there’s a chosen letter and all players have to list names of words that start with that letter. And, if you have the same answer as another player, your answer does not count.

Cards Against Humanity

• How it works: This is an easy game to just pick up and play and have a great laugh. It can be a little awkward and uncomfortable at times too, which makes it even more fun. It’s really simple, one player asks a question from one card and everyone else answers the question with their best and funniest card available.

I’d love to know, do you have any games that you recommend? We’re always up for trying new ones!