In a day and age of distracting electronic gadgets and social networking online, playing board games with friends and family is a simple and fun way to reconnect with others. Many people today communicate via email, cell phone, or mobile device, and it can be easy to forget or neglect to learn real life communication and social skills. Here are some ways that playing board games can encourage these skills.

-Problem solving is something that board games can help teach. Learning how to deal with dilemmas is an important life skill, and board games like checkers, chess, and others require players to look ahead to solve problems, and consider the consequences of their choices.

-Learning to win and lose gracefully can go a long way in encouraging healthy socialization. No one wants a sore loser for a friend! Someone who knows how to win without taunting and lose without griping is more likely to form healthy interpersonal relationships.

-Interactive board games require players to communicate effectively, and with some board games (such as those that involve having to discern a hidden term or word), the more effective communicator is the winner. There are very few times in life when good communication skills are not necessary.

-Family time is so important – the skills you need to learn for the world begin in the home. Board games are a wonderful way for family members to learn from each other and develop those interpersonal skills that will follow them into life. Playing board games with your family can bring family members together in ways that may not have been considered before. Gaining insight into what makes your friends and/or family members “tick” can be invaluable in promoting healthy friendships and family harmony.

-Teamwork is a social skill that is applicable in school, the workplace, and in families. Board games encourage effective teamwork, and players with the best team skills are more likely to be winners.

-You will learn more and gain knowledge with some board games, such as those that test your knowledge of specific facts or concepts. This can be a significant asset for children in school.

-Healthy competition is a motivational concept that is helpful for everyone in the family, from school-age kids to grandparents. Competition encourages you to improve yourself and strive to be better.

Board games are not expensive and are readily available. Try declaring family game night, take the whole family shopping for a board game (or more than one to make sure all ages are covered), and enjoy the time together. Or the next time your friends get together, bring a board game or go out and buy one together. You’ll be glad you did!

Recommended: Ticket To Ride and Wildcraft

The winter months can come to be a dreary and dull time if you’re the type that prefers spending lots of time out in the sunshine with your kids. However, with a little creativity, you can make memories and have a fabulous time during the cold winter months just like in the summer months.

Bundle up and enjoy some outdoor activities with the children in winter, especially if there’s snow. Then head back  inside for some hot cocoa or tea and continued indoor activities.

Here are some ideas to get you started:

1. Get cooking! Grab a child-friendly cookbook and make something delicious together. Baking and decorating can prove to be hours of fun during the day, and you’ll have treats to look forward to after dinner. Some great cookbooks for kids include the Pink Princess Cookbook and the Cookbook for Boys.

2. Craft days keep boredom away. Bring out a box of art supplies (paints, crayons, play dough, colored pencils) and make some art or winter themed crafts. You can also make your own play dough and paint!

3. Try Winter sports. There are so many fun and active things you can do in the winter from ice skating to winter hiking.

4. Read. Reading should actually be a year round activity and winter is no exception. You might try reading stories to your children that take place in the winter. Look for books about the winter solstice, snowmen, snowflakes, snowball fights, etc. Check out this list of kids winter books for ideas. Enjoy a good story together as a family and allow everyone a turn to read or a turn to act out the story.

5. Snow painting is great fun for kids. Simply mix food coloring with water to make some “paint.” You can then let the little ones go wild as they create special works of art in the snow. You can also freeze colored water in molds so that kids can make colored ice castles. Your beach molds from summer work great for this.

6. Build an indoor fort. Every kid loves to build a fort! Get creative with your blankets and pillows and build a cozy home within a home for your children. They will enjoy having a special hideout and will forget it may be too cold to play outside. Give them a flashlight and a sleeping bag and let them sleep in there too.

7. Enjoy some karaoke. You can buy or rent a karaoke machine for some indoor fun for the entire family. Feel free to get wild and crazy and join in on the fun with them. While it’s not for everyone, many will enjoy the chance to sing along to their favorite songs. Even kids who shy about performing will often love karaoke in the safety of their home.

8. Feed the birds. Kids often wonder how animals and birds survive in the winter when the vegetation is gone so they might love to make breakfast cookies for the local wildlife. Make up some dough from biscuit baking mix, cut out shapes with cookie cutters, and use a straw to punch a hole at the top of each cookie. Brush with butter and then sprinkle with birdseed (sesame and sunflower work well). Bake for 15 to 20 minutes and let them cool. After they have cooled your kids can thread ribbon or string through the holes and hang the birdie breakfast cookies from the branches of trees.

9. Take a trip to the mall. Remember that you can always go to the mall as a nice treat for the day. While you may not want spend money, it never hurts to look around and get some exercise. Mall walking is a GREAT winter exercise activity. You can even pack a quick snack for them to munch on in the food court.

10. Go to a museum. Museums are great places to visit in the winter. Inquire at the museum about special activities for smaller patrons. Many museums have ongoing programs just for the kids like family nights. Buy a season pass and you can go all winter long for a very reasonable one time price.

Remember that the possibilities for fun and adventure are endless, even in the winter! There’s no reason to stay cooped up and perhaps depressed that it isn’t spring yet. You can still keep the kids active and have a great time.

When looking for something “unplugged” to do, either for yourself, or with your family, what do you hope to get out of the experience? Are you only looking for something that is fun and enjoyable or are you hoping to do something that is educational so you can learn something from the experience. Either option is a good one but an activity that does both is even better. Board games can often do just that if you pick the right ones.

One of the best board games that is educational and fun for adults and older kids the Ticket to Ride Board Game. It is a cross country adventure game that teaches geography in an entertaining way. There is a North American version and European version. You collect train cards to complete train routes and connect cities. The longer the routes the more points you earn and you get points by making city to city connections. The winner is the player who has accumulated the most points.

It doesn’t take hours to play like some games, it has won many awards, and it has received rave reviews from children AND adults. If you need more challenges you can buy expansions packs to add even more adventure and functionality and you can also buy a different version to explore new areas of the world.

This game is especially loved by homeschooling families for its prowess in teaching while still being fun. If you are looking for TV free activities then check out Ticket to Ride.

Where to buy Ticket to Ride – Save 33% and get FREE shipping!

Listen in to the conversations you hear at the grocery store. You may hear one mother complain that her children often say “I want this” or “I want that.” Another parent may mention that they’re tired of how many different directions their family runs on a daily basis. Whether your family has the “I wants” or is rarely together, you may want to consider the advantages of family volunteering.

One of the many advantages of family volunteering is having your family work on a project together. Not only can you spend time with one another, but you help someone who is less fortunate than yourselves. If you look at it like that, it’s a win-win situation.

Perhaps your family is concerned about the environment. You can probably find environmental projects you can do in your own area. Call the local city park to see if they need help. They may ask you to help pick up litter, plant trees or flowers in flower beds, or place markers to identify the trees along a walking trail.

Another family volunteering activity you can do is to work at a soup kitchen or center for homeless people. They have to feed those staying at the shelter every day so they’d probably be thrilled to have someone come to the center to help cook, serve, or clean up after meals. Many people consider helping during the holidays but there are needs at these shelters and centers all year round.

Is anyone in your family handy with tools? You may want to volunteer as a family to work on a Habitat for Humanity home or some similar project. If you get involved when the project first starts and see it through completion, your family can feel proud of a job well done and see the joy on a deserving family’s face when they are handed the keys to their new home.

What are some other advantages to family volunteering?

* You’re teaching your children about giving to others rather than always asking for something.

* Volunteering allows children to become involved in their community in a tangible way.

* It teaches your family to become stronger, promotes positive values, and teaches them how to work as a team.

* Having your children volunteer while they’re young will probably encourage them to continue volunteering as an adult. They may even pass the volunteering tradition onto their own children.

* Family volunteering can be a lot of fun!

Bring your family together by volunteering. You can strengthen your family, have fun, and benefit others in the process.

In the winter, your garden pond is probably fairly quiet – hoses and pumps have been disconnected, and the pond itself may be frozen or drained. But there are ways to bring your garden pond to life in the winter by attracting wildlife. Here are some ways to attract wildlife to your garden pond in the winter.

1. Construct shelters

One of the things that a pond can offer is a sort of sheltered oasis for cold, hungry wildlife. Shelter is one of the things wild animals need in winter. Put up birdhouses to give birds a place out of the wind where they can roost at night. And you may find a delightful surprise in spring if the birds choose to nest there!

Rock piles are another form of shelter that do well around ponds, and may already be a part of your water-scape. Loosely pile rocks if they are not there already, and allow leaves to accumulate in and around the rock pile. This can provide shelter for ground-dwelling birds, frogs and toads, and small rodents such as chipmunks.

2. Provide drinking water

Water is a resource that is surprisingly hard to come by in winter. Most water sources are frozen or dry, so consider keeping at least some water in your pond. Since your pump and hoses are probably disassembled, you can just pour in a bit of water. Use warm water to thaw any ice, or use an electric warmer. A reliable water source will attract all kinds of wildlife, from birds and squirrels to deer.

3. Food

Food is also scarce in winters, especially in harsh climates with a great deal of snow. You can hang a traditional bird feeder around your pond, or set out a shallow dish of food. Depending on the method of feeding, you can attract chipmunks, squirrels, deer, and birds to your pond.

Remember that high-fat foods are especially beneficial in winter, and include fatty seeds and grains like sunflower seeds, peanuts, and corn. You can also mix dried fruits, grains and nuts with suet or leftover kitchen fats (such as bacon, sausage, or chicken fat chilled until solid) and smear it on your rock pile or food plate.

4. Shrubs

Evergreen shrubs are an excellent shelter for wildlife in the winter, and they look lovely around a pond. Plant American holly for a protective, bristly shelter for birds – its red berries also provide food. Hardy rose bushes provide juicy, red rosehips (berries) in cold weather. Deer are attracted to shrubs that bear berries as well. White spruce and balsam fir are also favorites among wildlife for shelter.

If you provide these things around your pond, you may be able to view species you have never seen before, such as grouse. Your pond area can be a wonderful oasis for a variety of wildlife, providing needed food and shelter for the animals and viewing pleasure for you.

May 2010 be a year with less time spent in front of the electronic babysitter and more time spent with family and in the pursuit of your passions. Here are my 10 resolutions for TV Free, active outdoor activity and time.

1. Do at least 7 of the 13 organized winter hikes in my community.

2. Go sledding with every big snow this winter.

3. Take some classes at the Metro Parks and through my city parks and recreation.

4. Take more nature photography walks.

5. Do a charity walk or run.

6. Start a walking, jogging, or bicycling program in the spring for me and the kids.

7. Go camping more often and buy an RV or pop up tent trailer to facilitate this.

8. Take a picnic basket to one state or local park every month starting in the spring.

9. Mall walk on the weekends with my mom and the kids all year long.

10. De-clutter, hold a garage sale, and use the money to buy sports equipment like skis.

What are your unplugged goals for 2010?

We live in an era of electronics and technology, and while these things are useful, it’s important to keep things in perspective and enjoy the natural world. Studies show that just getting outside for an hour a day is very beneficial, especially for children. In fact, there are more and more programs popping up to help urban school kids reconnect with nature. No matter what your location, there are ways you and your family can get back to Mother Nature.

1. Get outside

This one may seem rather obvious, but if you live in the inner city, getting outside does not necessarily put you in the middle of nature. For those who are lucky enough to have a yard to play in, just going outside with no particular agenda is a wonderful way for children and adults to connect with the natural world. If you or your kids are more comfortable with having a project to do while you are outside, here are some ideas:

-Build a “cabin” from twigs by laying them cross-wise like settlers’ cabins.
-Collect rocks, leaves, etc. and identify them.
-Identify plants and what they are good for (such as food or medicine).
-Collect pine cones, seed pods, feathers, etc. and use them to make crafts.

If you live in the middle of the city, make a point to go to a park or a national or state forest once a week. You might consider attending an arboretum, too, or participating in a nature walk. Most national and state forests host nature walks at various times of the year.

2. Get dirty

Mothers tend to cringe when their children stomp through a mud puddle, but just getting down in the mud is such a fun, child-like way to enjoy nature. Gardening is a more purposeful reason to dig in the dirt; why not ask your kids to help you? Children can pull weeds and throw them enthusiastically into a wheelbarrow; they can harvest vegetables or dig holes for planting. If they are very young, give them a shovel, a bucket of water, and a section of earth to dig in. (Remember the old-fashioned concept of mud pies?) If you live in the city, container gardening is rewarding and plenty dirty!

3. Get wet

Nature is not always about warm, sunny days. Truly natural surroundings are variable. Try taking a walk when it’s snowing and enjoy looking at the snowflakes. If it’s raining, jump in the puddles.

4. Get wild

Attracting backyard birds or squirrels with a feeder is an educational way to bring wildlife to you. (And you’re doing something nice for the animals.) Get a bird identification book and look up the names of your many visitors. You might consider investing in a pair of binoculars.

5. Look up

No matter where you live, there is sky above you. Spend some time looking at the stars and moon at night, and the clouds by day. Did you ever find shapes in the clouds as a child? It’s still a fun activity for the whole family. And of course, finding shapes in the stars is something man has been doing for eons. Teach your children about constellations and try to find them. If you use binoculars or a telescope, the fascination broadens. You may find your family gathered around the telescope for hours in the evening instead of the TV.

Do you like to feed birds throughout the winter so that you can enjoy the wonders of nature all year long?

In some parts of the country, the mast – or nuts and fruits produced in the wild – is at a 40-year low. This means a lot of wild birds will be very hungry this winter. You can help feed them, save money (commercial bird food is expensive) and decrease waste by using your kitchen scraps this winter.

* What You’ll Need

-Fat

You will need something to bind your table scraps together into a cake. The best thing to use is some kind of solid fat. Birds enjoy suet or lard – don’t use vegetable fat. You can save the fat you generate in your kitchen from cooking meat – pan drippings, bacon fat, etc. The high fat content helps birds stay warm. The ideal ratio is 1/3 fat to 2/3 table scraps. (Wild birds don’t need to watch their waistlines!)

-Container

Try using an old yogurt, cottage cheese, or sour cream container. You will need something light, durable and flexible.

-String

-Miscellaneous table scraps

You can use fruit, vegetables, nuts, seeds, cornmeal, oatmeal, bread, etc. – cooked or raw. (more ideas below)

* Method

The basic method is the same regardless of the scraps you use.

1. Punch a hole in the bottom of the yogurt (or whatever) container.

2. Thread a string through the hole, pulling it up and out of the top of the container. Tie a knot at the base to keep the string from slipping through. You will need a few inches of string above the rim of the container.

3. Soften the fat by melting in a saucepan or microwaving it. Then, stir in your scraps – chop them into small bits if necessary. You can use a blender if you like.

4. Pour the fat-and-scrap mixture into the container, holding the string so that it is roughly in the center of the mixture.

5. Refrigerate the fat or leave it to cool at room temperature. Leaving it overnight on a countertop on a cold winter’s night should do the trick.

6. Invert the container and remove the now solid fat mixture. Voila, you have a bird cake on a string! Hang it outside near a branch using the excess string and observe.

If you want to attract tree-clingers such as wrens and nuthatches, you can smear the mixture right into the bark of a tree.

* More Ideas for Bird Cake Mixtures

Here are some suggestions for bird cakes that you can try. You can also combine the various ingredients in these recipes to attract a wider variety of birds, and to use the scraps you have on hand.

Fruit cake

To the fat, add leftover raisins, cranberries, cranberry sauce, holiday mincemeat, apple pie, chopped apple or pear cores and peels (seeds removed), etc.

Nut cake

Stir in chopped nuts of any variety – sunflower seeds and peanuts are especially popular.

Bread cake

This is a good way to use leftover stale bread. Crumble it into the fat mixture.

Grain cake

Mix in leftover oatmeal, cooked rice, cornbread, cornmeal, pancakes, etc. into the fat. Millet, cooked or raw, is a healthy-for-humans grain that is popular with birds. Try mixing in pasta, too.

Cheese cake

Add leftover cheese to your fat mixture, grated or chopped, any hard variety.

Vegetable cake

This is a good way to use leftover salad, broccoli, spinach, and so forth. Chop it up and stir it in!