These games are best played outdoors!

"Easy Teams" The kids have to line themselves up from shortest to tallest - BUT they are not aloud to talk! They may use gestures etc. but no talking. Once lined up, let alternate kids step forward. This is one team - kids remaining in line is other team.

"Nose Balloon" Let kids make teams of two. Each team gets a large balloon they must blow up. Between them, they must keep balloon in air bumping it only with their noses. Each time it falls on ground they loose a point - each team starting with say 100 points. The team who takes longest to loose all its points is winner

"Pass Balloon" Each team gets a sausage balloon they must blow up. Line teams up, giving kid in front each a balloon. They must squeeze balloon between their knees, balloon pointing forward. On word go, kids must pass balloon to next kid in line, without using hands and without dropping or popping it! A dropped balloon must be picked up using knees only. A popped balloon is replaced with a new one, but team must start again. Have prizes for winning team.

"Stomp Balloon" Each kid gets a balloon and a piece of string about a yard long. They must blow up balloon and tie string to balloon and to his ankle. There should be enough string between foot and balloon. The kids must now try to stomp and pop each other's balloons. The winner is last one with an un popped balloon.

I was faced with this question some years ago.

Allow me to back up for just a minute. Years ago, I bought one of Zig Ziglar's books on how to raise positive kids. I first bought this book because, like many fathers, I wanted to know how to raise and discipline my son when time came. Little did I know that this book didn't deal so much with actions of son, but more with actions of parents! It wasn't long before I started exercising certain techniques in that book, and noticed they were actually molding my son right before my eyes.

My son was not into drugs, didn't stay out all night and really never gave his mother and I any problems. Oh…did I mention that my son was only 5 years old at time? What you are about to read might surprise you, but I feel that it very well could inspire some of you as parents, not to mention some of your children.

Because my son was an only child, he learned to pacify himself by either watching TV or doodling on paper. We made sure he had all favorite cartoon movies children liked to watch. It wasn't long before we noticed that our son would watch TV for only a short time before he would go find his toys, which were small characters in his movies. He would place these toys in front of him with crayon and paper close by, and continue to watch movies while slowly trying to draw characters.

One of techniques that Zig Ziglar mentioned in this book -- I'll have to be honest here, its only technique that really stood out in my mind; I can't remember others, but I still have that book -- was to praise child. But wait! It was to praise child to other adults in such a way that child just happened to be within hearing range. It's one thing to receive praise yourself, but to overhear your parents bragging on you to people on phone or in other room -- it seems to have a far greater impact. I think we all can relate to that, even as adults.

Back to title of this little story. "When should an Artist NOT sign his work?" My answer is when he's only 7 years old, and his handwriting is larger than picture he just finished. See, as we continued to praise Kyle for his artwork, it wasn't long before he was calling himself an Artist, (he believed it with his whole heart) because he overheard us call him that to others. I had already taught him to sign his artwork, because all Artists signed their work.