How to Play a Unique Water Game (Cricket-Ish) & Quick Tips for Families: Friday’s Fast Five 47th Edition

Building a stronger, happier family is at the top of most parents’ list. However, we are busy! These weekly Fast Five ideas and tips are a quick way to brainstorm, check-in, and create the family relationships you really want. This week’s Fast Five includes how to play a unique water game (that’s kind of like cricket), a simple lesson about inclusion, a service idea, and more.

* These ideas are NOT meant to be a checklist or guilt trip of things we “should do.” Rather, they are intended to inspire you to find what works for YOUR family to learn, laugh, and love together. Remember to stick to the Simple Side of Parenting.

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What is Friday’s Fast Five?

Many Fridays, we share five quick and simple ideas for families under the following categories:

• Something fun
• A Little Lesson
• A Service Idea
• Something Random
• A Quick Tip

As I try to simplify my own parenting journey and help others do the same, these help us think about what I feel is a simple version of good parenting…learn, laugh, love.

Subscribers also receive exclusive tips and downloads to simplify parenting life.

With that, here is the forty-seventh edition of Friday’s Fast Five. (You can find other editions HERE.)

1. Something Fun: How to Play a Unique Water Game (Cricket-Ish)

Gather your supplies and some friends or family to play this unique water game. We call it Water Cricket-ish because it’s similar to cricket. It’s also reminiscent of Pickle. (Did you ever play that growing up?) There’s a kickball water game version below as well.

Supplies

• two mini pools filled with water
• a tennis ball (or wiffle ball if you don’t have a lot of space to play in)
• a bat (or tennis racket to make it easier)

If you and the neighbors don’t have pools, you can usually get mini-inflatable pools from Amazon, Walmart, or elsewhere for $8-$10. Place the two pools about 30-40 feet apart. (After playing a few rounds, you’ll get a feel for how far you want them with your particular group so that teams score but it’s not too easy.)

Click image for purchasing information.

How to Play This Unique Water Game

Split into two teams, one batting, one in the field. The batter stands in front of one pool. A pitcher throws the ball, trying to get it past the batter and into the pool. If the pitcher throws three balls into the pool, the batter is out. Meanwhile, of course, the batter tries to hit the ball. When they hit, they run to the other pool. They can stay safe in a pool or run back and forth as many times as possible. Each time a player climbs into a pool, it counts as a point.

If the fielding team tags the batter with the ball or throws the ball into the pool the batter is running toward, the batter is out.

After three outs, switch batting and fielding. At the end of your designated turns or time to play, the team with the most points wins.

Along the way, this unique water game is sure to bring your family and friends a lot of wet fun!

Kickball Water Game (Variation on This Unique Water Game)

Another fun variation on this unique water game is to play with a kickball (a larger rubber ball) instead of bat and tennis ball. This is a great variation if you don’t want the challenge of hitting or if you’re playing with a group with mixed ages and skill levels. The kickball water game is a bit easier for everyone to play.

How to Play the Kickball Water Game

Again, split into two teams, one batting (aka kicking) and one in the field. There aren’t strikeouts in this version. The pitcher will roll the ball to the kicker who kicks it into play. The kicker then runs back and forth between the two pools as many times as possible. As in the previous version, the runner is out if the fielding team tags them with the ball or throws the ball into the pool before they make it there. When the kicking team gets three outs, switch.

In this variation, you can have multiple runners running between the pools at the same time because the pitcher isn’t trying to throw the ball into the pool for strikeouts. This adds a silly twist and more splashing to the game.

Each time a runner gets into a pool, it counts as a point. After each team has had five turns to kick (or whatever number of turns or time limit you decide), the team with the most points wins.

2. A Little Lesson: Inclusion

Play a game of blindfolded Pictionary. To prepare the game, write several words on slips of paper that people will need to draw. For non-reading players, you can also draw simple pictures. Examples include tree, family, spaghetti, etc. You can take turns drawing and guessing just for fun or split into teams and play competitively. The drawer will choose a slip of paper without showing the others, put the blindfold on, and then draw a picture to get the other players to guess the clue.

After playing, have a conversation about how it was harder to draw without seeing, and although this was just a fun game, there are people who can’t see. What would that be like? Share how there are all kinds of differences in the way our bodies and minds work. Talk about how some differences present extra challenges, some lead to unique strengths, some we see, and some we don’t. As appropriate for your family, discuss how we can include people with differences and be respectful if students at school or friends need different accommodations.

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Wondering how to fit Little Lessons into your life? Check out How Busy Parents Can Teach Important Life Lessons.

3. A Service Idea: Hawaii Wildfire Relief

The wildfires in Hawaii have left devastation in their wake. As a family, consider making a donation to serve the families that have been displaced and otherwise help meet the islands’ needs. Sadly, (as with any natural disaster) we ought to be cautious of fraud as we give. The governor of Hawaii recommended donating to the Hawai’i Community Foundation. According to the Washington Post, here are some other reputable ways to donate that will relieve victims of the fires.

Include even young kids in the service by having them earn some money. They could do a lemonade sale in honor of Hawaii, offer to mow a neighbor’s lawn, make cookies to sell, or contact a local grocery store about raising funds outside its door.

4. Something Random: Back to School

Is it just me…

I notoriously forget what day of the week it is during the summer. And for now, I’d like to keep it that way as I’m still busily soaking up our last weeks of summer. Honestly, I’m having a really hard time with the idea of sending my baby to kindergarten in a couple weeks. Please send hugs and tissues. It’s been almost 16 wonderful years of having kids home all day.

5. A Quick Tip: A Place

The old cliche really is helpful…a place for everything and everything in its place. But do you extend that to your to-do list? As we come up on a transition time, it can be so helpful to apply this adage. Where will kids put their backpacks and papers after school? Where do their soccer uniforms go? And what’s more, where on your calendar will you all pack those backpacks with sack lunches, look at those papers, and wash those soccer uniforms?

A plan, or a place for everything in your home or on your calendar, is incredibly empowering. It limits overwhelm and creates space for us to focus on being present with the kids and doing other things that are important to us. If you want a great starting point for making a plan and creating systems that work for this school year, the Simple Systems Starter Guide is a perfect first step.

Want more time in your day? Get started with this free guide.

And that is Friday’s Fast Five!

Which of these Fast Five ideas sound fun for your family today? Do you know another unique water game? How do you play it? How have you helped your kids learn about including others? Share in the comments!

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