Thursday, July 18, 2024
The countdown has begun….
The opening ceremony for the Summer Olympics
is set for Friday, June 26, 2024,
and we are ready for it!!!
So today’s post takes a pause
from the typical 3, 2, 1… GRAND Summer Fun content
we’ve been sharing all summer long!
As you may recall, Laurie loves any reason to plan a family party
and the Olympics seemed like an ideal opportunity to do just thatd!
Today, she’s sharing highlights from her family’s Olympics Party with us!
Laurie and family, as you will discover, had a wonderful time
celebrating the Olympics in their own special way!
Laurie’s celebration was an intergenerational one
with three generations sharing in the Olympic fun!
The beauty of the activities she describes below
is that they can be used in a variety of settings…
at a gathering with friends and family,
at a child’s birthday party
OR
as a fun filled afternoon with your own Littles!
Read on for Laurie’s clever ideas!
I recently decided that July 4th would be a good day to put on an Olympic party with my family!
We all just happened to be in town that day and we’d planned to gather at my sister’s house for a holiday BBQ. The forecast called for rain, so I planned activities that could be done inside (and easily moved to outside). It was a good call as it turned out to be a dark and gloomy day!
We had 16 people of all ages that would participate in our family Olympics so I decided we would have four teams of 4 people each. We had four “families” or teams with my husband and I splitting between two teams.
Ahead of time, I asked each team to choose a country to represent. Each team could choose any country other than the USA, which was given to the host family! When each team had made their decision, we had Cuba, Australia, Slovenia and the USA represented!
The host family (or the USA team) were making hamburgers, hotdogs, potato salad and watermelon for our holiday dinner! Everyone else was asked to bring a side dish or snack that represented their country. It could be an actual dish or something silly. (For example: chips and salsa could represent Mexico or French fries for France!)
It would also be fun to encourage your teams to make a team flag and/or dress in the colors of their country! However, since for our celebration it was also the Fourth of July, we decided that we would let people dress in Fourth of July garb instead! So red, white and blue were the colors of the day!
We gathered during the afternoon and started the games as soon as everyone had arrived. I had chosen six events to focus on. I made sure each one was easy to set up with few materials and could be played in a limited area inside. I also chose events that would be appropriate for ages four and older… Two year old Little D was more interested in playing with the toys, but she did join us for some games!
I made a chart that I hung in the middle of the action so we all could keep track of the standings.
I used the following point system...
First Place - Gold Medal (1 Point)
Second Place - Silver Medal (2 Points)
Third Place - Bronze Medal (3 Points)
Fourth Place - Red, White & Blue Consolation Prize (4 Points)
We filled in the chart with a 1, 2, 3, or 4 to show our results!
NOTE:
Since we had four teams, this system worked well!
If we had had more teams, I would not have included a fourth ranking!
Event 1 - Volleyball!
Two teams volley a blown up balloon back and forth and try to keep it afloat!
Materials Needed݀
• a blown up balloon (extras if it pops)
• a playing field with a “net”
Playing: Two teams match up over a couch, table, row of chairs, etc. If you are outside, you could use a real net. Each team played for two minutes. If the “ball” hits the ground on your side, the other team gets a point. I know that two minutes doesn’t seem like much time, but we started with five minutes which seemed to last forever! Two minutes seemed just long enough to keep everyone interested!
Scoring: With four teams, we had Team 1 play Team 2. Then Team 3 played Team 4. The winning teams played each other for the gold and silver medals!. The other 2 teams played for the bronze and consolation prizes.
Event 2 - Javelin Throw!
Individual members of each team throw the javelin as far as they can!
Materials Needed
• pool noodles
• a long hallway.
NOTE: Put a rubber band on the end of each “javelin” so you know which is the front end of each.
Playing: Each person throws from a designated spot. (They are very light so don’t worry about hitting things!) Your farthest throw is marked on the floor with your name on painters tape.
Scoring: The farthest three win the corresponding medals! One country could win all the medals!
Event 3 - Rhythmic Gymnastics!
Each team performs a routine set to music!
Materials Needed
• 1 dance ribbon* per team member
• a phone that can access music!
NOTE: I found my dance ribbons in the Fourth of July section in Target’s Dollar Spot. You could easily tape a long ribbon on a dowel or paint stick, as an alternative! I had four of them so we had to hand them over to the next team after the dance number.
Playing: Each team was given 5-10 minutes to choose about 20 seconds of a song and choreograph a routine to it. We all went into different rooms to practice so the final performance would be a surprise. The chosen music was fun - Firecracker by Katy Perry, the Slovanian anthem, Barbie Girl by Aqua (chosen by the 2 year old), and Clouds as a tribute to our rainy day. We gathered in the living room and each team performed!
Scoring: My husband and I were “the judges”, even though we participated in our team event…
As judges, we decided, unheard of in Olympic history,
that each team should receive a gold medal!
Event 4 - Sailing!
Be the first to sail your boat across the finish line!
Materials Needed
• a long thin bin (an underbed container works well)
• 4 squirt guns
• 4 boats
NOTE: I looked for small plastic boats of different colors, but could not find any, so we used rubber ducks! We added a different colored pipe cleaner around each neck to represent the different teams.
Playing: We played this in a screened-in porch, but this would also be an excellent game to play outside!
One person from each team played in a given round. The boats (ducks) were lined up at one end and at “Go”, players used their squirt guns to spray their boats to the other end. The first boat that reached the other end was the winner! If a boat tipped over, that player had to pick it up and start over! (We discovered that if you squirt the duck’s head, it would tip!)
Scoring: The winner from each preliminary round played in the final round. Yes, there could be more than one person from your country competing and your team could walk away with more than one medal… Just like in the real Olympics!
A GRAND TIP!
Be sure to fill up the squirt guns after each round!
Event 5 - Golf!
Each team member tries to complete the hole in the least number of strokes!
Materials Needed
• paper and pencil
• 1 golf putter per hole (we used toddler plastic clubs since we were inside, but it also leveled the playing field between adults and. Littles.)
• 1 plastic golf ball per hole
• "Holes” to putt into - one “hole” for as many rounds as you’d like to play..
NOTE: We decided that 4 holes were plenty. For holes we used plastic cups, a fairly large bin tipped on its side (Worked really well for our 2 and 4 year old!) and blocks..
Spread the holes out through the area where play will take place. (We had one in a bedroom, one in the kitchen, one in the hallway and one in the living room) Put a mark on the floor with tape to show the ball’s starting position.
Playing: Just like in Event 4 above (sailing), one person from each team lines up at a hole. Players putt gently and count the number of strokes it takes to get the ball in the hole.
A GRAND TIP!
Keep the holes against a wall, counter or door
so the ball doesn’t go way beyond the hole
where you need to putt it back.
Feel free to limit the number of strokes. (Example: We had a limit of five strokes. After five strokes, a player was done and took a score of “5”). Keep a piece of paper and pencil at each hole for players to write down their scores so they don’t forget.
When you finish one hole, move to the next. (the putter and the ball stay at the original hole)
Scoring: When the game is over, add up each team’s score. The team with the least number of total strokes wins the gold medal! (then silver, then bronze…)
Event 6 - Fencing!
Force your opponent to step off the balance beam
by hitting pool noodles against each other!
Materials Needed
• 2 pool noodles
• a balance beam or 2 x 4 board (or just use tape on the ground!)
Playing: Two players from different teams balance on the beam holding a pool noodle. Fence with each other, using the noodles by slapping each other gently. The game ends when a player steps or falls off the beam. Stress to everyone - noodles only hit noodles! If a noodle hits a person (intentionally) the player holding the noodle is disqualified! (This was a valuable rule for some competitive little - and big! - boys in our group!)
Scoring: We were running out of time so each team chose one player to compete in this e event and we ran the game the same way as volleyball. Team 1 player played Team 2 player, Team 3 played Team 4 and then we had the winning and consolation brackets take place. However - I think everyone tried this game at some point during our gathering! It’s very engaging!
We have just a few more suggestions to share
before wrapping up today’s post!
Our GRAND TIPS for a Successful Party!
1. Make sure to include a picture of each event so Littles understand what each sport is (“What is a javelin??”) I put mine on the recording chart, and hung it low enough for Littles to look at.
2. If you have fewer players, each person could be a team (country) by themselves.
3. In case of a tie, you can award the same place to two teams, or have a match off.
(For example: If needed, two people could have a putt-off in the golf event).
4. Another equally fun option is to just play the games! No need to keep score!
Our Medal Stand!
I filled 4 jars with candy as our Olympic “winnings”!
Each team was invited to bring their winnings home
OR
they had the option of opening their jar to share with everyone!
Let the games begin!
We can’t wait to watch the Summer Olympics with our Littles as well!
How about YOU?
The fun begins on Friday, July 26!
What a coincidence!
The Summer Olympics begin the same day (July 26)
as Laurie’s birthday!
She has loved watching her birth date appear
on the TV screens for the last couple of months!
🎉 🇺🇲 🎉
As always, we’d love to hear from you, too!
Do you have one or more Olympic memories or activities to share?
If so, please comment at the end of this post!
We love the way this community shares with each other!
As another option, you can always reach out to us
at ourgrandlives@gmail.com if you prefer!
Don’t forget to check us out on our social media sites, too!
(You'll find our social media links at the top of each post!)
New content can always be found there!
Look for us to return next Monday with a brand new post…
A SUMMER FAVE - Summer Olympic Treats & Sweets!
You can always subscribe to our site so you don't miss a thing!
SPECIAL THANKS TO
Busy Monday from A Pinch of Joy
Thank you for featuring this post on your site!
❤ We love our blogging community! ❤
❤️ We are delighted to join the following link up parties and blog hops! ❤️
MONTHLY
SUNDAY
MONDAY
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
Oh boy! What grand summer fun celebrating the Olympics this sounds for sure ladies.
Thanks' bunches for sharing with Sweet Tea & Friend's August link up.
Such a fun post, y'all. Great ideas! Hoping the next summer Olympics opening ceremony is something we can watch with the whole family... we turned it off after the 'library' presentation. Actually, before it was done. 😢 ~ Julie at My Wee Abode
We enjoyed a fun packed 2 days of Olympic experiences at school at the end of term, something that I'll be doing with the grandchildren in 2030 for sure. Thanks for sharing with #pocolo chickenruby
This is so clever! I can't get over how fun this looks. Brilliant. Thanks for sharing this post with us at the Will Blog for Comments #43 linkup. We hope to see you at #44, too. Have a great week!
Oh, these are such fun ideas! I love that the whole family can join in and enjoy these activities. Thank you for sharing your wonderful post at The Crazy Little Lovebirds link party #47.
Steph@CrazyLittleLovebirds ♡