It doesn’t take a lot of money to have fun as a family—just a little imagination and a willingness to try something new. If your clan has those two things, you’ll enjoy these fun family activities for under $10!

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Who needs winter for a snowball fight? Certainly not your family—as long as you’ve got a stack of old newspapers. Work together to fill a laundry basket with crumpled newspaper balls ("snowballs!"). Then explain that snowball tag is like regular tag, except instead of touching a player, whoever is "It" throws the paperwads to make a tag. Once a player has been tagged by a "snowball," he or she becomes the new "It." Take the basket and your family to an open area (such as a park or backyard) and let the snowballs fly!

Admit it, you always figured you had imperial blood in your family, so why not try being royalty for a night? Transform your home into a castle (cut out cardboard turrets to hang about, stack pillows to create a "throne" or two, paint "tapestries" on lengths of white shelf paper and put them in the dining room, and so on). Address each other with regal names such as "Queen Mother," "Sir Tony," or "Prince Charming." Wear crowns (Burger King style) and royal robes (pajamas!) and eat dinner like Medieval kings—without flatware! Afterward, remind each other that as God’s children, we don’t have to pretend to be royalty—we already belong to the family of the King of kings. (See Romans 8:17.)

Brighten a darkened hallway by transforming it into a bowling alley! Have each person bundle up a few socks to use as a "bowling ball." Then, set up empty 2-liter soft drink bottles in the formation of bowling pins at one end of the hall. Gather at the other end and take turns "bowling" (sliding, sailing, tossing, rolling, gliding) your shoes to knock down the "pins" (bottles). Score the same as regular bowling (but give anyone under six years of age 20 bonus kid-points!).

Take a $10 bill and your family to the grocery store. Tell family members you want to create a GIANT-sized banana split. Have family members scout the store to find items you can use in that ice cream treat—making sure the total cost remains under $10 (including tax). When you’ve got everything you need, take it all home. Pull out the biggest bowl you’ve got, pass out spoons to everyone, then work together to make—and eat—a banana split fit for Goliath! (Re-tell the story of David and Goliath from 1 Samuel 17 while you eat.)

Everybody’s eaten "Chef’s Surprise"—that mysterious casserole with unknown ingredients—sometime! Settle the mystery once and for all by having your family members each invent a new recipe for a Chef’s Surprise Cookbook. Using only what you find in your kitchen, have one person create a recipe for a Chef’s Surprise appetizer, another person create a recipe for a main dish, and so on, right to the Chef’s Surprise dessert. (Have older family members help younger ones, if necessary.) When recipes are ready, gather in the kitchen and begin cooking. Make it a rule that each family member must try at least one bite of every dish, then let the feasting begin!

Bring the great outdoors inside your home with a family indoor campout. Set up "camp" in the living room by spreading sleeping bags over the floor. Eat hot dogs and beans for dinner. Roast marshmallows over the range in your kitchen. Tell stories around a campfire (all your flashlights bundled in a pack and turned on). Sing camp songs, and gaze out the window at the stars. (And, if your kids have a good sense of humor, pretend to be a bear looking for food in the middle of the night!)

Unleash the Michelangelo in your family members by plopping a glob of bread dough (frozen or homemade) on the table in front of each person. Instruct everyone to sculpt his or her own bread-dough masterpiece—a dinosaur, an angel, an exact likeness of Abraham Lincoln, or whatever! Bake until toasty, then enjoy with butter.

Don’t spend money on birthday cards for friends and relatives—you’ve got the makings of a family birthday card factory right in your home! Invest a few dollars in colorful construction paper and markers, then gather your family for an evening of creative production. Let the littlest member of your family handle the main artwork, while others contribute birthday card verses, additional decorations, innovative card shapes, and so on. While you’re working, reminisce about your favorite birthday memories. Make enough cards for a full year. (Don’t forget—our birthdays are in November and December! Hint hint)

Divide $10 evenly among family members and let each person purchase a packet or two of seeds. Locate a place where you can all plant (such as your backyard, a friend or relative’s home, your church yard, a window box, or several clay pots). Work together to create a garden filled with your individual seed choices. Take "Before" and "After" pictures to record your progress. During the weeks while your garden is growing, spend a few moments discussing how spiritual growth is like a garden. Use the parable of the Sower and the Seed, found in Luke 8:4-15.

Make a list of four or five local playgrounds, then take your family on a series of 15-minute visits to each one in search of "All the Best Places to Play in Our Community." Find the fastest slide, the swingingest swings, the cleanest sand box, the squeakiest merry-go-round, the shadiest picnic area, and more. Rate each playground and award one the title of "Our Family’s Favorite." Make plans to return there soon for a longer period of play-time!

SIDEBAR

Check out these additional resources for more inexpensive—and fun—family activities!

•Smileage by Michael Nolan (Cumberland House Publishers). Unbelievably imaginative games, discussion-starters, and more—which can be done anytime, anywhere.

•Families that Play Together Stay Together by Cameron and Donna Partow (Bethany House Publishers). Combining fitness with family fun, these practical, budget-conscious activities build relationships and healthy bodies at the same time.

•Imagine That! 365 Wacky Ways to Build Creative Christian Families by Mike & Amy Nappa (Augsburg Books). Pardon the blatant self-promotion, but this really is a fun book! Gobs of innovative, simple ideas to spark creativity and build family relationships. Check it out Amazon.com!