Noel Games: Fun for the Whole Family!

About 20 years ago, I invented a fun holiday tradition to play with my grandparents, parents, aunt, and cousins: Noel Games.

The tradition went on for many, many years. Then, however, I switched holidays and started spending a week at the beach with my family at Thanksgiving instead of Christmas break.

I’ve been missing this sweet tradition! Especially now that the boys are older, I think it’s time to resurrect the tradition. Here’s how it goes:

Noel Games Preparation

1. Purchase and wrap small gifts (approximately $5 each—things like lottery tickets are fun!). You will need one gift per participant (although you will be buying generic gifts—not particular gifts for particular people).
2. Make a Christmas tree out of poster board (for Pin the Star on the Christmas Tree). Make stars with each person’s name.
3. Gather other materials: something to pass during hot potato, blank slips of paper for charades, cookies, a bandana to cover eyes during Pin the Star on the Christmas Tree, a place to keep track of people’s points.

How to Play Noel Games

1. Divide your group into two teams. Let each team come up with a name (ideas: Tree Trimmers, Stocking Stuffers, etc.).
2. Play each game and keep track of people’s individual points. (Note: You play on teams but earn points for yourself.)
3. GAME 1 = Christmas charades. Each team comes up with an item for the other team to guess (ideas: ornament, deck the halls, reindeer, etc.). Be sure to make it Christmas-related! Each person gets one point for each item they guess within 60 seconds. Charade rules apply (so no pointing at anything!) The team with the most number of correct guesses also gets 2 additional points added to each team member’s score. Here are some word ideas.
4. GAME 2 = Pin the star on the Christmas tree (like Pin the Tail on the donkey). Assign points based on how close you get to the top. For example, if there are ten people playing, the winner gets 10 points, the next closest person gets 9 points, the farthest away gets 1 point, etc. The team with the most number of of people in the top three also gets 2 additional points added to each team member’s score.
5. GAME 3 = Hot potato with a Christmasy object and Christmas carols. Assign points similar to Pin the Star on the Christmas tree. The team with the most number of of people in the top three also gets 2 additional points added to each team member’s score.
6. GAME 4 = Start with a cookie on your forehead (not touching your eyebrows) and try to get it in your mouth without using your hands. Everyone who can do it gets 5 points. The team with the most number of of people successfully eat the cookie also gets 2 additional points added to each team member’s score.

At the end, the person with the fewest number of points goes first to select a gift. Then the next person can either steal that present or select a wrapped present. (If someone steals your present, you must select a wrapped present; you can’t steal someone else’s). The person with the most points selects their present last—choosing from everyone else’s gifts or selecting the last wrapped present.

Everyone is welcome to trade gifts at the end as well !