DIY Backyard Games

by Stacey Carroll, Contributing Writer

When I was growing up we didn’t own any backyard games. We had to invent them with what we found in the house. Here are a few of the games I used to play as a child.


1. Broom Ball

What You Need:

• Two household Brooms. Straw brooms work the best, but you can also use synthetic brooms.
• Almost any type of sports or recreation ball except a basketball. Volleyballs, soccer balls, and those cheap plastic blow up balls work best.
  

How to Play:

Pick two ends of the yard to use as out-of-bounds. I was lucky enough growing up that my best friend had a small backyard. We used the back of the house as one end and the fence as another. Points are made when the ball goes into the out-of-bounds. Only the brooms are allowed to touch the ball. If any part of the player’s body touches the ball, the ball immediately reverts to the other player and they get a point.


2. Water Balloon Dodgeball

What You Need:

Balloons and a water faucet.

How to Play:

Fill up the water balloons and head outside. The goal is to stay dry. You can pick teams, but my favorite is every man for himself. Each person takes their balloon and aims it at another person (randomly). The goal for the thrower is to hit the person. The goal for the person about to be hit is to dodge the water balloon. If you get hit, you’re out. Play until only one person is left standing and dry.


3. Squirt Bottle Squirt Guns

What You Need:

Empty spray bottles. They can be purchased at the dollar store.

You can also use old shampoo, conditioner and dish soap bottles. Really anything that holds water and squirts with enough added pressure. Though, with old soap bottles, you’ll want to make sure that they are thoroughly rinsed and that no soap residue is left inside the bottle. No one wants a face full of soap.

How to Play:

Fill up the bottles with water and head outside. Don’t forget to set the spray bottles on squirt. This game, like Water Balloon Dodgeball, is played until one person is left standing and dry, or someone decides the spray bottle isn’t good enough and pulls out the hose for a mass attack.


4. Bean Bag Toss

What You Need:

• Two buckets. They can be five gallon buckets or open top mop buckets.
• Several packages of beans.
• Six old socks.

How to Play:

Fill the socks with beans and knot closed. Set a distance and place the buckets. Each person tosses a sock at the bucket. The person with the most socks in the bucket wins.


5. Backyard / Driveway Bowling

What You Need:

• Enough two liter bottles to make a pyramid (3, 6, 10). These will be used at the “pins.”
• A basketball, or another durable sports ball.
  

How to Play:

Fill the 2 liters with enough water to keep them standing upright. Line the two liters up just like in bowling and throw or roll the ball at the two liters. Points are kept by how many 2 liters each person knocks down.

Author Bio:

Stacey Carroll is the author of the thriller series - Avia.  She also authors the paranormal erotica series - The Blooddoll Factory. Stacey grew up in Indianapolis, Indiana. she went to college at Indiana State University (ISU) and graduated with a Bachelor's degree in aerospace in the professional pilot program. She has flown Cessna 152s, Cessna 172s, the Piper Seneca and the King Air. She also graduated with a minor in computer science that specialized in web design.

She has always been interested in reading and writing, and the first book she was ever read was the Grimms Brother's Fairy tales. From the ages of 6 to 11, she read the Nancy Drew series. By the age of 11, she had graduated to Stephen King novels. A few of her favorites include Carrie, Tommyknockers, The Dark Tower Series up to book 3 (That's where it stopped in the late 80s/ early 90s), Pet Semetary, The Shining, Night Shift, The Stand, It, Cujo, Christine, The Eyes of the Dragon and Thinner (Richard Bachman). In her teen years, she moved on to Anne Rice and got through about four of those books before they degraded. If you've ever read Anne Rice, you know book 5 isn't readable. Stacey has read a couple Harry Potter books as she was introduced to them in the early 2000s, and she's never read or watched anything Twilight or 50 Shades. Sorry. I'm a vampire purist, and nothing needs to be said about the latter. You already know.

She is currently an author and freelance writer. She received an honorable mention in Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine in 2008 for a short story entitled The Field. In 2014, she was published in 13 Stories by Us by MacKenzie Publishing.

Other books by Stacey

• AVIA II
  
• AVIA Memories
  

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