Maxwell Family Day

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Back in September, Dad had the idea to host a Family Day. It would be in our backyard and involve games and a barbecue. Originally scheduled for early October but canceled due to inclement weather, we rescheduled for the second Saturday in November. The day arrived, with perfect weather for our Family Day.

Anna, Jesse, and Mary took responsibility to set up an obstacle course before the event start time. The creativity they used to skillfully design an awesome course took some effort, but the results worth it.

Setting up
Testing out riding the bike.

11am came, and families began to descend upon the backyard with little kids’ faces full of excitement and delight. We started out with some activities such as corn hole (loved watching Grandpa and Grandma do that with the kids) and Spike Ball, while some of the young moms and Gigi sat and talked.

From there, we moved to Cat and Mouse. Mom found the game online–a perfect combination for young and old. People stand in a circle, and then you pick two names. Ahead of time, Dad wrote everyone’s names down and had them folded in his pocket. One person is the cat another the mouse. They are blindfolded, and with people still forming a circle, the cat and mouse can begin wherever they like. Then, the mouse can take one big step in whatever direction, and when it’s done, it has to “squeak.” The cat, still blindfolded, can take one big step (in pursuit of the mouse), and when it’s done, it has to “meow.” The goal obviously being the cat catches the mouse. It caused lots of laughter as the blindfolded people moved around. Even the older ones got really into it, taking ginormous steps to stay away from the cat or in the attempt to catch the mouse.

Kyle with his sweet smile
Some people had great maneuvers to outwit others.
We found we had to use ear protectors while the mouse moved because of the crunchy leaves.
Mom and Daughter
When we were preparing for lunch, I saw these three guys, and I had to snap pictures. Adorable.
Joseph took the little bike for a spin, and he had a whole group of kids running after him.

After that, we enjoyed lunch together. The menu consisted of hot dogs, veggies, picnic eggs, chips, and dessert. Everyone pitched in to bring things.

Adorable Axton

Following lunch, the anticipated obstacle course began. The absolutely beautiful part of this was the older ones coming alongside the youngers to help them. The aunts and uncles were right there with the littles, cheering, walking next to them, and encouraging. That’s what teamwork is all about. The reverse was true too. The littles cheering the aunts and uncles and daddies and mommies along. Many wonderful memories were created on the Maxwell Family Day.

You had to jump over a ball (small for the littles and big for the older).
Then you had to shinny through the hole in the playset and crawl under the mesh.
Next up was to walk across a little board and then step from stump to stump (you could get off).
You had to balance your way across the pipe.
You had to place a bean bag on top of your head and circle each cone and bucket 2 x (and not lose the bean bag). Talk about dizzy!
Hop onto the bike and try to stay between the boards.
For us older ones, that little bike was a hard thing to ride. You had to ride it around the tree (in the background) and making a turn on that little bike was difficult.
Cheering onlookers
You had to hop with a balloon between your legs.
Love all the helpers!
Melanie did it and there was lots of cheering.

Maybe Family Day could become a tradition in your family. We loved it, and I’m quite certain it’ll be an annual event at the Maxwells.

Love,
Sarah

“Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and
in the power of his might” (Ephesians 6:8).

7 thoughts on “Maxwell Family Day”

  1. What a grand idea! Thank you for sharing this fun event with all of us! It gave us great ideas…. Your family brings many smiles to our faces here! One of my favorite photos is where the older sister is holding her little brother’s hand on the balancing beam – with Dad right there coaching/assisting – precious! Love to all the Maxwell Family Psalm 126:3

    1. I loved, loved, loved seeing that level of helping and coaching, and the desire to participate with even some of the mommmies wanting to do the obstacle course!

  2. What a fun way to spend some time together. Love the photo of Axton, so cute. Is he walking already? Blessings

  3. What a fun day! I just love all the pictures! My parents do something similar every spring, we call it Field Day. We will have to incorporate the Cat and Mouse game, that sounds like a great game. Thanks for sharing!

  4. I love this post and the photos!!
    What a wonderful day you all had, and what a special idea for families. 🙂
    Thank you for sharing!

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