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Diane Schlindwein
Creators.com
The current economy is forcing families to watch their day-to-day spending, so it comes as no surprise that for many, lengthy vacations have become a thing of the past. However, good times don't have to cost a bundle. In fact, sometimes all it takes is a good imagination to provide some great family fun.
Dayton, Ohio, resident Paul Tocknell says he and wife, Holly, and their children always flew to Florida for their annual vacation. However, as the economy worsened, the Tocknells began searching for enriching family activities to pursue in their own area.
Eventually, Paul took a more serious interest in looking for fun. Now he has authored a book on the subject, called "101 Great Staycations: How To Have a Great Time Without Leaving Home."
"With spiraling gas prices, airport hassles and the general nuisance of having to pack, it's easy to come back from a trip more stressed than if you had never left," Tocknell says. The alternative, he says, is a staycation.
"Literally, a staycation means staying home to enjoy your vacation time. But the real definition is up to you," he says. "A staycation can be anything you want it to be -- from a special evening at home to a weekend getaway. You can engage with your world in new ways or bring the world into your home. With a little planning and creativity, there are few limitations."
Coming from a state where there are four distinct seasons, Tocknell divides his book into four sections -- one each for spring, summer, autumn and winter. For example, if you and your family are experiencing cabin fever, Tocknell suggests dressing warmly and getting out in the woods.
"Winter in the woods provides a whole different habitat than summer," he says. "Look for animal tracks in the snow and bird and animal sightings that would be camouflaged in a leafy environment. If you are a photographer, take a camera with you." Family photos can be made into a scrapbook, a topic which Tocknell also covers in his book.
For indoor winter fun, Tocknell promotes the ever-popular family game night. "You know they are up there in the closet, just sitting on a shelf," he says. "Get them down and you are going to have more fun than you think."
Tocknell is not alone in his thinking. Recently board games have been exploding in popularity. Statistics show that in 2008, game sales rose by 23.5 percent.
That's no surprise to Chris Byrne, who says that board games always have been an important pastime during times of recession. Byrne, also known in the industry as "The Toy Guy," notes that during the Great Depression, families played "Monopoly," and before that, "Parcheesi" was popular during World War I.
According to Rob Novickas, a Mattel spokesman, "'Blokus' has become one of our most popular board games. It combines skill and strategy and challenges players to outsmart their opponents using a series of brightly colored tiles to block potential moves on the board." Other longtime great family favorites from Mattel are "Uno," "Balderdash" and "Othello."
Besides family game nights, Tocknell suggests hosting a video game night, having family cooking sessions, holding backyard Olympics, attending a concert by a local musician, visiting a nursing home or volunteering as a family, picking produce at a nearby nursery, or getting out in the spring to plant your own garden.
Tocknell concludes that even though they've cut their travels to play games and have fun around their own city, his family ultimately has benefited from sticking close to home. "Really, if you've got a family, staycations are the way to create those family memories that we all want our children to have," he says.
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