I don’t know about you, but I can sometimes struggle to find ways of blessing others that my children can be part of, so when I heard about BoomBoom cards – and that there is a family version – I was eager to take a look.

BoomBoom cards are based on the idea of “paying it forward.”  Each deck (Original, Family, Teen, Green, and Everyday) contains cards with ideas for “random acts of kindness.” When you have completed a card, you pass it on to someone else, who can do the same.  Decks may be registered on the website, so you can “track” the progress of your cards.

I was a little surprised to find that, in the Family deck, not all of the card items were “doing for others” types of activities; rather, some are family-building activities.  This is still a great thing, just not quite what I expected.  Here are some examples of the cards in this set:

The packaging of this is very well thought-through.  All of the parts and pieces come packaged in a slim cardboard box.  You actually cut the box open to find the command central “activity board” printed on the inside.  (No unnecessary trash!)

There are pockets that you assemble…

and attach, to complete the activity board.  (Ours is hanging on the refrigerator now, but I had it standing on the dining room table at first, when these photos were taken.)

Once assembled, everything is contained in this activity center except the BoomBoom cards themselves.

When you have completed a card, you take a sticker (held in the bottom pocket) and place it over the appropriate number on the board.  If you like, you can pull a discussion card (from the top pocket) to discuss the activity you completed.  (Simple questions on the front sides correspond to the specific activities, and are great for small children.  Open-ended questions on the backs facilitate more extended exploration for older members of the family.)  Then pass the BoomBoom card on, attaching, if necessary, one of the small sticky notes to aid in explanation.  And enter your activity on the website!  (The board, with stickers, and discussion cards are components unique to the Family edition.)

The first card my daughter pulled was number 3: “Create a fort in the living room with the whole family.  Name your fort and make a sign that proudly displays the name.” Further options are given, if you want to take it up a notch: “Revolutionize it!  Camp out in your fort overnight.” or “Double revolutionize it!  Watch a movie in there too!”

Here is Fort Irene.  (Daddy played a very large part in the construction!  ‘Cause daddies can build anything, right?)

(Wondering about that black line?  Our living room floor has this weird velcro on it that used to attach a rug to the floor.)

Fun Stuff:

Just for fun, I would like to send our card to one of you. 🙂  If you’re interested in trying out this little piece of BoomBoom, leave your name in a comment, and I’ll randomly choose one in about a week.

Also just for fun…can anyone name the book from which my daughter drew the name “Fort Irene”?

$9.99-$14.99

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Disclosure: BoomBoom cards sent me their Family deck to facilitate this review.  All opinions are, of course, entirely my own.