"Who’s Your
Mate?"
This game is similar to the Newlywed Game. Have one person from each couple
leave the room. The host/hostess tailors some planned questions to the group
and to certain couples. The other half of each couple stays in the room, and
answers questions about their mate/date. They’re supposed to answer each
question the way they think their mate/date would respond. They need to write
each answer down, so that when their partner returns he/she can give their own
answer to each question. Assign point values for each question that is a match.
Then reverse roles of the couples for the next set of questions. The couple
with the most points wins a prize. Make sure the prize is something they can
share!
"Sing
Along"
Divide the group into teams. In a jar, fold up slips of paper that have
different "love/relationship" related words on them. Team #1 gets to
draw first, and they must sing a song (at least one line of lyrics) with the
word they have chosen in it. Then Team #2 must match them, and keep going back
and forth until one of the teams gets stumped. Then the other team wins the
point.
"Musical
Partners"
You need to have an even number of people to actually participate in this game.
(The odd person, or the host, can be the one to stop the music). Turn some
music on, and begin the game by selecting 2 people to dance with each other
(fast or slow). Have someone turn the music off at different intervals, and
tell the 2 people dancing to select new partners. Continue to play the game and
select new partners until everyone is dancing.
"Love is…"
Write 25 romantic or sexy words on index cards, such as throbbing, lips,
passion, candlelight, roses, chocolate, and so on. On another 25 index cards
write some non-romantic images, such as ironing board, wallpaper paste, bikini
wax, nose hair, motor oil, and so on. Stack the two piles separately, and
distribute paper and pencil. Have each player draw a card from each pile. When
everyone has 2 cards, ask them to write a silly love poem using the two words
or phrases they have drawn. For example: "Roses are red, they make me hot!
Your eyes are sexy, your nose hairs are not!" Have them read their poems
aloud one at a time.
"Valentine’s Day"
Thumper
Before the game begins, everyone involved must sit in a circle and think of a sign
related to Valentine’s Day such as, crossing your arms for a hug, puckering
your lips, signing "I love you", pointing to your heart, etc. (The
signs can be as fun and playful as you choose). When everyone is somewhat
familiar with the signs of the other group members (go around the circle and
have everyone show their sign), the designated Leader yells out, "What’s
the name of the game?" Everyone replies, "Thumper!", as they
pound on the table with their fists. The Leader continues, "And how do you
play?" and everyone responds, "You thump!" Then everyone repeats
the following motion throughout the game... Slap both hands on your lap, clap,
snap your left hand, snap your right hand. As everyone is repeating this motion
over and over, the leader gives his/her sign as well as another person’s sign.
The player whose sign was chosen has to then give his/her sign and the sign of
a person of his/her choice. And so on and so on. While different people are
choosing signs the rest of the group must continue to go through the "slap,
clap, snap, snap" motions. This game continues until someone misses a
sign, or gives the wrong sign (Then that person is out and the game starts at
the beginning with the people who are "out" outside of the circle).
The person who doesn’t miss a sign throughout the entire game is the
winner!
Good Guess
Find a variety of items that your guests can guess "How much…" For
example, "How many red jellybeans in a jar," "How many Red Hots
in a jar," "How many pieces of heart shaped pasta in a bag,"
etc. Award a prize to the person who has the closest guess for each item.
"Tie a Red
Ribbon…"
This is a great way to get the party started if you have an even number of
people at your party. Buy some red yarn or ribbon, and cut the ribbon/yarn up
into various lengths (at least 100-400 uneven pieces). Put everyone into pairs,
and have them search throughout the house to find as many pieces of ribbon/yarn
as they possibly can. They must work with their partner to tie each piece of
ribbon/yarn together to create one long piece of yarn/ribbon. Whoever has the
longest piece of ribbon/yarn at the end of 10 minutes wins the game (It is OK
if not every piece of ribbon is found).
Human String Relay
First of all, you need to tie a spoon to the end of a ball of yarn. Line up
both teams single-file. When the host/hostess says, "Go," the first
person from each team must put the spoon down his shirt, as well as his pants.
When it comes out of his pant leg, he must then pass it to the next player (As
it is still attached to the first player). When it has gone through the entire
line, and everyone is attached, then the last person at the end of the line
must reverse the process (While the first person winds the string into a ball
as it comes back out of each person’s clothing). When the team finishes
unwinding the string then the first person in that line needs to shout,
"Done!" The team to finish unwinding the string first wins.
Mix and Match
Before the party begins, find a lot of oversized clothing (both male and
female). Try to include everything from pantyhose and lingerie to shoes and
hats. Make sure that there are even amounts of both the male and female
clothing. Mix up the clothes and put them into one laundry basket. An area is
then designated as the finish line. There is a person in charge of timing the
couples with a stopwatch. When that person says, "Go," the first
couple runs to the basket of clothes to get dressed as fast as possible. The
woman puts on the men’s clothing, and the man puts on the women’s clothing
(over their own clothing). As soon as they are both dressed they have to run to
the finish line hand in hand. Each couple goes through the same motions, and
the couple with the fastest combined time wins.
Name That Song
Gather a selection of lyrics together from tunes like, "What’s Love Got To
Do With it," "I Will Survive," Heartbreak Hotel,"
"Love on the Rocks," etc. Do a "dramatic reading," or a
dramatic interpretation (also called "Charades") about the song and
award prizes to the first person who guesses the correct title of each
song.
"Bag a
Mate"
At some time during the party, separate the men and women. Put the men in one
room, and the women in another. Put a large paper bag over each person’s head,
and send both sexes back into one room. There is no talking allowed, and each
person must "feel around" to find his/her mate. There are no real
winners or losers (unless you really grab the wrong mate). Note: When placing
bags on the heads of your guests, you have the option to provide eyeholes or
not.
"Give Me Some Sugar"
Partners must face each other with their hands tied behind their backs.
Blindfold each player, and then put a sugary treat in one partner’s mouth (it
could be a snack cake, candy bar, doughnut, etc.). If the treat is wrapped,
they must somehow unwrap the treat, and feed it to their partner. The couple
who finishes the entire treat first, without using their hands wins a
prize!
"Daiquiri Race"
Blindfold the men and line them up on one side of the room. Place the women on
the opposite side of the room with a frozen daiquiri. The object of the game is
for the women to take a spoonful of the frozen drink, carry the spoon by the
handle in their teeth, and feed the drink to their partner. This game has to be
done without using any hands, and the first couple to finish their drink wins!
(This game is also a lot of fun with ice cream instead of daiquiris).
"Couples
Relay"
When the host/hostess says, "Go," the first partner has to eat two
crackers. Then as quickly as is possible, whistle a designated tune to his/her
partner. When the partner guesses the tune correctly, he/she has to pop a balloon
(that is already blown up) by sitting on it. The partners then get together,
and must run to the finish line with an orange between their lips. To show that
they have finished, one must sit in the other’s lap!