Honoring a Family Pilot, One Paper Plane at a Time

Do You Have a Pilot in Your Family Tree?
My grandpa, Lynn, was a pilot in the U.S. Air Force and retired as a Lieutenant Colonel. When my cousins and I planned a family reunion, we wanted to include a nod to his service and passion for flying.

We came up with a simple but meaningful activity: folding paper airplanes. Everyone—from kids to adults—joined in. Some used classic designs, others experimented with more advanced folds. Afterward, we took our creations outside and put them to the test.

You can turn it into a contest:

• Whose plane flies the farthest?

• Which one stays in the air the longest?

• Or whose has the most creative design?

It was a lighthearted way to bring Grandpa’s story into the present—through a little friendly competition.

A Paper Quilt Tribute to Grandma

My grandma, Betty Mae, was a remarkably talented quilter. She had an entire room filled with fabric, and no scrap was ever too small—she could always find a way to turn it into something beautiful. I was her last grandchild to receive a handmade wedding quilt before she passed, and it’s a gift I will treasure forever.

At one of our family reunions, we planned an activity inspired by her creativity and love of quilting. We thought, What if everyone in the family made a quilt block for Grandma? Of course, not all of us inherited her sewing skills—and making a full fabric quilt would have taken too long—so we found a simpler but still meaningful way to bring the idea to life.

Family members were given a square piece of paper and invited to draw and color their own quilt block. The designs were as unique as each person: some filled with patterns, others with symbols or personal messages. Afterward, we scanned all the squares and digitally combined them into a large, colorful paper quilt—a tribute to Grandma Betty Mae’s creativity, warmth, and legacy.

More Than Candy: Memory Jars That Tell Family Stories

You’re probably familiar with the classic Candy Guessing Jar game. Everyone writes down how many pieces of candy they think are in the jar, and whoever guesses closest wins the prize. It’s simple, fun, and always a hit at gatherings.

To put a family history spin on it, we started creating jars that represent specific family members. For example, the jar might be filled with their favorite candy or items that remind us of them.

My grandpa was an avid fisherman, so a jar filled with Goldfish crackers or Swedish Fish candy was the perfect tribute to him. My dad loved Whoppers, so a jar of those represented him.

Jars don't need to be limited to candy, and they could hold more than one item—each carefully chosen to tell a story.

This year, I made a special jar for my Uncle Craig. Craig has passed on, but while he was with us, he lived with Prader-Willi Syndrome—a condition that caused him to feel constant hunger among other things. As you can imagine, we have a lot of family stories involving Craig and food.

But Craig was more than just that. He loved puzzles, collected keychains, and had a deep interest in family. You couldn’t get past him without him clarifying your relationship to him: “You are my niece, if my calculations are correct” he would say. In many ways, he was our family genealogist.

For our family reunion, I made a jar representing Craig. I filled his jar with puzzle pieces, gummy candies shaped like food, and a keychain with our family crest. Each item sparked conversations and shared memories, giving us a special way to remember and celebrate his life together.

There are so many meaningful ways to celebrate an ancestor with a memory jar like this. Try it for your next family gathering.

Guess Who? Ancestry Edition

Try this spin on the classic Guess Who? game!
The goal is to guess your opponent’s mystery ancestor by taking turns asking yes-or-no questions. You might ask things like, “Are they wearing glasses?”, “Is the photo black and white?”, or “Are they from Mom’s side of the family?”

Check your local thrift store for a used Guess Who? game—you can update it with your own family photos to make it uniquely yours! 

This DIY game becomes more than just entertainment—it’s a meaningful activity that turns your ancestry into a game night favorite. Have fun!

Highland Game Family Reunion

 

Highland Games Family Reunion

Our recent family reunion was unlike any other — we celebrated our Scottish heritage with a lively Highland Games-themed gathering. From tossing cabers to playing Hide and Seek with Nessie, the day was packed with fun activities that honored our roots while creating new memories. I’m excited to share how we made it happen!

---

How do I know if I have ancestors from Scotland?

• One of the easiest ways to tell if you might have Scottish ancestry is by your surname, or that of your family members. You might think of Scottish surnames as being 'Mc' or 'Mac' names, like MacGregor or MacDonald, but there's actually a lot more variety in Scottish surnames. A helpful site could be Find Your Clan & Tartan to search a list of surnames.

• Take a DNA test. Popular DNA testing services like AncestryDNA and MyHeritage can estimate the regions your ancestors came from, including Scotland.

• Research your family tree. There are many websites like FamilySearch or Ancestry that can help you gain more knowledge about your ancestors and where they came from. 

Fun & Games: Activities That Got Everyone Moving

The heart of our reunion was the Highland Games events! We adapted classic games like:

• Caber Toss: The caber toss involves flipping a long wooden pole (the caber) end over end so that it lands straight in front of the thrower. The goal is to land the caber as close to the 12 o’clock position (directly away from the thrower) as possible. The thrower balances the caber against their shoulder, lifts it with cupped hands, gains momentum with a short run, and then flips it upward so that the heavy end lands first.

A caber is typically a log measuring 16 to 20 feet in length and weighing between 60 and 140 pounds. Since we haven’t been training for this event, we used an 8-foot landscaping timber, which was heavy enough for our purposes.

For younger children, the landscaping timber proved too difficult—if not impossible—to lift and throw. I brought pool noodles as an alternative, but even a slight breeze made them hard to throw. We discovered that a small metal handle from a Swiffer broom fit perfectly inside the pool noodle. It straightened the noodle and added some weight, making it much easier to throw.

Using orange spray paint, we drew a line for throwers to stand behind. We measured the distance from this line to the closest end of the timber to determine how far it was thrown.

• Tug-of-War: Tug-of-war is played with two teams pulling on opposite ends of a rope. The goal is to pull the opposing team and the rope across a marked line on the ground. A team wins when the center of the rope crosses the center point of the playing area.

I ordered a 20 foot rope from Amazon that was soft to hold without gloves and long enough to comfortably allow 2 adults on each side. If you want more on each team, I would recommend a longer rope. Depending on what your rope is made from, gloves may be needed to make pulling the rope comfortable on their hands. 

We used the orange spray paint again to draw a middle line as the starting point. Then, we marked two more lines—each 4 feet from the center line in opposite directions. If a team pulls the flag across their line, they win.

• Stone Put: (Think shot put.) You can use real stones of different weights for different age groups. In the Highland Games stone put, competitors throw a heavy stone as far as possible, either from a standing position or with a short run-up. The goal is to maximize distance, with the competitor who throws the farthest winning. The Braemar stone is a specific variation in which the stone is held against the neck before the throw, while the open stone allows for more movement during the throw.

We used real rocks—thankfully, we have an ample supply in our front yard. We brought a 15-pound rock for the adults and a 5-pound one for the younger kids. Some of the adult ladies felt the 15-pound rock was a bit heavy, so I recommend having a few weight options available. A softball could also be a great alternative.

• Relay Races: We combined four fun activities into one relay. There were four stations with activities that included securing a kilt, ringing a Highland cow, golf putting, and building a Scottish castle. This could be done as an individual relay—where one person completes all four activities—or as a team event, which is what we chose. I had two teams go at a time, with four members on each team.

For the kilt station, I bought plaid flannel that participants wrapped around their waist and secured either by tying it or using a clothespin. Once the kilt was secured, they ran to their teammate at the next station: hooping a Highland cow. I bought a cute stuffed Highland cow from Amazon and used pool diving rings, hoping they would hoop the cow’s horns. That didn’t work well. In hindsight, hula hoops would have worked better. Be sure to have participants stand a few feet back from the cow to make the challenge more fun.

After successfully hooping the cow, they ran to the next teammate, who used a putter to try to get a golf ball into a target area. I’m not sure how skilled your family is at putting, but mine won’t be going pro anytime soon—so instead of a hole-in-one, we just aimed for getting the ball into a designated area. We used an Aerobie frisbee as the “hole.” Once the golf ball landed inside the frisbee, they ran to the final station to tag the last team member.

The final activity was to build a Scottish castle using all 30 blocks I provided. I made a rule that the castle had to include at least one tower that was six blocks high. Each team had an identical set of 30 blocks in a variety of shapes. Some teams struggled with their towers falling, which made for a fun and entertaining challenge right at the end.

• Hide and Seek with Nessie: Since Nessie is a World Champion of Hide and Seek, we figured she would love to challenge our family to a game. Before everyone arrived, I hid a small Nessie somewhere on the property. Throughout the reunion, whenever they weren’t participating in other activities, my family—especially the kids—were busy searching for Nessie. It took them a while, but my 10-year-old niece eventually found her.

• 

• Scotland Trivia: There are many trivia quizzes available online, but I selected 10 of my favorite questions. While everyone waited for the last-minute food to finish cooking, we used the time to answer the quiz and then review the answers together.

Food!!!

No reunion is complete without delicious food! My family was invited to embrace the theme of traditional Scottish fare. No, unfortunately, no one wanted to take on Haggis, however, think meat pies, Neeps and Tatties, smoked salmon, Macaroni pies, Chocolate Tiffin, shortbread, and Rumbledethumps. We even had a fruit and cheese platter where the block of cheese represented the Stone of Destiny. Everyone brought something to share.

Dressing Up?

I enjoy dressing up in one way or another when we have a themed party. Its no different with reunions. With the Scottish theme, we had some family members go all out with a kilt, sporran, flashes, hose, Sgian-dubh dagger, Ghillie brogues and Tam O' Shanter while other went with a simple t-shirt.

Prizes

We couldn’t have a competition without prizes! When my family arrived, I had each person write their name on a piece of paper and place it in a large bowl. Each time they participated in an activity, they got to put their name in the bowl again. If they or their team won an event, they earned an extra entry. At the end of the day, I drew names from the bowl, and those selected got to come up and choose a prize from the table. All of the prizes were Scotland-themed.

• Lion: Nestle Lion Candy Bar with a notepad with a lion on the cover
• Unicorn: Marshmallow Unicorn Poop and Unicorn Rubber Duck
• Unicorn: Haribo Unicorn-i-licious, and Unicorn Horn Sidewalk Chalk
• Highland Cow: The Highland cow we used in the relay with Cow Tales
• Nessie: Nessie that we used in the Hide and Seek game and a bag of Mother's Mythical Creatures cookies
• Scottish: Scott toilet paper with Scottie Dogs Licorice
• Butterscotch: Scotchbrite sponge, butterscotch chips, and Butterscotch Rootbeer