Family Fire Pit Fun
Angela Beck
As we head into cooler weather and are looking for safe ways to entertain ourselves and our families, our families seem to be spending even more time around the fire pit. There’s just something about gathering around an open fire that seems to bring everyone together in a cozy way—and without any screens. So in honor of the start of holiday season, and with portable fire pits so widely available now (I’ve seen them at Home Depot and local hardware stores), we thought we’d round up our favorite family activities for fire pit fun. Hint: s’mores are recommended.
Make Your Own Hot Chocolate Bar
Use one of your Pomegranate table runners as a base to lay out hot chocolate supplies—a thermos of warm milk, different types of cocoa powder, spoons, and mugs (I like enamel campfire-style mugs). The toppings is where you can get creative: whipped cream, mini marshmallows, chocolate shavings, sprinkles, and toasted coconut flakes are some fan favorites. Top it all off with a peppermint stick.
Charades
A classic for a reason, charades keeps the “star” moving while the guessers stay cozy under their blankets. (A blanket per person is a requirement for fire pit evenings.) Give everyone their own paper bag of popcorn to snack on—and throw at particularly bad actors.
Warm Apple Cider & Mulled Wine
With the sun now setting so early, sunset is occurring around happy hour each day. Invite the family to have a pre-dinner drink around the fire and serve warm apple cider to the underage and mulled wine to the adults.
Ghost Stories
On particularly dark nights, when it’s especially quiet and the trees look exceptionally ominous, there’s nothing more satisfying than scaring the socks off your family with a few ghost stories. Do your homework in advance, and whatever you do, don’t introduce your story with “I have a ghost story.” Just start the story and see where it goes...
S’mores
The day I first brought wet wipes to the fire pit for s’mores time, life got so much easier. Even better: provide each family member with their own mini wet wipe pack. Another phenomenal discovery: extra-long s’mores sticks. In terms of ingredients, Nabisco graham crackers, Hershey chocolate and Jet-Puffed marshmallows are the gold standard for a reason, but it’s fun to mix it up with gourmet items like Lindt chocolate or artisanal marshmallows, and alternative items like pretzel chips instead of graham crackers.
What are your family fire pit traditions? We’d love to hear and see photos—share your fire pit fun on Instagram by tagging @pomegranate_inc.
