Grownup Games

Help guests get to know other guest's names with a crossword puzzle. Here's how: Hang a poster board with pen attached to the string near the front door. Put your name in the middle. Have each guest add his or her name to the board in a crossword-puzzle fashion, using the letter from another name in their name.

She suggests a little planning, deciding which games you might play, which props you might need, and how you would sequence the games.

• Write down the title of the games on a 3 x 5-inch index card that you can keep in your pocket as a cheat sheet.

• Name tags help people feel more at ease when there are a lot of new people they might not know.

• Play the "mingle, mingle, mingle" game. Have guests stand in a circle and sort of cha-cha dance until you say "Freeze!" At that point they must obey your instructions. For example, find someone with a similar foot size, for example to pair up and share an interesting piece of information about themselves. If you it's a theme party, you can ask questions related to the theme.

• Play the Assumptions game. Everyone needs a sheet of paper and pen. Write your name at the bottom of the paper and pass it to the person on your right. Write down an assumption about that person at the top of the sheet and fold it over, and put it in the middle of the table. Everyone grabs a sheet of paper and reads the assumption while the group guesses about whom the assumption was made.

• Play the Two Truths and a Lie game. (This one is for later in the evening.) Have everyone tell three things about themselves, two of which are true, one of which is a lie. Everyone must guess which "fact" is a lie.