Speedeebee and Spot it Jr.! Animals: Two super fun, super quick family games

My family and friends are big on playing games together. As a kid, playing games as a family just wasn't in the cards. As a mother and grandmother, though, I regularly seek out new games we can enjoy together.

Two new ones recently came my way for review, courtesy of Blue Orange Games.

The first is Speedeebee, a fast-paced word game for 2-6 players, ages 8 and up.

When the game I received free for review first arrived at my door, I shared with my husband during dinner that two new games had been delivered. Once we were through eating, I pulled out the games to show him — and Speedeebee looked like so much fun, we decided to try a quick game right then and there, before even clearing the table.

Quick is the operative word — as in we quickly decided we loved the game and it would be one of the games played with two of our daughters and their boyfriends after Easter dinner .

The game comes in a round tin and has 150 word challenges on 50 game cards. One or more of the four included dice are rolled in accordance with the card play, for challenges such as, "Name something shorter than one inch, starting with one of these letters (throw all 4 dice)" and "Name something that smells bad (to you), containing this letter (throw the die of your choice)."

Even with just two of us playing, the word play was fun... and fast. We decided to go through the entire stack of cards instead of just 20, as recommended in the illustrated rules for play. Still, the game was completed in about 20 minutes. (For the record, I won!).

Here's a look at the game play, courtesy Blue Orange Games:

Speedeebee has won a variety of toy industry awards and recognitions, including The National Parenting Center Seal of Approval. The game can be found where games are sold, online and off, with a suggested price of $14.99.

Speedeebee is the game recently offered for review by the Blue Orange Games representative. When I told her I'd be happy to try it out, she took a look at my blog and — because Speedeebee is made for ages far above the age of my grandsons — she graciously offered a second game to go along, one more appropriate for my grandsons.

The game she sent along was Spot it Jr.! Animals. This one is similar to Speedeebee in that it comes in a tin and features round playing cards. It's intended for 2-6 players, ages 4 to adult. According to the Blue Orange website, the skills tweaked for kids playing include visual perception, reaction time and focus.

I look forward to sharing it with my grandsons when I visit in a couple weeks, but my husband and I couldn't resist playing it, once we opened the tin. Spot it Jr.! Animalsmay be primarily a kid game, but I must admit that my husband and I both got quite the brain workout as we tried to beat one another in matching the animals on our cards to the card in play. (Okay, I admit it: My husband won this one.)

Take a look:

Spot it Jr.! Animals has won awards, too, including being named a "Dr. Toy 10 Best Games." The game has a suggested price of $9.99 and can be found most places games are sold.

Considering the fun they provide as well as their small size (making them perfect to tuck into Easter baskets!), both Speedeebee and Spot it Jr.! Animals would make super gifts for spring-time holidays,  school graduations... or just for the sheer fun of it.

For more information on both games, as well as plenty of other fun-looking family game options, visit Blue Orange Games.

Disclosure: I received the games free for review. All anecdotes and opinions are my own.