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Starting A Bunco Group

Eight years ago I moved from the Northeast to the Southwest.  I had no family or friends here, so I joined a playgroup.  I had an eight month old at the time.  She needed friends and so did I.  I met many wonderful ladies from that group, some of whom I am still friends with today.  That group of ladies introduced me to Bunco.  It was a nice way to meet people and get out of the house for some fun.  I played with that group for about five years before I started my own group.

I, admittedly, am a control freak.  It is in part why I started my Bunco group.  I joined a social network that is intended to bring strangers with similar interests together and started my group in May 2010.  We played our first game in June 2010 at my house with 15 players, 7 of which are still members.  There are now 60+ members and we play Bunco once per month with typically 18-24 players.

As much as I like to be in control, we as a group have made changes throughout the years.  Rules have been tweaked and more prizes are given out to spread the joy of winning.  Even if I don’t win I have a great time!  It is nice to socialize with ladies who are my friends.  It’s also great to  meet women who are new to the group and sometimes Bunco in general.

In addition to being a control freak I am shy and soft spoken.  As many of you know, most Bunco players are not like that!  At least in my group we have a lot of strong personalities (which is not a bad thing).  The co-organizer for our group is my ‘voice’ at Bunco games.  She will shout to quiet the group down when they are rowdy (which is all the time;) Even when I think I am being loud, I am not loud enough.  This is why having a co-organizer is important.  She helps me with things I am not very good at.  Also, if I am unable to make it to a game, she will run it.  If you are thinking of starting your own group, it is a good idea to have a friend that can help you organize.

Have you started your own Bunco Group?  If so, let me know about it on The Bunco Game Shop Facebook page.

Keep Calm and Play Bunco,

Bunco Betty

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Bunco: House Rules



If you have played Bunco with more than one group, chances are each group had its own rules.  Most groups play with the main Bunco rules and prizes. Bunco being when three of a kind is rolled in the Round of a specified number, i.e. triple threes rolled when rolling for threes.  The typical Bunco prize categories are Most Buncos, Most Wins, Most Losses, Most Three of a Kinds (aka Baby Buncos) and 50/50.  We also award prizes to first and last Bunco, three losers (second chance drawing), whoever rolled the most 123 (we keep a tally throughout the game) and Snake Eyes.

What is Snake Eyes you ask?  Well, Snake Eyes is what our group does to shake things up a bit.  If you roll triple ones when not rolling for ones it is a Snake Eyes.  What happens next?  Well, you and your partner lose all of your points in the round you are currently playing.  You then yell, ‘Snake Eyes!!’ and the person with the fuzzy die throws it to you.  Whoever has the fuzzy die at the end of the game wins a prize.  In my current group I provide the prize but in my previous group the person who won Snake Eyes brought the prize for next months game.  I have played with a group who used a fuzzy die for ‘Traveling’.  When someone rolled triple threes when not rolling for threes they were given the fuzzy die and whoever had it at the end won a prize.

Another difference from group to group is who moves to what table after each round.  According to The World Bunco Association, The winning team from Table 2 goes to the “Head” table and the winning team from Table 3 goes to Table 2. The losing team from Table 2 goes to Table 3 and the losing team from Table 3 stays at the table, but one player moves over one chair so they will have a different partner. This is too confusing for me!  For the last three years my group has just had the losers move to make things easier.  Well, lately people have been complaining (and rightfully so) that the winners should be moving closer to the head table.  So, last night I made up some cute Pink Ribbon themed table signs to let people know where to move for our Bunco this month.  It was so fun, I may make some each month to go with our themes!  Hopefully I will have some happy Bunco Gals this month!

What are your groups rules?  How do you move from table to table?  Do you have a topic you’d like me to cover in a future blog spot?  Let me know on our Facebook page.  I look forward to hearing from you!

Keep Calm and Play Bunco,

Bunco Betty

 

 

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All about Bunco & my Monday :)

Today has been fabulous!  I had my workout this morning and LOVED it!  Day 1 of Burn it Up with Debbie Siebers.  The one who burns your booty like you wouldn’t believe with her crazy leg lifts!  Then the kids went off to school which had me enjoying the quiet house…ahhhhhhh (that’s my sigh).

Then I did some Christmas/grocery shopping.  It is so easy to spend a bundle at Christmas time…sheesh!  Then the sexy man put most of the Christmas lights up until it got dark and then we were off to Mom’s house for dinner.  She made Turkey and Dumplings….SO YUMMY! (that’s me yelling…in a happy way)

Ok, so this next part isn’t so good…my son was saying he had a tummy ache and as soon as he got out of the car when we pulled into the garage he threw up all over the garage floor and it splattered all over his shoes and pants and my shoes and pants.  Poor baby!  The funny thing is he was excited to sleep on the floor in the kitchen.  Ok, sounds weird but after one special Valentine’s dinner out with the family, both my kids ended up throwing up at the same time!  Not just once, it was about every 20 minutes and they were taking turns!  After awhile of shampooing carpets in each of their rooms and going through tons of blankets, I decided that it was easier to clean up chunks (sorry to be gross) if they camped out in the kitchen on the hardwood floors.  That was probably the best idea I have ever had!  So we ended up doing just that and about 7am they both stopped throwing up.  I didn’t sleep a wink, but the clean up was way easier!  Even though this was a few years ago, they both still remember and think it’s cool to be sick and sleep in the kitchen.  Glad to be a fun mom! 🙂

So right now my son is sleeping on the kitchen floor.  He hasn’t thrown up again, so I will put him in his bed when I go to sleep and I will cross my fingers to make it through the night.

So I leave you with that and then below you will find some kick-ass bunco information you might need to get started with your bunco game.  🙂

Getting started ideas

  • Invite 12 friends to join your new bunco group
  • Pick a date and time for your first party (each of the 12 players will take turns hosting a bunco party throughout the year).
  • Type up a roster with all of the player’s names, contact information, and the month and date each individual will host a party.
  • Plan your menu and beverages. Our group does potluck, that way not only one person is in charge of feeding 12 women. 🙂
  • Set up 3 tables with 4 seats each
  • Explain the bunco game rules when everyone arrives on the first night and enjoy!

I’m picking the winner tomorrow (Tuesday) so keep your eyes open!!

Bunco Betty

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No one knew of the secret place…

Hello there fellow bunco babes!

I have to say, my bunco night turned out to be a blast!  No one knew of the secret place after our bunco game and it stayed that way until we pulled up to the building.  I think a few of them saw it coming, considering that I am the one who expresses herself as much as I can.  😉  Most all of the fab ladies knew that I had taken some pole dance classes before but never thought I would bring my bunco group to have some spins around the pole themselves.

Everyone brought yummy bunco appetizers and drinks and we filled our belly’s with as much as possible.  We had so much fun!  I think it was the first bunco game that we’ve had with an extra player!  The ante was $5 (keeping it simple) and I won for the most losses!  I gathered everyone in the kitchen and we chose drivers to get us all to the secret destination safely and hit the road.

Some had wine, some had vodka and others had beer in hand as we walked into Teeze dance studio.  A couple jaws dropped…I could hear their minds going a mile a minute…they were thinking…ok….what the hell are we doing here?  Are we really going to play around on this STRIPPER POLE?!?  Oh yes indeed…I was the first one on there with smiles to show that it wasn’t scary and it’s ok to find our inner diva!  We turned the music up and poured our drinks and the party began.  Everyone had a turn…and loved it!  Laughter, music and our own little dance club!  It was fabulous!!

After awhile I gathered everyone in a big circle on the floor to have a round of LCR…our other favorite dice game.  SO much fun!  The winner won $54!!!  By this time hours had gone by at our own little dance club and after a ton of pictures and too many drinks…it became time to head out.

Some ended up taking a cab and the best part of the night is everyone made it home safely.  I feel great!  It was my first time hosting and I wanted to make it memorable…and I am 100% sure it will be.  😉  I don’t think I scared anyone away…and I know for sure that the fab ladies now know that if you go outside of your comfort zone…good, fun things can happen!

I have the bunco kit at my place and my daughter is loving it!  She keeps using the cute bunco pens to practice her ABC’s and she loves ringing the bell.  I have all the tally sheets and score cards for the next time we meet.  It shall be so much fun!  I have the best set of bunco friends!  Thank you ladies for your fun times and great stories!

I have my drink…and I’m going to enjoy it.  😉

 

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Winter Bunco Theme

Hello all you wonderful ladies!!  I woke up with a major sore throat this morning…I WILL fight you crappy cold!  GO AWAY!  My son was home sick from school this week and he’s better now.  Just in time to pass it to mommy and his sister.  🙂  I went kickboxing last night and will workout today and hopefully sweat it out.

I scrubbed the walls yesterday and inhaled enough 409 to clean the outside of the house too!  My lungs are paying for it.  That just goes to show that it’s not healthy to clean!  LOL.  I don’t think I can get away with that.  I do have the simple green I use around the house and it’s probably better for the lungs, but it doesn’t seem to get the dirt off the walls where the dogs lay.

No one comments on my blog posts…darn-it!  I would love to hear some feedback.  🙂

Let’s go back to one of my favorite bunco themes!  The Winter Wonderland Bunco party pack!  Check out my friend Laura from our bunco group and watch the video she did showing everything that comes in the theme pack here!

Bunco Winter Wonderland kit

You can also get the cute chocolate dice here.

This is a fun and easy way to have your winter bunco theme!  Don’t forget that I’m here for you to help out with any questions or ideas you may have!

I’m going to be posting a new fan of the week contest up on facebook and twitter soon, so keep your eyes out for that and enter to win!!

Before I go for the day, I wanted to share a yummy martini recipe with you too!  Click here for your Winter Wonderland Martini Recipe! Winter Martini

Gotta get the little one off to Kindergarten!  Have a fab day and stay warm!!

Bunco Betty

 

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Left Center Right Dice Game and Bunco

How about a round of the Left Center Right dice game AND Bunco?

Left, Center, Right, (also called LCR) is a hot new game that is becoming popular with more than just the kids now – the adults love to play it as well. The game involves dice, chips (unless you have a clever variation) and a bunch of laughs. Sounds a lot like Bunco, doesn’t it? Well keep reading and you’ll definitely want to get your own set to play LCR.

The Left Center Right Dice Game comes with dice that are specially marked with the letters L, R, C and then dots on the other three spots. Each person gets three of whatever you are playing with: the chips that come with the game, cookies, dollar bills, quarters, shots, cupcakes, candy bars…anything you please that each player can have three of. Each player takes a turn rolling all three dice. However many L’s come up determines how many of said item are passed to the left of the dice roller. The same goes for the R’s in each turn. The C’s are how many goes in to the center pot. The dots mean that is how many of the items stay in front of you, in your possession.

Once you start passing your item, if you go down to one or two, you only roll the corresponding number of dice. Even if you are out of items, you still sit and play because the person next to you could pass the items to you. The game continues on with each person rolling and passing until there is only one person standing. The winner is determined when only one person has all the items or they are in the center!

When you play with items such as money, the winner keeps it all. However, when you play with food or drink, you may want to have the winner pass it out to whoever they want to – especially if you are playing with drinks!

Left Center Right dice game and bunco are great to play during the breaks between rounds on Bunco night. It is also a great filler to play after Bunco ends, when you just aren’t ready to go home yet!

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Bunco Game Shop’s new Bunko for Breast Cancer Starter Kit

Celebrate breast cancer awareness by inviting your bunco group and network of friends to a pink ribbon themed bunco party or fundraiser with the new Bunco Game Shop’s “Bunko for Breast Cancer Starter Kit“.

Each Bunko for Breast Cancer Starter Kit contains 1 Pink Ribbon Tote Bag, 1 Large Pink Fuzzy Die, 1 Bell, 9 Pink with Black Pip (dots) Dice, 1 Tablet of Bunco Score Sheets (50 sheets), and 6 Pink Ribbon “ROLL BUNCO” pencils.

Next time you host bunco night, organize a Bunko For Breast Cancer party, where you can “roll the dice and beat the odds!, and we will donate an additional $1 in your name for each “Bunco for Breast Cancer Starter Kit” purchased.

Bunco for Breast Cancer events can be held with your “official” bunco group at your home, or you can go all out and invite your entire network of friends to join you at a event center for a community wide “Bunko for Breast Cancer” extravaganza!

“Your chance of winning Bunco is 1:12. In the U.S., the chance of a woman being diagnosed with invasive breast cancer in her lifetime is about 1 in 8.” (source of statistic: The American Cancer Society). You can make a difference! Start planning your Bunko for Breast Cancer party today!

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Princess Bunko Kit

Treat your bunco princesses to this sweet “Princess Bunco Kit” and celebrate your princess themed bunco event with our new Princess Bunko Kit.

Each Princess Bunko Kit contains 1 hot pink Princess tote bag, 1 purple maribu tiara, 1 pink wooden handle bell, 9 pink with white pips (dots) dice, 1 tablet of bunco bash score sheets (50 sheets), 6 hot pink “ROLL BUNCO” pencils, and 1 tally pad. Items sold separately at $22.00.

Hold a princess bunco birthday party or a princess themed bunco kit party next time you host bunco at your place, and watch how much fun your group has being a princess!

My friends and bunko buds held a princess themed bunko party for my birthday as a surprise, and it was so unexpected and wonderful! I deeply appreciated the extra attention and it will be a bunco memory I will treasure always.

Additional items from the princess bunko kit may be purchased separately.