Christmas will soon be here along with the family members that seem to pour in from all corners of the earth. Many hosts tear their hair out each year wondering how they're going to entertain all their guests; how to break the ice between recently combined families (e.g. in-laws or step-families), how to be creative and still maintain some sense of order and numerous other scenarios.

But it doesn't have to be that way. Scavenger hunts are a great idea for keeping your guests entertained, running the energy out of your (grand) kids, nieces and nephews, breaking the ice and generally ensuring everyone has a good time. Here's some tips and ideas for a fun, crazy Christmas scavenger hunt.

Use kooky items for your hunt. Instead of offering normal items up for your scavenger hunters, be creative and a little crazy. Diva Girl Parties & Stuff has some great ideas for crazy Christmas scavenger hunts. Some of the site's ideas include putting Santa in a non-traditional costume, e.g. a dress or elf suit, turning a candle upside down on a candle holder, giving one of your angels a square halo, snowman wearing a cowboy hat (or fireman, policeman, etc.), a nativity scene with dolls, a half eaten candy cane--essentially anything out the of the ordinary.

Some can be more obvious, and others quite subtle, like one idea at Diva Girl, which is to cut the points off your star ever so slightly (enough that it still looks like a star, but if you look close, it has no tips).

Set your guests up with a pen and paper and let them try and figure out what's out of place; the person who identifies the most correctly wins. If you choose to set a time limit, whoever has the most correct at the end of the time period gets the prize (anything you choose).

Fun ideas like these make for a great alternative, adventuresome scavenger hunt. Come up with more of your own and go "crazy" for your Christmas scavenger hunt. As always, I'd love to hear from you if you've got some ideas you'd like to share; if I get enough, I'll post them as an add-on to this article or use them for another.