Fun, Safe Ways to Bond With Your Grandchildren
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Grandchildren are one of life’s blessings from above. Children are bundles of joy, even if they sometimes also seem to be bundles of endless energy. Like most grandparents, you probably are eager to spend more time with them, especially while they are young. When spending time with your grandchildren, you’ll probably want to consider activities that are entertaining for everyone while also keeping the children engaged. Of course, it’s also important to choose activities and experiences that are not only fun, but are equally safe for yourself and your grandchildren.
Here are some ideas for ways to bond with your grandkids:
Technology-free Activities
Experts have confirmed what many grandparents have been saying for years: today’s children are spending too much time in front of computer screens, iPads, and cell phones, and too little time being… well… children. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) now recommends decreasing children’s technology usage. While technology isn’t all bad and can’t be completely avoided, it should be balanced with other healthy activities, including playtime and time spent outdoors.
All of the recommendations in this article allow us to bond with grandchildren away from the computer screen. Encourage your grandchildren (and your adult children) to put down the mobile devices and talk to each other. Go outside for a walk. Take them to a park to play. Enjoy cooking a meal together at home. There are many possibilities for how you can spend time together the good, old-fashioned way.
Educational Activities
As a society, so many of the ways we bond with children involve sports. While there’s nothing wrong with outdoor activities, there are many other ways to have fun with your grandchildren. Educational activities can be a way to teach your children something new while possibly even inspiring a lifelong passion. Best of all, activities like the ones included in these lesson plans are safe ways to spend time with your grandchildren without the risks of sports-related injuries.
There are endless opportunities to teach your grandchild something new about your favorite subject (or theirs). You could spend time cooking together and discussing food science while taste-testing the foods. You could look at ideas for safe, at-home science experiments online. You might even consider this water conservation activity from PBS, which can be performed using simple supplies that you probably already have around the house.
Pet-Friendly Activities
If you’re a pet owner, you might want to consider ways you can incorporate your “fur baby” into the family activities as well. If you own a dog, an easy activity is to involve your grandchildren in the training and care of your dog. Children can have a wonderful time teaching dogs tricks such as sit, down, or shake. A game of fetch can be another fun way to entertain both your children and your dog.
You might also teach your children how to properly walk your dog. You could start with a gentle walk around your block or neighborhood. Dog parks are another great destination for getting some outdoor fun. Your local dog park will allow your two-legged and four-legged family members to enjoy exercising outdoor in the sunshine. Not sure where the nearest one is? Try a site like Rover.com, which lists dog parks by city. Here are a few examples to get you started: Albuquerque, NM, Madison, WI, Indianapolis, IN, Knoxville, TN, Saint Paul, MN, Portland, OR, Miami, FL, San Jose, CA, Raleigh, NC, and Calgary.
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Any Other Ideas?
The ideas listed above are just a sample to get the ball rolling. The opportunities are truly endless! When it comes to deciding what to do with your grandchildren, your imagination really is the limit. As long as the activity is safe for both of you and keeps the children engaged, you’ll be able to enjoy spending time with each other and developing an even deeper bond. That truly is a blessing.
Article credit: Denise Long
I love hearing from my readers, please be sure to comment below and let me know your input! Whether you are a grandparent raising your grands, or are just blessed to have these little ones in your life, I want to hear from you!!
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I love this !!!! It was full of a lot of great information
I love my grandbabies and my great grandbabies.
Thanks for sharing!!!
Your welcome and thank you for stopping by my blog!!
They are so special!! There is nothing like being a grandparent!!
Thank you for stopping by my blog!!
I am so glad you enjoyed the read and thank you for stopping by my blog!!
This is great ! I’m sending to my parents 🙂
What great ideas!! I’m about to become a grandma for the first time next month!!! Thanks for posting!! 🙂
Great tips! I’m far from being a grandma, but I did just become a great aunt. These are good ideas that I will be implementing for my new great-niece. Thanks for sharing!
I have two beautiful grandchildren and I am always looking for special things to do with them. I love learning ideas where they can have alot of fun getting involved. Thank you so much for sharing this great article
My grandchildren love spending time in my garden with me. My grandson plays with his trucks. His dump trucks carry around my dits and the excavator digs holes for my plants. My granddaughter calls my garden Wonderland.
This is great! Thank you. I’m going to show it to my parents for when they watch my three.
What a nice article. I have two grandchildren now. One is just over a year old and the other is one week. With two dogs we were worried but they are accepting both well.
Great tips. I’m a gram of two so will keep these tips in mind.
Thank you for sharing!
My children and grandchildren all loved for me to read to them and teach them songs. Hint, it’s also a way to hold them close for a little while. 💕
Great ideas ! I love spending time with my grandchildren ! I spend most on hen time on the floor doing puzzles or gamesmanship or building with LEGO ! So much fun !
I used to really enjoy gardening with my grandmother before she was too physically disabled to continue. She instilled in me a love to plants, God’s creations! I continue to occasionally take care of plants today, and still have a dream of having my own garden!
I like attending events and going to places like the zoo with my grands.
I adore my grandchildren! We do everything together. There’s nothing better!
I have only one grandson and he really is the love of my life ! We enjoy going to the library reading together and singing . I try to take him to a museum water park or somewhere special as a gift for holidays instead of toys as he has sooo many ! Thanks for the great article
I LOVE watching my mom and dad bond with their new grandchildren. It’s sooooo heart warming. <3
Grandparents are so important! My kids love theirs and enjoy spending time with them any time they can. THey really do love it when my parents engage them in their play or learning activities!!
These are great ideas. I really love the pet friendly ones I can do with my pug too.
We spend a lot of time outside in our backyard with our grandchildren playing in the sandbox or with balls. Fun for all of us.
sending this to my mother in law, these are some amazing ideas!
Good ideas. It is always an adventure with my grand kids.
Thank you! I agree, they certainly keep us on our toes!!
That sounds like so much fun! My 2 yr old granddaughter LOVES to play with balls and jump on the trampline!
I am so glad that you enjoyed reading it Molli! I am hoping your mother in law gets as much out of it, as you did! Grandbabies are so beyond precious!!
We have a Boston Terrier and a German Shepard. All my grandbabies love the puppies….well , they aren’t puppies anymore. Hanging out with our grands while out with our dogs is such a wonderful way to bond!
I agree Ashley, getting down on their level, really makes a difference to our grandchildren. It doesn’t matter the age, as long as we are relating to them in some way!
Angie, I am sure your mom and dad love having them in their life as much as you enjoy watching them!! There is something beyond special about a grand babies love!!
Ohhh I love the idea of taking him somewhere special in place of a gift!! Those are the memories our grandchildren will cherish and remember. The gifts tend to get lost in the shuffle of each holiday.
Thank you for sharing Linda! I couldn’t agree with you more, my grandchildren are my life!!
We have 15 grandkids. From ages 22 years old through 5 years old next month – May 14th.
We have already done a few of your suggestions.
We are a family of sports lovers. We were involved in sports and so are they. They are into baseball, LaCrosse, tennis, bowling, football, golfing, and running. We’ve encouraged them. It’s great exercise and a good way to make friends and learn sportsmanship!
All of our grandkids have pets and we raised their moms with pets. We think it is very important for our family to love and appreciate all of God’s creatures! My grandkids have baked a lot of holiday meals and treats with us. I love doing this with them, because we have time to talk. We also play board games and go to the movies together. We go for coffee and lunch. I try and talk to my grandson at least once every 2 weeks. He is in the Marines! I love and am proud of all of them!!
My mom is an awesome grandma but my husband’s mom hardly even see’s our kids. I hope I am as awesome as my mom at being a grandma.
This is so sweet!! I’m only on my first child, but my momma has several grandchildren and many more to come! I’ll be sure to share this with her.
These are great ideas for even parents or other caregivers
Thanks so much for the tips. We are expecting our first grandchild soon and I can’t wait to spend time with him!!! I’m already buying toys and books and, and, and, (lol), for spending time together. I’m so excited!!!
Great article!!
I don’t have grandchildren yet, but these are great ideas! I will have to share these with my dad, thanks for sharing! 🙂
I agree completely with this post. It is so important to keep our young children’s mind active as well as their bodies.
Great ideas, I love spending time with my Grandchildren. I make up little craft boxes and they can choose which one they want to make and we have a great time crafting together.
I have had a craft box stuck under my bed for years. All my grandchildren know it is there, even my older kids know it is there.
You are so welcome!! Thanks for stopping by!
Congratulations!! There is nothing more special than being a grandparent!
Thank you Lauren! I couldn’t agree more, both my daughters have enjoyed the tips found here!
Thank you Britta. I hope your mom enjoys it, be sure to have her subscribe to the blog, as I have more articles coming soon.
I can’t imagine not being in my grandchildren’s life! Thank you for stopping by the blog today!
Thank you for sharing your family with me for a minute. I am so happy to hear that you have such fun with your kids and grand kids. I haven’t quite as many as you yet, we have 10 grandchildren and 5 kids. We are very close with 6 of the grandchildren. The other 4 live in California, and sadly we don’t get to see them often. It really breaks my heart we don’t get to know them like the ones that are near by.