Celebrating Grandparents
Genealogy
Grandparents have a unique vantage point when approaching family history. Personal stories help children better understand where they come from while establishing points of connection they have with older relatives. If you don’t know your family tree well, do research together, hand in hand. And don’t forget to build a scrapbook with your findings.
Read
Read to your grandchild and encourage him to read to you, too. Young readers revel in the opportunity to show off their new-found skills. If geographical distance is between you, take heart! Hallmark offers a line of recordable books, perfect for any grandparent to pre-record before sending to a grandchild. And never underestimate the beauty of Skype or Facetime reading dates.
Arts & Crafts
Make sock puppets, noodle necklaces, origami or paper-mâché. Draw portraits of one another or partake in needlecrafts like crocheting, knitting or embroidery. The fruits of your labor make excellent mementos of your time together or make great gifts to give away. If you’re not creatively inclined, build a collection instead, with items such as coins, stamps or baseball cards.
Nature Walk
Hit a local trail and be on the lookout for a variety of wildlife. A nature guidebook and journal make good companions for any trek as you aim to identify local wildflowers, trees, birds and other animals. Check out KCParent.com for a comprehensive listing of Kansas City nature centers and trails.
Day Trip
Hit the road but keep it local by scouting out local history museums and famous landmarks while pit-stopping at a family favorite restaurant. If you have the itch to head out of town, check out nearby hotspots like Jamesport (Missouri’s thriving Amish community), St. Joseph (home of the Pony Express) or Lawrence (where basketball was invented).
Play Games
Not all games require a screen, mouse or controller. Have some unplugged fun as you partake in familiar favorites like chess, checkers, parcheesi, kings in the corner or jacks. Go outside and throw a ball around, go bowling or cheer on the home team at a Royals or T-Bones game.
Attend Activities
The biggest impact a grandparent can have on his grandchildren will be found in his presence. Make it a priority to attend as many dance recitals, soccer games and scouting ceremonies as possible. This can be particularly challenging if you have grandchildren involved in multiple activities or if you do not live close by. But then again, it makes your presence that much more valuable when you are able to attend.
Recipe Testing & Tasting
Whip up some tasty treats alongside your aspiring sous chefs. Recreate familiar family favorites while trying your hand at some new ones as well. Build your own recipe book that records what you’ve made together and how the family rated it based on taste and presentation, along with any photos of the food and the chefs making it!
Establish a Family Newspaper
Utilizing a simple word processing program, children can boost their typing skills while chronicling family life. Encourage your aspiring journalists to cover such topics as current events (including the price of common household items—always fun to compare in days to come), recent vacations and interviews of immediate or extended family. Alternate months of publishing the paper between you and the grandkids.
Nurture Talents (and teach new skills, too!)
Your grandson has the best arm on his little league team. Your granddaughter can sing like nobody’s business. Encourage your grandchildren’s gifts and consider giving in ways that support those endeavors. For example, instead of just buying toys on Christmas and birthdays, offer to provide new sports gear or voice lessons.
Time Capsule
Compile items that are good representations of your grandchildren—pictures of them with their pets, movie stubs from flicks seen together, a poster of a favorite actor or musician, etc.—and place them in a bottle with the current date on it. Bury the bottle on your property with instructions to open the time capsule several years from now.
Olathe mom Lauren Greenlee spent her childhood volunteering at a nursing home alongside her paternal grandmother. She now enjoys watching her own children create special memories with their own grandparents and great-grandparents.