How are you entertaining your grandchildren?

I had my 9 year old granddaughter for one week and I took her swimming, to GoApe and to a theme park where I had to go on scary rides with her. She loves them, I just closed my eyes tight and prayed! I then had my 7 year old grandson for a week and did the same with him but not GoApe. Again I had to go on scary rides! Again I closed my eyes and prayed! Granddaughter is Autistic/ADHD and grandson has ADHD. They don’t sleep well at night, want snacks all the time and can’t sit still for long periods.

I invested in a padding pool in lockdown which I filled and covered before the hose pipe ban, I even got in myself last week. I play games with them like, I am a food, what food am I, am I healthy or unhealthy food , I teach them about nature and growing things. We made bird food cakes last week and a bug hotel. We have been crafting and having fun in the kitchen, We have made jellies, ice lollies and no cook healthy goodies . I look for things in charity shops before the holidays like bundles of comics and crafty things, so there is quite a supply of things to do. We made these plant pot people a few weeks ago. This one is me

Paddling pool ,they play happily for ages in it.?

I live in Australia where 6 months of the year we have hellish heat and humidity so I know what you all are going through, when the temp is high my great grandson (age 4) spends all his time at mine playing with water, we water plants, we have a pool we put a tarp on the grass in semi shade and he makes a water slide, he literally spends his whole day with us in his swimmers.

WOW there’s some brilliant ideas here. As an update I’m taking my ‘never sits still’ 5 year old granddaughter camping for two nights to a place where they have a few animals, a steam train over the road, a castle and a model village in the nearby village. I hope she likes it ?

pinkjj27

I invested in a padding pool in lockdown which I filled and covered before the hose pipe ban, I even got in myself last week. I play games with them like, I am a food, what food am I, am I healthy or unhealthy food , I teach them about nature and growing things. We made bird food cakes last week and a bug hotel. We have been crafting and having fun in the kitchen, We have made jellies, ice lollies and no cook healthy goodies . I look for things in charity shops before the holidays like bundles of comics and crafty things, so there is quite a supply of things to do. We made these plant pot people a few weeks ago. This one is me

Those plant pot people are a great idea ?????? You look beautiful x ?

We made "fry bread" as my 4 year old granddaughter had read a book about indigenous American families making fry bread and what it meant to them.

Lots of easy recipes online. Cooked it in coconut oil. Very successful and not difficult.

Making orange juice is a regular activity that my grandson loves.
It takes longer than you'd think! He often asked to do it.

Ohmother

WOW there’s some brilliant ideas here. As an update I’m taking my ‘never sits still’ 5 year old granddaughter camping for two nights to a place where they have a few animals, a steam train over the road, a castle and a model village in the nearby village. I hope she likes it ?

That sounds lovely Ohmother, have the best time! When my two were little we would often go camping, I would take empty matchboxes and challenge them to fill them with was many small items as possible. Also took bars of cheap soap for them to decorate with stuff.

Camping in the back garden is also well loved.

One year I had planted a pot of peas and my GC happened to visit. They spent over an hour sitting (in the shade) picking the peas, podding them and eating them raw.

PollyDolly love the matchbox idea for camping ?

My DGD has asked me to help sort her bedroom out tomorrow. She said she has too much stuff to fit on her shelves. Evidently I have to be hard-hearted and encourage her to give up things she really doesn’t need. Oh and could we have Bao buns for lunch.

What a lot of nice ideas here!

On their last visit, my 2 Gc, 8 and 7 were delighted when I handed them scissors and said they could cut the dead flowers from my pots! They spent a quiet hour deadheading, while I had a glass of cider and supervised.

When it is hot, a small wading pool, or even just buckets and cups, colanders, small plastic figurines will keep them occupied and cool. Grampa saves bits of wood from his workshop, and I let them paint and make things (no nailing though!) GS 8 likes to make ramps with bits of wood and race his cars down them, GD 7 makes houses for her little figurines.

I had my two great grandsons today, helped by their aunt DGD3
We went to the local leisure centre and DGD3 took the older boy who is 7 to ten pin bowling while I took the younger one who is 6 into the soft play area.He turned into a monkey swinging from ropes and climbing everywhere I was worn out just seeing an eye on him.
We then took them to where their mother , my DGD2 was working,(this is allowed in school holidays if they keep quiet),until she finished work.
A very happy and enjoyable day.

Mollygo

My DGD has asked me to help sort her bedroom out tomorrow. She said she has too much stuff to fit on her shelves. Evidently I have to be hard-hearted and encourage her to give up things she really doesn’t need. Oh and could we have Bao buns for lunch.

Whenever we go to visit, my five year old granddaughter "casually" asks, "Would anybody like to come and see my bedroom?"
This results in an hour or more of me admiring her toys, and tidying, folding and putting away her clothes, though I'm no longer allowed to make her bed as that's now one of her pocket money jobs!
Last month she wanted me to go through the clothes she'd got out ready to pack for our holiday to Greece ?
Precious times ?

PollyDolly what a great success our matchbox collection was!!! It took us a good hour and a half to find an amazing collection of feathers, seeds, stones, leaves etc on our campsite. ?. A water pistol was purchased for little brother as a present but of course we had to try it out before we brought it home for him!!

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Endlessly – but I love it and them.