Family-friendly ideas for summer fun with grandchildren

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Family-friendly ideas for summer fun with grandchildren

Warm, sunny days are the perfect setting for making family memories, but they’re also ideal opportunities to encourage grandkids to get creative and let their imaginations soar.

These ideas for summertime activities encourage family interaction, and the more kids get to help plan and organize the details, the more engaged you can expect them to be.

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Stand Up to Bullying, Grandma Style

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Stand Up to Bullying, Grandma Style

A guest post for International Stand Up to Bullying Day, by Neve Spicer of WeTheParents.org.

Grandmas are great teachers. They have the experience and the time to help in raising good kids. When it comes to potential bullying behavior, you want them to think about what they have done and eventually realize it makes them the bad guy, not the hero.

Today, November 20, is International Stand Up to Bullying Day. Make the day meaningful in your grandkid’s lives.

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Thanksgiving theatrics: Family fun galore courtesy What Happens at Grandma's

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Thanksgiving theatrics: Family fun galore courtesy What Happens at Grandma's

My friend Grandma Joyce from What Happens at Grandma's has done it again: crafted a creative and clever holiday activity for kids! This time it's for Thanksgiving, and this time it's unique among Thanksgiving arts and crafts found online because it's performance art — a three-act play for grandkids to perform for friends and family on Turkey Day. Thank you for sharing, Joyce!

The kids don't know it yet, but they're going to superstar in a post-dinner Thanksgiving play at grandma's this year. Considering their love of theatrics, I'm confident they'll gobble up this opportunity right along with savory sweet potatoes served on the rapidly approaching family day of thankful...

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On adult children: Learning the boundaries of communication (guest post)

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Dear readers: This guest post was written by my grandma friend and fellow GRANDparent Network member Donne Davis of GaGa Sisterhood. Thank you so much for sharing this wisdom on the tricky-at-times relationship between parents and their adult children, Donne.

mother and adult daughter

When it comes to communicating with your adult children, where do you get stuck? I posed this question to the 25 GaGas attending our January 15 meeting and added, is it around discipline, visitation, values or boundaries?

All of the above, and more, they answered. One member said: “All I have to do is open my mouth and my son misinterprets what I’m saying.” Another joked: “OMG! Just asking ‘how are you’ can trigger...

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What moms want from grandparents (guest post)

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Dear readers: Tis the season of giving, and one of the best gifts you can give — all year long — is understanding. Here, my friend and fellow GRANDparent Network member Donne Davis of GaGa Sisterhood offers insight to help us grandparents better understand the mothers of our beloved grandkiddos and what they most want from us in our grand role.

What Moms Want from Grandparents

grandmothers, mother, daughter

As I was writing my book, When Being a Grandma Isn’t So Grand: 4 Keys to L.O.V.E. Your Grandchild’s Parents, I realized that in order to help us grandmas improve our relationship with our grandchild’s parents — especially their mothers — we need to hear what moms have to say about the grandparent relationship.

I surveyed over 50 moms and asked them what they want from the grandparents. Many moms...

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Creating kindness in your life (Guest post)

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Dear readers: This guest post was written by Kay and Leslie of GrandparentsLink, my fellow members in the GRANDparent Network. Considering the lack of kindness and compassion across our country the last far too many months thanks to the hostile political climate and anxiety following the election, the wisdom Kay and Leslie offer here is particularly worthy of reading, sharing, putting into practice.

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Creating kindness in your life

As grandparents, we want to inspire our grandchildren, and one of the best ways to do this is by "doing" simple acts of kindness. The old adage about "setting an example" certainly...

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The hero of the holidays: 4 ways to bring family together

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Dear readers: I've flown to the desert to be with my grandsons for a few days! As I play hooky, I'd like to share with you this helpful holiday-themed guest post from author and speaker Margery Leveen Sher.

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The hero of the holidays: 4 ways to bring family together

Ah, the holidays are upon us. What does it bring to your mind? Catching up with relatives you haven’t seen for a while? Gorging on turkey and treasured, old family recipes? Enjoying...

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Grandparents: Inspire grandchildren to create their own adventures

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Grandparents: Inspire grandchildren to create their own adventures

Dear readers: I am away from the computer and in the desert watching my grandsons, so today I'm sharing with you these smart suggestions for summer fun from StatePoint Media.

Getting kids to be more active and motivated for outdoor adventure can be a challenge in today's world of cool technology. With so many compelling reasons to stay indoors—like game systems, smartphones, and streaming video—how do you convince your grandchildren that the great outdoors is, well, great?

kids playing outside

Here are a few ideas to inspire outdoor play—and even to use their love of technology to...

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GRAND guest post: 6 tips to keep grandchildren reading all summer

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Dear readers: This article originally appeared on the GRAND Magazine website, one of my partners in providing grandparents with quality information and inspiration. I publish it here with their permission.

grandma and grandson reading together

Parents and grandparents are the child’s first and foremost teachers. They play an important role in teaching children to read and—maybe just as importantly—to love reading. Now that summer...

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Encourage grandkids to learn more about science and nature during playtime

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Dear readers: As I mentioned yesterday, I'm off playing in the desert with my grandsons. In light of that, I offer you here a guest post of sorts — playtime suggestions courtesy StatePoint Media.

dinosaur toys

Have any budding scientists in your family? If your grandchildren are fascinated by nature, dinosaurs, and other cool science subjects, you can help foster their interests by turbo-charging their playtime to fit their favorite topics.

"Learning is not just for the classroom or a formal setting," says Dr. Lise Eliot, early childhood...

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