Grandparents are a vital part of a family’s structure, and their love and affection for their grandchildren know no bounds. Spending time with grandkids is an enriching experience that brings joy and happiness to both generations.
Grandparents are a great source of wisdom, knowledge, and life experience, which they can pass on to their grandchildren through their favourite activities. Whether it’s baking cookies, playing board games, gardening, or sharing stories from their past, grandparents have an abundance of fun and engaging activities that can keep their grandkids entertained for hours.
Curious as to what some of the favourite activities that grandparents love to share with their grandkids were, one Reddit user took to the online forum to ask ” what fun things have you done when asked to watch a grandchild for the day?”
The answers were as entertaining as the activities themselves, with a flurry of responses pouring in from near and far detailing everything from horse rides together, lego-building sessions to watching old movies together.
One grandfather shared the enjoyable experiences he shares with his grandson, that in addition to being fun helps “burn off some of his endless toddler energy”.
“I watch my Grandson on a fairly regular basis. Playing with cars, his Duplo blocks, things like that. But we have a daily ritual called our ‘Popcorn Movie’. I make up some popcorn and we pick a movie to watch. It can range from the old Godzillas to old Sci-fi (50s era) to a modern animated. We sit and talk about the movie, eat popcorn,” he revealed.
“After that, it’s time to ‘touch trees’. He gets to get outside and run around a bit. I’m mobility limited, so he helps his papa on our walks, and I watch him as he runs from tree to tree to burn off some of his endless toddler energy.”
A visit to the park was the order of the day for one pair of grandparents.
“They’re all pretty young, so….. walks to the park to play on the swings, slides. My wife is the master of grandkid entertainment, though, and can handle extended sessions of playing with Barbies with our oldest granddaughter,” they revealed.
The endless hours of entertainment that building a box fort can bring was an activity that was “so much fun” for one grandparent and their grandchild.
“A bunch of BIG cardboard boxes taped together to make a fort with tunnels,” the said.
“Cutting out flaps for windows and doors and then decorating the whole thing with markers. It was so much fun, cheap and easy to take apart and fold flat after the visit was over.”
Another grandparent put their science skills to good use in an effort to keep things exciting for their grandchildren.
“Depends on the age but some things that have lasted quite a few years: Science in the kitchen baking soda vinegar and food colouring with a chemistry set will go a long way. I kept a large baking soda and vinegar for experiments and my grandkid loved it,” they wrote.
“Dying eggs at Easter is fun and every Christmas we make a gingerbread house, not a kit, really kid elaborate ones with lots of candy and frosting. they are 12 now and I have 2 more who are 13 and we spent one night at a hotel with an indoor waterpark and arcade last week and they loved it.”
One grandparent shared that no matter what activities they share with their grandchildren “it’s always wonderful”.
“We go fishing. We practice riding the horses. I take her camping. We just generally hang out and sometimes go hunting for arrowheads. We do a LOT of stuff together, sometimes fun, sometimes not, but it’s always wonderful,” they shared.
“We didn’t get the Spoil Them and Send Them Home experience other grandparents brag about, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.”