Springtime Fun with Grand Love

Springtime is the growing season, so why not grow some new experiences and hobbies with your grandchildren. It’s a great time to introduce your grandchildren to gardening, bird watching, spectator sports, dog walking, or anything outdoors you can enjoy together. Here are some activities that you can thoroughly enjoy with grandchild.

Fun Springtime Activities You Can Do with Your Grandchild

• Birdwatching is a wonderful hobby, put up a feeder and a bird bath or other shallow water container and watch your feathered friends frolick. Start finding out the names of the birds that visit your area, research the foods they like, and offer those foods or seeds for the birds you want to attract. You can start a bird journal, dating the spring arrival and other important facts about the birds visiting you. You can add photos, or descriptions of your new friends along with the entries. We have pet names for the cardinals – Big Mac and Ruby, and the noisy blue jay is named Bully because he chases all the birds away from the feeders.
• Butterfly catching is a wonderful way to past the time, first you need to find a flower garden or wildflower area, second you need to be patient and hunt – looking for the fluttering wings, third net the butterfly or just take a picture. Take along a butterfly handbook and note the kinds you have found.
• Kites- Does watching the birds and butterflies make you feel like flying? How about a kite, even if you can’t run, you can help your grandkids make kites. Then go to a park or an area safe and unobstructed for the kids to run and get their kites flying high.
• Scavenger Hunt or Collecting – While you are at the park or just taking a walk, take the time to look for birds, nests, flowers, bugs, rocks or anything else you or your grandchild find interesting. You can make a long list and set out on a scavenger hunt. You can start a nature collection with your grandchild, whatever seems to interest them, everything in nature is a treasure.
• Spring Picnic- Take along a blanket and a basket of fresh fruit for an early outdoor picnic. The blanket can be home base for rest. The empty basket a place for all the scavenger hunt items or treasured finds of the day. Bubbles are inexpensive and a great way to have hours of fun. Grandpa will even join in, kids love to blow, catch, chase, and pop bubbles. You can purchase bottles of bubbles with the bubble wands. When empty, refill the bottles with 1 part dish soap 1 part water.
• Cloud Shapes – Remember laying on a blanket, looking up, just watching the puffy clouds floating and changing shape? Why not inspire your grandchild’s imagination and storytelling ability. Just tell them what you see in the cloud formations and make up a silly beginning sentence the child can add to. Example, “that cloud looks like a bear sitting down, maybe he’s eating a marshmallow,” as the cloud starts to fade away, you can ask, “what do you think the bear is doing now?”, your grandchild might say, “laying down to sleep, his belly is full!”
• Playground – Visit a public playground, swing, slide, teeter, or just sit and play in the sand, a perfect opportunity to tell stories and share memories about the things you enjoyed doing when you were your grandchild’s age.
• Photography – For any of your outdoor activities, take along a throw away camera for the grandchildren to use. The pictures they take will give you a chance to see things from their level of sight.
• Scrap Book- An added bonus for a rainy day activity is making a scrapbook with their prized photos complete with phrases or a made up storyline adventure.
• Dog Walking- Even if you don’t own a dog, you could offer to walk a neighbor’s dog with your grandchild. It helps teach the child about doing simple things to help others, the importance of caring for pets, and helps them learn to make friends.
• Sporting Events- You may consider going to a baseball game, tennis match, or any outdoor sporting event. For kids old enough, a professional game is a wonderful way to spend a afternoon, complete with ball park food and maybe an autograph from their favorite player. For the younger children watching little league is fun and a great way to introduce them to spectator sports.
• Gardening – Spring is primetime for gardening. Children love to help dig, water and weed. Starting seeds indoors in decorated pots is a great way to start the younger children. They can paint the clay pots, put their names on them and plant the seeds with your help. Your grandchildren and you can watch the growing process. A window box garden, indoors or out, is great for apartment dwellers. For older children – a small garden area or bigger containers may be started outdoors, complete with their own garden decorations – painted rocks, flags, stakes, pinwheels or birdhouses.
• Stargazing is free for everyone to enjoy! Twinkle, twinkle little star, how I wonder what you are? Up above the world so high, like a diamond in the sky. Twinkle, twinkle little star, how I wonder what you are? Don’t wonder any longer, find out what stars really are. Visit the Stargazing link listed under Bulletins to find out the answers to the night sky. After you have the facts, share the information with your grandchildren, remember to keep it simple for the younger ones. Then you can wish upon the stars and truly know what they are. Binoculars are helpful, but not necessary for stargazing, you can spot the most common constellations with the naked eye.

Outdoor Safety

Keep your grandchildren and yourself accident free outdoors around your home. Police and clean up garbage; fill in holes and uneven grass and ground areas; put stickers or sun catchers on large glass patio doors to reduce the chance of running into the glass; fence off a play area for toddlers; close and lock gates to pool decks; keep garage doors closed to prevent doors from closing on and trapping children. Label poisonous plants and garden products with large Red no touch sign stickers and teach the children to stay away from all Red no touch items. Make sure lawn furniture is sturdy, repair or replace all broken outdoor items. For outings away from your home, know the neighborhood, area, or park you plan to visit. Let someone know where you are going and time you plan to return, take water, and a cell phone with you. You may also want to take along a flashlight if you decide to go out around dusk. Set up a home base with a blanket for the children to return to from their play area which is limited to your comfortable range of view from your home base blanket. Again, police and pick up garbage in and around the limited play area. Keep a first aid kit and portable phone with emergency numbers programed in or listed on i, close to the entry door most often used for outdoor access and emergency kit in your car. Put sunscreen and bug repellent on children and yourself 10 minutes before going outdoors.

Please teach your grandchildren the names of creatures, plants, and stars. Show them the right ways to take care of our environment, by recycling, restoring and protecting all of our natural elements. Teach everyone the golden rule of respect for Mother Nature. Mother nature will reward our future generations with her beautiful sights, glorious sounds, multi textures, fragrant smells, tasty fruits, and thriving creatures, as long as all humans are responsible and preserve her.