June 8, 2018

Summer Bonding Activities with the Grandkids

In writing these blogs, my wonderful editor simply suggests a topic and then leaves the rest to me (which, more often than not, usually works out fine). For example, for the post you’re currently enjoying, the topic was “Bored? Great ideas for shaking up the summer.” She then gently suggested that I write a two-part post, one for seniors, the other for kids. Being the rebel that I am, I decided to combine the two into summer activities that seniors and kids can participate in together, like rock climbing or cliff diving. The suggestions below are just that, “suggestions.” Hopefully a couple will appeal to BOTH you and your grandchild.

Lawn games – Before you dismiss it, summer lawn games can get rather intense, as they bring out the competitor in some of us, usually the males. There’s no better feeling in the world than sending your competitor’s croquet ball flying into the weeds or when you air mail the winning sandbag during a heated game of corn hole. Other suggestions include: bocce, horseshoes, jarts (actual lawn darts that are not produced any longer due to safety reasons. Be careful), or badminton.
Attend an outdoor movie – This is different than a drive-in movie. Outdoor movies are usually held on a large lawn in a local park. There’s just something “different” about watching a movie lounging in a lawn chair or on a blanket as opposed to viewing one in a movie theater or family room. Just be sure not to take the grandkids to an outdoor screening of Fifty Shades of Grey, even if they are seventeen…awkward.
Go to a ball game – and it doesn’t have to be an MLB game. Many smaller towns have minor league teams, like the Altoona (PA) Curve, El Paso (TX) Chihuahuas, Jupiter (FL) Hammerheads, Modesto (CA) Nuts, Omaha (NE) Storm Chasers, and, of course, the Durham (NC) Bulls. Chances are, there’s a major or minor league team near you and they usually have some very entertaining promotional nights. For example, the Frisco (TX) Roughriders hosted a retro video game night with Space Invaders and Pac-Man consoles placed around the concourse and the Brooklyn (NY) Cyclones held, and still hold, various Seinfeld Nights where patrons received a Keith Hernandez “Magic Loogie” bobblehead one evening, and a Roger McDowell “Second Spitter” bobble on another.
A night in the backyard – sitting around the firepit making ‘smores and mountain pies, stargazing and camping out. For those of you who don’t know (you better ask someone…sorry, that’s the rapper in me coming out) mountain pies require a mountain pie maker, obviously. It’s kind of like a hinged blacksmith tool in which you place a sandwich stuffed with canned pie filling, such as tart cherries, blueberries, or strawberries. The pie maker then goes into the fire for a few minutes and, viola, out comes a steaming mini-pie, or mountain pie, if you like.
Go geocaching – which is a variation on the treasure or scavenger hunt. Hidden all over the globe are various “caches” or “geocaches” and hunters locate them using GPS devices. While the actual cache may vary, at a minimum, they contain a log book in a waterproof container in which you sign your geocaching code name and date/time you located it. Some cooler caches are hidden in larger containers, such as an ammo box, and contain items to be traded and collected. Consider geocaching as a great excuse to get off the beaten path.