Camp Grandma 2013
You weren't invited to our annual two-day Camp Grandma this year, but my grandkids were. At least those that were potty trained. Six out of nine grandkids made for one awesome weekend!
Bonding. Memory making. Passing on our spiritual legacy. You know, all the important stuff that grandparents treasure. Condensed into two days. So, as promised, here is our Camp Grandma in review.
The above invite for each grandchild was downloaded and printed off from The DIY Dish. Easy peasy!
Throughout the year I had collected ideas on Pinterest for crafts, snacks, and meals. I wanted this summer's Camp Grandma to be full of fun activities that were different from last year.
My two oldest granddaughters were put in charge of finding skits and memory verses for the weekend. (Working on things for Camp Grandma together—how cool is that!)
My camp counselors (two oldest granddaughters) came a day early for "pre-camp" to help with on-site preparation.
They made these snack necklaces, organized skits, a memory verse activity (with a memory verse printed on rocks), and created pet rocks and other crafts that could be used as examples when they helped during craft time. (But best of all, it was great bonding time for me with two wonderful young women.)
The first afternoon we spent some time water skating on the front lawn. Zip lock baggies were the "skates."
And this is the "skating rink."
Skits and memory verses were practiced in the back yard—all in preparation for a Parents Bar-b-que scheduled for the second evening.
Evening camp fire allowed time for the kids to share their pet rock stories and listen to some tales from the life of Grandpa and Grandma. (Passing on a spiritual legacy weaves perfectly into such times.)
As expected, the kids were up and out of the tent before Grandma had coffee made in the morning. So quiet activities let Grandma get caffeinated and make breakfast. (Notice the booklet cover with our Camp Grandma 2012 photo on the table. After last year's event, I made photo albums for each of the grandkids for Christmas gifts.)
Grandpa slept-in since he had camped with the kids in the tent. Grandma didn't sleep in the tent. Grandma slept well. Smart grandma.
Even counselors need quiet time.
Morning sports were balloon games with paddles made of paper plates.
Afternoon swimming followed craft time and lunch.
Grandpa made a game out of picking up trash along our road for a community service project. The kids loved it. I'm sure the neighbors did too.
Parents and a crawling grandchild arrived in the late afternoon of our final day. Time for a bar-b-que and presentation of skits and memory verses!
The children introduced their pet rocks to their parents during skit time. Each child had named the pet rock they created and developed a story of how they got their pet. (I think pet rocks make nice pets. No messes in the house.)
Even the crawling grandchild enjoyed the skits.
2013 Camp Grandma campers!
I realized, after they had all gone home, that I didn't get a single photo of Grandma with the campers! Bad grandma. Sorry 'bout that.
Want to plan your own Camp Grandma? Here's another Camp Grandma Tips and Ideas blog post and How To Plan a Camp Grandma free printable. And don't forget our 2014 Camp Grandma for more ideas.
Catch you next week. Susan
"Jesus likes it when we share." -Adelaide, age 3: Pass this along to everybody and their brother. OK, maybe not everybody's brother, but you know . . . all of your friends would be nice.