Rule 1—Exercise When you
first pick up the grandchildren, one of the first things you want to do is make
sure they are thoroughly exercised. There are several ways to do this. You can
put them through tiring muscle building paces…
…or you can just let them play.
Be sure to let them take little
breaks.
Rule 2—Keep the trips short Kids love to travel, but only for about five minutes
or so. In order to avoid the constant “When are we going to get there?” and “I
have to go potty NOW!” noises, it is best to plan several very short trips.
Some kids like to travel by horse.
Others like to travel on the
backs of kitties…
…or down slides.
Some prefer the more traditional
types of travel.
And then there are the wacky ones
who would rather whiz around in a giant banana.
Rule 3—Take a Walk In case
the exercise and travel have not quite worn them out, it is always a good idea
to talk a walk outside.
Rule 4—Be Prepared For Anything You
never know what they might find…
Fortunately for the children, my
dog found this snake first, so it is quite dead. Not so fortunate for the
snake.
Rule 5—Let them help make their own food. Children will be much more
likely to eat their fruits and vegetables if they play a part in making it. In
this case, they made palm trees.
Rule 6—Dinner and a
Movie Not just for adults. Kids love eating while they watch something good
on TV. Here we are eating pizza and palm trees while watching Little House on the Prairie.
Rule 7—Sugar Them Up This
is where most grandparents can use a little guidance. The tendency is to sugar
them up too early in the game. The time to sugar them up is just before you
take them home.
Now they are ready to get in the car and get back to mom and
dad.
The perfect ending to a perfect day.
