Cousin Camp

Grandparents and grandchildren have a very special relationship. They need to spend time together nurturing that relationship and the one between cousins. One great way we have found to do this is by hosting "Cousin Camp" for a week every summer.

What is Cousin Camp? It is actually a private camp of sorts. You can give it any name you wish. I heard others use the name of Cousin Camp and adopted it for my own. Other names I have heard are "Nana and Papa Camp" and "Smith Cousin Week". You get the picture. Of course, you don't have to give it a name. It just seems to add to the anticipation for the grandchildren.

Although we did not have a name for it, the first camp of this sort that I participated in was as a little girl. My sister and I spent a week at our grandfather's house along with our cousins. Some of them lived nearby, but others lived out of state and this was the only time we spent with them. The out-of-towners, like us, stayed overnight with Papa and Lillie. Those that lived nearby just came for the day and went home each evening. We had a fantastic time! We went to the beach and went swimming and fishing; we ate watermelon and hotdogs; we played hide-and-go-seek and ran races. We even ran around outside in our underwear!! At the end of the day, my grandfather was very tired!! At the end of the week, he needed a real vacation.

Cousin Camp provides a great chance for all of your grandchildren (the cousins) to spend time with each other and with you. It is a wonderful way for those long-distance cousins to get together with one another and nurture those relationships. It is really neat watching all of those extended family relationships grow into a special bond as they all get to know each other. The younger ones begin to look up to the older ones and the older ones take on a protective nature.

We generally have our grandchildren for a week in the summer. It is a terrific opportunity to spend time with all of them without interfering mommies and daddies! One lady I know has 12 grandchildren, so one of the mothers usually helps her, but parents are pretty much unnecessary. My husband and I plan this together and he looks forward to it as much as I do. He is especially good at helping to keep things picked up and at being the disciplinarian, if the need arises.

I have learned that you must have a few guidelines in order to be effective. In other words, one friend does not allow the kids to attend camp until they are old enough to attend Vacation Bible School at her church. Since she has a dozen or more grandchildren, it is an excellent way for her to have the children for an extended stay without being responsible for all of their "entertainment".

The rules are all yours. We have "No Baths". (Of course, the kids are spending time daily in either a sprinkler, pool or wading pool.) At the end of the week, we fill our 2 foot wading pool with bubble bath and they have a ball!!

I usually make out a schedule for each day, so that the older ones know what is happening each day. They watch the schedule with an eagle eye and keep me on track! We usually let the kids sleep late in the morning, eat a leisurely breakfast and watch cartoons. Then they dress and do a little "housecleaning" (roll up sleeping bags, put away p.j.'s, etc.). But, let your schedule be dictated by your activities.

Those activities can be anything you choose. We have spent a day at the park and an afternoon at the local library or watching movies. We have gone on a nature walk, swimming, made stepping stones, papier mache bowls and decorated t-shirts. We have had tea parties (even with the 12 year old boy), made cookies and brownies and cooked hamburgers and hotdogs. We have taught the kids how to catch fireflies and names of constellations. The sky is the limit, literally!

Start planning...you will find it can be a lot of fun. I bet you will find that the ideas really begin to flow once you get started. Have a great time!!!