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Updated December 2020
Gearing Up For a Fun Filled Celebration and a Purpose Filled 2021
The time between Christmas and New Year’s Day is full of opportunities for connecting with our grandkids.
The Christmas programs are over (even if they were virtual this year) and the presents are opened. School is out and there may even be a little extra excitement as this difficult year comes to a close.
With that in mind we’ve been on the lookout for ideas to share as you get ready to celebrate the arrival of a new year!
New Years Word Search
Share a printable New Years word search with your grandkids. Here’s one we’ve created below. Feel free to use it, or make your own on one of the many sites available online.
Here are some ideas of how you can use it:
-Set a timer and see who can find the most words before time runs out.
-Try choosing a word and see who can find it first.
-Or maybe the winner is the person who finds all of the words first.
Not only are word searches fun, they are proven to help increase memory retention and concentration in people of all ages. So this is a win for all of us!
Wishing Wall
We’ve seen an idea that kids will have fun working on, and it will also give you some insight into their likes and challenges, and hopes for the coming year.
It’s called a Wishing Wall and it’s described in Buggy and Buddy.
This is actually a great activity for the entire family. Using post it notes, or small pieces of paper write or draw pictures of what each person is wishing for in the coming year.
Then place everyone’s papers into a grid on the wall and you will have a collection of wishes to focus on in the coming year.
This is a great way for every family member to work on goals. It’s also a great way to think of how they can help others in the year ahead.
After everyone is done, take picture of the collection. Or, if you are a long distance grandparent have someone take a picture and text it to you. Then you can celebrate their wishes and encourage their hopes for the year ahead.
DIY New Years Eve Hats
Make New Year’s Eve hats and wear them while you facetime. O.E.L. (Our Everyday Life) has a pattern for regular party hats, tiny hats and headbands you can access.
I love that they decorate their hats based on goals for the year!
They use black paper and chalk markers, but feel free to use whatever materials you and your grandkids have on hand.
Photo Booth
Send your kids and the grandkids some photo booth props. You can put together your own box of fun items, or have this sent straight from amazon (not an affiliate link)!
Make sure you have some props as well! Then text your celebratory pictures to each other and post them on social media.
A Countdown
And of course, what’s new year’s eve without a countdown! We’ve got you covered there too.
You can download our countdown guide and mark off the days until the new year, the start of school, or maybe even your first visit of the new year.
Just scroll to the bottom of this blog post and download the free Ultimate Guide to Countdowns to see all your printable countdown options!
We hope you have a ton of fun turning moments into memories with your grandkids as we travel full steam ahead into 2021! Happy New Year!