These would be an easy dessert or snack.
Frozen Fruit Bites
Ingredients:
12 vanilla wafer cookies
1/2 cup vanilla yogurt
1/2 cup Neufchatel cream cheese, softened
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon honey
Sliced kiwi, strawberries, or whole blueberries
Instructions:
1. Place liners in a mini-cupcake pan. Put a wafer cookie, flat side up, in the bottom of each well.
2. In a medium-size bowl, whisk together the yogurt, cream cheese, lemon juice, and honey until smooth. Spoon 1 heaping tablespoon on top of each cookie.
3. Top the mixture with the fruit.
4. Cover the pan with plastic wrap, then place it in the freezer until the fruit bites are firm, about 1 to 1-1/2 hours. Remove the tray from the freezer for 15 to 25 minutes before serving. Serves 12.
For nutritional information go to Famiiy Fun

When your grandbaby insists on stand-up soothing, but your back refuses, try this idea from a fellow grandma, Ronda Kay. She sits on her physioball. It soothes baby and saves her lower back. READ MORE
To find more grandparenting ideas from Ronda Kay go to GRANDGIFTING.
Do you have any grandparenting tips? Please share them.

Here’s a way to use those random buttons that you can’t bare to part with because you know you’ll need them someday. I bought some headbands at the dollar store and had my granddaughters create their own. Megan wanted hers to be simple but Kate wanted every button she could reach. I was in charge of the glue gun.

I received a message recently from a fellow grandma that really touched my heart. Senda gave me permission to share it.
My mom’s name was Anna Elizabeth…my kids called her Grandma Lizzie. We miss her dearly, and have days just talking and remembering her. They loved going to her house, “Grandma Lizzie’s”. You can see from the photo that it looked like a run down shack but to them it was the next best place to heaven. My daughter and I were talking about Grandma Lizzie a few days ago, and the games they use to play there…and we couldn’t remember how a game went, it was “Lemonade…something” we can’t remember…but imagine our shock when we found “Grandma Lizzie” right here on Facebook! Yes, it certainly looks like my kind of page. I have two grandsons and need all kinds of fun ideas and activities.
Thanks,
Senda

Thank you, Senda, for bringing back memories of my grandma’s.
Share a special memory you have of a parent or grandparent.
Liz

This is my kind of recipe, less than 10 ingredients and it sounds good.

Green Beans with Mint-Almond Pesto

Makes: 12 servings
Ingredients
1-1/2 teaspoons salt
2 pounds haricots verts (French green beans) or fresh thin green beans, trimmed
2-1/2 cups fresh mint leaves, plus additional for garnish
1/3 cup blanched almonds, toasted
Finely grated fresh lemon zest from 1 lemon
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Directions
1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil; add 1 teaspoon salt. Add green beans and cook until bright green and crisp/tender, 2 to 4 minutes. Transfer to a bowl of ice and cold water to stop cooking. When cooled, drain and pat dry. (Can be made ahead. Place in a plastic storage bag and chill up to 1 day.) Transfer to a large bowl.

2. Combine mint, almonds, remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and the zest in a food processor. With motor running, add oil in a stream and blend until puréed, for pesto.

3. Add pesto to green beans and toss until coated well. Transfer to a large serving platter and garnish with mint leaves, if desired.

For nutrition facts and more recipes go to Ladies Home Journal

In case you can’t tell, I’ve gotten into bookmaking. Since I attended an easy bookmaking workshop I’ve done a lot with my grandkids. This time they made a simple accordion book with their name.

All you need to do is fold paper accordion style and glue a piece of cardboard (I used a cereal box) on the front and back for the cover. Be sure to make the cover slightly larger than the paper.

At a recent family reunion my daughter Callee did an easy and fun treasure hunt with the kids. She had 5 stations with a different activity that had to be completed to get the clue to the next station. At each station there was an adult to supervise. When all the kids were finished with the activity at one station, they were given the clue of where to go next.

Station 1 – make a picture using tiny shell & rocks ( while the kids were doing this, Callee was burying the treasure with an “X“ on top)
Station 2 – listen to a story (picture book about a family reunion)
Station 3 – act out scenes from Star Wars ( all the kids love the Star Wars movies)
Station 4 – using white crepe paper or toilet paper, wrap up someone to look like a mummy
Station 5 – sing 3 songs (that was my station)
The clue from station 5 was to find an “X”. The treasure was buried in a plastic container.
The kids loved it and stayed engaged because they wanted the treasure.
This could be done almost anywhere, even at home on a rainy day.

Create a box full of fun things for your grandchildren to dress-up in when they come to visit. Fill it with old clothes, hats, shoes, and jewelry. I like to look for interesting things at thrift shops or yard sales. It’s easy to find some hilarious things that your grandchildren will love that are inexpensive. Children love to create funny outfits. Encourage your grandchildren to write a short play to act out or read a story and let them act it out. Be sure to take pictures to preserve the memories. I like to keep my dress-up items in a plastic box that I can slide under the couch, it’s easily accessible and also easy to put away.
Sagan didn’t need a dress-up box. He likes to dress himself in whatever he randomly pulls out of his drawer.

These are so cute and easy to make. You just use Rhodes Bake-N-Serve rolls. They would be great for the grandkids, mine never eat a whole hamburger anyway.
GET DIRECTIONS

Sorting is a great activity to get kids thinking about data, attributes and patterns and how things can be organized in different ways. These are skills they need for math.

1. Collect many different kinds of things to sort (buttons, rocks, shells money, lids, beans, small toys, etc.).
2. Download the “How Many Ways to Sort” and “Sorting Mat”.
3. Use the Sorting Mat to sort the items into categories. There will be many different ways to sort the items. You can sort by shape, size, color, etc.
4. Write down all the different things you sorted and the way you sorted them on the How Many Ways to Sort sheet. See how many different ways you can sort the items. This activity also reinforces writing skills.

Download All Sorts of Sorts