“I want to be with them and get to know them, because if you don’t do that,
then when they get older you may have lost the opportunity.”
Series: Being Intentional
Meet Julie
Last fall I sat down with Julie Walder. She and her husband, Doug, have three adult children, three little grandsons, and one teenage granddaughter. Julie has been a grandmother for about seven years and with a background in early childhood education, she brings a lot of creative ideas to the table.
However, before diving into her grandparenting adventures, I wanted to learn more about her early years and the people who influenced her.
Sadly, Julie’s father passed away from an illness when she was just three-years old. In his absence, she was shaped by her mother, grandparents, and extended family. She spoke fondly about her tight-knit upbringing that included special memories with cousins, aunts, and grandparents.
Talking about her grandparents, Julie described them as generous, Christian people who prioritized family.
“I would say [my] grandparents probably influenced me even more– just because of the way they were and how much they promoted family and getting together all the time. Just hanging out and doing things.”
Julie is now carrying that inspiration into her own grandparenting. While it’s true that she has more flexibility than some grandparents might, I was struck and challenged by her intentional attitude towards making herself available for her grandkids.
“I feel like my place now is to be available to the kids [her children] as much as I can. My mom and my mother-in-law were always there for me when I needed somebody for my kids. I feel that is the ministry I am supposed to be doing right now– for the kids and grandkids– because pretty soon they are going to be grown up and involved in school activities. I want to be with them and get to know them, because if you don’t do that, then when they get older you may have lost the opportunity.”
A Treasure of Fun
I asked her, “Can you tell me about some of the fun activities or games that you’ve planned with your grandkids?”
“One of the first things that popped into my head,” she said, “was a treasure hunt I set up a couple of summers ago. The boys were staying overnight, and I knew I’d need a few activities to keep them busy. So, I decided to plan a treasure hunt. I came up with the clues and ordered a little treasure chest from Amazon. It came filled with coins and colorful gems.”
Julie explained that she and her daughter, Katie, buried the chest in the garden. At the time, the boys were just 4, 3, and 2 years old, so Aunt Katie helped read the clues—and they used pictures to make the hunt more engaging.
Here are some examples of the clever clues that were tailored to the boys’ ages:
- “Do you think we have any mail?”
- “Where does Grandpa hang out during a workday? Maybe you should sit on his chair.”
- “What’s a fun thing to do on the porch to keep cool?”
- “Where is the ice cream kept?”
After hunting all the clues down, the final one was a treasure map marked with an X and step-by-step directions to help them find the buried chest.
“After they found it, we took the coins and gems and divided them up evenly.” Julie continued, “I had bought some candy that they could ‘buy’ with their treasure.”
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More Ideas
Julie’s Treasure Hunt took a lot of preparation but it also kept her grandsons engaged for a long time. It’s completely customizable for different children, ages, and locations and you don’t have to live on a farm to make this a ton of fun!
Next time, I’ll share how Julie has carried on a tradition that her mom began.
If you’d like some more specifics about building your own treasure hunt or developing other activities, go to the Resources tab.
