Toddlers: Arranging Playdates for Your Grandchild

The kids down the block want to meet your grandchild. Make it happen with some preplanned activities.

Do you have kids who live next door or down the street? If so, arrange a playdate between one of them and your grandchild. To break the ice, center it around a specific activity. How about a chocolate-dipping party or a coloring-book exchange? Adding another dimension to your grandchild's visit will keep him coming back for more.

Book Exchange
Grandparents often find that they have heaps of books around the house. Why not make the grandchildren's next playdate a book exchange? Have each child bring four gently used books that they won't mind parting with (no torn or missing pages) and lay them all out for display. Have each child pick a "new" book from the selection (start with the youngest kids) and then repeat until all of them have four books to take home. For another variation on this event, choose un-colored coloring-book pages (one for each child in the group). Check the Grandparents.com coloring pages for hundreds of great options. After the children have exchanged pages, staple them together with a blank page on the front so they can design their own cover.

Chocolate Dipping Party
Ingredients:
• Melted semisweet chocolate chips (using a double boiler over medium heat)
• Sliced apples, strawberries, marshmallows, plain butter cookies
• Sprinkles
• Nonpareil candies and other edible decorating items

To avoid burns, pour the melted chocolate in small bowls for each child after it has cooled to a reasonable temperature. This will also eliminate community double-dipping and sharing issues. Kids can then dunk their chocolate-dipped food into the decorating goodies. Let treats cool and harden for about 30 minutes in the refrigerator and enjoy!

Dancing With the Little Stars
Have a toddler dance-off. Play some kid-friendly, energetic music and let them go at it. After the song is over, pair them off and have them do any type of couples dance, where they copy each other, dance together, or simply dance side by side in pairs. End the dance party with the Hokey Pokey or the Chicken Dance.