Whether you call it cousins camp or nana camp or something else, hosting a camp experience for your grandchildren may be one of the hardest things you can do as a grandparent — and also one of the most rewarding.
Steve and Marsha Ridgell, grandparents to five grandchildren, know a thing or two about how and why to host a cousins camp or nana camp. They should. They managed a week-long camp for their grands every year for nine years.
“We wanted something where the cousins could be connected,” Steve said. “We wanted them to be together. We wanted them to have time especially with us.”
The Ridgell’s five grandchildren – Anna, Jake, Avery, Andrew and Austin – ranged in age from three to five when Cousin Camp started 10 years ago. Steve and Marsha, who live in Abilene, Texas, agreed to keep them for five days, including overnights.
“The only rule we made was that they had to be potty trained,” Steve said. “We said we’ll take them for a week. The parents dump them off. They don’t have to worry about them. We’ve got them.”
Hosting a weeklong camp at their home each summer took months of planning and preparation and was expensive, but Steve and Marsha highly recommend it to other grandparents.
“We’re really close to them (the grandchildren), and we think a lot of that is due to that week we spent together,” said Steve.
Tips for Hosting a Cousins Camp
Marsha said a key to their success with Cousins Camp was keeping the kids busy. Every day had a schedule, with a variety of activities both at home and around town.
“As soon as they get up and dressed, they are going somewhere,” Marsha said. “It’s important to keep them busy. You have to plan it out and know exactly what you are going to do.”
Activities changed some as the children grew older, but they included organized games in the yard, going to the library to get books, doing crafts together, and going out to eat. Over the years, Cousins Camp included fun experiences for the grandchildren ranging from horseback riding to miniature golf.
“They (grandchildren) all get to pick a restaurant for the five days, but they mainly want pizza and hamburgers,” Marsha said.
Setting rules and keeping routines were also important in the Ridgell’s Cousins Camp. Marsha said each child was given a copy of the camp rules. Every year’s camp had its own Bible memory verse. They stayed up late at night and watched movies on TV, with each child getting to choose one of the nightly movies. Each child even had a list of chores, although the emphasis was definitely on having fun and making memories.
“The purpose really was for us to spend time with them, give their parents a break, and the cousins time to bond,” Steve said.
The Spiritual Component
Steve is a minister and both he and Marsha have been active in church work their entire lives. For them, Cousins Camp was also an opportunity to teach spiritual lessons and values.
“We wanted it to be a spiritual kind of thing,” Steve said. “We had a devo (devotional) every night where they sat in a circle and everyone had to say the memory verse. Marsha picked a memory verse for each camp. Even the littlest ones said the verse, and sometimes the others would help them.”
What It Takes to Run a Camp for Grandchildren
Early on, Steve and Marsha realized that hosting a Cousins Camp would be a major undertaking that would require the best of them both. They put a line item for Cousins Camp in their budget, just like other households do for saving for major travel and Christmas gifts. Plus, Steve took the week off from work to help with the camp.
“I couldn’t do it without both of us,” Marsha said.
While Steve was there all week and helped, he said Marsha was the one that made Cousins Camp work.
“This was really Marsha’s thing. She had the idea. She did all the work.”
Marsha’s work began each year long before the campers arrived. She made matching T-shirts each year for the children, prepared daily itineraries, and shopped for food and supplies. At the house, Steve and Marsha removed much of the furniture from their living room and dining room to make way for the grandchildren. They created a “village” in the living room with small tents with mattresses where the cousins slept.
Another tradition was having a professional photographer take a group photo each year. Steve and Marsha have a large canvas portrait of the cousins over their fireplace, a fond memory of the most recent Cousins Camp.
The Final Cousins Camp
Just as Christopher Robin grew up in the Winnie the Pooh children’s books and stopped visiting the Hundred Acre Wood, so too do grandchildren grow up. The Ridgell’s grandchildren are mostly teenagers now, with sports, band practice, and other activities. Last year was the final Cousins Camp, although the cousins still visit their grandparents when they can.
Looking back on the experience, Marsha said one benefit is that the cousins all get along really well and are friends.
“They all have their phones and they call, text or Snapchat or whatever they do. They still do that (with one another) now, but I don’t think they would have done that if we had not built this bond through the camp.”
Hosting a cousins camp or nana camp is a great tradition. The memories made will last a lifetime.
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