bring on summer, 2026! what's ahead at Our GRAND Lives?

11 hours ago
5 min read

Monday, June 8,, 2026

Can you feel it? Summer is here!

Even though the new season isn't officially here for a few weeks, the school year is winding down, calendars are opening up, and our thoughts are turning to sunshine-filled days, fun adventures, and all the special moments waiting to be shared with the Littles in our lives!

Whether you're a grandparent (like us), a caregiver, or a parent of young Littles,

summer brings both excitement and a familiar question:

How do we keep these young ones busy, engaged,

and making memories all season long?

That's where we come in!

At Our Grand Lives, we strive to be a source of practical ideas

and, hopefully a bit of inspiration and encouragement for families just like ours!

Today’s post is short(er) and sweet(er)

as we outline our plans for the coming months!

We met recently to do some planning

and, of course, we staked out our favorite booth for several hours

We even found ourselves reminiscing a bit. Imagine that???

We 🩵 summer!

When we were teaching and raising children

we were so blessed to have summers off to spend with our own Littles!

It was (and continues to be) a favorite time of the year!

Now that we’re both grandparents,

spending time with our grandkids brings a new layer of fun to each summer!

In some ways, it’s hard to believe that this will be our fourth summer of blogging…

(YES... we know, we’re really novices compared to many in this community!)

As we began planning for Summer 2026, we spent some time looking back

at many of the summer themes and activities we've shared over the years.

And you know what?

We found ourselves smiling from start to finish!

During the summer of 2023 and the summer of 2024,

we shared weekly themes that our readers could explore with their own Littles!

We LOVE a good theme!

Our 2023 Summer Themes!

AND

Our 2024 Summer Themes!

The themes we offered each summer provided a variety of activities and/or adventures that could easily be adapted to meet differing ages, abilities and interests of little ones!

Then last year we went in a bit of a different direction!

We called our Summer of 2025 series

Each week we shared 3-4 simple ideas that you could easily recreate at home

Weekly topics included a varied combination of…

We sure have had fun!

From simple crafts and backyard adventures

to imaginative play, seasonal traditions, and memory-making moments with our Littles,

each summer has been filled with joy.

And many of those weekly themes were really, really good!!!

The teachers in us were beaming!

Looking back at these activities, we realized they’re just too good to leave in the past. Some are classic favorites we need to adjust and do again with our own Littles now that they are older, while other ideas sparked brand-new twists.

After all, good ideas are timeless!

They never really go out of style — sometimes, they just need to be revisited with fresh eyes. That’s our plan for this summer: pulling out our favorite past themes and finding new ways to mix them up!

So, what does this summer look like around here?

We’ve decided to concentrate our efforts in two simple ways as we strive

to bring our summer ideas to life!

This Week’s Summer Spotlight!

Most weeks this summer, we’ll share one post that pulls a favorite past theme

out of the archives and gives it a fresh new twist!

We’ve got plans to revisit some of our favorite summer themes, activities, and ideas from years past. But we're not simply dusting off old posts—we'll be giving them a fresh twist with new inspiration, updated ideas, and creative ways to adapt them for today's families. Think of it as a chance to rediscover some tried-and-true favorites while finding new ways to make them your own.

Summer Play Our GRAND Way!

We’re also planning to share a new post that we’re calling Summer Play Our GRAND Way! This feature will include easy, creative ways to turn everyday household objects and basic, readily available supplies into engaging activities for Littles of many ages!

Sometimes the best summer fun doesn't come from expensive toys or elaborate plans… It comes from a little imagination and things you already have on hand. When we first started our blog, we created a series of posts known as Household Happies! These posts offered ideas for using things like cotton balls, post-it notes, Q-tps and popsicle sticks to name a few! Throughout the summer, we'll share our twist on ways to transform other everyday household items and readily available supplies into opportunities for play, learning, exploration, and connection.!

From kitchen cupboards to craft bins and everything in between, we'll show you how simple materials can inspire GRAND adventures.

What Else Is Ahead?

Of course, summer at wouldn't be complete

without a few extras sprinkled in along the way!

While you may find us moving at a slower pace here in the blog world - or even a sporadic one, at times - we'll also be sharing an occasional recipe or two, highlighting some of our favorite finds from books and products to activities and resources, and we'll continue sharing our Life Lately recaps, too - something we look forward to each month!