pajama jam! this week's summer spotlight!

2 hours ago
9 min read

Monday, June 30, 2026

Welcome back to This Week’s Summer Spotlight!

As families gather soon to celebrate the Fourth of July,

homes are often filled with laughter, little feet, and multiple generations

enjoying time together!

While those moments are precious,

they can also leave parents and grandparents (like us)

looking for simple ways to keep little ones happily engaged.

That's why today’s post features one of our favorite throwbacks from August of 2024!

Have you ever had a sleepover with your Littles?

If so, or if you might be planning one,

this is the post for you!

Today, Laura is sharing highlights from her family’s 2024

Cousin Weekend

and she's providing ideas for fun ways to keep those Littles engaged

during an overnight or weekend together!

Each July, we head to our family lake home

for our annual Cousin Weekend!

When our girls were growing up,

we spent countless weekends at the lake

with my parents and my siblings and their families!

We all have such special memories of these years

and are grateful for the love of family and faith that Nana and Papa

instilled in each of us!

As a result of these and so many other shared memories,

our kids - our Middles - still love spending time together

AND

now we've also added a new generation of their Littles to the mix!

While we were missing one Little cousin at the time and several family members

these three (along with our two month old Little P)

kept us busy with LOTS of Cool Cousin fun during that year’s Cousin Weekend!

When they weren’t swimming or fishing or golfing,

we, of course, had a few other activities ready to go, as needed!

After all, as a retired kindergarten teacher, I try my best to be prepared!

We had our own mini Family Olympics!

We watched a few movies to wind down

and, of course, the Summer Olympics were on the screen throughout the weekend!!

We even enjoyed our Olympic Snack Cups

while watching the women’s gymnastics all around finals! GO USA!!!

In fact, we wrapped up our Olympics celebration with

bowls of Olympic Flames (orange sherbet) and Gold Medals (golden Oreo cookies)!

What a refreshing treat!

During the early morning hours

(when the mommies and daddies were trying to catch a few quiet moments)

in the evening when we were getting out those last bursts of energy

before winding down for the day,

our Littles and I found some fun ways to spend this PAJAMA time together!

Check out 3 of our faves… GRAND ways to have fun in your PJ’s!

During our Cousin Weekend

we had one morning when the Littles’ parents had work obligations

or were busy with a baby…

This GRAND came to the rescue with some simple pillow fun!

Luckily, we were able to create a large open spot downstairs! We simply moved the coffee table and any other furniture/objects that might prove to be unsafe. Then we grabbed the cushions from the sectional as well as nearby throw pillows and bed pillows, too. We were all set for our pillow fun!

A Pillow Tower!

Our Littles took turns building a tower with the cushions and pillows we had available! We cheered each other on and helped as needed as we watched to see who could build the tallest tower without it falling down. (It a Little's tower did fall down, we'd yell, "Timber" and all the Littles would fall into the pile on the floor!)

One of the Littles suggested that we play “Wreck It Ralph” by knocking down the towers! This was a hit as one Little became “Wreck It Ralph” and knocked down a tower which was then followed by another Little (sometimes with a bit of GRAND help) who became “Fix It Felix” and built it once again!

Hot Lava!

Oh my goodness! This was fun! The Littles and I made a “road” by placing the cushions around the floor. The carpeted area became the “hot lava” as each Little jumped from one cushion to another until they got to the staircase and safety! This activity challenged their ability to balance yet each Little found success… some faster than others!

A Pillow Tunnel!

Our little engineers had fun building the cushion/pillow tunnel and then, of course, moving through it! Watch out! The challenge was to make it through without the tunnel collapsing around you!

We added a flashlight and closed the drapes for some extra special fun!

More Pillow Fun!

The above three ideas kept us busy for the time needed but I was prepared with these additional (and easy) options, too!

• A Classic… A Pillow Fight!

Of course, your Littles can go to town with their pillows and have an old fashioned, free for all pillow fight!

OR you could add a touch of safety (a great option for young Littles) by giving our version a try! After clearing an area,. two Littles stand, facing each other with a bed pillow in hand! When they hear the word “GO” the two Littles hit each other below the shoulders while everyone else counts to 10! Invite the Middles (the mommies and daddies) to join in the fun, too!

• Whack a Little!

Do you remember that arcade game, “Whack-a-Mole”? This game uses the same premise! Littles pop up from behind the couch as other Littles or others gently whack them with a pillow! The goal, of course, is to not get whacked! Again, invite the grown ups to participate! Littles will love whacking mom and dad!

We love a good puppet show and our Littles put on the best!

I usually have a few crafts available for the Littles to work on

throughout our weekend together.

One year, our crafts and puppet show focused on Fairy Tale Fun!

The above photo is from our presentation of The Three Billy Goats Gruff!

If interested, you can find our Fairy Tale craft and puppet show ideas in this post!

In 2024, thanks to my OGL blogging partner, Laurie,

our craft focus was sea creatures!

Our post that summer, Under the Sea, inspired me to bring the supplies

to make these simple projects…

Paper Cup Jellyfish!

Paper Tube Octopuses!

Pool Noodle Fish!

Envelope Sharks!

In hindsight, I wish I had brought some blue crepe paper to the lake!

We could have quickly made a fun backdrop for our sea creatures with it!

As it was, we had a good time making up sea-worthy stories with our creatures!

There’s nothing like a flashlight to intrigue Littles and keep the fun flowing!

I had bought 3 small flashlights for the members of our Cousin Club

who I knew would be old enough to play with them!

However, I also knew that the pink flashlight would be in high demand

as I knew that Little L and her older cousin have both declared pink as their favorite color!

So, to act preemptively before we began,

I shared the news that the flashlights belonged to me

and that I was happily sharing them with our Littles!

We then drew straws to see who would get to pick his/her flashlight first

with the understanding that we’d go through this process again

prior to each activity!

Previewing with Littles and helping them understand expectations ahead of time

really helps set the tone!

However, thanks to the mosquitos that were swarming outside,

our Flashlight Fun took place in one of the bedrooms instead!

We look forward to a repeat outside... without the mosquitos, that is!!

Flashlight Stomp!

We played a very simple version of this game! All you need for this activity is a flashlight and a group of players who can move their feet quickly! We turned out the lights as best we could (a bit of a difficult feat for Littles with early bedtimes). I was the “leader” and used a flashlight to project light on different areas of the carpet. Our Littles tried to be the first one to stomp on the light before I moved it to another spot! Sometimes I moved the spotlight slowly and other times quickly! Eventually, our older Little was able to take a turn as the leader, too!

Flashlight Hide and Seek!

I hid several objects and toys around our space before the Littles joined me. Once we were ready to play, we turned off the lights and I said the name of an object. Then the Littles turned on their flashlights and went hunting for that item. The first person to spot each item got a point. We kept playing until all of the objects had been found! (NOTE: The older Littles and I had made a deal ahead of time that we'd let two year old Little L find a few items that were easy to see!)

A Flashlight Fort!

I’d been saving a large cardboard box (from an ottoman I’d recently purchased) and this was the perfect occasion to use it! The Littles had fun decorating the outside with markers. (We decided not to cut out windows because they wanted it dark inside!) Then, they gathered blankets and throw pillows, books, card games, a snack and, of course, their flashlights! They had some cozy jammie fun inside!

We kept the fort up and available for quiet time activities throughout the weekend!

And Our Favorite, Of Course… Flashlight Reading!

You know that we take every opportunity we can to encourage reading! Whether you are reading to your Little(s) OR they are reading/looking at a book by themself, a flashlight always adds some extra coziness and excitement to the experience!

While Laura didn’t get a photo of this fave activity, Laurie did while she was taking care of her Little D earlier this week! Such a good reminder that you can pull out a flashlight and a few books during a fun weekend adventure or as a quiet afternoon activity! No matter when or where, your Little(s) will love it! ❤️

And… just in case you are wondering how our flashlight saga turned out...

Little L forgot that she was ever interested in the pink flashlight

and was completely content with her green one!

SUCCESS!

Each of the Littles ultimately had their favorite to play with all weekend

and this GRAND is looking forward to future weekends

when our Littles are old enough to play flashlight games at night!

Well… another Cousin Weekend was in the books!

Woohoo!

While we had loads of fun and created lots of new memories,

I’m also grateful for blissful moments like this one from that weekend…

My hubby captured this photo while everyone else

was boating out on the lake!

This precious respite with Little P was just what I needed…

A few hours of peace and quiet in the midst of it all!

While my parents - our beloved Nana and Papa - are no longer with us,

their legacy continues

with one or more Cousin Weekends planned each year!

We’re so grateful for all that's happened because two people fell in love!

Papa and Nana… Summer 1958!

If you’ve got an overnight or weekend planned

with your own Littles,

we hope some of our ideas have given you some food for thought!

SO,

grab your jammies, fluff your pillows and remember…

We’d LOVE to hear from YOU!

If you have memories of your own Pajama Jam fun with Littles,

please share your ideas or advice!

We know that these experiences will evolve as our own Littles grow

and we also know that our readers have lots of expertise!

Feel free to comment at the end of this post

or, if you prefer, you can reach out to us at ourgrandlives@gmail.com!

We’re taking the rest of this week off to spend time with our loved ones

and as we celebrate the 250th birthday of our country!

If you’re still looking for 4th of July family ideas

be sure to check out this post from last week

OR this post from last summer!

You’ll also find new ideas posted regularly on our social media sites!

You can find us on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest!

(You'll also find our social media links at the top of each post!)

We’ll be back early next week with our next Summer Spotlight and more!

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That way you'll always know when we share something new at OGL!

❤️ 🇺🇸 ❤️

Whether your 4th of July plans find you dancing in your pajamas, waving sparklers, sharing favorite family stories, or watching fireworks light up the evening sky, remember that these are the moments our Littles will carry with them long after the holiday has passed.

As we celebrate 250 years of our nation's history and the freedoms we've been blessed to enjoy, may we also celebrate the gift of family, the legacy we're building in the next generation, and the memories that become treasures for years to come.