Last week we took a road trip to Cannon Beach, Oregon with one of our grandsons.

Cannon Beach has been part of my life for as long as I can remember. I came here as a child with my parents and siblings. Later, we brought our own children, and they fell in love with it too.

This year we had the chance to share it with our grandsons.

One came with his parents. The other came with just us because his parents weren’t able to make the trip, so we asked if we could take him anyway. Thankfully, they said yes.

What followed was our first vacation alone with a grandchild—an experience I’ll never forget.

Here are ten things I learned along the way.

1. Family Time Matters More Than Sightseeing

Before the trip, I imagined the highlights would be the places we visited.

Haystack Rock, the aquarium, the beach, the beautiful Oregon Coast.

And while he enjoyed all of those things, that’s not what he talked about most.

What mattered most to him was the time we spent together.

He wanted to swim in the pool. He wanted to play games. He wanted to make s’mores around the campfire. He wanted to laugh, talk, and simply be with Grandma and Grandpa and especially with his aunt, uncle and cousin.

In fact, some of our favorite memories happened in between the attractions. Sitting around the hotel room. Walking through souvenir shops. Sharing snacks. Talking about what we would do the next day.

As adults, we sometimes put a lot of pressure on ourselves to create the perfect vacation. We think we need to fill every minute with exciting activities and memorable destinations.

This trip reminded me that children often value something much simpler.

They want our attention, time, and connection.

The sightseeing was wonderful, but what he really wanted was us.

That turned out to be my favorite part, too.

2. Kids Feel More Secure When They Know What’s Coming Next

One thing that surprised me was how important it was for our grandson to know the plan.

Each night we would talk about what we were doing the next day. What time we would wake up. Whether we were going to the beach, the pool, or out to eat. Nothing complicated—just a simple overview of what was coming.

Knowing the schedule seemed to help him relax.

I noticed that when he understood what to expect, he was more flexible when little things changed. When he wasn’t sure what was happening next, his anxiety tended to increase.

The same thing happened on the drive home. We let him track our route on Google Maps on his tablet so he could see where we were and how much farther we had to go.

Being able to see the journey helped him feel more in control.

As adults, we often think surprises make travel exciting. For many children, knowing what comes next is what makes travel enjoyable.

A little predictability can go a long way.

3. The Car Travel Activities I Thought Would Be a Hit Weren’t

Before we left, I spent quite a bit of time gathering activities for the drive.

I imagined my grandson happily working through activity books for hours while we cruised down the highway.

That is not exactly how it went.

Some of the activity books were more frustrating than fun. The pages were too complicated, the car was moving, and sometimes he just wasn’t interested.

The clear winner was an invisible ink book. It was simple, mess-free, and easy to use in the car. It came out again and again throughout the trip.

The clear loser was a craft kit. What seemed like a great idea at home turned out to be difficult to manage in a moving vehicle. Tiny pieces and limited elbow room are not a great combination.

On the drive home I sat in the back seat with him. We had a lot of fun using the hidden pictures books. At first he didn’t seem interested. So I took the book and started doing it by myself. I would talk out loud about how hard it was and I could t find certain things. Eventually he put down his iPad and helped me. Then he was fully committed. Again, playing together is what he craved the most.

Here are some links to the activity books he actually enjoyed.

That experience reminded me that grandchildren don’t always know they’ll enjoy something until they experience it. Sometimes our role isn’t to force an activity or convince them they’re wrong. Sometimes it’s simply to gently invite them to try something new and help them be successful.

For the most part, our grandson did great. But there were several moments during the trip when things didn’t go the way he expected, and his emotions quickly bubbled to the surface.

The moment he saw it flying, he wanted a turn.yum

And maybe he was a little of both.

That’s a lesson both my grandson and I learned on this trip. As a 57 year old trying to lose weight and get in shape post menopause, my body expects better care.

4. Souvenir Shopping Is an Event

One thing I hadn’t anticipated was how much my grandson would enjoy souvenir shopping.

His birthday had been the week before, so he had plenty of birthday money burning a hole in his pocket. Every gift shop had to be explored.

I imagined he might want a snow globe, a keychain, or some other classic vacation keepsake.

Instead, he wanted stuffies. Also, I realized that souvenir shops aren’t what they used to be. The cheap plastic stuff is much more rare. The shops now are filled with more meaningful items. Clothes, stuffies, backpacks, toys, etc. The tchotchkes of the 90’s and early 2000’s are being replaced by stuff you actually want to keep or receive.

What surprised me wasn’t what he bought. It was how important the experience was to him. He loved looking through the shops, comparing options, and finding the perfect stuffy. Watching him carefully consider his choices was half the fun.

5. Sometimes Kids Need a Little Encouragement to Discover Something New

One thing I was reminded of on this trip is that our grandchildren won’t automatically love the same things we love.

At one point, we stopped at a kite shop. I thought flying a kite on the beach sounded like fun.

My grandson wasn’t interested.

He was convinced the kite wouldn’t work.

To be fair, his previous experiences with kites hadn’t been very successful. At home, we’ve all spent plenty of time watching kites dive into trees, crash into the ground, or refuse to fly with very little wind.

I tried explaining that flying a kite at Cannon Beach was different. The steady ocean breeze makes flying a kite much easier than it is back home.

He remained skeptical.

Finally, Grandpa took the kite down to the beach and got it soaring high in the air.

Suddenly everything changed.

Before long he was holding the string with a huge smile on his face, and teaching his two year old cousin how to do it.

It became one of the highlights of the trip.

6. Big Emotions Don’t Take a Vacation

One thing I underestimated before this trip was how emotionally exhausting travel can be for children.

Even when a child is having fun, travel asks a lot of them.

They’re sleeping in a different bed. Eating different foods. Following a different routine. Spending time away from their parents. Experiencing new sights, sounds, and expectations.

That’s a lot for a young brain to process.

One day, car sickness threw everything off. Another day, too much sugar seemed to leave him feeling emotional and overwhelmed. Small frustrations that might have rolled off his back at home suddenly felt much bigger.

I kept reminding myself that he wasn’t giving us a hard time.

He was having a hard time.

That shift in perspective made all the difference.

When emotions ran high, we slowed down. We listened. We talked through what he was feeling. Sometimes we FaceTimed Mom and Dad. Hearing their voices helped reassure him that everything was okay. FaceTime is a very helpful tool for anxiety ridden kids.

Grandparenting isn’t just about making memories. It’s also about helping children feel safe when life feels big. It’s also about not making it about us when kids get sad, disappointed, or homesick. We can just sit with them as they work through it. We dont need to fix it, overcompensate for it, or take it personally.

7. Vacation Sugar Is Still Sugar.

I knew our grandson would eat a little differently on vacation.

After all, vacations are for treats.

S’mores on the beach. Candy from the souvenir shop. A special dessert after dinner. A favorite snack from the gas station.

Those things are part of the fun.

What I didn’t fully appreciate was how much all of that could affect his emotions.

At first, I assumed he was tired or homesick.

But looking back, I think all the extra sugar and the disruption to his normal eating routine played a bigger role than I realized.

At home, children tend to eat on a fairly predictable schedule. Vacation is different. Meals happen at odd times. Treats show up more often. Healthy foods sometimes get replaced by convenience or restaurant kids meals. Everyone gets a little more relaxed about the rules.

None of that is necessarily bad.

But by the middle of the trip, I could definitely see the effects.

The experience reminded me that children’s bodies often speak before their words do. What looks like irritability, anxiety, or emotional behavior can sometimes be traced back to something as simple as being tired, hungry, overstimulated, or running on too much sugar.

If I were planning another trip, I wouldn’t eliminate the treats. Some of my favorite vacation memories involve ice cream and saltwater taffy.

But I would pay a little more attention to balance. One rough day reminded me that physical discomfort affects emotions. His and mine.

8. Don’t Forget the Medication

One thing this trip reminded me is how much parents carry in their heads every single day.

As grandparents, we know our grandchildren well. We know their personalities, their favorite foods, and the things that make them laugh. I watched my grandson full time his first five years of life. But he always went home at night to his parents.

The first night of our trip, we completely forgot to give our grandson his medication.

The next morning, we realized our mistake and immediately felt terrible.

A few days later, we forgot his car sickness medication. Unfortunately, we didn’t remember it until after he was already feeling sick.

Neither mistake was intentional. We simply weren’t used to being fully responsible for every detail of his daily routine for several days.

At home, his parents handle these things automatically. They don’t need reminder lists because they do them every day.

When you’re suddenly the primary caregiver on a trip, you quickly realize how many little things go into caring for a child.

Medication, motion sickness prevention, bedtime routines, favorite snacks, water bottles, comfort items. The experience gave me a whole new appreciation for parents and the mental load they carry.

It also taught me a practical lesson: make a checklist.

Not just for packing, for daily routines too. It’s surprisingly easy to forget the little things that help make those memories enjoyable.

Our first night was rough. The second night went much smoother.

9. Let Them Track the Journey

The drive home is always harder than the drive there.

The excitement of vacation is over, everyone is a little tired, and the miles can seem endless. I literally felt like we were crawling home. It was brutal.

As we headed home from Cannon Beach, I noticed my grandson asking the same question children have been asking for generations:

“How much longer?”

When you’re nine years old, eight hours can feel like forever.

Instead of guessing or giving vague answers, we let him track our route on the map on his tablet. It made a huge difference.

Every so often he would check the map, report how much time was left, and update us on our location. It gave him something to focus on and helped him feel involved in the journey rather than simply stuck in the back seat waiting for it to end. He also enjoyed tracking the change of time zones. And seeing the big signs welcoming us to another state.

The experience reminded me that children often handle difficult things better when they understand what’s happening.

The trip home didn’t get any shorter, but it felt more manageable because he could see the finish line.

10. The Hardest Part Was Going Home

Before the trip, I worried that my grandson might get homesick. Would he miss his parents? Would he want to leave early?

I was worried about the wrong thing. The hardest part wasn’t leaving home, it was leaving Cannon Beach.

We found out on the last night that he got the impression that we were staying longer than we actually were. When he realized we would be heading home the next morning, he was heartbroken. He sobbed, uncontrollably for hours. We FaceTimed his parents, talked through his feelings, and gave plenty of hugs. Mostly, though, we just listened.

That night taught me something important. Not every sad feeling needs to be fixed. Sometimes children are sad because something wonderful is ending.

He wasn’t just leaving the beach. He was leaving the swimming pool, the campfires, the souvenir shops, the games, and the special time we had spent together. Of course he was sad.

I understood exactly how he felt. I wasn’t quite ready for the trip to end either. I loved every minute of it. I found myself wishing we had planned one more day. We made it short not knowing how he would manage without his parents.

But maybe that’s how the best vacations end. Nobody is quite ready to go home. I am looking forward to bringing him back again, along with more of our grandchildren.

Contains affiliate links

Let’s be honest for a minute.

Dry, cracked heels are something a lot of grandmas quietly deal with.
It’s not something we talk about much, but it’s a problem that sneaks up on us as we age.

And if you’re thinking about Mother’s Day, you might be tempted to grab a pedicure gift card.

But here’s the truth:

A lot of us don’t go.

We don’t have time.
We don’t feel comfortable.
And sometimes… we just want something simple we can do at home.

So instead, here’s a gift that actually gets used, and is very effective.

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The Simple At-Home Solution

You don’t need anything complicated. Just a few things that work together:

1. A Good Foot Soak

Start here.

A warm, bubbly foot soak softens everything and makes the rest of the process actually effective.
It only takes a few minutes, but it makes a big difference.

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2. Urea Foot Cream

Groceries Urea Cream on Amazon

This is the part people skip, but it’s what actually fixes the problem.

A good urea cream helps break down dry, thick skin and deeply moisturizes at the same time.
If you only do one thing consistently, make it this.

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3. Heel Socks

This is what makes it last.

Heel socks help lock in moisture overnight so the cream can actually do its job.
It’s simple, but it works.

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Put It Together as a Gift

This is what makes it feel special:

• Add the foot soak
• Include the cream
• Toss in a pair of heel socks
• Put it all in a the water soak bin.

You can even add this small gift tag printable.

It’s thoughtful, practical, and something she’ll actually use.

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For You or For Her

This makes a great gift for your grandma.

If you are a grandma, this might be one of those gifts you give yourself.

Sometimes the best gifts are the ones that actually make your everyday life a little better.

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Final Thought

Skip the gift card this year.

Give her this gift that she will use and heal her feet.

Affiliate links used. I may earn a commission at no cost to you.

Citric Acid on Amazon

If you’re looking for an activity that will keep kids busy, curious, and completely engaged, this is it. The Fizzy Table is one of those setups that looks simple but delivers big. All you need is baking soda, citric acid, and water, and you’ve got a hands-on science experiment disguised as play.
What You’ll Need
• 2 parts baking soda
• ½ part citric acid
• Mica powder or gel food coloring (optional)
• Sensory table or large bin
• Water
• Tools: droppers, spoons, bowls, scoops, silicone molds, play tea set, small toys
How to Set It Up
1. Mix the baking soda and citric acid together.
2. Add mica powder for color and sparkle if you’d like.
3. Pour the mixture into your sensory table or bin.
4. Shape into molds or bowls.
5. Set out water and tools — then let them go!
What Kids Do With It
Kids transfer water onto the powder using droppers, scoops, and cups and watch it fizz on contact. Add silicone molds, little figures, and a play tea set and it turns into a whole world. They’ll mix, pour, scoop, and experiment for a long time.
A Few Tips
• This works better than vinegar. There is no bad smell, and the fizz lasts much longer.
• Put a mat or towel underneath for easy cleanup.
• Add mica powder for a magical sparkly effect.
• Make extra because they’ll want to keep going.

This post may contain affiliate links. I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.

So much better than vinegar!

Sensory Table on Amazon

Citric Acid on Amazon

If you love the idea effects of fizzy science play but hate the smell of vinegar, this is for you.

This version gives you all the fizz without the smell.

I made these the night before, and the next morning my grandkids played with them for over an hour and kept coming back all day. They absolutely loved it!

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What You’ll Need

• Baking soda
• Citric acid
• Cornstarch
• Dish soap
• Optional: food coloring
• Silicone molds

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The Recipe

• 2 cups baking soda
• 1 cup citric acid
• ½ cup cornstarch
• 2–3 teaspoons dish soap
• Drop just a drop of gel food coloring

Mix everything together until it feels slightly damp—just enough to hold its shape when you press it.

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Add a little food coloring. Just a tiny drop. You don’t want to activate the fizz.

Press into silicone molds

Let dry overnight.

It turns into open-ended play instead of a one-and-done reaction. The dish soap makes the effect last longer. When the fizz is done, the water stays bubbly and foamy.

No strong vinegar smell

Lasts longer than a quick “volcano”

Kids can come back to it again and again.

Sensory play table on Amazon

Not Just Another Rainy Day

Today we played with rain. It started with splashing in puddles and turned into an art project that went better than I thought it would.

It started the way it always does—just splashing in puddles. No plan. No setup. Just kids and water and that moment where you almost stop them… and then don’t.

One puddle turned into another. Shoes got soaked. Like, totally soaked. I actually felt kind of bad when their parents came. Next time I will take shoes off and put their crocs on.

The puddles turned into paint.

The driveway turned into a canvas.

And what started as “just playing in the rain” turned into an art project I never planned.

We took a pan and put paper in it, then squeezed some paint onto the paper. I chose 3 colors that would blend well together. Red, blue and purple. We sat the pan out in the rain and watched the magic happen. The rain painted the picture. Patterns started emerging that I did not expect. It really was so cool.

Then the kids brought in the bubble machine and that gave even more patterns.

They started painting everything outside, which always happens when I get out the washable paint. then they would watch the rain wash it away.

At one point my granddaughter tried to paint the bubbles but quickly learned that that was not possible. So. Science!

The painting didn’t last. It got mushy and fell apart. But I know the memories are building, the lessons are being learned, and the spark to create is getting stronger. I call that successful.

A great activity to keep your kids engaged in General Conference

DOWNLOAD YOUR SPRING GENERAL CONFERENCE STORE PRINTABLE HERE

My daughter in law posted this in October. So I updated it with a printable for spring General Conference. It is an excellent way to keep kids engaged in conference with some fun categories mixed in with testimony building tasks.

HAPPY GENERAL CONFERENCE WEEKEND!