What do your 8 year olds do when visiting family???

[FusionChefGeoff]

Mine was bored last time as the cousins are much younger but closer to his sister so he gets left out and is too young to sit and chat with the grown ups.

Cousins are also babies / toddlers and it's easier for their parents if we stay home rather than go out which would be one option.

He's packed a couple of books but aside from flipping Roblox what could we get / suggest he does to entertain himself??

How long is the the visit for? If just a few hours mine would chat, have snacks, maybe do some Lego?

Scratch Art, RC car, Lego, Knex and modelling clay kits like these www.craftmill.co.uk/fimo-clays-and-accessories/fimo-soft-effects-polymer-clay/fimo-kids-soft-polymer-clay-set-monster
If you’re going to be there a few days, a jigsaw and Hama beads.

He runs around the garden and nags my 80 year old Dad into playing football with him.

Draw?
Puzzle books?

I remember being this age. I was the girl and all my mums friends had boys and so my brother would join in with them but I wouldn’t. I used to sit with the grown ups and it was boring!

I'd take something small and new perhaps. Visiting relatives is bloody boring as a child!

Dts are really good at chatting dont bloody shut up but will take themselves off to play, a lot easier as there's two of them. Are there any games he can play with the cousins / they can all get involved in?

Drawing things, books especially well illustrated eg Wizards of Once or 13 storey tree house etc. Snacks. Can’t let him play roblox etc as once someone is on a screen, they all want to be! Would probably try to mobilise everyone for a walk to a park with ice cream if we were going to be there for a while, or allow him to watch a film if it is going to be a longer visit x

Board games
Garden football
Jigsaws
Playing with the little kids
Chatting with a grown up
Reading
Snacks
Gardening

When all else fails- iPad. But usually get a good few hours out of the above first.

We have same issue. Cousins are babies, my 8yr old is left out as all teenagers/adults or babies. She gets bored and goes on her tablet.

This past week mine have been obsessed with a Rubix cube

Read!
And then I take mine out to local park (bring their scooter)
I never just sit their for hours with family
I couldn’t do it and sure as heck don’t expect my 8 year old to

He helps entertain the toddler, plays games with her, reads her stories and then plays in the garden with her. He also likes to talk to the adult but is at a talking at rather than talking to stage so I tend to monitor this a bit and not let him get too much. He takes pens, paper and books to read as well. We usually have a meal so our deal is that if he's sociable until and during the meal, he can have his computer/iPad for a short while after when the adults are relaxing with a cuppa.
It's a tricky age if there's no natural play mate so I keep meet ups limited to a few hours.

He runs around the garden and nags my 80 year old Dad into playing football with him.

Precisely this for my 6 year old. Or some sort of art/ craft project having excavated their recycling bin. I normally end up taking a lot of my parents’ actual rubbish (but glued together) back to my house.

Actually thinking about to - only my very very aged aunt needs to sit for hours

Whenever we visit rest of family, we sit and have a coffee and chat. And then coats on and long walk!!

How much younger are the cousins? My 9 year old nephew can play with 4/5 year old cousins. Wouldn't be his first choice but he can make it work. Maybe encourage him to join in? (Unless they are really young).

Otherwise I would expect some polite chat with the adults then let him play something electronic. Put some educational games on if it makes you feel better about it.

Can the adults you are visiting not play with him?

Ds2 made parkour out of cushions through the hallway yesterday at my parents. They usually do a mix of mucking about outside, car racing, sometimes lego, building forts etc. Sometimes if it's raining the boars games come out. He lives a bit of snakes and ladders .

Also I appreciate the age gap is smaller but DS (6) is quite good at creating games with a subservient role for his younger cousins. Last time he was a king and his 3 year old niece was a delivery lady. So he sat writing messages to people and she delivered them which she got really really into.

My 9 year old plays with the younger ones, or nags the teenage boys into having their hair styled, playing tag or football etc.

I'd take a game, pad, drawing stuff.

Thank you!

Cousins are 3 and 1 so their parents are run ragged looking after them to play with him and we are generally trying to give them a break when we can help rather than wanting them to play with our child.

I've packed books and pens and a notebook in case he wants to do that. Having a baby around makes toys tricky as everything I looked at yesterday had bits that would be swallowed
/ broken!! In the end I've put Gravitrax in as he can play up on the table hopefully.

Genius idea is to try to find a Euro sticker book and a load of stickers this morning (we're leaving in 2 hrs no pressure) so he can sit and do that.

And I might suggest AFW (another fucking walk!) as a higher priority than first thought but could be tricky timing it around our arriving, naps and food times!!

Would go out with DS for a little bit each day, without the family you’re visiting.

If it’s just for a day, would just take quiet stuff he can do alone.

Walk to a play park? The adults can chat while the kids burn off some energy.

**
Cousins are 3 and 1 so their parents are run ragged looking after them to play with him and we are generally trying to give them a break when we can help rather than wanting them to play with our child.**

Rightly or wrongly, I always prioritise my own children. So if my 8 year old had been hanging around bored and alone for a few hours , then I would take him out to park or a scoot, even if it did clash with nap etc.

But OP how long are we actually talking about here? Day or days? Is there good garden available?