"Grandparents can do more for us
than anyone else in the world;
they sprinkle stardust in our eyes."
than anyone else in the world;
they sprinkle stardust in our eyes."
Alex Haley
I need your wonderful ideas on how to accomplish this!
The majority of our grandchildren live in other states in the USA. These two little ones live about 2500 miles away while our son attends dental school.
Our 6 year old 'Muttin Bustin Angel'
Our tough little "Mutton Bustin" angel, won her first trophy at a World Class Rodeo last summer.
with her big sister, parents watching her ride her 'mutton' for the first time, with excitement and I am sure a bit of trepidation...
with her big sister, parents watching her ride her 'mutton' for the first time, with excitement and I am sure a bit of trepidation...
Her brave little pictures are just too cute not to share! She hurt her shoulder which quickly healed... Ah... such is the life of a brave little cowgirl. We are very proud of our little Princesses!
Our son with his daughters on a night out at the rodeo.
I would ENJOY any of your ideas on how to be an effective and loving grandma, ' long distance style.'
If you know of ideas others do or even those you do yourself, please share.
I too want each of mine to feel the grandma 'stardust' in their eyes!
25 comments:
Can I call you Aunt Beth? You are awesome and I want to be adopted!
How lucky that your Grandchildren have such a loving Grandmother!
I have a sweet Grandma to my kids, she makes the cutes gifts!
I have posted some of them on my blog titled "Love,Grandma" in the right margin!
I think the most important thing you can give to your Grandkids is LOVE, the best gift of all! A phone call in your case, just to let them know you are thinking of them! My Mom alway sent care packages to my kids and to myself,and I always loved that!
What made them so special was they arrived spontaneously, it wasn't a Birthday or a holiday, it was "just because"!
Gift cards to Deseret Book are great! (easy to mail)
I made scrapbooks for my kids for Christmas a few years ago, I kept them very simple, they were titled What I love about you! I also put them on my blog labeled scrapbooks if you would like to see them!
Best wishes to you and your Grandkids! I love the pictures! What a cute little girl, I love her girl power! Cheers to your Granddaughter!
They are soooooooo cute! I'm sure they know you love them, no matter where they are! When I was little, I always LOVED to receive a card with money inside. They're lucky that you love them so much!
Oh Beth your grand daughter is darling..and I also know how hard it can be when they live so far away..of course mine are all raised now youngest one being 20..and thanks for coming by today...I love living in the mountains been here 20 years now and when I hear a car I know I have company...hugs and smiles Gloria
Your son & his daughters are so cute. :) I know you have to be so proud of your little granddaughter!
What a handsome son you have and darling daughter he has!!!
I am not a grandma YET....
But, I will tell you one thing that my mother in law did for my children. She read them a book on tape and mailed it WITH the book. We have a couple of these and then she passed away about 16 years ago!!! WHAT a treasure to have!
Oh what cute pictures! My parents live about 6 - 7 hours away from us and though they do try to come visit several times a year (and will be moving here after they retire WOOHOO) my mom calls Lexi at least once every two weeks (she uses her cell phone with free nights or weekend minutes) and several times a year puts some little something in the mail to Lexi (little things like a card with stickers in it). She also ordered her a magazine subscription and each month when Lexi gets her magazine she knows it is from Nana & Poppy.
I see someone saying they want you to adopt them and I want to be adopted by you, too! LOL!
You are awesome, Beth! My MIL has had to do this long distance, and she makes sure that her grandson knows how proud she is of him for every little thing in his life. Maybe you could blog about them in your daily blogs, and they could see how proud you are of them! We would read it, too! We love you and love reading about you and them. And I've never seen mutton riding. That was neat!
Just some ideas...
XO,
Sheila :-)
First off...they are some seriously lucky kids to have you as a grandma...I'm sure that's some serious stardust all by itself. I worry about this myself. I keep hoping my kids will put off having children just so I won't be a long distance grandma! But since I haven't had the chance to be a granny I can't give any advice. But I'll be watching what is said so that I can use it in the future. Loved the rodeo pictures....mutton can be cruel horses lol
What about a private blog where they can have that safe part of you (communication from them as well)...like a journal...online :)
Children today are so internet savvy...so...having you so close by via the internet...would be so easy and welcome by them!
I do think that sending them goodies is always a fab idea...I mean I am a GROWNUP (or so they tell me) LOL...And I like getting wonderful things!
:) :) :) Loved reading how PROUD you are of them!
**PS I am going to get my portion of the pay it forward gift blog up (tonight) fingers crossed!
Wow, they are so cute... you should be proud! What a beautiful family!
Oh my heck your grand daughter is ADORABLE, both ot them, you must be very proud. It's so wonderful that being a wonderful grandma means so much to you, I never had a grandma or grandpa that I was close too, even though he lived next door! He was a wonderful man, but very involved with church stuff! Ok, I just saw all the cute projects that your daughter did, WOW, she is very talented. It makes me want to go to the DI and find something fun to redo!
Well, that's a tough one, but both of our sets of parents lived long-distance from our children. I can say that calling and talking to them often, even if the conversations are short, really help. My parents rarely felt comfortable doing that, but whenever they did, it made a difference, especially right after a visit.
Can you send a cute, funny Video of your life to them? A home video.
Just a few thoughts.
Blessings,
Elizabeth
Oh girl.. what a beautiful granddaughter. She is just beautiful. I know you were busting with pride when you saw these pictures.. The internet is a wonderful thing.. have you thought about a blog just for them..so they can see the sawdust? You're already a wonderful grandma.. your pictures prove that.. can't wait to see more... hugs ~lynne~
Yep, I want to be adopted too! Can I be your sister??? (I don't have one...)
Okay, I thought about this one, and I do have grandkids far away, so I was and am excited to hear all the great suggestions (thanks for the great idea!)
Here is what I found with my own kids.
My mother was a wonderful grandmother, when she came to visit, until those kids were in bed they had her undivided attention. She never did anything expensive or outlandish, she just played with them and gave them her time. They have the most fabulous memories of her. She would send occasionally a little not in the mail with stickers or such, like I said nothing fancy or expensive. It truly was her time, it was her most precious gift. She passed away when my oldest was 13 and my youngest was 5. My oldest daughter said one night on a trip home from my husbands parents. "Daddy, I am sad, our fun grandma died." I think that is a lasting a precious tribute to her.
When we go to visit and when the grandkids come here, my DH is right on the floor playing with them. He gets dressed up like a princess, he is superman with a cape, whatever they want to do. This time he spends seems to carry them from visit to visit which can be far between.
Time...that is what they need.
BTW, these little granddaughters are adorable! Handsome son also.
hugs
tricia
Beth, you asked the hardest question to answer. My grands are all living away from us. I try to stay a special person in their lives but it is not easy. We visit most of them a few times during the year and we have grandchildren week every summer. They all come and are together. Even the older ones come. We spend a week of chaos and fun. The cousins love each other so much, so the time together is cousin time too. We also take a week of camping with all of them and their parents. It does take planning and effort but it is so worth it. They know you love them
and that is important.
Your story about your adorable granddaughter is so sweet. Your son is very handsome and they looked so happy. I loved your photos of the mutton and your granddaughter riding it. What a hoot. I'm glad she wasn't seriously hurt. LOL.
Hugs...Jeanne
My grandmother has been gone for 10years now and not a week goes by that she doesn't enter my mind.
When she went on a trip she would always send me a postcard. Every holiday would was acknowledged with a simple card and perhaps stickers, a paper doll, or some small something. I would go to visit a few times a year and she would always have a drawer also filled with special little treasures.
My little guy loves getting mail. In any form. My husbands grandmother recently got him a subscription to a kids magazine. He feels so important.
Hi there...Your son is so handsome & looks so proud of his pretty little angels...I think the idea about a private blog just for the girls is a great idea...it would make them feel very special. ;-) Bo
I'm not there yet and my granddaughter lives in Utah! BUT, packages and notes and things are always WONDERFUL! I loved getting those from my grandma!
How sweet this is Beth! I've seen those little ones "mutton bustin'" at our local horse show every spring, and they are brave. I know it's hard to have them so far away.
I am going to need all this advice as well very soon. My granddaughter will enter the world on Feb. 19th and so....that will begin our long distance realtionship with her. I am hoping to rack up some freguent flyer miles for sure!
Good evening.. hopw all is well your way. I'm glad you enjoyed the picture of our Miss Scooter. She is definetly the queen around here..lol. Hubby is doing some better, just day to day around here. Thanks so much for asking..hugs ~lynne~
Hi Beth! This is subject close to my heart as we have often lived away from my parents over the years. My mom has always been really good with keeping in touch with the kids.
Things like care packages that contain only goodies you might find at Nana's house, phone calls to catch up on school and extracurricular activites once a week..sometimes more, webcam, special cards,read a story over the phone, and money to buy a soda b/c "mommy doesn't like us to have them." Mom and Dad always get a copy of the kids schedules for schools and activities. They pick a couple of really important things that they put on the calendar and plan their visit's around. If they can't make an important date, the kids might receive a bouquet of flowers or balloons tied to a stuffed animal. Find a local florist where they are and you can eliminate the middleman fee.
When we have lived just a couple of hours away it wasn't as difficult for them to get away, but when we lived in Iowa it was a different story!
Have your children help out too. I always give Dad and Moma scrapbook for Christmas filled with pictures that cover the whole year! I also have made calendars on shutterfly.com for them to have. When they can't make activites, I shoot video clips and post them on youtube (that way you can share them with more of your family). We also post lots of pictures to community photo hosting sites like fickr and picasaweb where we can send them the link and they can look at and print out what they want.
It's so hard to be separated from family like that. You are awesome for trying to stay apart of their lives. They'll remember that as much as if you came to visit!
Let us know some of the things that you try and how your grandchildren like them!
Jen
Hia Beth, what about a magazine subscription for a present- that way you are showing you care every month or a book with a dedication. I still have the encyclopoedias my Nana bought me.
I used to feel so special when I had a letter all of my own addressed to me not inside a grown up's letter.
Making special gifts with their names on- stickers, a special toy which can pass from your home and travel back and forth and you take photos of the toy with you?
What about using skype?
Aren't the little cowgirls adorable! Daddy looks very proud too.
My MIL called at the same time every week. She also called on the first day of school to see how things went for both girls, and on holidays.
She sent cards and care packages, pictures of her area, and she even sent a video once.
I have to say there were times it was a bit over bearing but now that the girls are older, and my MIL lives only 20 minutes away, things are easier. She is lucky to have had such a close relationship with them when they were younger since she lived 2,500 miles away, but she put in a lot of effort. I'm sure your grandkids know how much you love them!
What a cute little cowgirl! Those pictures are awesome!!! My mom lives far away from us too and it makes her so sad that she doesn't get to be the kind of grandma who can come over all the time and be there for us whenever we need her. But my mom sends boxes with gifts for Kirsten, makes blankets for her, and visits as often as she can. I'm sure Kirsten will grow up knowing she loves her so much, just like your grandkids know that about you!!!
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