Archive for the ‘Grandparent Musings’ Category
Well spring is just around the corner and I can hardly wait to get out side with my grand kids. We are heading off to Charlotte to see our newest grandson and our granddaughter.
Grandson #2 is almost 5 months old already and he is by all standards a big kid. I liken him to “Clifford the Dog”. He’s already grown out of his baby car seat (that this rate he’ll be driving in a few more months) and he’s into 9 month clothes. Jabba the Hut would be proud. He is a big boy! Some of his relatives on his grandmother’s side are tall people so he will probably be tall. All he needs to do is grow into his body.
Grand baby #1 our granddaughter is looking especially cool in the summer bamboo dresses we sent her a few weeks ago. I am looking forward to chasing her around the yard. Maybe her Dad and I can sneak in a round of golf as well.
Grandson #1 came to visit me last weekend but he left in a huff because his grandpa (Pop-Pop, me) dissed him. Apparently he was following me out to the garage when I let the door close on him. You know us old folks I was in a hurry to get something and I wasn’t paying attention. When I turned back he was standing with his face to the wall, his arms hanging at his sides, his chin to his chest crying because Grandpa walked away from him. An hour later when he was ready to go home he was still steamed at Pop-Pop. Lesson learned!
So some of my planned events for the spring, catching the fish with my #1 grandson, watching my granddaughter in dance class and watching my newest grand son eat. I think I can handle that without messing up. At least I’ll be more aware of the reactions of the grandkids as I try to be a better grandpa.
More to follow when we get home from our trip down south.
Well the holidays have come and gone and things are almost back to normal at our house. We had a chance to catch up with our grandbabies. Frankly, grandma and I were tired out from all the running around and playing. Who knew that a 3 year old had so much energy. I can’t remember our kids having that much “get up and go”. Maybe it’s the food or the fact that she spent almost a day in the car getting to our house. In any event it sure was a good time. We also got to see some of the baby nieces in the family this holiday who recently moved back into the area. It’s so much fun to sit and watch the next generation “bonding”.
The new sweaters that we gave the kids came in handy as two of them just moved back north from the warm climate of the south. First year back north and they are experiencing one of the longest and coldest winters we’ve had in years.
Hot chocolate and cookies after a snow ball fight or sleigh ride is just what everyone needed (grandpa had wine but who’s looking).
Can’t wait until spring to get outside and play with all the new toys.
Until then. Have fun shopping.
Wow, September proved to be an exciting month for us. Our third grand child, a baby boy (grandson #2), arrived on September 15th. Bright eyed and bushy tailed all 8 lbs and 13ozs of him. His “older” sister has really taken to him and is so proud. As an only child for the last 3 yrs we were concerned that she would feel neglected but that has not been the case. She walks around the neighborhood and her parents showing him off to anyone who she meets. But beware if you get too close she jumps in front of him with her arms crossed to protect him. It’s pretty funny actually and oh so cute!
September also was a time to bonding. Since my son and his family have moved closer we’ve had a chance to see more of grandson #1. He loves to tickle his grand father only thing is that his tickling is more like driving his little fist into grandpa’s neck and laughing his head off. I laugh because he thinks it so funny. The more I laugh the more he drives his fist into my neck. It’s great to see him laugh even at my expense.
Since grandson #1 just moved back north from the sunny south he now needs warmer cloths. He looks great in his new tool sweater and brown cord pants from www.WhatEveryBabyNeeds.com.
Being a grandparent is priceless!
I recently got a call from my son-in-law telling me that he was sending some new pictures of our grand daughter and me. These were taken a few months ago on our list visit down south. They were great. Grandpa and Abby making cookies, eating make believe ice cream cones, hugging and having tea.
My son-in-law told me that when he asked Abby who was in the pictures with her she said, “My friend grandpa”. Wow how cool is that! He asked her if she wanted to say hello to me on the phone. She did. The conversation when like this, Hello grandpa, good bye grandpa” and she was off the phone and on to her next adventure.
She sure makes me laugh. I love to hear her voice. Sometimes she’ll actually chat with me but yesterday was not that day. Maybe next time. I’ll be calling her this weekend to hear her say, “I love you grandpa”. Until then….
My world is changing and I love it! My son and his family recently moved back East and will be less than a 2 hour drive from us rather than 1,200 miles away.
This means that we will be able to see our grandson far more often then two or three times a year. Not that we don’t want to see my son and our daughter-in-law but let’s face it as a grandparent the light of your life is your grand children.
Being closer means we get the chance to develop a stronger bond (i.e spoil) with our grandson. I’m thinking about fishing with him in the stream behind his house, or playing kickball, baseball or hitting golf balls in the back yard, or even just chasing him around the yard.
We realized some of these things last weekend when we visited for the first time. What a delight to hear him scream with delight as we played “catch me if you can” (he’s a quick little devil) and the reward we got when we finally caught him … a big wet kiss and a hug. Wow was that great.
We can hardly wait until the next visit. We hope we don’t wear out our welcome as we plan on visiting as often as we can and as long as we’re invited.
Life is good and getting better.
My 2 1/2 year old granddaughter must be going through another growth spurt. For the past year or so she’d go to bed around 8 or so and sleep through till the morning. Recently she decided that she could only sleep with the light on. So my daughter gave her a night light. However, even this little bit of light interrupted her once peaceful sleep.
So I decided to look for a light that would offer her the comfort she was seeking without the intensity of a bright light. Her mom and I found the perfect solution. The Twilight Turtle light. Not only does it project just enough light on the ceiling to sooth a sleeping child its educational as well. It projects 8 different constellations through little pinholes of light.
It appears that everything is back to normal. Sleep has been restored to the household.
I recently sent one of the wooden bulldozers to my 15 month old grandson. He’s his fathers son. He loves to play in the dirt.
He’s just like his dad. We used to call his dad “Mr. Dirt” when he was a kid because we could never keep him clean. Seems like our grandson is following in his father’s footsteps.
He promptly took his brand new wooden bulldozer outside where he spent the afternoon pushing dirt around the yard and having a ball. Toy was christened and stood up to all the abuse. Of course, after a hard day of playing in the dirt it took his mom a while to get him and his cloths clean and ready for his next adventure.
The wooden toys are more than ornamental. They really are fun to play with!
This morning I got a picture of my granddaughter in her new blue under the nile dress sent via text message by her Dad. She looked like a little princess spinning on one foot. If you could only see the smile on her face. Being a grand dad is great.
This past week end grandma and I spend time with our little granddaughter. She’s 2 ½ now. She walks, she talks, she dances, she sings, she’s a little lady no longer that little helpless baby we held in our arms just a few short months ago.
You see the commercials on TV with grandpa having tea with his granddaughter and you think “Man, that looks hokey”. Well it might be hokey but one can derive great pleasure in sitting on the floor and pretending to drink tea and eat cookies being served by your granddaughter who is dressed in a ‘twirly skirt’, pink clogs, and a tee shirt with a ballerina on the front. Ok so it took me five minutes to get back up on my feet but it was worth every ache and pain.
Well there is nothing better than being a grandparent. Nothing can describe the feeling that one gets when they hold their newborn grandchild for the first time. It’s like looking into the future. You see yourself as a child, you think about your children who now adults are having their own children and you think about the generations to come. It makes you feel that your life has come full circle. You are a proud parent and a prouder grandparent.
I remember when my daughter first told me she was going to have a baby. She gave me a card with the first picture of our new grand child - a sonogram of a 12 week old baby. To say I was excited is an understatement.
She got a little more creative next time around. She sent me an email with a photo attached. No message just the picture of my granddaughter standing with a gigantic smile on her face and a tee shirt that read “I’m the big sister.” She got us!
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