I have nine grandchildren. Three grew up in Germany; three are in South Dakota; three live about thirty minutes away. I will always be sad about all the years we missed with the six who live so far away. You don’t really get to be part of their lives, and you miss seeing all the stages of change. My oldest grandchild is 20, and I find that almost impossible to understand!
I don’t think you really understand the emotion that goest with having grandchildren until you hold that first one, the first child of your first child. Such a wave of amazement and tenderness, and it just keeps getting better as more babies are added to the family.
They are so much fun to have around because they aren’t your responsibility 🙂 You can enjoy them, relax with them, and then send them back to their parents.
The three who live nearby stayed overnight with us on Thursday, stuffed with turkey and all sorts of other goodies. They bunk in the basement, in a semi-furnished room that holds a sofa, a twin-size mattress, and a couple of cots. They seem to enjoy themselves, and they always come back upstairs hungry for whatever is featured at breakfast.
The boys spend time outdoors with Grandpa, working on one of his endless projects. Their sister is out there too, for a while, but usually comes back inside looking for something domestic to do. This time, she made some chocolate chip cookies. She doesn’t need supervision any more, and she knows to clean up after herself.
We got some new neighbors earlier this year, and they have a son and daughter close to the ages of our older grandson and his sister. They spent a few hours here yesterday, getting to know each other.
It’s a strong temptation, with your grands, to look at them and see your own kids. I try not to do that. They are individuals in their own right, not clones of any of the rest of us. They will follow their own paths, and I pray daily that those will be God-directed paths.
Well, I didn’t really have anything in particular to say today, I guess. Just enjoying this part of my life, so thankful for all with which God has blessed us.
Linda's Bible Study 
This helps me understand my mom’s viewpoint of her grandkids / my children.
Grandparenting probably isn’t too far away for me. I need to tuck away your cheerful wisdom for when God blesses that way. Thanks for sharing 🙂
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You will love it. it’s a whole new thing 🙂
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One up on you, I have ten GK and like you, two of my children live a good distance away, but half of my grandkids live only six blocks from me. It is an easy bike ride to see each other. There is a seven year lapse between the last two of the kids and more than once I’ve told Debby that God gave them Kamryn for me! It is no secret that she and I are very close. My oldest grandson, also lived close by, is now a senior in college at Pensacola Christian College and getting married in June next year. How time flies. I try to stay connected with the ones far away by letters, the old fashioned kind. The two at PCC I message via FB but I try not to bother them. They have work to do! Like you, I love being a grandmother very much. This last Thursday Debby’s kids had four of us Grandparents at their disposal and it was fun. Gary’s parents live nearby also and Bob flew in to spend a couple of days. We all enjoyed the “grands.” We are all aware of the need for a gentle influence of those formative years we have the grands with us.
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I am a grandmother/nana of 5. My oldest granddaughter just turned 14. Ours are between 2 of our sons. 3 belong to 1 and 2 to another. Both of them are in the military and so being in the middle of the US we are lucky if we see them one time a year. Really blessed to see them twice in a year. It is so very hard when you go to work and hear all the ladies you worked with for years talk about their weekend with the grandkids. All the funny things they say and do and all the fun things that they as grandparents take them to. I try to act cheerful most of the time but it does make me realize how I miss an entire sector of my life. Oh yes, woe is me! Lol. I am thankful they are all well cared for and all are healthy but I do wish I was able to be the nana they knew. The nana they would come to and count on with some of the hard things in life that they didn’t want to talk to mom or dad about.
I loved it when you spoke about the first time you hold one of these sweet ones. They are not yours but something incredibly amazing when they belong to one that you gave birth to yourself! To watch the love that your own children/grown up but always your children. To watch them with there babies, to see the love and the care they extend. Especially our grown-up boys/men. I know when my first one was born. My daughter-in-law came to Arkansas and lived with my younger son and me when she was pregnant and my oldest son/her husband was deployed. We didn’t want her to be on the East Coast all alone during this time. She was with us from about 8 weeks of pregnancy until 7 and a half months along. I was able to be a part of that process. I was able to hear the heartbeat, able to see the ultrasound! I had boys and so this being a girl was also exciting! I bought so many sweet girl outfits! She had a wardrobe all ready. My friends gave her a baby shower! My son came home and took my daughter-in-law back to Virginia. I remember getting the call as she went into labor. Myself and my husband (my boyfriend at the time), drove up to meet Maria for the first time when she was about 3 weeks old. We even took her back to our hotel for one night to play grandma with her and hold her and feed her and just take care of her. It gave my son and his wife a night out. So, after 2 days we had to head back home for work. We decided to leave one evening around 6pm instead of the next morning. All I did was cry. I couldn’t stop. As I left their apartment all I could think about is that she would never know me and I would never KNOW her. The drive away I only got worse. We stopped to eat at a restaurant. I tell you, I WAS A MESS! Ha..ha. I could hardly even order. I certainly couldn’t have a conversation with my husband. I kept my head down trying to keep the waiter from noticing the water gushing from my eyes. The constant blowing of my nose until I cried so much that I simply could no longer breathe or even swallow. (You know what I am talking about?) I remember later we laugh because I am certain that the waiter wondered what was wrong and probably thought that my husband was saying terrible things to me. Emotionally abusing me…lol. I am so sentimental and soft hearted. I reflect on the past too often and always think I should have done this or that different.
All 3 of my sons babies. I was the first grandparent to run out to see and hold them! The last one. A boy I planned on being prepared to be there for his birth. My son was deployed through most of the pregnancy and we were not sure he would be back in time. 8 months of planning went into this. I had my job squared away on my 2 weeks off. Planning to hopefully be there at the right time if needed. My son ended up getting home about a week before I was to fly out. I was going to go ahead and go and they were going to allow me to be in the room with them while he was born. DO I EVEN NEED TO TELL YOU HOW EXCITED THAT MADE ME? The morning I was to catch my early morning flight to Virginia, I had got out of bed about 3:30am to jump in the shower. My flight was to leave about 6:30am. When I got out of the shower my husband came in and told me that she was in labor and I freaked! WHAT? ARE YOU KIDDING ME? I HAVE PLANNED THIS FOR HOW LONG? I longed so to be able to watch my first grandson be born. My short layover along thecway, I was still ok. After my plane landed in Virginia, I made my way to get m th luggage. No one there. Do I rent a car? I received a text message. Ohhhhhhh it is a photo of a beautiful baby boy born as my plane was touching down in Virginia! ARE YOU KIDDING ME? THIS KID IS GOING TO BE TROUBLE FROM THE START! I suppose that once I got over the immense disappointment, I decided he waited until I was literally touching down in Virginia in order to get the MOST nana time possible. No wasted time waiting for labor to begin. If labor had began as I had to board a plane to come home that would have been way worse!
If you have your grand babies near you then embrace them and don’t take it for granted. Take it from those I feel us who don’t have the opportunity to have a relationship with ours. We are only known as the woman we call nana and we get gifts from her and papa at birthday and Christmas.
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Thank you for sharing so much with me. I do understand. Six of my nine live so far away. I never lived near any of my grandparents, and I’ve always regretted it.
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I lived near mine, but never saw them. The only thing I can think is that she was very religious and my parents were not. I remember staying all night at their house one time. I remember her taking her hair down from the top of her head and it went all the way to the floor. She didn’t cut her hair. She was a very very quiet woman. Ohhhhh how I wish I could talk with her now. She read her bible and prayed all the time. If only I could talk to her now. Makes me smile thinking about what she would tell me about Jesus!
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