it probably doesn’t come as much surprise, but many people believe that children who are raised in an environment where grandparents are involved turn out better.
When I read an article recently about kids with involved grandparents, I smiled from ear to ear. We are lucky enough to have my parents staying with us this week and seeing my child interact with them is wonderful. It isn’t always easy because we live 2,000 miles apart, but I do everything in my power to keep them as involved as my grandparents were when they lived just a few miles from my family while I was growing up.
Try out these tips to keep grandparents involved and in the loop.
- Use Skype! Try to set a scheduled time each week, or month, to Skype and keep the appointment! We all look forward to these sessions and don’t schedule anything minor during these times to avoid skipping it!
- Send hand-drawn pictures and paintings. Nothing makes a grandparent smile like seeing a fridge covered with scrawled crayon drawings.
- Use Walgreens, or other photo finishers, to send photos during specials. We like to take advantage of free 8X10 collages and each grandparent can pick them up at their local store.
- Even if it’s not all that coherent, let your child talk on the phone with grandparents. It’s special for all of them.
- Think of special, inexpensive crafts or projects to make and send. Great ideas are photo mugs and bookmarks.
- Have a photo album or book for your child to keep photos handy and talk often about out-of-area family members.
- Take lots of photos and share through social media, e-mail and send to photo finishers. You don’t have to have professional photos often, but set up mini shoots in your own backyard or living room with special outfits or with props sent by grandparents to capture special memories.
What kinds of tips can you share for keeping grandparents involved?
