The Cutest Grandkids

Among the 11.3 million children younger than 5 whose mothers are employed, 30 percent are cared for on a regular basis by a grandparent during their mother’s working hours, according to the Census Bureau, today I became one of them, my daughter went back to school full time so I am looking after my one year old grandson all day. This will be a new challenge, I have become use to doing things when and if I feel like it and being able to spend all day long reading a book if in the mood. Now it’s time for cartoons and more cartoons, snuggling on the couch, snacktime and lunch time mess, running around the house, toys everywhere, and thankfully a little nap time so Grandma can work on the computer. It is a fairly easy job at the age he is and he is a really good little guy, but he needs constant supervision and I will have to start thinking of more things to do to fill our days. He missed mommy and was walking around looking for her but no major screaming fits, so I am very thankful. I would love any advice from any of you who have been doing this childcare role.

My oldest son just celebrated his birthday and it is hard for me to believe that time has gone by so fast, it seems like just yesterday that he was my baby boy, and now he is the father of 3 children. Time can sometimes go so slowly and other times it just kind of rushes by you. The grandkids are also growing up, it feels like just yesterday that I was a new Grandma. I seem to notice it the most with the ones I don’t see as often, my oldest grandson talks like a little man and grows taller every time I see him. The youngest grandson is trying to crawl and learning new things all the time. They change so fast, it is a little sad, but it is so fun to watch them learn and grow. My Grandson looks like he is swimming while he tries to figure out how to make himself crawl. You can watch their faces and see them thinking and learning all the time. He is always watching people and everything around him. My Granddaughter is at the age where she is learning to talk and she copies everything people say. My other Grandson is learning to walk and is fun to watch, he leans back with his arms out to get his balance and he claps for himself when he takes steps alone. Kids are so interested in everything around them and they learn from everything they see and hear. We need to be more like them. One of the kids TV shows tells the kids to learn one new thing every day. Kids learn and grow so fast I guess we had better follow this advice and keep mentally growing to keep up with them. My Grandmother is a very smart lady, and is constantly learning something new. It is a great view of life to have. I am not a big fan of change, but knowledge is a change I can handle. I need to get ready for all the why questions from the Grandkids, and that stage is coming up very fast.

The New Year has begun and as I look back on last year most of my memorable moments have something to do with my Grandchildren, do this mean I have no life? maybe to some but to me it just means that I have been able to enjoy my life at this stage doing what I enjoy and one of the things I am most enjoying is my Grandchildren. I love babies and young children and they grow so quickly, I don’t want to miss out on it. Read more »

Grandkids bring the fun of Christmas back for me. As your kids get older Christmas shopping and all the other activities become less enjoyable as they enjoy them less. With Grandkids you once again get to enjoy things thru the eyes of a child. But things are still really different, I try to be cautious in gift giving and make sure it is not a gift that will bother Mom and Dad. Also even though I want them all here on Christmas morning I have encouraged my son’s to have Christmas morning at their own home with their family so they can start their own traditions. We still get a Gramma visit in, but I think it is important for young families to enjoy these moments and I don’t want my family to view Christmas as a stressful family time.

Going to Grandma’s house for the holiday’s is not something everyone does anymore, but at our house it is Thanksgiving meal at Grandma’s. I do enjoy it, I love having the family all together, I don’t even mind doing most of the cooking. One thing I don’t enjoy is all the cleaning and getting the house ready, and five minutes after everyone arrives it looks like I didn’t do a thing. I know I probably just shouldn’t worry about cleaning so much while my Grandkids are young, but I just can’t make myself ignore it. But I am impressed with myself, because even if I am a little stressed about cleaning the house, I don’t let the mess the kids make while they are here keep me from enjoying being with them. This year I am also hosting out of town family, so it is really not the year to try to chill out. So a cleanin we will go. I am so very Thankful that I have a house to clean and a wonderful family to enjoy Thanksgiving with. Now it’s time to get off this computer and get busy. Happy Thanksgiving everyone.

It was my Son’s anniversary so I kept his children for a day and overnight, a 4 month old and a 2 year old. And then my Daughter got ill so I watched her son as well, a 9 month old. All I can say is I am very glad I had my family when I was younger, I don’t know how people who wait till they are older to start having families do it. I was exhausted at the end of the day. They were really good, we didn’t have any major melt downs, it was just constant diapers, bottles, holding etc. it took me all day to find a minute to wash my dishes, and i know i use to be able to keep the house clean and cook meals etc., when mine where babies, my energy is not the only thing that seems to have disappeared. Despite the exhaustion, I really enjoyed my day, I love spending time with the wee ones, I am just very glad I don’t have too watch them all every day.

I love to shop for my Grandkids, shopping for kids is so much more enjoyable than shopping for adults, but there are different challenges to shopping for your Grandkids than shopping for your own kids. When my kids were younger our finances were tight but my kids were happy with anything we got them. Now with the Grandkids, they have much more stuff and are not as easily satisfied with simple toys, most kids like electronic toys, which are more expensive and can be a source of noise and irritation for mom and dad. So I have been trying to find some of the classic toys, but they are hard to find and expensive when you do find them. Plus I have been informed that the kids have more toys than they have room for, so I guess toys are off the list, which leaves clothes, another fun thing to shop for, little kids clothes are so cute, but mom is usually a little picky and has different taste than Grandma, so this puts us back to square one. What do you get them? I like the idea of getting gymnastics classes etc. but that doesn’t give them any gifts to open, which is what they enjoy more than what is inside. I guess this needs more thought. Let me know what you do for your Grandkids.

Fall is the time for pumpkin patches, so this past weekend we went with the youngest Grandson to one of the local pumpkin patches. This was a very large place, very well done with lots of animals, things for kids to do and of course lots of pumpkins. Read more »

I took my Daughters and young Grandson to see Disney on Ice. Read more »

Say What? Kids are so cute when they are learning to talk, there are times when you wish they would not learn to say things properly so quick. When my Son was little he called his Grandma “Nama”, she was sad when he learned to say Grandma instead. My favorite saying is when my Granddaughter  wanted to be picked up she said  “Gramma hold you.”  My Grandson while playing a video game with his dad said “I’ve got mad skills”. Kids say the cutest things and there are so many I forget,  I wish I had them written down.     I would love to hear some of your cute funny sayings.