Grandchildren Visit Days Are As Good As You Make Them!

Today I've set aside the day for spending time with 3 of my grandchildren.  They're all boys as you can see in the photo taken two weeks ago at my 5 year old grandson's birthday party.  Each of them is very different, yet they're all wonderful!  However they're still boys and they're still children--meaning that they have lots of energy and a need for much activity when they're not reading or playing games.

I've found that it's much easier to be a grandparent when it comes to controlling children than when I was a parent.  I think it's probably because I'm sure of what I'm doing now that I'm older.  With my grandchildren I'm able to keep my personality out of whatever discipline I have to administer which is very rare.

If you're a grandparent and you dread having them visit because it's hard to control them, it's really not that difficult if you get to know them better and let them get to know you.  Sometimes you have to get to know children enough for them to have positive feelings about you.  Then they won't want to make you feel badly about their poor behavior.  And as I've learned, there are ways to get children to behave without spanking--in fact it makes one more creative.

I learned with my first grandchild something that has worked with all 7 others when they were very small.  It came in handy, especially when two siblings were fighting or they got mad a me for some reason.  I could make them quickly switch from being very unhappy to laughing in less than a minute.  I would simply say that I was sorry for how they felt and hugged them.  Then I'd say that I know that deep down they're really happy.  I'd coax them into laughing and after than they'd be back to a happy mood.  Actually, I found that not spanking children makes it easier to understand why they're upset and gives the adult more understanding about their feelings.

Another thing you can do if you have time to prepare ahead is to arrange activities for each child according to personality.  When my oldest daughter had her three little one's, my husband and I took each child out separately for a special day arranged according to their personality and what they liked to do.  Every trip we took was a great time and we never had a problem--especially with just one child.

When my grandchildren arrive later today, my husband is taking the two older boys out for a game of golf while the 5 year old and I read together, talk about school (he'll be starting kindergarten in the fall), play or watch a movie.  Then we'll all have lunch when the others return.  We do the best we can to make grandchildren visit days special because looking back at the time I spent with two of my grandparents was very special.   If you're a grandparent, it's never too late to make your grandchildren visit days memorable so that they give your grandchildren times they'll never forget.  And they'll never forget you!

 

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