Blogs

It is official, the baby-boomer generation has entered into the grandparents right of passage. Since the definition of a baby boomer is anyone born between 1946 and 1964 and the average age for a new grandparent is 48 that places a lot of those folks into what is being called the Grand-Boomers. I kind of like that term even though I am too old to qualify. This classification was significant enough that AARP did a breakout study of this age group in it’s 2002 “Grandparent Study Report”. What they found is that the Grand-Boomers are a little bit different than […]

“The belief that youth is the happiest time of life is founded on a fallacy.  The happiest person is the person who thinks the most interesting thoughts, and we grow happier as we grow older.”           WILLIAM LYON PHELPS I just turned 65 last week and it has provided me with a reason to reflect.  One of the neat things about grandparents is that we have an easy time finding Joy in our grandkids and happiness in watching our kids raise them.  If you are someone who has trouble seeing the Joy that is created and experienced by  these incredible, naturally […]

It all starts when that little bundle of joy wraps his or her tiny hand around Grandpa’s finger. Now they have you……forever. Don’t fight it, the struggle is useless, you are hooked. The journey has begun. This is to be a journey of discovery for the new grandparents and for the repeat grandparents, still a thrill all the same. After 6 grandchildren in the past 20 years I can attest that each time is breathtaking, awesome and wonderful. Aren’t you glad to hear the good news? Well, as you may have guessed there is a challenge in this process as […]

THE EXTRAORDINARY ORDINARY SAYS A LOT ABOUT GRANDPARENTS Every week or so I take the trip from Charlotte, NC to Asheville, NC to work on our internet businesses with my son, Chuck. Last week I stayed overnight so my 4 year old granddaughter, Ceili and I could take her Dad to breakfast for his birthday. I was sipping coffee in their dinning room when this beautiful sleepy angel came around the corner and curled up on my lap with Mr. Froggy in tow. Ain’t life wonderful? If I concluded this thought right here you would have the perfect picture of […]

  GRANDPAERNTS RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES The contribution of Caring Grandparents cannot be over stated.  It is our duty, whether you are a new grandparent or like myself on the verge of great grandparenthood, to raise Loving and Lovable children and help them to do the same. (Like the commercial says, “Wash, Rinse, Repeat”).  I am convinced that this process passed down through the generations  will have  a much grearer effect on this world than all the goverment programs combined.  The source of this power can be repeated and grown with each new grandchild.  As the picture above shows, you can’t […]

YUCK! you say?  I can’t blame you, however there are some important considerations about exercise since most of us can’t recall our last marathon,  well maybe the new grandparents can, but I am just two months away from  my 65th and I don’t choose to be a poster child for old folks running 26 miles. Mark Victor Hansen (Chicken Soup for the Soul Books Co-Author) tells the story of a 95 year old banquet waiter in one of the halls that Mark was going to speak in.  He thought it would be good to include some local folks in his […]

I have read a lot of blogs about grandparents, about grandparents rights and gifts for grandparents. I want this to be about what we can do for our grandkids and what we get back for the effort. Every caring parent feels the responsibility of acting in a way that positively affects our children. Not just the way we greet our friends across the fence, not just the nice and warm family gatherings. (I refer to these as the Kenny Rogers Christmas Special syndrome), but rather when we get cut off in traffic, or the bus is late picking up the […]