Define Your Grandparent Philosophy
Have you ever sat down and thought about what kind of a grandmother you are or want to be? I'm certain our own grandmothers never gave it much thought. They probably just dove in and followed their instincts. And I'm sure we've all done a bit of that ourselves. But given that we're all products of the consciousness-raising generation, I suspect we have spent some time thinking about this complex role and the impact we would like to make on our grandchildren's lives.
Write Your Grandparent Mission
 In her book, Wonderful Ways to Love a Grandchild, author Judy Ford offers inspiring suggestions on how you can actively participate in your grandchildren's lives. In the section titled
Define Your Grandparenting Philosophy she proposes writing a grandparenting mission statement. In order to do this she says it is helpful to think about your own grandparents.
- If you knew them, were you close?
- How much time did you spend with them?
- What do you remember about those times?
- What kind of grandparents were your parents to your children?
Then she advises you think about your relationship with your own grandchildren.
- Do you enjoy them?
- Do you look forward to being with them?
- How much time do you spend together?
- Is it enough or would you prefer more?
- What kind of relationship do you want to have with your grandchildren and their parents?
Make A Grandparent Plan
 In The Essential Grandparent Dr. Lillian Carson devotes a whole chapter to making a plan for the type of grandparent you would like to be. She offers four steps with many thought-provoking questions:
Step 1: Discover Your Grandparent Intentions
- What kind of grandparent do you want to be?
- What kind of difference do you want to make?
- What family values and traditions do you want to pass on?
Step 2: Deciding What to Do: Making Your Intentions a Reality
- What kinds of things do you enjoy doing?
- What gives you the greatest pleasure when you're with your grandchild?
- How can you pass on family traditions and establish new ones?
Step 3: Determining How to Do it: Implementation
- How will you coordinate your time with your grandchild's availability?
- How can you help in their growth and development?
- What can you do to share your interests?
Step 4: Evaluating
- What did you like about an experience with your grandchild?
- What would you change to make it more satisfying for both of you?
- What did you learn about your grandchild that will guide your future plans?
These are a few questions to get you thinking about your wonderful role of grandmother-because when we think about our role, we are more intentional in our actions, we connect more deeply and we get more satisfaction from the interactions we have.
Grandparenting is a journey made of many small steps, some forward, some back. Think about what small step you can take today to enrich your relationship with your grandchild.
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