2009 Calendar
Date Host Presenter
Sept 13 Dee Group Activity
Nov 1 Needed Susan B
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Sept 13, 2009 Meeting
When You're Not gaga, Who Are You?
Our
September 13 meeting will be hosted by Dee in Los Altos. How appropriate that
our meeting falls on National Grandparents Day this year! And while the GaGa
Sisterhood is all about celebrating our status as grandmothers, we are so much
more than grandmothers. This meeting will give us a chance to get to know each
other beyond being grandmas. We'll enjoy an interactive group activity in which
we'll be able to share who we are when we're not grandmas.
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The Art of Grandparenting
The Art of Grandparenting is now available.
In the chapter I wrote, How to Become a Go-To
Grandma, I offer seven suggestions for building lasting bonds with your
grandchildren. The most important lesson I've learned as a grandmother is that getting
time with your grandchildren requires building trust and respect with
their parents. Trust is the foundation for having access to your
grandchildren.
The anthology, subtitled Loving, Spoiling, Teaching and Playing with
Your Grandkids, includes
20 chapters by "new" and "seasoned" grandparent authors. To order the
book, click here.
You can purchase copies at our September 13 meeting.
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What's New With You?
I'd love to share tidbits from other members in this newsletter. Please send me emails with fun activities you're doing.
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Greetings!
Multigenerational family vacations have been a summer ritual
in my family for more than five generations. When
I was a young child, they included my parents and grandparents. Now they
include my children and grandchildren. We've taken a summer vacation with them
every year for the past six years. Each year we've learned things that have
improved the quality of our time together.
According
to the Travel Industry Association, multigenerational travel has recently
become one of the fastest growing areas of the travel industry. Each year more
than 5 million families vacation with three generations, creating the challenge
of finding a vacation that is suitable for everyone from toddlers to
grandparents. After researching the wealth of material on this topic, I've
collected some of the best tips for families who want to enjoy a
multigenerational vacation.
In Sisterhood, 
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Enjoying Multigenerational Family Vacations
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Kids get
more attention than usual and the chance to enjoy relatives in a less formal
setting than a family function.
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Parents
get a break from 24/7 parenting and maybe even get to have some husband-wife time
alone.
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Grandparents
get to enjoy their grandchildren in more satisfying ways than at a single
holiday meal.
"The
most important part of orchestrating a three-generation vacation is being able
to accommodate everyone's needs and realizing that our differences are what
makes traveling together such a unique experience," says travel expert
Christine Loomis. "The trick to this type of travel is simple: planning,
preparation and flexibility."
TIP #1: Get everyone involved in choosing the vacation destination
When kids - or adults - have a voice and a
choice, they feel more invested in the trip and stay more positive even when
involved in an activity they did not choose. Before the vacation call a family
meeting or, if everyone does not live nearby, try to set up a telephone
conference or online chat so everybody can have some input in the decision.
TIP #2: Choose the right
accommodations
Vacation rentals provide
exactly what multigenerational families need - a sense of togetherness and
privacy and for much less than the cost of multiple hotel rooms needed for a
group traveling together. One travel expert writes that, "even
though the point is togetherness, it's important to choose accommodations that
offer family members space and time to be on their own. Instead of renting a
large house, err on the side of a condo with individual units. This keeps
crying babies and late night party people from bothering everyone else. It also
creates less friction around mealtime and permits less scrutiny of everyone's
parenting style." The expert also advises each family have its own car instead
of renting the largest possible vehicle.
TIP #3: Schedule activities with
your family's normal routine in mind
Toddlers
are generally most active in the morning, a time when grandparents are also up.
Teens typically sleep late, so it's best to schedule the thing they most want
to see or do in the afternoons or evening.
TIP #4: Spend time in small groups
Before you
go, it's a good idea to discuss what everyone wants to do or not do on the trip
and make some compromises. Make sure everyone knows that family togetherness
will not be required 24/7. It's okay to do things alone, like take a long
morning walk or read a book. In fact, families who master this have more to
share when they see each other again, and each person gets a different view of
vacationing in the same place. Mix and match the quality time with different
family members. Parents can be with young kids while grandparents visit an art
gallery or historical monument. Grandparents can also have a special evening
with the grandchildren while parents go out for a romantic dinner.
TIP #5: Take advantage of kitchens
It's all
about flexibility. Grandparents and grandchildren often have different meal
schedules, and young children may find it difficult to sit through three meals
a day in restaurants. Stay in and save money for the easy meals - breakfasts of
cereal and yogurt, and quick sandwiches and snacks for lunch. Then give the
whole family a treat by going out for dinner. To enjoy each other's company,
the whole group should eat together at least once a day.
TIP #6: Allow time to relax
Plan a
loosely structured itinerary of activities that the whole family can enjoy. But
agree to have some time each day to just chill.
TIP #7: Discuss vacation
finances early
Be realistic about what you can afford. Before you go, talk to
your family openly about the vacation budget. There are many ways to have a
vacation without spending lots of money and still have a great time.
TIP #8: Assess the vacation pluses and
minuses
At the end of the vacation, sit down together and share some of
your favorite memories. Give each person a chance to say his best and worst
moments. Ask for suggestions for future vacations. You could even make a
vacation journal (see my blog post) with each person contributing her own page.
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GGS Online Community
On August 4, 2009, I sent an invitation to our members to join our GaGa
Sisterhood members-only online community. Through online services
provided by BigTent, the GaGa Sisterhood can now
process membership renewals and payments, manage email lists, access our GaGa
Sisterhood calendar, and use lots of other great features, such as the photo gallery and
forum, to communicate with each other.
BigTent offers the technology to support our organization now and in the future and provides a platform for our online community. BigTent has a very
strict privacy policy and does not sell, rent or give user information to ANY
third parties.
Everyone who joins our BigTent community by September 10 will be eligible for a raffle to win a free copy of The Art of Grandparenting,
which includes my chapter: "How to Become a Go-To Grandma." The drawing
will be held at our September 13 meeting and you don't need to be
present to win.
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GGS Member News
GaGa Kathleen Shares Camping Adventure
A few weeks
ago GaGa Kathleen sent me this email: I'm off to White Wolf Lodge with Bridget,
4, and Cate, 5, for 3 days. We'll sleep in a tent cabin and enjoy the High
Country in Yosemite all along Tioga Road. Hiking and outdoors exploring here we
come!!!
I was so impressed
she was taking her two little granddaughters camping, that I called to ask her
how they all enjoyed their wilderness adventure. You can read her story and see
their picture on my blog post.
GaGa Janet Welcomes New
Granddaughter
GaGa Janet
is gaga all over again! She "simply
HAD to send news of the birth of Hailey Lynne Harding on August 7. Hailey's stats: 6 lb 13 oz.
Everyone's good. Gorgeous & sweet little baby. We're simply blown away by a
baby with hair!"
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Free Subscription to GRAND Magazine
Several years ago, I discovered a wonderful resource for grandparents---GRAND Magazine. Last year GRAND switched
from a printed format to an online magazine with live links. What I like about
GRAND is that the founder and publisher, Christine Crosby, is also a
grandmother and truly understands the role. She says that becoming a
grandparent transformed her life beyond measure.
GRAND's mission is to provide
grandparents of all ages and in all stages of life both information and
inspiration. They've created a magazine that celebrates the joys and tackles
the challenges of one of life's sweetest experiences---having grandchildren.
GRAND Magazine is now offering free
subscriptions to readers of my blog. To get your free subscription, click here. The August issue has a story
about the GaGa Sisterhood in their "grand central" section. Click here to read.
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