GRANDlove is certainly in the air with Valentine’s Day around the corner.
It’s fun to send off your Valentine’s Day cards and parcels, but the truth is, it’s also hard to cope with grandparenting from a distance when all you really want is a hug and some in-person time with them!
But through my work with thousands of grandparents, here is what I know for sure: your words – and your love – travel as far as needed to reach your grandchildren.
Here are 3 fun ways you can spread some love and have a fun connection with your grandchildren through video chats, text messages or email.
The 3 ideas for connection are themed around Valentine’s Day, but you can use these ideas at any time of year to spread GRANDlove and to make your grandchild feel special.
If you want to see these ideas in action, check out The Long Distance Grandparent YouTube channel because I posted a video walking you through these ideas and how to use them to bond with your grandchildren.
I’ll start off with an idea for those of you with younger grandchildren and then end with something easy and special you can do to connect with teenage and adult grandchildren from a distance!
Sticker LOVE
If you’re going to be video chatting with a 2, 3 or 4-year-old, show up on the call with a heart sticker stuck to your nose or forehead – and pretend you don’t know it is there.
Kids LOVE this and will be yelling at the screen to help you find it and take it off.
My dad does this with my kids, and they laugh and giggle and he just keeps saying…’What? What do you mean? A sticker on my nose?! Where?’
Also, you don’t need a sticker. Just cut out a small heart, pop some tape on it and stick it to your face!
The benefit of using a piece of paper is that you can also write ‘I love you’ on the heart – and take the chance to spread a little love at the same time.
It’s so easy and silly but packs a playful punch – and play is so important to connect with young children from a distance.
Love Tray
This is a Valentine spin on the game memory tray which is one of the easiest games to prepare ahead of time, so you are ready to go whenever they FaceTime!
First step is to create a tray of items.
But this isn’t going to be just any tray because you are going to personalize it for them by including:
- A heart cut out that says ‘I love you’,
- Things they love such as a banana, hot wheels cars or a hockey card.
- A photo of you together or a photo of an uncle or cousins.
Personalizing it is another way to show them you know them, you are listening to them, and you care about the things they care about.
Once you are on the video call:
- Show the tray of items to them for about 30 seconds.
- Ask your grandchild to memorize as many items as they can.
- Remove the tray from the camera view.
- Ask your grandchild to write down or say the number of items they can remember.
- Little ones will need help from a parent to create a written list
If the parents or your grandchild are game, you can ask them to get your grandchild to create a LOVE tray for you as well. If they are, get ready to be the one in the memory hotspot!
LOVE Selfie
This is one of my favorite ideas because it is all about spreading GRANDlove with your grandchildren, no matter their age. You can use this with a 2 -year- old or a 22 -year old grandchild.
Feel free to send one to the parents as well letting them know something special you have noticed about their parenting.
First, you are going to take a selfie and send it to them.
But not just any selfie. A LOVE selfie.
Here is how:
Do something different to your face – whether it’s wearing heart glasses (you can make heart glasses with your own glasses or sunglasses by taping cut-out hearts and sticking them to your glasses). Or drawing a heart on your cheek or forehead with some lipstick.
Send the photo along with a loving message! For older grandchildren it might be something like:
I’ve loved watching you grow from a little girl who loved dinosaurs into a beautiful, kind, strong and intelligent young woman. We will always be here for you. Love Nana
To take it up a notch. Create a sign with this message and hold it up for your selfie. If you’ve purchased my GRAND Word Hugs printables, create your sign using the Word Hug and the prompts I provide for you. Print it out and hold it up for your selfie. They are so colorful and bright that it is sure to catch your grandchild’s eye!
You can also let them know to check their email or mailbox for a sweet treat. It doesn’t have to be expensive, a 5-dollar gift ecard for Starbucks or a fave ice-cream shop, for instance.
This will work well for long distance grandparents looking for a last-minute gift for your grandchild. Sometimes we have the best intentions of getting something there on time, but that doesn’t always happen. This is a way to let them know you love them – and something is on the way.
I hope you will try out some of these ideas and join me in spreading more GRANDlove!
Happy Connecting!
Kerry
