The Joys of Being a Grandparent
Are you a Grandparent?
My first granddaughter Leah was born in December of 2010. My son and daughter-in-law were living in Ohio at the time.
They moved to Ohio when my daughter-in-law was about 4 months pregnant.
I thought it was a bad idea for them to move but I blessed them and my husband and I even helped them move driving all the way from Florida to Ohio with them.
It was a very sad time for me because they were going to have a baby and I’ve wanted to be a grandmother for a long time.
The Joys of Being a Grandparent- the baby comes
I get a call about 2 a.m. from my daughter-in-law on her birthday asking me what is it like when your water breaks…I just laughed because she didn’t want the baby to come on her birthday…
…So I told her what it was like when your water breaks, and told her to call the doctor and Happy Birthday!
Leah was born around 5 pm so she spent her whole birthday in labor.
Of course the hardest part for me was I was in Florida and I couldn’t be there with them. It seemed like forever until we got the call saying Leah was born.
The day after Christmas my husband and I with our 2 youngest kids drove to Ohio to meet Leah.
It was love at first sight…
I can’t begin to describe the love I have for Leah.
We have a connection that shows in this picture.
Meeting Leah for the First time
The Joys of Being a Grandparent – Their Moving back to Florida
When Leah was 10 months old my son and daughter-in-law decided to come back to Florida. They realized that moving to Ohio was a mistake and they came home. Grandma couldn’t be happier. And they were going to be living with us so I would get to make up for all the time I missed in Leah’s first 10 months.
Although having them live here with us has had it’s challenges, I wouldn’t have had it any other way. Of course we had to adjust to having baby stuff all over the house again. But having Leah here was way more important than my house being in perfect order.
I love having a house with babies, I guess that’s why I had 5 of my own.
The biggest joy of being a grandparent is you get to spoil them without guilt! I always say “it’s my job to spoil my grandchildren!”
I spent many days rocking Leah and singing to her. I played with her every spare moment. I cherish those days so much!
The Joys of Being a Grandparent – Their having another baby
Around July of 2011 my daughter-in-law found out she was pregnant again. They were still living with us so I was a little apprehensive. Now there were going to be 2 babies in the house. But I was happy at the same time. I got to be part of everything this time around. I got to go with my daughter-in-law to doctor appointments and sonogram appointments.
I even got to be there for the birth of Melody. I was at the hospital through out the whole time she was in labor. I didn’t miss a thing. What a blessing for me.
Melody was born on April 1, 2013, which is my brother Dave’s birthday as well. Dave passed away in 2006 of cancer. I see Melody being born on my brother’s birthday as a blessing. It’s a happy day where it used to be a sad one. God is good!
Meeting Melody for the first time
The Joys of Being a Grandparent – Their Still here
Leah is 4 now and Melody is 2 and I’m still enjoying them every day. They still live with us and I don’t see them moving out anytime in the near future.
I take the girls to church with me every Sunday morning and Wednesday evening. They love going to church. It’s something that we do together and it’s a special time.
I am blessed because I get to be a part of their everyday lives. I get the good and the bad. But mostly I get the love, the hugs and the kisses. I try not to parent them I leave that up to their parents, but I do spoil them. They know Grandma loves them and I know they love me.
It’s hard on my daughter-in-law sometimes because they want me over her at times. But I try to encourage them to go to Mommy.
It’s hard sometimes not to interfere, but I know I need to back them up because they are the parents. To tell the truth I don’t want to parent the girls, I want to be the grandparent. I’ve already raised my kids.
 Leah |
 Melody |
The Joys of Being a Grandparent – Conclusion
There are many joys in being a grandparent. I get to spend time with my granddaughters and and spoil them. After all it’s my job! Even though it can be challenging having my son, daughter-in-law and 2 granddaughters living with us, I wouldn’t change it for the world.
Thank for visiting my blog.
Deirdre Powell (Dee)
Thanks for sharing these two sweeties. I dont get to spend enough time with my grandchildren. Yours are two bundles of fun, and cuteness.
Thanks Carla, appreciate you! Thanks for your comments!