Co-grandparenting refers to the relationships between people who have grandchildren in common. Due to divorces, remarriages, and the resultant blended families, the number of co-grandparents can be in double digits for some grandchildren. As one five-year-old gleefully said, “I sure have a lot of grandparents!” Sometimes the relationships between the co-grandparents are easy and comfortable; other times they are uncomfortable or even problematic.
Category: Grandparents
Welcome grandparents and parents! We know how important grandparent relationships are, so here you’ll find articles, videos and events on activities grandparents can do with their grandchildren, ways to positively foster these relationships, better communication and appreciation between parents and grandparents (and vice versa!) and more!
Ask Dr. Gramma Karen: Take the Stress Out of Gift Giving
Dear Dr. Gramma Karen,
I want to suggest you to do a column on gift-giving. I ask because I listen to people at work and in the store check-out lines stressing out about this. For example, my co-workers talk about their in-laws as being either cheapskates or extravagant. Then there is the topic of grandparents giving the grandchildren gifts that the parents have already said they don’t want the kids to have, e.g., cell phones, video games.
Seasonal Safety Tips for the Holidays
Holiday decorations, especially candles and electrical lighting, can be fire hazards.
Parents and grandparents should take a few precautions when decorating and entertaining for Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwaanza and other fall/winter holidays and festivities.
Ask Dr. Gramma Karen: Food for Thought
I laughed when I saw this cartoon that depicts the challenges of hosting dinners for groups of people with diverse nutritional requirements, e.g., vegan, allergic to gluten, on a cleanser, et cetera. So true! It reminded me that my husband Gary and I have made some changes in how we now often entertain.
Ask Dr. Gramma Karen: Grandparents in the Dark About Grandson’s Situation
Dear Dr. Gramma Karen, My husband and I are very upset. One of our grandsons must be in treatment with this doctor, and we have been left in the dark about it. The close relationships we’ve always thought were so open and close are apparently not what we thought they were.
Ask Dr. Gramma Karen: An Interview with Jane Isay
Dr. Gramma Karen: Jane, after I read Donne Davis’s blog about your latest and fourth book, I immediately read it and hoped I would have a chance to interview you. And, happily, here we are!
Rather than focus on the excellent content of your book about grandparenting, I would like to ask you a few questions about the process you went through to write it.
Ask Dr. Gramma Karen: Afterthoughts on the Column, “Our Granddaughter Was Stillborn”
Dear readers,
Soon after my Ask Dr. Gramma column “Our Daughter Was Stillborn” was posted, I received this e-mail from a reader:
“As always you provide clarification and a ton of resources. However as tough as it is, the grandparents need to find a way to respect the wishes of the parents. If they are expected to read certain books they must find a way to comply or come to an honest agreement with the parents on how to deal with situation. A thorny but important issue was left out of your answer.”
Ask Dr. Gramma Karen: Our Granddaughter was Stillborn
Dear Dr. Gramma Karen,
The baby’s room was ready, and the kids were excited about getting a new baby sister. We are all heartbroken. Janine was stillborn.