Children with Grandparents
National Grandparents Day originated with Marian McQuade, a housewife in Fayette County, West Virginia. Her primary motivation was to champion the cause of the elderly in nursing homes. In 1978, President Jimmy Carter proclaimed that National Grandparents Day would be celebrated every year on the first Sunday after Labor Day.
Here are three suggestions on how your family can celebrate Grandparent’s Day this year:
1. Plan an activity or trip. The number one thing most grandparents want from their grandchildren (and children!) is time. Plan a fun trip or special activity with your children to do with their grandparent. Find something special that both will enjoy and that offers lots of time to just be together and chat.
2. Interview Grandparents. For older grandchildren, suggest they interview their grandparents. It’s fascinating for children to hear about the differences in everything from technology to education to clothing. You can use video or a tape recorder or the kids can simply sit and listen to stories. You could also have the kids write out what they learned and put it together with photos for an interesting family record.
3. Create a family tree. Borrow photo albums from your parents or grandparents and make copies of several generations of relatives. Your children can sit with their grandparents jotting names, dates and notes about each of the relatives and then pasting them into a family tree. Make copies for everyone to keep.
4. Cook together. Have the whole family cook a few of grandma’s favorite recipes together. Grandma will enjoy supervising and teaching!