Tag: grandchildren

  • To Grandma’s House

    Each November our grade school music teacher had us sing, “Over the river and through the woods, to Grandmother’s house we go,” probably in reference to Thanksgiving with the grandmother. As I consider it today, it reminds me of both my town and country grandmothers. I am thankful for both although neither fit today’s mythical,…

  • Play is child’s work

    “Play is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious learning. Play is really the work of childhood.” – Fred Rogers of “Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood.” Given a chance for imperfection, play and work merged this summer. In St. Louis, the six-and-a-half-year-old granddaughter knew what she wanted to do when I came. She…

  • And then they were gone

    As I write this the Pennsylvania grandchildren are packing their suitcases, preparing for the long trip home. We will cross paths with their mother somewhere in Tennessee. It has been an intense month. These old folks enjoy every minute of having time with family, but having four additional people in the house for a month…

  • little visitors

    My daughter made the mistake of telling her 22-month-old, “Tomorrow we are going to grandma and grandpa’s house.” The baby loves her grandparents. She wanted to go to mmaa-mma mmma-baa’s house right now. This most determined of children tugged and pulled her mother toward the car. She had no intentions of going to bed and…

  • Lindsay’s quilt

    I opened the door to my sewing room for my visiting granddaughter, “Well, this is either the craft room or a junk room,” I said. A pile of fabric slumped onto the floor waiting for a shelf; piles of fabric for quilting projects waited my time, idea books crowded the closet, audio books waited to…

  • Sewing class

    I really didn’t intend to cut off anyone’s fingers last weekend – I just wanted to play home-ec teacher when I invited the granddaughters to learn how to use one or another of my three sewing machines. They looked at me in total astonishment. “I’m afraid I will cut off my finger,” one explained. “That’s…

  • Easter in El Dorado

    We always strive to keep visiting grandchildren moving, thinking, creating and away from staring open-mouthed at a television set for hours – which explains my craft cupboard for visiting grandchildren and eagle eye for community activities. We maxed out with Easter activities during the grandchildren’s recent spring break visit – thanks to the community wide…

  • Grandpa’s toy tractor

    My husband did not want to leave his toy tractor behind. He wanted to take it with us when we visited the grandchildren. It really should be MY tractor. I found the bright green plastic tractor and wagon sitting in front of the “For Pet’s Sake” thrift store when my brother and sister visited back…