Five Tips for Successful GrandparentingWritten by Don Schmitz
Building on cherished connection between grandparents and grandchildren is a life-long privilege. As grandchildren grow and mature role grandparents play in lives of their grandchildren changes but principals remain true at any age. 1. Boundaries are necessary for control and safety. All children need and must learn to respect boundaries. Being clear about expectations before an activity begins frees you and child to enjoy event and ensures safety of everyone involved. If you observe boundaries are being violated, don’t be afraid to remind your grandchildren again. Restate rules as many times as necessary. Writing rules and posting them or bringing them along is a good idea. If a rule is violated during activity, ask child to repeat or read rules again. 2.Gift giving is not a requirement of grandparenting. Establish a practice with your first grandchild and stick with it; what you do for one doesn’t necessarily have to be done for all. Financial and family situations change as our children grow. If a family experiences loss of a job or divorce, don’t be afraid to make temporary changes. Gifts are gifts especially when they are unexpected. Surprise gifts are best. Gifts don’t have to cost a lot. Research supports fact that “time together” is best gift we can give. Travel provides time for grandparent and grandchildren to discover and appreciate each other’s gifts. 3. All rules must be consistent with parents’ wishes. Anything you do with and for your grandchild needs to be discussed first with parents. After all, parents make rules and effective grandparents support them.
| | Fun with MoneyWritten by Arleen M. Kaptur
Ah, a child's world - full of magic and fun. As parents, grandparents and other assorted relatives, a child's conception, understanding, and knowledge of money comes in many forms. There are birthday and holiday gifts, going shopping with grandma, and even helping a small child select a gift for mom and dad. While on surface all this is just fine and good, have you ever stopped to think exactly what you are teaching this small person about finances and money - knowledge that will last them a lifetime and either make life easier to handle or more difficult. Money sure doesn't grow on trees - but to today's small children, it does come out of machines. Mom or Dad just press some magic keys and a whole bunch of money comes out - In a store, a small plastic fit-in-your-hand card will get you anything from candy to a new outfit. Kids have a lot of fun playing grown-up and using credit cards and taking cash from ATM's - but do they know that credit card bill has to be paid, or that money from machine is really your money - first placed in an account, then being able to be taken out. Even smallest of children can understand some basic facts about money. A lost glove or shoe will result in a trip to store and money paid out for shoes and gloves. School lunches cost money and teacher will collect that envelope before child gets a meal. The friendly person behind counter at McDonald's will not give you your food until you give them some pieces of paper and some metal coins. You are not taking fun out of an outing if you do visit an ATM or use a credit card with a child. Just a few words - explained as simply as you can-that machine is not actually giving you machine's money - and that that plastic card is not actually buying toy or lunch.
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