Penny writes regularly over at Parenting Grown Children. My friend Ann and I are having coffee, catching up on the state of our semi-retirements, vacations and grandchildren. Hers live near her; she sees them all the time. Mine are far away; vacations with them and their families are my only chance to see them up …
Recently I had written a condolence note to a co-worker. One of her Grands (a 3-month-old twin) had died suddenly in his mother’s arms. There is not much we can say to relieve the unbearable heaviness of such a loss except to say the family is in our thoughts and prayers. I wrote quickly, not …
This post first appeared on Parenting Grown Children: What Dr. Spock Forgot to Tell Us. We are on a downsizing binge. A bag a day is my mantra. I am purging file drawers full of yellowing papers, closets crammed with outdated clothes, basement nooks stuffed with never-used heirlooms. We may sell our house– the one …
A lot of us have sound criteria for helping our kids out financially. We know when tough love should be levied and when a helping hand is appropriate. But those decisions can get muddied, especially for those of us who are grandparents. The surveys suggest we’re generous with our Grands, that way more than half …
Am I my child’s repository? This is not an existential question. Now that the kids have moved out and we’re empty nesters, many of us are clearing out closets, purging storage spaces and lightening the load of stuff stored in our house. We’re faced with mementos that we don’t know what to do with. We …
