Grandparents are very important in children’s lives. Because people are living longer, more people have grandparents now, and studies are showing all the good that involved, caring, open-minded grandparents offer their children and grandchildren. Grandparents are good for grandkids if they understand their place and don’t try to replace the parents or spoil the kids in the wrong way.
Grandparents Have Influence
Most adult children who were lucky enough to have grandparents involved in their lives appreciate it, and are thankful they had that opportunity. They often quote the things their grandparents taught them and instilled in them. It’s not unusual hearing adults say that their most admired person in their life is a grandparent.
The amazing thing is that without being pushy, grandparents are very much responsible for instilling values into their grandkids. This is true even when parents do things a little differently.
Grandparents Reduce Parental Stress
Grandparents who work hard to allow their kids to be the type of parents they want to be, offering support only when needed and asked, tend to reduce parental stress a lot. Most parents get stressed, but if you have a parent you can go to when you need it, without judgment, it makes life a lot easier. Even if a grandparent can only offer a listening ear instead of money, that’s enough to reduce stress.
Grandparents Are Great Teachers
Due to the long life full of experiences a grandparent has lived, they make great teachers. As people age, they tend to get more patient with kids than they were when they were young, and can explain concepts better because of it. If you’re lucky enough to have a parent in your life who understands new math, you’ve got it made.
Grandparents Make Kids Feel Secure
Children often worry about losing their own parents but since they know the grandparents were their parent’s parents, they feel safer just knowing they are there. And often kids think their parents know everything (depending upon the age), so obviously the grandparents know even more. This helps children feel secure.
Grandparents Offer Affordable Childcare Options
In some cases, a grandparent is a wonderfully affordable childcare option. This is something that must be considered on a case-by-case basis, though. Even if grandma or grandpa doesn’t want to be a babysitter, they can offer help financially so that their child can do more with the limited time they have. If you’re a grandparent who lives close and wants to be more involved, let your child know because often they won’t ask.
Children need grandparents very much. If you’re a grandparent, understand that your role may be different than you thought it would be, but if you keep an open mind and open heart it will be amazing and wonderful.
