May 26, 2023
This month's one-on-one conversation is about how to make in-person visits fun and stress-free. Like most things in life, communication and planning are the keystones to making sure everyone is on the same page when it comes to when you are going to visit, what you are going to do when you are there, and when your loving and adoring family can expect you to head back to your home.
Here are my top five tips for having a fun time with the adult kids AND grandkids:
- Communicate the dates you are going to arrive and depart. Also, be sure to provide arrival time ETAs to your adult children so they can plan to be home when you arrive, AND they have a good sense of when you will depart for your home.
- Ask what the parents have going on with their lives while you are visiting. Do they have business travel planned during that time? Is there a social function that is on the schedule where they will for sure want you available to babysit? Whatever they have going on and whatever activities the grandchildren have going on, be sure to put that information into your smartphone, your pocket calendar, or however you keep track of events.
- Ask the parents about special plans or projects they want you to help with. Before you travel, it is better to find out that your adult children will want your help with building a deck during your stay than when you show up expecting fun and relaxation only to have two hard days of loving labor before you. Besides, knowing about such plans allows you to bring your work gloves or whatever special kit you might want handy for construction work, yard work, or whatever the adult children have in mind.
- What behavior or life skills would your adult children like your help with regarding the grandchildren? Your adult children might find it valuable for you to work with the grandchildren on fun and simple things like learning to catch and hit a ball. They might also like you to work with your older grandchildren about creating and working a budget, auto maintenance, or even talking about appropriate dating behavior and etiquette. This question can lead to great connection points between you and your grandchildren.
- Plan some "me time" into your visit. If you are a working grandpa like me, your time away from work is valuable time off. I love seeing my kids and grandkids but I also want some fun time for myself. What I mean by this is that you should plan some fun activities for yourself during your visit. You may want to invite the rest of the family to come along as well, but whatever you are doing is an activity YOU wanted to do and planned to do with or without everyone.
There are more than five tips to make every in-person visit successful, but I think these five are the foundation of every enjoyable visit. They help to communicate expectations and timelines and allow everyone in the family input on what is possible during your time with your family.
I had a podcast episode last year dealing with this same subject, and I will put a link below so you can easily find that episode and listen to it. Also, please check out a good friend of the show, Dr. Kerry Byrne's group, The Long Distance Grandparent, for more advice, tips, and tricks about planning visits with grandchildren.
Once you have listened to this conversation, please share it with three friends who would enjoy learning more about planning successful and fun visits with their adult children AND grandchildren.
Links
You can learn more about The Long Distance Grandparent by clicking HERE.
To listen to my episode, "Priming the Pump," you can click HERE.
You can now purchase my children's book, My Grandpa's Grandpa, directly from my website. Click HERE for the link.
I would appreciate it if you could support the show. You can support the show through "Buy me a Coffee" and donate a few dollars by clicking HERE.
My children's book, My Grandpa's Grandpa, is now available for download. You can download the Kindle version by clicking on this LINK.
Affiliate Links
More Than Grand is an excellent resource for new grandparents AND parents. Listeners of The Cool Grandpa Podcast enjoy 10% off any fantastic products that More Than Grand provides by entering COOLGRANDPA10 at checkout. To visit More Than Grand, click HERE.
Grandparents Academy offers some great educational opportunities for grandfathers and grandmothers alike. Clic