The threat of Fall warns us that the holidays are around the corner. Which means, for us long-distance grandparents, it will be another holiday season without the grandchildren. However, that doesn’t mean we can’t share it with them.
Being a long-distance grandparent doesn’t mean they won’t know you.
My daughter’s husband was stationed in Hawaii. Although, we were sad to see them go so far away, we were thrilled for them. What better duty station is there than a paradise island.
One afternoon she called crying. She just found out they were expecting their third child. It wasn’t that she wasn’t happy about a new baby, I think she was just scared to be so far away from family.
I promised her I would be there when the baby was born. I’m very blessed that I got to keep that promise. But then, I had to leave. We both parted with tear filled eyes.
Leaving my baby, with a baby in her arms was one of the hardest things I’ve done as a mom.
It was soon after that, that we began to learn the value of Facetime. If you’re not a smartphone or Apple user, I’ll briefly explain. It allows you to talk face to face, with another iPhone user. There is no airtime charge. It’s used mostly over Wi-Fi. You can use a lot of data if you are not tapped into Wi-Fi.
If you’re not an Apple user, another new avenue has opened up to you. Facebook now has video chat. When you go into the chat window you can simply tap the icon of a movie camera, and it will allow you to call your kids and grandkids and see them in real time.
Of course, there’s also Skype. But then, that takes a little more tech-savvy–and the quality isn’t as good as either of the other options I listed.
After three years in Hawaii, they finally came home. Our little Hawaiian granddaughter, of course, didn’t remember my visit– but that didn’t matter.
When they came through the door, she immediately recognized both of us.
She got so excited, she squealed and ran to her grandpa. She crawled up on his lap and snuggled for the longest time.
As far as she was concerned, she knew him all her life. He was the guy in the little box with the funny faces, and silly noises making her giggle.
It’s hard to be away from your grandkids. But I’m so thankful for the technology we have today. We don’t have to wait for a letter, or just listen to a voice on the phone. We get to see their chubby little faces and let them see our love for them.
