Ways to involve long distance families...

**~Sherry~** · 08-30-2002, 08:31 AM

Lets hear your ideas...

My family lives in PA and we live in MN... 1000 miles apart. We get out there as often as we can, every few months or so... but what can we do in between to involve Tyler's grandparents and great grandparents in his life?

We take alot of pictures and mail them, also scan and email them. We don't have a video camera.
Once in awhile Tyler "colors" a picture for them and I send that to them.
Of course phone calls and emails too.

I need more creative ideas.

**homesteadmamma** · 08-30-2002, 09:31 AM

What a neat question Sherry.

- get a cassette recorder and a tape and have him "talk" into it. I'm not sure what his age is, but grandparents love to listen to the tapes.

- have your parents then talk back into the cassette. Tyler will love it.

- making homemade cards with Tyler to send to grandparents.
- making homemade gifts (a hand made in plaster), a picture frame with a picture of him in it.

- make a photograph album and keep it updated both by you and Tyler and by the grandparents. Its great to be able to "see" someone, even if its only in a photo. Let Tyler have his own little photo album so that even if it gets soiled, its still his.

- talk to Tyler about your grandparents, sharing their life with him. He'll remember those times.

- Tyler's grandparents can write him little stories and make into a book form (all you need is a bit of paper, a bit of ribbon to tie the paper together). Nothing has to be profession, just some way to keep in contact.

HTH somewhat! I'm a grandparent of 3 little ones who live about 3000 miles away and I wish we had more contact with them. We do talk on the phone often though so that helps.
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**~Sherry~** · 08-30-2002, 09:49 AM

Very good ideas, homestead mamma!
Tyler is 19 months, so most of those will work with supervision and a little help from mommy.

My family is going to love these!!

PS Tyler does have his own little photo album with everyone's pictures in it. He looks at it alot.

**heaven** · 08-30-2002, 10:29 AM

my whole family lives in Maine and we live in Montana. I know we send little gifts back. I take the children to buy things for daddy, poppa, grandma, meim, nana and bumpa. anything they find they like for them within reason, they are allowed to buy and we post it off to them. just to let everyone know we are thinking of them.

**Jerseygirl** · 08-30-2002, 07:17 PM

We do a lot of homemade crafts--one year every member of his family got a handprint gift. Great grandma got a totebag with his handprints in blue and I had him sign his name in a matching paint pen. Grandpa got a bbq apron with his handprints in yellow(mustard) red (ketchup) and green (relish). I always get double prints of photos and send them along and when he was really young I would borrow a video camera for a week at a time and just tape everyday activities. I'm sure they will appreciate anything you do.

**QuilterMom** · 08-30-2002, 07:30 PM

Originally posted by homestead mamma
What a neat question Sherry.

- get a cassette recorder and a tape and have him "talk" into it. I'm not sure what his age is, but grandparents love to listen to the tapes.

- have your parents then talk back into the cassette. Tyler will love it.

I was going to suggest these very same ideas.

I sure wish ds's grandparents would take an active part in his life. He only has one set still alive and it just breaks my heart for him that they don't make an effort to be a part of his life.

**summercat** · 09-03-2002, 06:15 PM

I talk to my dad almost everyday & sometimes I talk to my sisters online or on the phone. I am planning on going to visit everyone in fresno next summer

**MANDERS** · 09-18-2002, 10:29 PM

I love the idea of having their own photo album.I think I will do this for my kids.Plus my little brother and sister are 6 and 8 and would love to have their own photo album of us(not to brag lol)mostly the kids.I hate that they live so far away my sister is only 2 yrs older than dd and they play so good when we see them.

**heaven** · 09-18-2002, 10:31 PM

oh that is something else we did too that i totally forgot about if you post cards draw the childs hand and the date on the back so that they can see from one year to the next how much they have grown. and it makes the child more involved in sending it.

**charmed407** · 10-01-2002, 01:01 PM

we started doing a personalized calendar with all the Grandkids for my Grandmom. She loved it so much she cried the 1st year and we've done it ever since!

There's 6 grandkids so that's like 2 months per kid. She keeps last year's up to show the difference. Everyone at her work has come to expect it too! last year it was late and all her friends were bugging her...where's it? where's the calendar? can we see?

LOL! She loves it!