In The Grandest Love: Inspiring the Grandparent-Grandchild Connection, I talk about the importance of three generation family meetings and to create a vision for a family. This includes sample quizzes and surveys that can help a family discern their common values in life. Our own family went through this process, and here’s what we came…
Details(Photo credit zazzle.com.au) Dear Grandpa, First of all—thanks for letting me call you Grandpa. My maternal grandfather died before I was born and my paternal grandfather died when I was eight, so it’s been a long time since I’ve had a Grandpa in my life. Grandparents are important characters in the narrative of a human…
DetailsGetting ready to repeat some of the same conversations with your adult children this holiday season? Why not try this Journaling Expedition instead, on Developing a “TLC” Dialogue. This exercise challenges you to examine some of the issues you’ve considered raising with your adult offspring and to practice sharing them using Tender Loving Communication. Note:…
DetailsJerry Witkovsky, author of The Grandest Love: Inspiring the Grandpraent-Grandchild Connection, talks about “the three jars,” for spending, saving and giving to charity, as a way engage in conversation, share values with grandchildren. (Watch Jerry talk about the three jars below.) “Recently I’ve added a 4th jar, for Investing. This final jar completes the circle,…
DetailsAs my own grandchildren got older, it became clear that maintaining strong connection was increasingly challenging as their schedules grew more demanding and their academics, extracurriculars, and friendships predominated. Something else was clear too: that the high school years are a critical period during which close bonds with caring family members are more important than…
DetailsStock Photo. Photo credit: Marc Love on Flickr ————————————————————————————————- My “Bubby” Marvis gave me a life-changing gift: unconditional love, acceptance, and respect at a time when I needed it the most. Ten years ago, in my early twenties, I came out to her as a lesbian. Having grown up in a tight-knit, Orthodox-Jewish family and…
DetailsThink about it: Family Meetings might be the perfect opportunity for all three generations to spend some all-too-rare time together, unplugged. That’s right: no cell phones either. Because everything (and everybody) you need, you already have, right there with you. So take a long moment to look around at each other and to quietly give…
DetailsVisit to the Rochester Jewish Book Festival by Jerry Witkovsky, author of The Grandest Love: Inspiring the Grandparent-Grandchild Connection,” on Thursday, Nov. 13, 2014: “Jerry’s book is a ‘love letter’ to grandparents and grandchildren, and those who heard him speak in Rochester said his thoughtful and inspiring discussion was one of the highlights of this…
DetailsGrandparenting can provide a renewed sense of wonder and purpose for us as older adults nad a rekindling of memories. Memories of our own children’s early years–inhaling the scent of a newborn, pushing a little one “higher, higher!” on a swing, taking them to their first movie. Even memories of our own childhoods, and our…
DetailsWhether you live five minutes or 500 miles away, your grandchildren are so lucky to have you in their lives and so lucky that you want to be such a strong presence in their lives. And, they want you to be present in their lives. Here are five tips on how to make this happen.*…
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