Congratulations! You and your family are about to embark on an amazing and fulfilling experience. Here you'll find lots of ideas and baby gear you'll need from cribs to car seats, activity centers, strollers, furniture, and more. Becoming a grandparent is a giddy rebirth to a new life chapter. Grandchildren induce your remembrance to the joys of childhood. An opportunity to rediscover your life's calling. And for many...the ultimate human experience. The perfect collision of lifes' greatest in the future, the past, and the now.
Whether you feel like its "about time" for a grandchild or this twist of fate took you by an early surprise...you are truly blessed.
You may be feeling a little anxious by this change of events, and that's certainly understandable too!
Your anxiety may be stirred up by the similar emotions you probably felt upon first becoming a parent...Can I do this? Am I capable? Or maybe I'm too young for this!
Rest assured. You are not only capable...but if you take some simple, proactive steps to prepare, you'll be brilliant. To tackle your anxiety head on...there are a couple incredibly powerful ways to address it. First, as covered on the Create Your Legacy page, put the life enhancing products from Think Right Now to work for you. Secondly, if you're at all like me...a little organization goes a LONG way.
I find my anxiety dropping immediately once I have a plan in place for coming events. So take some simple steps now...in advance to prepare.
While the entire array of preparations may look overwhelming in the moment...remember...a few steps each day and you'll be well on your way to your goal.
Don't stress out over scrambling to get it all done in a day. Take some time, and enjoy each moment.
Parent Partnership
As a new grandparent, you're entering into a whole new life role, and challenge. Having the the life experience of kids of your own, and the wisdom of time, you'll certainly "see" some things quicker than the parents will.
Be sure to honor the growth of the parents by giving them the space to learn. Integrate your wisdom in subtle & creative ways that don't infringe on the ego or feelings of parents.
For most people, tackling parenthood effectively can be a deeply personal & challenging life experience. And, a complicating issue is that none of us are aligned 100% on our core values and beliefs. So be sure to tread lightly on issues where you sense the parents' sense of parental worth or competence might feel challenged. While you might be entirely well-intentioned, they might hear "You're not being a good parent" and that can be painful to hear...despite it not being "said!"
A good course of action to grow in your role as grandparent is to make efforts to hold back your advice as much as possible, except when you believe the child's safety, health, or emotional well-being is at risk. Then, convert your concerns into thoughtful suggestions and time your delivery well.
And, don't forget that no one really stops learning! Be sure to stay self-aware of your own growth curve. If you're not finding yourself learning new & modern parenting skills which are different from the "way you did it" years ago...guess what? You might not be self-aware of all that's changed...and the parents might be right!
Key lesson is that you will learn together. Support the parents core values, disciplines, and goals for their children, and you will find great harmony and reward in the partnership.
First Baby Gift
Celebrate the arrival of your little one with a special gift basket from BabyBasket.com They offer a wide selection for boys, girls, or neutral for the pending birthday surprise. Shop for best sellers, award winners, by brand, or by price. Fast delivery. Even gift baskets for the new Mom & Dad too!
Baby Gear Starter List
Being prepared is half the battle. Here is a starter list to help you sort through all the items that a new baby requires:
Once you have connected with the parents on expectations of your role as grandparent...you have some wonderful opportunities to connect with your grandchild early.
Babies keep parents up at night...they are tired! Make the offer to watch the baby while mom or dad takes an afternoon nap, and you'll likely receive DEEP appreciation.
The parents get to recharge their batteries & stay healthy. And, you get the benefit of one-on-one baby time.
Talking to, singing to, and reading to your newborn baby is an extremely positive way to form those initial bonds. In years past, so-called baby-experts would tell you the baby only hears gibberish. But, modern research is indicating that babies (even newborns) begin learning the idea of communication by these interactions. From exposure to the varying voices and ranges, the meter of the talk or song, the babies mind develops. All of it is extremely mind stimulating to your new baby. Research today shows that babies who are stimulated in this way develop superior language skills, which ultimately lead to superior socialization & learning capabilities.
Feed their brain!
Cribs
A good quality crib can be enjoyed for accentuating the room, and also passed on to other family members and friends too. While the parents will surely have the need to pull a nursery together, you should consider setting up a special room for the grandbabies in your home as well.
Looking for more choices? Follow this link for a broad range of Baby Cribs.
Strollers
A necessity to give you the mobility to be on the go. You'll want a couple umbrella strollers for those random trips. But, also pick up a good quality stroller that will give you some storage room for all the other baby gear. The recline feature is also critical to give your child the chance grab that oh-so critical nap on the go.
Looking for more choices? Follow this link for a broad range of Baby Strollers.
Car Seats
As mentioned on the Safety page, a key tip for car seats is to be sure you are using them properly. Get professional instruction and have your car seat installation inspected for assurance.
Also, consider getting a car seat for each car you own. Or, for the newborn seats, at least an extra base unit per car. Trust me...un-installing and re-installing each time you decide on taking the other car gets old rapidly.
Also, coordinate with the parents to be sure your car seat system is interchangable with theirs. That way, you can quickly detach the seat from the base (which remains in each car) and quickly swap cars.
Even better, buy a system that integrates your baby car seat with the stroller. Go from car to stroller in a couple quick clicks!
Looking for more choices? Follow this link for a broad range of Car Seats.
Activity Centers
One of the great innovations for parents in past couple decades were the entry of activity centers. Once your grandchild gains basic eye-hand coordination, but is not yet walking, these "stations" are life-savers.
With the baby's mind so hungry for stimulation, and the immobility of the age, the activity center provides a welcome thrill to the child, and relief to the adult!
Looking for more choices? Follow this link for a broad range of Activity Centers.
Other Furniture
Think about the other activities you'll want to encourage in your home, or in your grandchilds' home. From art supplies, toys, games, sports, school materials, etc...the amount of "stuff" that comes along with kids can be extraordinary.
Identify areas of the house to consolidate and organize different activities to help prevent the clutter.
And, once you have the concepts in mind for how to organize, consider how the furniture or gear will complement the home. You'll likely be 'living with' these pieces for quite some time. Why not pick a few that treat your own tastes for decorative and overall quality workmanship?
Click the link below to visit PoshTots for a really amazing collection of stylish items that you simply are not going to find in the big box stores...
Toy Organizer with Casters
Sturdy Toy Organizer, made in the U.S.A of knotty pine, comes with locking caster wheels for easy transport. Eight durable, transparent lidded bins provide portability and dust-free storage. The upper shelf holds larger items ~ up to 250 lbs. Comes with easy-to-clean polyurethane finish and built-in handles. Assembles in 25 minutes. Size 33.5"w x 15.5"d x 23"h, Bins 14"w x 8"d x 4.25"h, Weight 31 lbs. (Age 2+)
Plush Baseball Chair
Large Plush Baseball Chair, exclusively from Back To Basics Toys, makes a statement! Ultra-soft, ultra-comfy, oversized Baseball Chair adds pizzazz to any bedroom or playroom. Includes front pocket for easy storage. Made of plush Cabana fabric (100% Terylene); Filling: 100% Polyester. Can be spot cleaned. Size 27"l x 25"w x 26"h, Weight 7 lbs. (Age 3+)
Looking for more choices? Follow this link for a broad range of Baby Furniture.
Safety Gear
With a new baby on the way, you'll want to do a home assessment, particularly if your new joy will be visiting your house. And, if you're blessing your grandchild (and the parents) with extended childcare services, you'll really want to get on top of this.
Do a house walkdown with a pen and paper. Identify hazards and think through means of addressing them. A key tip is to get down on the floor and imagine yourself crawling around with curious toddler fingers...your list of potential hazards will grow as a result!
Cover those electric outlets. Remove or place higher any key valuables. Identify heavy items that could tip over, and secure them to the walls, or remove them. How will you make sure the kids stay in the "safe" areas of the house? Are your cleaners and other chemicals well secured?
For more ideas, be sure to visit the Safety page as well.
Looking for more choices? Follow this link for a broad range of Baby Safety Gear.
Grandparenting Books
Of course, the magic of books bring us loads of information to educate, inspire, and share in the joy of grandparenthood.
Consider your own life story in a journal form...key events, people you've met, life lessons. As you reflect on your own past, you'll tap into creative ideas to tie to your legacy plan. Connect your story to the entry of your grandchild, and begin a whole new stream of captured treasures on paper.
Over time, you can connect this project to your legacy theme, and one day present a bound version to your grandchild. THAT will certainly become a family treasure and heirloom to be passed through the generations. Perhaps your grandchild will even pick up the story and continue it for others?
Looking for more book choices? Follow this link for a broad selection of books on Grandparenting.
Long-Distance Grand Parenting
While the growing trend of the babyboomers is to retire in locations near their grandchildren, that's not certainly the case for everyone.
Nevertheless, trust that you can still have a big impact in the life of your grandchild from a distance. Today's technology grants you some amazing connectivity tools that parents of yesterday were missing.
Of course, telephones offer an age-old standby. Kids have certainly not grown tired of learning how the phone works through play and when the get to hear grandmom on the phone directly, they are certainly thrilled.
Take it to the next level by learning how to use Cell Phones to take & send pictures to your family. Have them do the same, and you will open a new door into all kinds of fun and connectivity.
Use your email to send larger pictures, notes, e-cards, photo or movie projects that your grandchildren will treasure. Leverage further the magic of your photos with the online capability of SmugMug or Smilebox and create amazing greetings with your photos, videos, and music. With thes great new options, you can easily inject a high degree of sophisticated creativity and loads of fun into your grandchild relationships.
And, setting up Video conferencing equipment is easier, cheaper, and more effective than ever as well.
We just bought the Logitech QuickCam Pro 9000 for our Laptops when travelling for business. Then, signed up for www.oovoo.com for unlimited FREE videoconferencing for up to 3 parties no matter where you are in the world. And it works great! Taking the short amount of time to learn how to implement these tools will pay off in spades.
In fact, that long-distance will suddenly seem to melt away, like a shared ice cream sundae with your grandchild on a blazingly hot, delightful day.
for our Laptops when travelling for business. Then, signed up for