My Grandparents are a huge part of my life, from the day I was born they have always been there for me. They did everything for me; boxes of food for university, dinners on a Saturday night and then sitting back and watching Inspector Morse. A family Christmas time. I loved my time with them both and it was devastating to lose my Grandad, he was like a Father to me growing up. I am so glad he gave me away and got to meet my children. 

I am still lucky enough to have Grandma in my life and after all she has done for me, I certainly want to give back. I always try to put Grandma first. I have a close bond with Grandma because I have spent so much time with her. She would babysit us after school, cook our dinners, pick me up from Brownies and let me stay at her house once a week and I always enjoyed those sleepovers. I would get a hot chocolate in bed and I would sneak and watch Absolutely Fabulous with her – we thought it was hilarious. It’s funny how I hold on to these memories so dearly. 

Since Grandad passed, I think about the times we spent together a lot. Walking their dog. When I was little, we would spend Saturday mornings with Grandad, and he would take us to Bedford. We would have £2 (my brother and I) and that was our pocket money. I remember being able to buy a small doll and a bag of pick and mix for this amount – you certainly couldn’t do that these days. He was very regimented, he taught me a lot about life, and I got my love of classical music from him. 

Grandparents at Christmas time

Every year at Christmas we would all spend Christmas Day at their house. Without fail. This was one of the hardest traditions to break when I got married. I couldn’t expect Hubby not to see his family on Christmas Day, equally I wanted to be around mine. So, we started taking it in turns each year and this is something we still do. This year it’s Christmas Day with my family and we will all go to Grandmas. It literally doesn’t feel like Christmas if we do not go to Grandmas – because I have done that for 36 years (yes that’s how old I am). Now Grandma spends her days on her own, the very least we can do is spend the holidays with her. I try to take the kiddies to see her every fortnight too – I try my best to make sure the kiddies are a big part of her life as she was for me. 

RCI Bank have shared some research on Grandparents and the impact they have on families, emotionally and financially; where would be without them? 

Did you know:

  • Grandparents spend on average around 20% more on presents, than their grandchildren spend on them at Christmas
  • One in six (16%) of Grandparents wish they saw their grandchildren more at Christmas, and over half (52%) are looking forward to spending time with their grandchildren.
  • The majority (50%) of Grandparents spend at least Christmas Dinner with their family, with a quarter (23%) being involved in the present opening under the tree
  • However nearly a quarter (23%) don’t spend any Christmas time with their families

Grandma is lucky as she gets to spend Christmas with her children, grandchildren and her great-grandchildren (she has 4 of them too). It makes me feel happy to know that we make sure Grandma is an important part of their lives. I am sure it makes Grandma happy too! 

AD – this post is in collaboration with RCI Bank, all opinions and photographs are my own.

What do you think?

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

3 Comments
  • olivia Kirby
    Friday, December 13, 2019

    We are staying with my parents all over Christmas, Mum has my kids a lot anyway so I can work. They’re the best!

  • paula cheadle
    Friday, December 13, 2019

    I remember spending lots of time with my grandparents

  • Patricia Avery
    Sunday, December 15, 2019

    I have such great memories of my Grandma not just at Christmas but all year round. I lived with her for the first 7 years of my life as my parents could not afford to buy a house (early 1950s)