The smart one of the bunch
Dear Grandparenting: I have three granddaughters, ages 12, 10 and 8. A lot of good-natured kidding goes on when we all get together. The oldest one says she’s the smartest. The middle one claims to have all the looks. The youngest one says she’s the best athlete and will be the tallest when she grows up. It’s what we call “bragging rights.” Everybody wants to be special at something.
It’s obvious the middle one is the looker of the bunch and the youngest is really athletic and coordinated. But there’s no way of telling who is the smartest. My oldest doesn’t always get high grades but doesn’t do much homework either. I always hear that firstborns have the brains. Is this fact or fiction? Gayle Matz, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
Falling apart at the seams
Dear Grandparenting: Things are falling apart in my family. It didn’t use to be this way. I guess one thing leads to another and wham! Somebody cuts you off and you’re out in the cold.
My son and youngest daughter are not speaking. They never got along as kids. Then she got drunk and insulted his wife and that finished it. My son got divorced later. He’s not talking to his ex either.
I’m having this problem with my oldest daughter Traci. She stopped talking and texting after we got into it about our politics. We both said things we should not have said. She holds it against me.
Grandchildren losing their religion
Dear Grandparenting: People just don’t get religion in their life anymore like they did in the past, and I think we’re all the worse because of it.
None of my grandchildren are growing up in a church-going household. My own children were made to attend church until they were young adults, at which point I figured I’d pretty much done all I could. One by one they stopped going to church on a regular basis.
I am a big believer in the do-good effect of religion on the human spirit. My mother used to call non believers “heathens.” Now that the heathens are in charge, I wonder what impact it will have on my grandkids. Don’t you think that keeping the faith helps build good character? Anna Bordley, Charlottesville, Virginia
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Dear Grandparenting: I wonder how many grandparents listen in when they talk about how materialistic children have become. Grandparents who intentionally s