Four Steps to Making Great Memories with Grandchildren!

One of my favorite devotions from the Grandmother's Biblewas written by Bobbie Wolgemuth and is entitled, I Will . .  I Will . . .  She says, "Psalm 9 contains a great 'I Will' activity list to remember when you spend time with your grandchild. First, start with an attitude of praise. Tell the Lord what you are thankful for. Count your blessings, name them. It will be easy to have a heart full of thankfulness after you've named even a few. Your heart will be full and running over with the kind of attitude which pleases God and spills over on the young ones with the love of the Savior. Second, tell the children what God has done in the past. One of our greatest resources as grandmothers is the history we have lived. Everyday miracles fill our memory banks.  Pull a few past marvels out of your memory treasure chest and tell your grandchild of the Lord's wonders. Third, be a happy grandmother. Open the door with a smile and a hug. Let your face show the gladness of the Lord. Your inside joy should envelop your grandchildren with every encounter, no matter where you are. The fourth 'I will" is my favorite: sing. Sing with your grandchildren. Leave a song in their hearts."

Did you catch the four steps for making great memories with your grandchildren? They are:

1. Start with an attitude of praise. What is something you can praise God for? This is a great time of year to look back at the previous year to find things for which you can praise God. I talked about this with my grandsons this past weekend when they were at my house for a sleepover.  We talked about how God has answered some big prayers in the past year . . . and Caleb (four years old), on his own, prayed and thanked God for doing so! Made this grandma's heart happy . . . and gave me another thing for me to praise God about!
2. Tell our grandchildren what God has done in the past. This requires us to be intentional about thinking, remembering and talking with our grandchildren. If our grandchildren are able to see how God has worked in our lives throughout our lives, they will be better able to see and believe how God will work in their lives, too!
3. Be a happy grandmother! A few weeks ago, we watched the movie, Inside Out. (I'll be posting my review of it in a few days.) After we watched it, Josiah said, "Grandma, you are Joy." (In case you have not watched this movie, there is a character which represents the emotion, "joy".) I am happy to think my grandsons have been able to see God's joy in my life!
4. Sing with your grandchildren. Josiah told me one of the top five important things for a grandma to do, is to sing, so apparently he would agree with this! I have always had a special bedtime song for my grandsons - our own version of, "You are my Sunshine". I sing it at other times, too . . . and over the years, the boys have sung it to each other as well.

So, what do you think? Which of these four is the easiest for you to do? I think the third one is the easiest for me, because I am so happy and blessed to be the grandma to my three, sweet boys . . . it is natural for this happiness to show through.

Which one do you have to work at the most? For me, it would be the singing. I do this a little, but could do it more.

Is there anything you would add to this list? I think I'd add to be focused and intentional. To be sure to, "redeem the time". We are not getting any younger . . . and neither are our grandchildren. We need to be intentional about passing on our faith and about praying for our grandchildren.

Tomorrow is Wednesday, so I'll be spending time with my grandsons. Typically I pick the boys up from school, then we all hang out until Poppa gets out of work; we pick him up, grab a bite to eat for supper and then the boys go to our church for Wednesday night kid's event. We take the boys home when it is over - a full day of fun with sweet boys! I LOVE Wednesdays! I have ever so much to be thankful for, for sure!

Do you have any special days where you get to spend time with your grandchildren? What do you do? So, today, or tomorrow, or the next time you are with your grandchildren, remember these four things and help pass on a heritage of faith by the things you say and do!