

Ideal Ways To Celebrate National Grandparents Day

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The purpose of Grandparents Day is simply to honor grandparents. It is a day that is set aside to recognize the wisdom and the kindness that grandparents possess and strive to pass on to future generations. If taken to heart, the guidance of grandparents can be an ideal guideline for making smart decisions to ensure lifelong success. Grandparents Day is a way to help younger generations appreciate the older generations and what they have to offer.

Although everyday should be Grandparents Day, it was not until the 1970s when the United States Congress officially recognized the day. After Marian McQuale, a senior citizen advocate spent a great deal of her time implementing programs for the nation’s older citizens, Congress declared a National Shut-In Day in 1972. It was not long until Grandparents Day was instituted. Currently, the special day is recognized as the first Sunday after Labor Day.

As an appreciation for grandparents, there are many ways to celebrate Grandparents Day. Following are just a few ideas that you can use the next time the day arrives to show your grandparents that you do appreciate them and that they are an important part in your life.

Make them a gift
Grandparents are typically pleased that you have gone through the trouble of making them a gift. While you can simply buy one at the store, a homemade gift gives the sense that you have put a great deal of thought into the day rather than just buying something in a matter of minutes. As homemade gifts, there are many options that you can use in order help celebrate their special day.
If you have children, one of the best things you can do for either their grandparents or your grandparents is to make a footprint impression. This is a gift that they will treasure for many years to come, even after the children have grown. You can make one of these gifts as simple or as involved as you like. One thing you can do is to dip the child’s foot into a small container of non-toxic paint. Then, press the foot firmly to a piece of paper. You can do the same thing with handprints as well. When the paint dries, the young child can sign his or her name for an added special touch. If you want to make the project more involved, you can use Plaster of Paris instead of paint for a molding instead of merely a print.

Another great gift idea is a shirt. You can make t-shirts for grandparents and they take very little trouble. Choose a picture of you or your children that the grandparents really like. If you have a picture that includes them, that is even better. Then, use iron-on transfers to put the pictures on a t-shirt for the grandparents. Put a caption underneath the picture that says something cute, such as, “World’s Best Grandparent” or something that they will appreciate. They will likely get a kick out of this gift and they will definitely show it off to others.

A photo album makes a great gift, too. Find as many photos that you can find that have you and your grandparents in them.
You can even take this a step further and make a scrapbook. This can be a fun project for the entire family if you begin it in advance. If you’d rather, you can purchase one of the new digital photo frames that are on the market, too. These frames have digital pictures that can either be a single picture or they can change at regular intervals. This will be a thoughtful gift that any grandparent will enjoy watching while remembering those special times depicted in the photo.

Celebrate Grandparents Day together
Most grandparents will simply enjoy spending the day with family and grandchildren. Make this a regular event each year so everybody will have something to look forward to as the day approaches. Make the day a large celebration that honors the grandparents and their contributions to the family throughout the years. Many churches and organizations already do this because they recognize the importance of the wisdom that grandparents have to offer.

One of the things that you can do on Grandparents Day as you are spending time together is play a variety of board games. If you have a large family, you can play different games or even have a tournament with a single game. This is a simple way to spend quality time together with an activity that people of all ages will enjoy.

Another thing to include in the day is “intergenerational interaction.” This includes anything that involves the entire family. One way to accomplish this is to have a storytelling time.
The grandparents can tell stories about how they met each other or about special events that happened throughout the years. If you listen, these will likely be some of the most interesting and amusing stories that you will ever hear. If they were in one of the previous wars, listen to some of their stories about that. They might also enjoy telling stories about the bad times that they went through to help younger couples realize that marriages can survive through the hard times as well as the good times.

When planning the Grandparents Day celebration, put old pictures up on the wall or make a display of pictures that include the grandparents. Use pictures from the wedding, their younger days and even some recent pictures that show their progression. You can include small stories with each picture to give everybody an idea of their early life, and how they made it to where they are currently. The grandparents will also enjoy reminiscing about their life together.

If you have a smaller family and just want something simple, you can invite your grandparents over for dinner. Make a special dinner for them and just take the time to visit with them for a while. Or, if you prefer, you can even take them out to dinner. Either way, simply spending time with your grandparents is possibly the best way to make them feel appreciated on their special day.

Finally, include any family traditions in the celebration. Make the day like any other holiday that the family celebrates as a whole, such as Thanksgiving or Christmas.
If an aunt has a special salad that she brings to family celebrations, have her make the salad for the Grandparents Day celebration. If there is a particular story that is always told at a family gathering, make sure this happens as well.

The most important thing about Grandparents Day is that they are made to feel appreciated. All too often in today’s society, grandparents and older citizens are sloughed off because we get too busy to spend time with them. We make excuses to avoid them and when we do visit, it is usually for a very short time. But grandparents are an important part of our life. They have also played a role in making us who we are. As such, Grandparents Day should be a day in which we recognize their importance and their guidance. It is one day out of the year that people can make their older relatives feel special and appreciated.

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