A Grandma's Point of View

Submitting to Autority Written by Janiece Self As my grandson sat in a group circle of preschoolers being instructed to "always listen to the teacher," he responded with," but I only listen to God." Well now, what a profound comment for a 4 year old and in any other time and place, Sunday

First Day of Preschool Written by Janiece Self The first day of preschool.  Not sure this four year old had been waiting for this big day all his life, but everyone else seemed to think it was a good idea.  No time for tears, just mother's directions to keep a clear mind and a sharp awareness of

Not Just A Grandma Written by Janiece Self I am not just a grandma when I write “A Grandma's Point of View” article.  I am A Child of the King, a woman, wife, mother, mother-in-law, grandmother, daughter, sister, sister-in-law, aunt, great aunt, cousin, friend, teacher, student, neighbor,

I'm Free! Written by Janiece Self If you blessed enough to live in Iowa, the warm summer months are spent outside as much as possible. The out-of-doors brings joy to all ages. Unfortunetly, after spending the day outside, it was time to clean up before bed. A little boy of three does not

Grandma's Teachers by Janiece Self Cellphones, computers, tablets, I-pods, TV remotes, touch screens, Bluetooth, GPS, MP3/MP4, multimedia receivers.  Do I need to say more?! If you are one of the people over 18 that understands all this, you may go to ♡ at the end.  But for the rest of us, we

Snow had fallen over night and the darkness had given way to a cold but beautiful winter morning.  The earth, at least from my window, which was brown the day before, was now glazed in shimmering white.  "NO SCHOOL" scrolled on the TV screen. It's a SNOW DAY! An unexpected holiday and because we all

Last spring the youth group at our church sponsored a fishing tournament. The team of two paid an entry fee of $25.00 with all proceeds going to their summer work/witness trip to Arizona. My 16 year old grandson willingly agreed to be my partner. That in itself was a BLESSING. Sure, we started with

As a child, my mother and I would make our own clay to shape and mold designs. I actually have a recipe: flour, salt, creme of tartar, water, corn oil and food coloring. It was fun to play with and all I had. Our girls played with homemade clay and then purchased play dough (which by the way has the

My granddaughter is almost 12 years old, but as a 3 year old, she had a very interesting conversation with her mother one day… "Mommy, who is that big guy?" "What big guy, where is he at?" my daughter asked.  "The big guy that eats pancakes at grandma's house," my little granddaughter answered. (I'm

I love for my daughters to text me pictures and stories of what is happening in my grandchildren's lives on a daily basis. You just never know what it is going to be. One day my oldest daughter sent me a comment that her 22 month old son had just said to her. While in their regular morning routine,

On one particular Saturday I was praying before my noon meal and I was prompted by the Holy Spirit to pray:  "Please don't let anyone drown."  Although I was at home watching football, my youngest daughter and her family were spending the day boating at Lake Rathbun. At 1:19 pm, I received a text

My 8 year old grandson was so excited to show me, at a recent visit, his latest find while fossil hunting Sheol Creek south of Centerville. This creek runs through their farm and he and his sister love to fossil hunt while their dad or grandfather is doing field work. They have quite a collection

I love to rock the grandchildren. When they are small, under 2 maybe, this is possible. Nap time is a great time to cuddle and rock, but can turn into a bit of a competition to see who can stay awake the longest or who goes to sleep first. It can be a challenge to make these little balls of fire sit

"Grandma, will you tell Brenna that Santa Clause isn't real!" What?!!! I thought to myself. May I say in two seconds, I had at least 4 different answers to this timely question spinning in my mind. This is a job for super-grandma, Lord help me!, because Brenna is not my granddaughter, although she

Much to grandpa's dismay, the grandchildren refer to our home as Grandma's House.  He wonders why it is never Grandpa's House, because it's his home too.  I have my theory, but grandpa does, from time to time, attempt to get the attention directed to him.  Grandpa can be quite a tease and is

With suitcase packed, and pen and paper ready and waiting, I left for a week’s vacation with my youngest daughter, son in-law, and 3 grandchildren. A Grandma's Point of View spectacular! My first of several life applications came as we were in line for the Safari ride at Animal Kingdom at Disney

My youngest grandson is 17 months old and beginning to talk. He has two older siblings, so there is never a time in each day that he does not observe or hear adult conversation or interaction. He knows and says the word for many body parts. He knows all the farm animals and the sounds they make.

The question: "Grandma, is it my turn to spend the night with you?" gets asked in my presence quite often these days. Why? The reasons have not changed from my generation to the present. (1) It was a short trip, so if I changed my mind, home was not far away; (2) It gave me a break from my mother,

My daughter and son-in-law recently went on a 3 day hunting trip to Oklahoma. Their children are 7, 5, and 3. The children’s care for the 3 days was well planned in advance, and the children were looking forward to visiting and staying with different family members, with my husband and I receiving

Anyone who has small children or grandchildren (sometimes older, yikes!), knows that we cannot always be responsible for what words might come from their innocent mouths. Most of the time though, they are just repeating what they have heard from adults, their siblings, or from what they hear and