A new Gig

 With the birth of my Granddaughter only weeks away, I started thinking about my role as a first time Grandma.  Not only will I be a grandma but my little girl will be a mother.  With this thought I felt slightly out of step, my identity changes somewhat from active mothering to grand mothering, and her role changes immensely as she assumes a role foreign to her until now.  I have a different perspective when I look at my beautiful daughter preparing to become a mother.  I began to reminisce about the moment I became a mother for the first time, an experience you only have once!. 

After I catch my breath from the Earth Moving Announcement that we are going to be grandparents, I think about what this means, what will I be called, how will it feel?

My passage though, going from mother to grandmother (though I will forever me her mother) stirs entirely different emotions in me. It isn't just about Me becoming a grandmother.  I imagine my daughter cuddling with her baby and I have new images of her in my mind.  To see her love a child as she was loved, to watch her bathe her baby for the first time, to smile as she fumbles through the first days of this new role she has chosen.  I am excited to see the differences in parenting that the generations bring.  I am giddy to think of what momism's she will bring into her vocabulary as her child ages.

With these sentiments, however is does bring me right back to I am going to be a grandma. What kind of Grandma will I be? I want to be present, familiar, a comfort, but I want to leave a lasting memory for my Grandchildren.  I want to be a vibrant, active and healthy role model of aging.  I will do all the grandmotherly things for sure (I mean she already has her own apron) but I want to step out of the box if need be and create memories that will last for her lifetime, little moments and big moments.

If you are a grandparent and have already experienced this comeuppance, you likely have experienced these similar emotions, you know much like those we had when our own baby took the first step, got their first tooth, rolled over,we share that news as if our child was the only one to have ever accomplished those things.  It matters not to us that they are not ,they are still exceptional in our hearts.

So now I get to love on a little baby, play with a toddler, praise a preschooler, help an adolescent, cry with a teen, and be there for her when she is an adult and I do NOT have to pay for it! (well maybe a little) . I think I am gonna love this gig!