Greetings to the CapitalMOM community! I’m Ellen Beans, your new Grandparent blogger. I’m following in fantastic footsteps … those of Nancy Becker. Nancy wrote this blog for 10 years and did a wonderful job of taking us with her through life experiences in retirement...
I recently looked back at my prior blogs and realized I’ve been writing about my grandchildren for the past 10 years. Where has the time gone? It’s similar to the feeling I have when I think about how old my grandchildren are today—23, 24, 25 and 26. I thought to...
Last year, I started carving out time each Sunday to reflect on my week and share takeaways with my grandkids. Here's what the experience has been like. Thinking About Grandparenthood I used to wonder if my relationship with my grandkids was unique or if every grandma...
For years l've written about what my grandkids were up to, into or moving away from. It has always been about how my life has interacted with theirs—the ups, downs and 'looking forward to's. Since this summer, I have stood on the sidelines while my husband has been...
At this moment, I’m sitting in front of our rental cabin at Chadron State Park. It’s a beautiful day, the sun is shining and there is a nice breeze which is keeping the heat away. We came on this 10-day vacation to get away. We’ll spend a couple of days in Chadron, a...
A funny thing happened to two grandmas on the way to the Berlin Wall. This sounds like it’s the first line of a joke. Well, it’s not a joke, but there were many funny times. A Sister's Invitation to Europe Early last fall, my sister asked me if I would be able to...
It was December of 2023 when I first heard my granddaughter had signed up to run the 2024 half marathon in Lincoln. I was thrilled to hear her news. I knew she liked to run a bit, but never imagined she had set a goal to run the half marathon. Supporting Her Training...
One of the things I miss about having three of our four grandkids in Kansas City is knowing what they're doing and what they're thinking. I don’t expect to be informed about everything or even know what they had for lunch. I don’t even remember what I had for lunch!...
Just when I felt my oldest grandchild found her niche, she decides to move it up a notch. A New Generation's Work Model I was always under the belief that you worked one job and you stayed there. Yes, you’d adjust what role you may have in the school or company, but...
John and I are tired of taking care of the yard, trimming, planting, spraying for weeds and yes, even killing garter snakes. It’s not that we don’t want to do it, but it seems to be taking us more and more time to accomplish our tasks. We take care of all the...
My granddaughter played volleyball at Lincoln Southeast High School and University of Missouri - Kansas City (UMKC), where she received her bachelor's degree. My husband and I attended her games as often as we could and loved every minute of it. As her grandparents,...
All three of our granddaughters are in Kansas City living together. I’m not worried about how it will work out, but I wonder if they do. Okay, maybe I'm a little worried. Unforgettable Camping Mishaps & Playful Adventures When they were young, all four grandkids...
I don't know if my daughter thought I was going to die soon, but I do know she gave my husband and I the gift of Storyworth, a keepsake book to record our lives so that we could pass down our memories and heritage to our family. Below is the experience we had writing...
Politics. Some people say it’s a naughty word. Others say it’s our nation’s most popular sport. Some people are conservative, some are liberal. While others look at issues, legislative bills and the law independently to make decisions regarding the issue and the...
Our granddaughter has been playing volleyball since she was five years old, and I hate to say it’s coming to an end. On the Leaderboard When she was in elementary school, she was short but made up for her lack of height with her hustle. It’s almost as if she was born...
We have an amazing granddaughter. Of course, all four grandkids are amazing, but our third grandchild has really surprised us. Growing up, she loved teasing everyone and popping up in unexpected places. She always made me smile and laugh with her antics and weird...
A couple of weeks ago, we traveled to Denver, Colorado. Other than visiting grandkids in Kansas City, we have stuck close to home. Whether our concern was because of COVID-19 or not wanting to spend too much money, I don’t know, but that was our decision. We probably...
Most early 20-year-olds are not always tuned in to the news. They study, work, get engaged, married or even begin having a family. If there is a certain issue that grabs their attention, it’s usually because of a possible connection to their environment or social...
The weekend of June 18 was certainly a fun one for me. It was filled with my involvement in a couple of community activism events. I’ve always worked hard to include my grandkids in my community activities. We marched in the Martin Luther King Youth Rallies for years,...
My husband, John, and I read the paper online every day. It’s not a perfect method as it adds more screen time for each of us and we actually prefer holding a paper in our hands. Print media is fondly remembered, but the online option was a decision we made and we’ve...
Every day, for over a month, I have been anxious to get more information about the war in Ukraine. Every day provides a change in the situation as Russia continues to cause uncertainty in Ukraine and around the world. Some news broadcasters believe the Russian...
I’ve always enjoyed the playdates I had with my grandkids when they were young. Those were the good old days when they had time to come over to our house and play. We did artwork with the help of Michael’s art store. The theme of most creative pieces centered around...
The Holiday season was a great one for our family. All the grandkids make it back to Lincoln. We were together for Christmas and the following week. We laughed, we talked about what was going on in our lives and they even had time to help me take down some of the...
I read the following the other day and I thought it made a great deal of sense as I wonder what my grandkids are thinking about today’s world: You can give them your love, but not your thoughts, For they have their own thoughts. -Kahil Gilbran I don’t follow a...
I’ve always thought I was a progressive grandma. I have tried to model an accepting, caring, giving type of behavior. For years, I included the grandkids in my time volunteering with the Food Bank, Malone Center and Vacation Bible School. The grandkids stuck with me...
During the pandemic, I have become relatively efficient with the process of Zoom calls. With the necessary isolation, I appreciate the ability to see friend’s faces and their expressions and hear their voices. I was on a Zoom chat with grandkids last week, and when I...
The world certainly is in an interesting place. Between the COVID-19 pandemic, the Black Lives Matter movement and the upcoming election, I find my emotions all over the place. There are times when I want to cry, and I do cry. There are times when I want to scream,...
The world certainly is in an interesting place. Between the COVID-19 pandemic and the Black Lives Matter movement, I find my emotions all over the place. There are times when I want to cry, and I do cry. There are times when I want to scream, and I do scream. There...
I'm getting older, that's a fact. I try to follow the “aging” suggestions my doctor gives me and while I'm not worried about an injury, I do notice I think about it more now than in the past. The injuries I've endured are a few bruised fingers and a twisted ankle from...
Recently, I took one of my three granddaughters to see the newest Star Wars movie. I had seen the first three installments to the series, but had missed the past two or three. I enjoyed the movies I had seen in the past, and she assured me this one would be great as...
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