New member

I know how you feel. My granddaughter who is 5 lives in California with my son and his wife. We do try to visit but it has become very expensive of late . As like you we are in constant touch - phone , skype and photos.
My other son lives 250 miles away in London but at the end of next year he will be off with his wife and our other granddaughter (2) to Australia !!!- he married an Ozzie . She is lovely by the way but why is it they choose non -english girls??
My husband says we will have to live in Hawaii !!! I think he was joking...
All I want is for them to be happy but it will be very hard especially as I have just retired from work . Hence the house for sale
, so we can go and live nearer before they leave but as we had not had any one to viewings or offers in 7mths I don't think it will ever happen
...

Hello CaroleAnne, it is a great shame that you are separated from your grandchildren, thank goodness for skype at least we can see our family when talking to them. My daughter went to live and work in Brussels and my sister lives in Germany. Hope you enjoy being on Gransnet

Hi CaroleAnne. We live in the Canary Islands but I'm lucky enough to be able to visit my GS several times a year. In between, we use skype and a webcam to keep in close touch - still missing that physical element, I know but you can feel a lot closer by being able to see as well as talk to your GC. My GS loves it - computer to computer is free so we can spend as much time on it as we like. It makes you feel more a part of their lives that way.

houseforsale; is there a possibility that you could rent out your house and rent a house closer to your son? The sales market is in such a mess, but the rental market is booming, I know it would be an awful hassle, but it could give you some time with your family. Or, might someone in that area need a housesitter for a year? Everyone close to me seem to be trying to buy or sell at the moment but, as someone said 'you don't need lots of people through the door..you only need one'. Is your estate agent doing the job properly; are the photos good..are you on rightmove? Little things but they can make a big difference.

HI I am new to the forum so just popping on to say hello (waves) and to introduce myself out of curtesy. I am 57 and a nanny to to beautiful little girl who is the apple of mine and hubbies eyes. I am sure I will be posting many times on here as it looks to be a good forum. Its not easy being a nanny is it, but the rewards are fantastic. Never knew how totally brilliant it was going to be, the love we have for her is out of this world and I am sure all other grandparents feel the same about their grandchildren.

Welcome to gransnet nannypink1. Nice to have you with us.

Welcome nannypink1, I am sure you will enjoy Gransnet

crimson, Thanks for that - food for thought !

Hello, my name is Nina Laking and I live in Harrogate. I am a granny to my son's twin boys, Jack and Thomas, who are two and a half months old. They live in Oldham and I try to see them either weekly or fortnightly, I absolutely adore them. I read an article about gransnet in the Waitrose Weekend paper this week and thought how useful. Since joining the site I have already found it very interesting on quite a number of things, and the fact that you can chat about different subjects such as various hobbies and cookery recipes is great.

Carole Anne, we have a two year old grandson in New Zealand and he is absolutely the apple of our eyes. We are really lucky to be able to visit regularly but the mainstay of our contact is skype. Have you tried it? It is wonderful. Obviously the physical contact isn't there but being able to see each other in the present moment and talk on camera is a big improvement on letters and photos.

Welcome to the newbies. I also have grandchildren abroad. We use skype, phone calls and visit as often as we can afford. There is an app for android phone called kik and I can send messages for free. Luckily I have 2 grandchildren who live nearby but I love them all the same.

Welcome to the three newbies - I hope you enjoy your time with us. I am so fortunate as both of my children live locally and it means that I see my one grandson at least once a week (and we are having him one day a week when his mum goes back to work in October).