Anybody still looking after Grandchildren ?

Our grandchildren are mostly teenagers now.
I was thinking, how do you explain the virus situation to a young child, (maybe below 10).
How much can they understand, at different ages?
It could be frightening for children , as it is for us. So do you pretend it's not all that serious?

I agree bikergran . Such a worry .

We had a family conference yesterday evening and have decided, reluctantly, to stop having the GC for now.
DIL has already offered to get shopping online for us as she has pre-booked slots.
Will see how things go...

Only in my 50’s and still working (obviously).
I am lucky enough to be able to work from home. But I had cancer and severe sepsis in 2018 and my DH has COPD. DD’s are saying he should stay in and just me go out, but as he is currently visiting eldest DD and SIL, it will still mean tons of child care for him for DD (she has an 8 and 6 year old)
Youngest DD is a single parent and a type 1 Diabetic to boot, so high risk!
All 3 DD lean very very heavily on us daily for child care duties for the 6 DGC aged between 1 and 9 and middle DD also uses us for twice daily school run as DGD school is not near her home.
I really don’t see how I can self isolate as all AC rely heavily on me and despite the previous health issues will just have to soldier on.

I suppose its only a matter of time before the schools etc do close.
It may be ok for parents that are teachers themselves but what happens to all those parents who have other types of jobs.how on earth will they manage.

One example my DD.
Single parent works full time at Local Hopital.

One grandson 13 at secondary his brother 5 at other junior school..
5 year old goes childminders she then takes him school.

If childminders start to refuse taking children. then what do we do.
Where are the children going to go when dd has to go to work. So many different scenarios.

We have our GD (17 months) each week and was due to have her Thurs through to Fri this week, parents are self employed and NHS, so not easy for them but they agree it’s best for now. Luckily our other grandchildren are at home with their mum who is currently on mat leave. I spoke with both sets of parents last night and we will no longer have/see the children for at least the next month, Mother’s Day & Easter get togethers are now cancelled. DH has underlying condition and is due to have tests early next month. So terribly sad not the see Grandchildren but we know it’s not forever and DH has to be the priority at this stage. Difficult times.

DS called to say GC will not be coming over. I know our best interest is in his heart, but I will miss them. I realize common sense is our biggest tool in the box, but tonight I am just sad. Tomorrow will be brighter I hope.

Nannatopsey, hope all is well for you and your family.

We see two of our in-town GC once a week, but will seriously think about isolating ourselves from them since DH has COPD and a heart condition. Right now my priority is my husband.
There are no cases in our area as far as we know, but it is spreading quickly and our province has taken measures to severely restrict social contact. DH is early retirement at 59, but I still work, in a 24 hr industry where my desk is shared. I need to be diligent with keeping the virus out of my home.

Praying for this to be over, though i think we are in for a long slog.

Its been good to read the posts on this thread, thank you everyone. It provides a sense of proportion, I’m afraid I’ve structured my life around seeing my grandchildren at least once a week; it’s important to me as they are already 9 & 10 & I want to enjoy their company as long as I possibly can. I have been a volunteer for 3 years in their primary school hearing Years 1 & 2 read. I will have to be guided by the school, re whether I should continue with that?

Today I visited my great nephew aged 6. We played for a couple of hours. I go monthly & will miss him so much. The train home was empty even in rush hour, strange & very scary times.

I know I have to be sensible & I will be but it’s going to be hard not interacting with my family. I’m am over 70 with some health issues but am fit& well with my meds & plenty of fresh air & exercise.

Please keep well & stay sane. I can’t bear too much TV & will have to read instead...

Our 18 month old grandson lives with us, so we have no choice. I’ve already caught a cold from him.

My Gc are staying away too as their school it is massive the family have agreed to keep away but have offered help when it is needed , we are ok for now , but have planned one or two outdoor projects and have bought all the materials to do them.

However we still intend to go walking when possible.

Yes, I am carrying on as usual too. I look after my 3 year old grandson 2 days a week and will carry on doing it until told otherwise. My daughter relies on me.

We have to be very careful, so no family visits at all for quite a while.Such a shame, as they all live locally and we see them quite a bit normally.
Will keep in touch via email, messaging and phone, also facetime.

Nannatopsy -
I hope and pray that things will work out good for you and your family.

Yes we are, we are in our 60s we will be looking after them tomorrow. I agree with little ones it's it's impossible to keep them at a distance.
I veer from feeling panicked to feeling OK. Very unsettling and scary times

Our children live quite a long way away (but still in UK) and we won’t be seeing them or GC for weeks/months now. We were going to see them at Easter. I’ve already bought the Easter eggs and don’t know how Ill get them to them now! DH says that’s trivial!

We were asked to have our two overnight last night as mum was poorly (very probably ‘it’) and DS front line medic. Now hear that the littlest has a fever.
Now we have a long week or so to see if we have got it too.

There are many Grandparents where we live in that position.
I was chatting to one today, not much younger than me. Her 2 GCs come to her every day after school for their Tea.
Daughter and SiL at work - they need to work to support their family.
Another older lady told me - not everyone can afford to buy in bulk.
My grandchildren are all well past that stage, but I can understand their worry, and dilemma.
They are the generation who are going to keep the nation going through this emergency.

We don’t have a choice as our daughter is a single parent and there is no-one else to have our granddaughter during the school holiday as she is still having to go into work.

My grandchildren live on my road. They are age 6 and 9. I have no intention of not seeing them. I'm 59 so borderline at risk though. I would feel different if I was a lot older though.

I m mid 60’s and have had my 16 month grandson for 3 out of the last 6 days, without me doing that my daughter and husband are unable to work. They both work in the travel industry and at present are working full out trying to get people home and dealing with holidays that have had to be cancelled. I m also about to come out of retirement and go back to work as a nurse, don’t know for how long but the NHS is struggling

Agree with CrazyGrandma2. We don't live near enough to look after GCs regularly but have offered to help out in case of school closure, assuming we are both fit and healthy. Son and partner plus children visited yesterday and were pleased that we had a spare pack of loo rolls which they took with them as the shops local to them had run out!

I am expecting to pick my grandson up tomorrow from school, give him his tea and take him to his ballet class. My problem is that I have my birthday at the weekend and have booked a meal for 14 of us - children and grandchildren which I domn't want to cancel

Business as usual here until/if one of us gets ill, or the AC decide to stay away. I know we have to be sensible but the world has gone mad!

I've just looked after my 3year old granddaughter for the weekend I would be more concerned for her health than myself or husband, we are both in our late sixties but healthy. Carrying on with normal life but more hand washing etc.