Welcome to Gransnet

Welcome Ambergirl. There are quite a few threads you could look at and post on that discuss family, e.g., Ask a gran, relationships, AIBU, but things can crop up in other threads, too. It would be worth perusing those that seem of interest to you and take it from there. Have fun searching, and once again, welcome. ?

Hello and welcome, NannyJan53 . I have been retired for over 10 years now, but still get up at 5am! I delivered newspapers as a child and continue to be an early waker.
Enjoy your retirement, especially when you buy the caravan.

Thank you shysal. I will have a look. Will enjoy spending time searching!!

Welcome ladies
I've got to say that the name isn't attractive to me either For a long time I thought it was only for Grannies until I was put right on that score I can see how it fits after Mumsnet but it's is an old sounding name I ve never been a Gran always a Nan I also always had the Gran bun and shawl picture in my head Tea and Cake

Ambergirl my son emigrated to NZ 20 years ago, I don't have the finances to visit often I see them about every five years it's sad but it's their choice and their lives, It is such a long journey and so expensive that I m not sure if I will make another trip and it's far too expensive for four of them to keep coming here very much so that's how it is I don't love them any less and many people have children round the corner that are not in their lives so at least I know my son cares and worries for me we speak every week

Your image of Grans vs Nans depends on your memories. I had two Grannys and no Nans.

I don't have any image of a Nan, but one Granny was a feisty ex-orphanage girl whose hair at 75 was still dark (and not in a bun) who wouldn't have been seen dead in a shawl and couldn't knit or sew. She'd had to stick up for herself from an early age and I can't imagine her spending her days smiling sweetly from a rocking chair.

The other had silver hair, no bun there either but in two plaits wound like a crown round her head. She could sew and knit and cook but also had a brain as sharp as a pin. She had raised six children, three of whom went to Uni, but they all said that she was more intelligent than any of them. Her response to being expected to sit in a rocking-chair in a shawl knitting would have been much the same as the other Granny.

Each of them in her own way was the powerhouse of her family.

I owe a lot to both of them - my genes and my attitude to life. So I have no objections to being a granny myself, or to the name Gransnet.

Thank you Shysal. I do wake up still at 6am, but don't usually get up till around 7 now (smile), spend a little time reading!

I'm not new to GN, but have had time away and come back again. I first joined about 18 months ago when I first became a nan and my immediate experiences were very mixed - a lot of kind advice, fun chatter, good debate. I wanted / needed to explore what being a gran might mean and I have had many stimulating and fun conversations with people who have challenged and affirmed me - for being ME - not a labelled 'oldie.' However, I also encountered some surprising bickering and some deep unpleasantness from posters who seemed to go out of their way to disrupt threads and be offensive. I was in-between jobs when I joined, got busy again and 'dropped away' in part because of this very negative element.
Fast forward a year. Having rejoined recently, I think the tone is generally a lot pleasanter. I was drawn back by the fun, friendship and sharing and have found my way around in a way that suits me - I make a lot of use of the 'last hour' and 'I'm On' buttons to tailor info to my interests and ability to manage and I tend to avoid contentious threads that get my goat if I have nothing useful to add. I am grateful that GN set up a bereavement forum and can see that this has become a useful space for some. I also enjoy lurking in the doorway of the argey-bargey café and I love the many ways that new members are welcomed. I don't mind Gransnet as a title - this sight has helped me to feel okay about being a nanny/granny / grandma and has introduced me to many wonderful people.

Hi there,

I have been local editor in Manchester for a while now whilst working too I could do with some help up here as I can never seem to keep the momentum going, any over 50's from the North want to meet up and see how we can make it better for Manchester?
I also agree with Ana about it not being the name, we just need to keep sharing and caring X

Imperfect27 the first thread I ever dipped into nearly put me off for life! I think life can be 'challenging' enough without being savaged (probably too severe a word but my brain isn't properly awake) by complete strangers. I vowed never to post....now I have dipped my toe in. Everyone is entitled to their opinions of course and the written word can convey the wrong impression as we all know, but some of those 'ladies', phew!

Tea and cake when I first joined I soon posted on AIBU - I was a brand new gran, wanting to explore some complex emotions... What a mistake and what a baptism of fire! I nearly left straight away. Yes, 'savaged' was the word that comes to mind when I look back. But I do think the tone is kinder now. I guess it is a something of a risk to post anything emotionally honest in a public forum.

Imperfect27 I agree with that. There's some very personal and emotional stuff on here and it's a shame if people are put off posting by some of the replies you see. However some good advice outweighs it usually I think. Hope your grandparenting is going well. I love mine!

Ah, yes, thank you - it is a delight to be a GP! Makes the heart smile again and again!

I don't especially like the name Gransnet - I get the link between it and mumsnet but somehow it conjures up the white haired old woman in rocking chair to me. I didn't look at it for that reason and joined mumsnet. I find gransnet a much nicer place and I feel more 'at home' with the majority of viewpoints here.

I found myself at odds with the entitled generation. I know that's a sweeping generalisation but try as I might I found a lot of the comments portrayed just that. The last straw for me on mumsnet was when one poster said her 4 days in an NHS ward had caused her to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder!! She wasn't joking either ?

By the way, is it possible to edit your posts? I've just seen a rogue 'to' in my post!

'to' shouldn't be there!

Oops I thought I'd worked out how to edit... obviously not!

The easiest way Oriel, is to 'Preview' your message before 'Posting Message'. Not always infallible, but does help when you have the fat finger syndrome

Thanks Aunty... I don't even have the fat finger excuse. Must read before posting in future

Hi everyone, I'm 64, live in France and still work part-time. I can sympathise with Ambergirl because my only son lives in the Caribbean. Not as far as Australia, but it still means we see him only about twice a year. We use WhatsApp and Skype to keep in touch. WhatsApp is great and we often have a wee chat. Of course, I still miss him terribly.
Looking forward to making new friends here. x

Welcome Francophile. I make a lot of use of Whats-App too - brilliant! I get to see my one and only DGC once every 4-6 weeks - hopefully more now that the long summer holidays are here and I know I am a lot luckier than some. DD is very good about sending photos and snippets of videos. Skype doesn't work well with a wriggling 18 month-old at present.

Thanks for the welcome, Imperfect27. How lovely to have an18 month old grandchild! I bet you wish you could see her/him more often, but as you say, you're luckier than some. My son will be 30 this year, but I'm not a granny (yet!)

Hi Francophile Nice to 'meet' you! Whereabouts in France do you live? I use Whatsapp and Skype a lot, but oh my goodness, I look like something from out of a horror movie on Skype! Hope that's not just me

Tea and cake - I worried that it was just me! . Skype does seem to distort things and I tend to be looking downwards to the screen - not my most flattering angle! Sometimes think I must frighten poor GC away!

Hi Gransnetters
I have just signed up. I'm 68 and have just stopped working. I live in quiet hamlet (a lot of about my age, but don't think I have much in common!). My daughter and my two grandkids don't live far away. Are there any grans who swim out there? I am a keen open water, rivers, lakes and sea, swimmer. I love my garden, photography and playing a musical instrument very badly, any late taker uppers of music? Look forward to 'meeting' some of you.