Grilled Grandma: Janet

How many children do you have? We have two sons, Michael 34 and Adam 32.

How many grandchildren? What are their ages? We have eight grandchildren, Matthew 12, Courtney 11, Tyler 10, Jace 9, Ashton 7, Tucker 6, Ben 5 and Camdyn is 4.

Any great grandchildren? Not yet.

What do your grandchildren call you? They call us Pop and Nana.

How often do you get to see your grandchildren? We see Tucker and Ben everyday since we have had custody of them since May 2008. The other grandchildren most days when I am needed at the school for parties or to eat lunch with them. They also come to the house while dad is working.

What is the best thing about being a grandma? The loving these little children give me. I have never had so many hugs, kisses and I love yous from so many little people.

What is the most challenging part of being a grandma? Raising the two we have custody of while my lupus is out of remission.

Describe a recent time that one (or more) of your grandchildren made you laugh out loud. Just yesterday Ben celebrated his 5th birthday. When someone would tell him Happy Birthday he would tell them Happy Birthday back instead of thank you. Then he said, oh, I forgot it was my Birthday. We have been celebrating the other grandchildren's birthdays since September it was hard for Ben to keep up who's was next.

What is your favorite thing to do with grandchildren who visit your house?  Bake homemade cookies.

What is your favorite thing to do when visiting grandchildren at their house? Have a conversation with them. The children these days are really smart and have a lot to say, either that or I just didn't listen to closely to my own children when they were growing.

What do you most want to pass along to your grandchildren? To soak in as much knowledge as they can while they can.

What is one word you hope your grandkids think of when they think of you? Loving

What is one thing you wish you had learned earlier as a grandparent? To not turn down when one asks to sleep over no matter how tired I am.

What one bit of advice would you give a new grandma? Give out lots of hugs and kisses.

Take a peek at Janet’s blog, Nana’s Sweeties, where you’ll find lots of stories, lots of photos, lots of love.