How to tell grandkids 'I love you' in another language

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I tell my grandsons I love you a lot. Returning the sentiment to those who say it to them was one of the first phrases they learned, though it did sound a bit like a foreign language at first, one only family members understood. Phonetic translation of Mac’s first utterance of it: Wuh woo!

Such I love yous in a language foreign to all but family members can become a shared sweetness, carried on through the years. But have you ever said I love you in Finnish? Swahili? Russian? Or even Spanish, for those of you who—like me—have not even the most basic of foreign language skills?

While I love you sounds the very same in some languages—think Malaysian and Maltese—there’s a whole world of ways it can be pronounced in other languages. The great thing is, you don’t need to know another language in order to learn how to say sweet somethings to your grandchildren (and others) in more ways than one, thanks to the Translate application from Google.

In the Google Translate app, simply type in a word or phrase you want to translate to another language, choose the language you’d like to convert it to, and hit enter. You then not only see how it is written, you have the ability (in most languages) to hear it pronounced.

Here are a few examples of I love you in various languages:

Swahili — Nakupenda

Dutch — Ik hou van je

Afrikaans — Ek is lief vir jou

Latin — Te amo

Czech — Miluji tě

Vietnamese — Tôi yêu các bạn

French — Je t'aime

German — Ich liebe dich

Filipino — Mahal kita

Irish — Is breá liom tú

Choose from one of those or perhaps one that’s part of your family heritage. Better yet, visit Google Translate with your grandchild to choose another. The phrase you choose and learn can then be your special love language, at least when it comes to saying I love you.

You also can type in a phrase you typically say to your grandchildren—such as the one I often say to my grandsons to make them giggle: Grandma loves you soooooo much!—and find another language in which to say it. It’s a great way to create a special code word or phrase just for you and your loved ones to share throughout the years.

My special phrase for my two grandsons in Swahili? Grandma anakupenda sana! And I do. Soooooo much!

Happy Valentine's Day! Or as they say in Azerbaijani: MüqəddəsValentin günü!

Today's question:

What special twist do you put on your I love yous, to kids or other loved ones?

Many word Wednesday: Grandma's Valentines

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I recently succumbed to the One-word Wednesday meme. Once in a while, I must make it a Three-word Wednesday. Today, though, I pull out all stops and count not a word, for it will take far more than one and many, many more than three to explain this photo. Here are my many words:

All about Pinterest are cute crafts in which kids use their hands, feet, toes, thumbs to create mementos for Mom, Dad, Grandma, Grandpa, anyone who's into saving funny shaped ghosts, reindeer and more featuring an adored kiddo's paw print. I love these things, have made such things with my grandsons, even created a board in which I collect the ideas.

While perusing my Pinterest boards for ideas for Valentine's Day, I came across that board and decided to turn such handprints on their head, so to speak. I enlisted PawDad's help, and together we painted our hands to create a Valentine's Day masterpiece for our grandsons. Here's what we came up with (do note that the names inside the hand hearts are the boys' real names, changed here via Picasa magic to Bubby and Mac as that's they're assumed names on my blog):

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Along with packages of M&Ms and a few deflated balloons on which I wrote messages o' love for each boy to appreciate once the balloon is inflated, this is what they get from Gramma and PawDad for Valentine's Day. I hope our grandsons love them as much as we love them—the boys, that is.

Full disclosure: I hung our first practice handprint—with J + L written in the center—on my refrigerator. I love not only my grandsons, but PawDad, too.

Today's question:

What are you sharing with your loved ones for Valentine's Day?

FAMILY photo frame: A crafty craft for the non-crafty

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Not long ago, I shared directions for making a pillow chaise for kids. I claimed it was easy, something even those with minimal crafting experience could pull off with ease.

Well, I was wrong in making that claim. I immediately received comments on the difficulty of the chaise pillows for anyone who doesn't sew—which I hadn't really considered.

I have considered the non-sewers this time, and I offer you this: a craft that truly is easy and requires absolutely no sewing at all.

Can you spray spray paint? Then you can do this.

Can you use a glue gun? Then you can do this.

The "this" is a unique photo frame that looks far more crafty than it really is. If you can operate a can of spray paint and operate a glue gun, this is the craft for you.

The craft is a FAMILY photo frame. I made one for each of my daughters for Christmas, and they looked like this:

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That's the one I made for Megan. Each frame I made was the same yet different, to match the different personalities and decor of my daughters. Bonus: Each featured buttons from Granny's button tin, bits from their paternal grandmother that I've pledged to share with my daughters in myriad ways.

Here is how to make a similar FAMILY photo frame for yourself or as a gift.

How to make a FAMILY photo frame

Here's what you need:

BRIANNA'S FRAME• 1 8X10 black wood photo frame

• unpainted wood letters: F A M I L Y (mine are 1 1/2 inch)

• 5 unpainted mini clothespins

• 1 8X10 scrapbook paper page — choose one in a pattern befitting the recipient's decor and interests, keeping in mind the frame will be displayed horizontally

• 5 buttons — I choose buttons to match the scrapbook paper, all from Granny's button tin but new buttons would work, too

• black spray paint

• glue gun and glue sticks

• 4X6 photos to display

Here's what you do:

1. Spread newspaper in an outdoor area where you can spray paint the letters and the mini clothespins. Spray one side of letters and clothespins, making sure all visible surfaces are painted. Don't worry about the wire clothespin clasps getting paint on them for they will work even when painted. Allow to dry.

2. Remove the back of the photo frame and place the scrapbook paper where a photo would go. Replace back.

3. Evenly center the dried FAMILY letters about an inch or so from the top of the horizontally positioned frame. Use glue gun to carefully glue letters in place.

4. Carefully position the five clothespins along the bottom frame, centering on edge so they won't break off when adding or removing photos. Use glue gun to glue each clothespin in its spot.

5. Once clothespins are securely glued and dried, carefully glue a button to the top of each clothespin. Ensure the top edge of the button meets the top edge of the clothespin so the entire button is backed by the clothespin stick. (If you don't have the entire button on the stick, the button will come off when subjected to the pressure of opening and closing the pin when adding or removing photos.)

6. Ensure glue has dried and all letters, clothespins, and buttons are securely in place, then add photos. (Vertical photos work best if using all five pins.)

ANDREA'S FRAME

Ready to hang and enjoy!

Of course, you can always create the frame vertically, just use fewer clothespins and letters in a size that ensures the word FAMILY fits.

There you go: A crafty craft for the non-crafty—with not a single stitch of sewing involved!

Today's question:

How many photo frames do you guesstimate are on display in your house?

5 words for 2013: What well wishes for the new year mean to one grandma

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For the past couple of weeks, many of the emails I've received—and sent—start or end with wishes for the new year. Most often it's been something along the lines of the straightforward Happy New Year to you and yours! Or perhaps a Best wishes for peace, prosperity and success!

I appreciate the well wishes, and I hope those to whom I offer them do as well, for I do say them in all sincerity despite how generic such sentiments may seem.

We all use basically the same words for the good tidings—how many ways, really, are there for offering up New Year's greetings?—yet I'm pretty sure the meaning for each of us on the receiving end is quite different.

Here is what the oft-used words mean to me, specifically in relation to 2013:

HAPPINESS
To me, happiness is so relative. It can depend on how fat I might feel at any particular time; how much I have on my to-do list or how much free time I have to do something I enjoy; if Jim helps with the dishes or not; when I'll get to see my grandsons again; and on and on and on. One day may be a happy one and the next not so much. Heck, it's often that way from minute to minute, not just day to day, depending on how many hot flashes I experience in those minutes.

So instead of expecting to have a happy year, with heaps of happiness from beginning to end, I prefer to focus more on joy. Even in the very worst of times, the deepest and darkest moments, I can and usually do feel joy, have joy, experience joy. Joy, in contrast to happiness, doesn't depend on exterior influences; it's something deep inside and I'm fortunate to have it, regardless of how happy or unhappy I may be at any given time. I'm pretty sure I won't have a completely happy new year regardless of how many folks wish that for me. I will, though, have a year filled with joy, which is good enough for me.

PEACE
Another very relative term, as there's only so much one can do to work toward peace throughout the world. Peace for me personally would be the peace in knowing everything is going to be okay. With my family, my finances, my goals. Despite having the joy I mentioned above, I'm not an incredibly peaceful person. I'm worried about this or that more often than not, and usually have to force myself to breathe deep and just let go of the fear and trembling, inside and out. I want peace, welcome peace, so this is an especially appreciated wish for the coming year.

PROSPERITY
Ah, prosperity. I'm pretty sure that peace I long for would be so much easier to come by if only my wishes of prosperity were to come true. I know, I know—money does not buy happiness. But it definitely would help me stop worrying about the lack of it, the focus of which has consumed more than a fair share of the past few years.

SUCCESS
There are so, so many ways I'm striving to succeed this year, so I'll take all the wishes for success I can get. To me, success takes the form of simply being better in most of my current pursuits, which may or may not mean there will be financial gain attached. I want to succeed at being a better—and traditionally published—writer. I want to succeed at being a better blogger, moving beyond the plateau I've found myself on. I want to succeed at being a better wife, mother, grandmother, friend—including being a better friend to myself, the person on whom I'm most hard. I want to succeed at reading more, singing more, traveling more, taking better photos. I want to succeed at fitting in some time on the piano again and succeed at losing a few—no, many—pounds. Yes, I want success—my idea of success.

GOOD HEALTH
This one would be far easier if I'd lose those pounds mentioned above. Sure, I want to look better, but more so, I want to feel better, and that would start with shedding the extra weight. My bloggy friend Chloe recently mentioned that we in mid-life and beyond need to exercise as if our life depends on it—because our life literally does depend on it, especially in terms of the degree to which we'll enjoy the rest of our life. I'm taking her advice to heart and plan to exercise more and eat better for the sake of achieving better health in 2013. Bonus for doing so? I will likely look better in 2013—and beyond—too.

Bottom line
To all who have wished me any of the above, I offer sincere thanks. And to each and every one of you reading this, I sincerely wish you joy, peace, prosperity, success, and good health in 2013—in whatever ways those words personally matter and mean the most to you.

graphic: stock.xchng

Today's question:

Of the words mentioned above, which do you most wish for in 2013?

Sweet and spicy recipes, plus the GRAND Social

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Though it may already be the seventh of January, today seems to me like the beginning of the first real week of the new year as it's the first full week of 2013 with no holidays in it. Anyone else agree? Or am I the only one taking an egregiously long time getting back in the swing of things?

Before we get too far removed from the holidays, though, I do want to share with you something from my New Year's Day celebration—two recipes I made for our New Year's Day eat-a-thon (for lack of a better word). Click on the photos and you'll be taken to the full recipes in my Recipe Box tab. 


Sweet and Spicy Cheese-Stuffed Jalapenos


Rich Caramel Brownies

Both are pretty darn good, if I say so myself. I hope you and your family enjoy them!

Also, as noted in today's post title, we have another GRAND Social up and running. Thank you for joining me!

How it works:

  • All grandparent bloggers are invited to add a link. You don't have to blog specifically about grandparenting, but you must be a grandparent who blogs.
  • Posts shared can be an old one or a recent one, your choice.
  • To link up, copy the direct link to the specific post you want to share, not the link to your blog's home page. Then click the blue "Click here to enter" text below and follow the directions to add your post to the list.
  • You can add up to three posts, but no duplicates, please, and none you have promoted on a previous GRAND Social linky.
  • No contests, giveaways, or Etsy sites, please.
  • Adding a mention at the bottom of your linked posts, such as This post has been linked to the GRAND Social linky, is appreciated. Or, you can post the GRAND Social button using the following code:

Grandma’sBriefs.com

<a href="/" target="_blank"><img src="http://grandmasbriefs.squarespace.com/storage/GRANDsocialbutton.jpg " alt="Grandma’sBriefs.com" width="125" height="125" /></a>

 

  • The GRAND Social linky is open for new posts through Wednesday evening, so please come back to see those added after your first visit.
  • If you're not a blogger, you have the pleasure of being a reader. All bloggers who link up would be honored to have you click, visit, read and comment.

READERS and PARTICIPATING BLOGGERS: Please visit the posts others have linked to by clicking on the thumbnail photos. Comments are always appreciated by the bloggers whose links you visit, even if it's simply "Hey, stopping by from GRAND Social."

Thank you for participating in the first GRAND Social grandparent linky of 2013!