I just spent the entire month of January in Hawaii… visiting my parents.
It was actually a wonderful visit and given how much we doled out for the plane tickets and how infrequently my daughter gets to see my family, I did everything humanly possible to make the most of every second we had together. That includes helping care for my 93-year-old dying grandma and hosting a bevy of extended family members, who came to catch up and spoil my daughter to no end.
The visit (I don’t refer to it as a vacation because in more ways it was required more work than my normal job) flew by, and it took until I was on the plane en route back to this frozen tundra to reflect on how you never quite grow out of your place in a family regardless of your age.
My parents would love if we lived closer to them (I second their sentiments), much the same way I grew up living less than two miles from my grandparents. Though, I don’t think it would change my daughter’s relationship with them. After all, there’s no possible way they could be any closer. My daughter considers them her best friends and sticks to them like white on rice. I joked that my parents needed a vacation after we left because they spent nearly 34 days straight catering to my daughter’s every whim. Her wish was their command—-much to my chagrin. But, my status of mother of said 4-year-old is a moot point in their eyes. Never mind that I’m in my third decade of life on planet earth; they are my parents and we’re in their house so if they choose to spoil their granddaughter, then so be it.
I spared myself the ulcer and gave up trying to convince them to tone down the generosity shortly after we arrived.
Do you live near your parents? How does your proximity to them affect your parenting style?