One of the most powerful handclasps is that of a new grandbaby around the finger of a grandfather ~ Joy Hargrove
As if by default, you, as a grandfather, are the coolest person on the planet. In a kid's eyes you are wiser, nicer and more patient than mom and dad. You can take this opportunity to build a special relationship with your grandchild. Take on and embrace the role of mentor. Teach your grandkids to do things that their parents can't, don't have time to, or lack interest in. Show them how to make a kite from scratch and fly it in the backyard. You are the family historian now. Your life so far is full of interesting stories of days gone by. Share them. Recount your tales of walking 10 miles to school through 4 feet of snow and let them know what life was like before the internet and cell phones. Share stories of when their mom or dad were little and what funny things they did. Show your grandkids you love them; hugs, kisses, piggy back rides, long walks pulling them in a wagon and never missing a chance to tell them you love them. Showing love and building a caring relationship goes a lot farther than any material gift you can give them. Grandfathers are filled with wisdom.
The simplest toy, one which even the youngest child can operate, is called a grandpa
If I had known how wonderful it would be to have grandchildren, I'd have had them first
Grandchildren: the only people who can get more out of you than the IRS
Grandfathers are for loving and fixing things
To a small child, the perfect granddad is unafraid of big dogs and fierce storms but absolutely terrified of the word "boo"
Elephants and children never forget
Few things are more delightful than grandchildren fighting over your lap
Grandchildren are the dots that connect the lines from generation to generation
A grandfather is someone with silver in their hair and gold in his heart
The best place to be when you're sad is in Grandpa's lap
Every generation revolts against its fathers and makes friends with its grandfathers
My grandkids believe I'm the oldest thing in the world. And after two or three hours with them, I believe it, too.
You do not really understand something unless you can explain it to your grandfather 
poppie and tutu
Grandchildren don't make a man feel old; it's the knowledge that he's married to a grandmother.
Grandchildren are God's way of compensating us for growing old.
A grandparent is old on the outside but young on the inside.
Grandparents are similar to a piece of string ~ handy to have around and easily wrapped around the fingers of their grandchildren.
It's amazing how grandparents seem so young once you become one.
To be a grandparent is to enjoy one of the few pleasures in life for which the consequences have already been paid
What a bargain grandchildren are! I give them my loose change and they give me a million dollars' worth of pleasure.
I like to do nice things for my grandchildren ~ like buy them toys I've always wanted to play with.
I loved their home. Everything smelled older, worn but safe; the food aroma had baked itself into the furniture.
When grandparents enter the door, discipline flies out the window.
Nobody can do for little children what grandparents do; they sort of sprinkle stardust over the lives of little children.
No cowboy was ever faster on the draw than a grandparent pulling a baby picture out of a wallet.
Never have children, only grandchildren. ~ Gore Vidal
Nicknames for grandfathers include Bampy, Ba Pa, Big Pop, Banpa, Da, Deda (Serbian), Didi (Croation), Dziadzia (Polish), G-Pa, Grampa, Gramps, Granddad, Granddaddy, Grandpa, Grando, Lolo (Filipino), Papa, Pappy, Peepaw, Pawpaw, Pampo, Pepop, Pompa, Pop, Poppie, Poppa, Opa (German) and Ye Ye (Chinese.) Wayne already dubbed himself Poppie.
How the Grandfather Clock Got Its Name
Over 100 years ago in Piecebridge, North Yorkshire, England, there was a quaint country lodge known as the George Hotel, which was managed by two bachelor brothers named Jenkins.
In the lobby stood a floor clock, as they were called back in those days, that had been there for many years. One unusual characteristic on the old clock was that it kept very good time. This was uncommon, since in those days clocks were generally not noted for their accuracy.
One day, one of the brothers died and suddenly the old clock started losing time. At first it lost 15 minutes per day but when several clocksmiths gave up trying to repair the ailing timepiece, it was losing more than an hour each day.
The clock's incurable problem became as talked about as its precision had been. Some said it was no surprise that, though fully wound, the old clock stopped when the surviving brother died at the age of 90.
The new manager of the hotel never attempted to have it repaired. He just left it standing in a sunlit corner of the lobby ~ it stands resting in the position they assumed the moment the last Jenkins brother died.
About 1875, an American songwriter named Henry Work happened to be staying at the George Hotel during a trip to England. He was told the story of the old clock and after seeing the clock for himself, decided to compose a song about the fascinating coincidence that the clock stopped forever the moment its elder owner passed away. Henry came back to America and published the lyrics that sold over a million copes of sheet music about the grandfather clock song. These are the opening words of the first stanza:
"Oh my granfather's clock was too tall for the shelf so it stood ninety years on the floor. It was taller by half than the old man himself, though it weighed no a pennyweight more...
Until that time, clocks such as the one in the old George Hotel were referred to by a variety of names, but not before Henry Work wrote his song, over a hundred years ago, were they referred to as grandfather clocks.
What children need most are the essentials that grandparents provide in abundance. They give unconditional love, kindness, patience, humor, comfort, lessons in life. And most importantly, cookies. xo
