My parents have been visiting for a week and they leave on Saturday. The DD was excited to see them at first but then started clinging to me more than usual. She does OK with them when I am not around but I work from home so I can't just leave. My parents aren't comfortable driving far so they can't really take her anywhere except for a walk. I feel bad because they traveled all this way and didn't get to spend a whole lot of one-on-one time with the LO. Has this happened to anyone else with grandparents that your LO rarely sees?
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awww I have no words of advice but I'm afraid of this happening with my LO and my mom too!
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My LO is 4 months and is pretty shy around all new people, and my parents are no exception. She sees them maybe twice a month, never for more than a few hours. My dad doesn't care, but my mom is really worked up about it. I feel bad, but I try to tell remind her that as Olive gets older, she'll start to remember her!
Have you thought about making a photo book so at least she will know their faces well? A friend has an 18 month old and he is so good at recognizing his faraway family members now, and he gets so excited when he sees them in person! It's really cute.
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@regberadaisy: how often will your mom be visiting?
@pointybird: LO knows exactly who they are, since she is 2, so it is not a recognition issue. We don't Skype but we call them all the time so she knows their voices when she hears them, too. I just think she doesn't want them to take her away from Mommy. She is very clingy to me.
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@Andrea: Oh, gotcha! That's so tough! I'm still able to use the "She's just a baby!" excuse, but I think we'll probably have the same problem when Olive is older. Maybe Skype would help? Or bribery?
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@pointybird: i think that is why she liked them to begin with because there were gifts on the first day but there can't be gifts every day!
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My ILs were here a month ago and LO was the same. He was happy to play with them while either my husband and I were both around. But he would not want to spend prolonged one on one time with them. When we leave him with them, he's crying and screaming. He used to let my MIL bathe him at night but this time, not at all.
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@BoogieBea: how often do they visit?
i had my mom bathe her last night just so that they could have some alone time together. the LO was crying a lot at first but calmed down so they got through it. but then she started crying "mommy, mommy" once my mom put her in the crib. it wasn't too bad though. i just wanted them to spend SOME time together!
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@Andrea: Twice a year so far. We also visit them multiple times a year as well. And he talks to them on the phone every other day. We were already having issues getting him to sleep in general so we wanted to try to avoid a complete melt down prior to bed time. So MIL didn't get to put him to bed at all while she was here.
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We flew across the country to visit with DH's niece/god daughter who we never get to see and she screamed the entire time whenever we were in the same room as her. Which was especially unfortunate since we were staying in the same small two bedroom apartment!
We were fine with it obviously, but I felt bad for her parents who clearly felt terrible. Nothing they could do would soothe her, and we did nothing to provoke it!
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@pointybird: btw, how cute that your LO's name is Olive just like Mr. and Mrs Bee's DD!
@BoogieBea: that is a lot more than my parents get to see the DD. that is too bad about your MIL. was she really bummed out?
@Modern Daisy: oh no! how old is she? i do feel really terrible but there is not a whole lot we can do either. oh well, i am glad to see that at least we are not alone in this situation!
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@Andrea: I know! And I just reached "Olive" level. I'm thinking about keeping my posts under 100 so I stay an Olive!
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@pointybird: oh yeah! i didn't notice that. cool!
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@Andrea, she was almost 2 when this happened and it was the second time we saw her. The first time she was a newborn and slept the entire visit. We've spent time with her since at my IL's house and she was better, but still didn't want to have anything to do with us and would run away if we came near. Of course we weren't upset about it, we know she'll eventually grow out of it!
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my eldest was like that too around 2 yo.... I have no advice though because it's still something we are working on. We see my parents once or twice a year, she talks to them once a week on the phone and we FaceTime on holidays and birthdays... I'm thinking it's just a stage, but it's hard to work on it because of the distance.
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@Andrea: not sure yet? We typically go back at least 2-3 times a year to visit. And my mom said she wants to be here for her birthday every year. So I'd imagine they'll see each other at least 3-4 times a year? It will be a lot easier now that my nieces and nephews are older so that they can fly up with her. She watches my niece full time.
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My son was super clingy to my husband when we were visiting my parents this past December. Then, all of a sudden, there was a switch and he didn't want to know anything about my husband or I.
We skype with my parents every week, and I do think that helps. We also have a photo book that my son likes to look through every now and again.
It makes me so sad to read these kinds of stories because family is so precious! I know it's not possible for everyone to live in the same town, but that would be my ultimate wish!
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@Modern Daisy: @NYCaliMama: wow ok, maybe this is something that is common for 2 year olds? here is hoping that it will be better when we see them again at the end of the year!!
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My LO sees my inlaws and dad weekly, and still hasn't completely warmed up to them! She she's my mom a lot more so she loves her. She's getting better with her grandparents, and will let them hold her occasionally, but it's not consistent.
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