Grilled Grandma: Sharon

How many children do you have? I have 2. A girl, 40 (she's now a mom) and a boy, 22 (and he's now an uncle)

How many grandchildren? 1, a boy. What are their ages? 2 1/2

Any great grandchildren? No

What do your grandchildren call you? Nama, it's a combination of Grandma and Nana. My grandson couldn't quite say grandma and this is what came out, and I love it! My kids called my mom Nana, so having the combination of both is really special to me.

How often do you get to see your grandchildren? Every week, he lives one block from me. It's a wonderful thing. (<:

What is the best thing about being a grandma? It's almost all fun and games and no stress of raising him.

What is the most challenging part of being a grandma? Keeping up with him!

Describe a recent time that one (or more) of your grandchildren made you laugh out loud. While in bed with all his stuffed animals, he snuggled in between them all, poked his head out and said "pick a boo, Nama". He was supposed to be calming down to go to sleep. This was a good tactic to win over Nama’s heart. We read one more book, the last of 3!

What is your favorite thing to do with grandchildren who visit your house? We get blankets out and make a tent over tables and chairs, get under and read books, do puzzles and play with his animals. And we play outside in the garden. He loves watering my plants, and we grew sunflowers this summer.

What is your favorite thing to do when visiting grandchildren at their house? Building with Duplos and Lego's, racing with his cars and watching movies while he lays in my lap.

How do you maintain the bond between yourself and your grandchildren between visits? Calling each other, but If I want to see him, I just walk over and spend some time with him. I am so lucky. My son lives behind me in a small apartment and my daughter, son-in-law and grand child 1 block away.

What do you most want to pass along to your grandchildren? To keep a kind heart, an active body and a spiritual soul. To give back and pay it forward.

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? Well he's only 2 and I am still pretty new at this, so I can't really think of anything as of yet.

What one bit of advice would you give a new grandma? This is not your child, so respect his or her parent’s wishes on bringing up your grandchild. Not that you can't suggest things from time to time.

Visit Sharon's awesome event-planning site (for big and everyday events!): Your LifEvents.