Are you a typical American grandparent?
There’s a new study out about grandparents. Some of its findings surprised me.
Does modern parenting ruin kids?
Because of how their parents are raising them, kids will grow up to be more entitled, less disciplined, and less independent than their elders, an overwhelming majority of Australian grandparents believes.
Welcome to The Grandparent Effect
Grandparents are healthier, wealthier, and longer-lived than ever before. What does this mean for us all?
How to cook like an Italian grandma
You’ll need some olive oil, a good butcher, and this recipe for Neapolitan ragù.
“Grandma’s love is what made Grandma’s garden grow”
A moving new song by country music star Zac Brown.
“Her mind was as sharp as ever”
Would her grandma remember her? Jane Kim, 41, wasn’t sure. It had been 23 years since she’d last visited her in Korea, and she was nearly 100 years old.
Grandparents matter. Here’s how.
Grandparents matter in profound, enduring, and sometimes unexpected ways. That’s what I learned from these recordings, which were made by three American families for the oral history project StoryCorps.
Here’s to you, Mia
This time of year, I always think of my grandma Mia, who made me feel safe, special, and loved for 22 years.
Grandparents are younger than you think
The media paints grandparents as old, but studies show most of them aren’t.
Why stepgrandparents matter
“Standing at one remove from the new partnership, and all the hue and cry the blending of a family can involve, they have the potential to play a unique role for the stepgrandchild—part grandparent, part wise, trusted confidante.”
My hero
Maybe I would have made it through my 20s without him. But, to be honest, I can’t imagine how.
A grandma and her grandson learn to swim
Mary Walker and her 17-year-old grandson are taking swimming lessons together at a pool in Tulsa, Okla.
To nurture your family, nurture yourself
Parents and grandparents need one another. How can they learn to get along?
The Grandmother’s Gallery of Art
A grandma in Massachusetts saves “every single thing” her granddaughters scribble, paint, sculpt, and glue.
Meet the grandmas of the Mississippi Delta
A new book profiles more than 50 black women who suffered brutal discrimination as children but survived to make a better life—and a better world—for their heirs.
Meet the First Grandmother
“It’s important to remember the White House is such a bizarre place,” says the author of a recent book on the Obamas. “I think Mrs. Robinson acts as a calming presence.”
The art of love
There’s not enough good art about the bond between kids and their grandparents, so I asked Rebecca Layton, an illustrator based in Austin, to create some.
Everyone on earth is this man’s cousin
A.J. Jacobs, a journalist and bestselling author, thinks he can build a family tree for all of humanity. Here’s what he told me about his project, his grandparents, and his most famous ancestor.
In army families, grandparents are heroes, too
A letter from a grateful mother whose husband was deployed a dozen times.
First they were playmates. Then they were soulmates.
Lisa Drayer got 40 years with her grandmother. They were never closer than at the end.
Do grandparents know the secret to happiness?
Mo Rocca hopes the grandparents on his TV show can teach him how to live.
How can parents help children and their grandparents connect?
Happiness expert Gretchen Rubin has some ideas.
“I am so exhausted at the end of the day I can barely move”
A grandmother in Oklahoma finds babysitting both magical and tiring.
The secret to this mother’s success is her own mother
If you have to bring your kids along on business trips, it helps to bring their grandma, too.
Three generations. Three species. One home.
My sister’s family tried living at my parents’ house. Chaos ensued.
Calvin Trillin, grandfather: He babysits. He spoils. He turns the kids into movie stars.
When he’s not writing some of the best humor and journalism of our time, Trillin spends a lot of time grandparenting.