HOW TO BE A MODERN GRANNY
Put down your knitting! Author Jane Corry, 66, says there’s a new type of grandma in town
Roller skating along the promenade, I laced hands with my six-year-old granddaughter Rose and we spun around to face the other direction. ‘Here we come!’ I called out to my grandson George, four, as he waited for his turn.
After an hour on our skates, it was time for ice cream with as much sickly sauce and as many chocolatey toppings as their hearts desired. Of course, that always got me in trouble with their mum but, for me, this is what being a granny is all about.
It was early evening in December six years ago when the phone rang. My daughter Lucy’s voice sang out with pure joy, ‘Mum. We’ve got a little girl!’
Before then, when friends had become grandparents, I hadn’t really seen what the fuss was about. I’d done my fair share of nappy changing and school runs with my three children, now in their 30s, and was busy writing my novels, playing tennis, swimming in the sea and doing my weekly Spanish lessons. I hadn’t really given much thought to the next stage. So I was totally unprepared for that rush of love when I first laid eyes on my lovely little Rose.
My daughter and son-in-law moved near us before they got pregnant because I’d always said I’d help out. And when my daughter went back to work, I looked after Rose for two days a week – and little George, too, when he arrived 20 months later.
DOING IT HER WAY
From day one, I’d wanted to take after my own grandmother, who’d been quite eccentric. Even though I’d been quite a strict parent, I was more spontaneous and flexible with my grandchildren when it came to rules and bedtimes. Often, when I pick them up from school, we go down to the sea and have an ice cream on the beach – even in winter. They love painting my nails and raiding my jewellery box like a pair of little magpies, too! Of course, there are times when being so carefree has backfired, such as one time when Rose refused to let me dress her for nursery. I eventually bribed her with a large packet of chocolate buttons for breakfast…
Rose and George call me ‘Gan Gan’, a name I made up for something a bit different. They realised recently that, spelt backward, it’s ‘Nag Nag’, which they find hilarious!
We’re always laughing. Recently, they covered me with stick-on tattoos, which I sported until they fell off – and friends thought they were real. And, while they know I’m terrified of heights, my grandchildren love putting me on the zip wire at the local playground!
I used to work from home when my own children were small, and would try to keep them quiet if editors rang. Now I’m happy to say, ‘I can’t talk at the moment, I’m looking after my grandchildren.’ It’s part of modern life.
My advice to new grannies? Be yourself and have lots of fun. Your grandchildren will love you for it.
Jane’s novel We All Have Our Secrets (£7.99, Penguin) is published in June. To pre-order, visit linktr.ee/janecorry
‘THEY PUT ME ON THE ZIP WIRE!’