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A traditional gift is a simple picture frame with a photo of the new baby. You could even add a photo of the grandparent holding the new baby to make it more personal. If there is more than one grandchild, find a frame with the same amount of openings to celebrate each grandchild, including the new baby.
A photo album is another gift idea. Grandparents love to show off their beautiful grandchildren. Parents could mail updated photos once a month, and the grandparents will have a special place to put them. If they live nearby, they could always add their own photos as well.
A photo bracelet is a creative way to display and share pictures of the grandkids. It's similar to a locket, but it holds more pictures. -
A grandparent's legacy journal is one way for grandparents to share their life stories with their grandchildren (see Resources). The journal allows the grandparents to answer questions, for the grandchildren to find out more information about them and what they were like when they were growing up. They can even tell stories about what it was like raising their own children, the grandchild's mom or dad.
As the grandchildren get older, both the grandparents and grandchildren can begin writing letters to one another. Buy a journal or small notebook now as a gift for the new grandparents, for them to send back and forth to their grandchild later on. These will be treasured memories for many years to come. - If you are the baby's parents, one way to capture the early, precious moments is to make a plaster mold of the baby's hand or foot. Something similar would be to make a garden stepping stone by placing the child's hand or footprint in the center of the stepping stone. Decorate with stones or marbles to add color.
- If the grandparents say they don't want people to spend any money on them, you could offer to spend time with them and the grandchildren. If the grandparents don't live close to the new grandchild, offer to drive them for visits. If they don't feel comfortable spending time with the new baby, offer to help them babysit, and give the parents a night off.
