Welcome to the new ‘normal’

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Dear Grandparenting: To introduce myself, I am a 67-year-old grandmother generally in charge of raising my grandchildren, ages 6 and 8, because their mother works like the dickens to pay the bills.

Most of the time it’s no sweat. I know what to do and generally feel competent to handle what comes up, except for this one thing. My grandkids are asking questions about sex!

This sort of thing cropped up when my two kids were teenagers. I stumbled through like parents do. Being so young and all, my grandkids are way ahead of the curve. I won’t repeat any of their questions, but let’s just say some are for mature audiences only. Can you provide some help and maybe some general guidelines?

Zelda Martin, Framingham, MA

Dear Zelda: Welcome to the new normal. Kids catch on sooner today, thanks to the internet and our permissive society. Back in our day, sex was something some didn’t begin to fathom until their teenage years.

Here’s one book that’s a good starting point, “Everything You Never Wanted Your Kids To Know About Sex (But Were afraid They’d Ask)” by Justin Richardson and Mark Shuster. According to the authors, it’s all about the “secrets of surviving your child’s sexual development from birth to the teens.” Using peer-reviewed studies and research that support their findings and recommendations, the authors avoid preaching and moral judgments, and there’s much to be said for that.

The very thought of such a conversation makes many grandparents break out in a cold sweat. But it’s a good bet that your grandchild’s void of sexual knowledge will be filled sooner rather than later. Don’t let someone put the wrong kind of ideas into their little heads.

Grand remark of the week:

Anne Williams from Kingsport, TN overheard her granddaughter Alexa sharing a bit of wisdom with younger brother Biff.

“Grandparents might want to give you a kiss,” warned Alexa. “And if you wipe that one off, then they might want to give you another.”

https://www.sidneydailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/47/2022/11/Tom-and-Dee-byline.pdf

Tom and Dee and Cousin Key

Dee and Tom, married more than 50 years, have eight grandchildren. Together with Key, they welcome questions, suggestions and Grand Remarks of the Week. Send to P.O. Box 27454, Towson, MD, 21285. Call 410-963-4426.

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