Blog | Nixplay

How to Stay Connected When Grandparenting From a Distance

Kimberlee Kiehl, Director of Operations, The Photo Managers

Next to the birth of your children, the birth of your grandbabies is one of the best moments in life. These little humans who share your genetics, remind you of your own children when they were little, and bring you so much joy are truly a gift. When they live far away it can be tough not to get to see them, hold them, and watch them grow in person. Three of my four grandchildren, my daughter’s children, live 10 hours away and have lived far away since they were each born, sometimes living all the way across the country. But we have managed to develop close relationships, and I feel like I am getting to watch them grow, thanks to a variety of technology. Notably, photos have played a huge part in building these relationships.

As a certified photo manager and a long-time scrapbook maker, I very much value photos. I believe they tell a story and that each of us has our own memories when we look at those photos. This love of photos has passed down to my daughter, and now to my grandchildren as well. One of our favorite “together” activities is to look through the scrapbooks I have made for them and share the stories that go with the pages. But when we are apart, we must find other ways to stay connected. Facetime, “snail mail” and our Nixplay frames play a huge role in helping us build and keep these connections.

Video calls are great for all generations

My 6-year-old granddaughter knows how to Facetime me on her mom’s phone and will often take the phone to her room for some “girl talk” or to read a book to me. My 4-year-old grandson wants to show me his latest Lego build. Even my 6-month-old granddaughter knows who I am on Facetime and gives me her huge smile when we chat! They also Facetime with my mom, their great grandma, on her iPad which allows her to feel connected to them too.

Printed gifts for special memories

I will often print photos and mail them to my grandkids after I have visited their house or they have visited mine. After a recent trip to Disneyland, where I surprised them by joining the trip, I sent each of them (even the 6-month-old) a small plastic 3×4 box with their name and embellishments on the outside and 3×4 printed photos of their individual experiences at Disney inside their boxes — including some photos with me in them. They can pull them out anytime and remember our experience together and the fun we had.

Nixplay frames for a daily connection

On a day-to-day basis it is the Nixplay frame that I have in my kitchen that provides me with the most consistent and updated photos of their lives. Both my daughter and I have one (mine was a gift for Christmas from my daughter!) and that frame is the first thing I see when I walk into the kitchen to get my morning coffee and the last thing I see when I turn the lights off to head to bed. Throughout the day, I see photos from years ago intermixed with ones from yesterday. And even better, I can watch short videos of my grandchildren as well! The three of them on the beach, the first day my newest granddaughter sat up, first grade concerts and preschool graduations. I can send them photos of what I am doing as well. These shared photos build connections between us and allow us to share life stories, even when far apart. These are the true joys of life.

Kim is the Director of Operations for The Photo Managers and the owner of Stories of a Life, LLC, a photo and story organizing business in Columbus, Ohio. For more information on managing your photo collection join The Photo Managers for Save Your Photos Month in September 2023 at https://thephotomanagers.com/save-your-photos-month/

Marie Kondo, the author of “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up” and “Spark Joy”, talks of how the process of sorting photos with her family was the project that brought her the most joy. She highly recommends viewing photos together as a family to encourage storytelling. Even the expert of decluttering realizes how important our personal photo collections are!

Research in psychology repeatedly shows that investing in making and sharing happy memories with family has a positive return on investment. A series of studies conducted by researchers Marshall Duke and Robyn Fivush at Emory University found that children who knew more of their family’s history had a stronger sense of control over their lives and higher self-esteem than children who did not know these stories. Further, the children with the most self-confidence had what the researchers call a strong “intergenerational self.” In other words, these children felt part of something bigger than themselves.

Children, even grown-up children, can draw on a bank of positive memories and family stories to help cope with more stressful or turbulent times. When families revisit memories with loved ones through photographs, bonds are strengthened, relationships deepen, and memory improves. It is also just plain fun to look back at the way things used to be, as time was passing before you realized it, as the children grew overnight, and as traditions were practiced over the years.

Here are 4 ways Grandparents can connect with their grandchildren:

1. Create Photo Albums: Printed photo books, scrapbooks, and photo albums don’t require technology to be enjoyed. You don’t need an internet connection, and you won’t need to migrate them to a new format to view them fifty years from now. When you combine images and words into a documentary-like narrative, you are creating a historical record for future generations with stories that you can celebrate and enjoy today.

2. Video Slide Shows: When you combine photos, videos, oral narratives, and music into a slideshow or montage, you create a living album filled with emotion and fun. Try adding music, oral narratives, or both, and the result is a living album filled with movement and sound that triggers your senses. Slideshows are a great option for family gatherings, special events, and celebrations. They can also be a fun option to enjoy on family movie night. Popcorn, PJs, and precious family memories—can it get any better than that?

3. Wall Galleries:  Are you looking for instant gratification while you work on that family archive or photo album? Decorate your home with the people you love! While you organize photos, you’ll come across pictures too good to keep hidden. Look for frame-worthy images that you can display on walls or turn into photo gifts for others.

4. Digital Photo Frames: This is an excellent choice for technology-challenged family members. This way of displaying image slideshows is perfect for people who want a quick, easy way to showcase their memories. It’s also really easy to regularly send photos and videos to your frame, adding to your family story as you go, especially with Nixplay’s easy to use digital frames.

Organizing, telling, and retelling the stories of your family’s good times as well as the stories of bouncing back from the difficult times, can result in more confident children and happier families. And nobody can do that better than Grandparents.

Cathi Nelson is the founder and CEO of The Photo Managers, but most importantly, she’s passionate about helping people organize their photos so they can share their photo legacy. If you need help or more ideas, check out Cathi’s best-selling book “Photo Organizing Made Easy: Going from Overwhelmed to Overjoyed”

Friendships play an important role throughout our lives. They’re a constant and valuable part of our community that offer essential companionship and support. In honor of International Friendship Day, we wanted to talk about the different types of friendships many of us have and how they evolve in adulthood. As we mature and our lives change, it’s natural to have friends that fit different roles or for those roles to change over time. The most important thing is that friends continue to show up for each other in a way only they know how. 

Childhood Friends: The First of Many Friendships

Childhood friends are special for all of us. Whether you met as neighbors, in grade school, or at summer camp, these friendships have strong foundations in shared memories and experiencing some of life’s first milestones together. Childhood friends know us in a way many others never will, and they provide a sense of familiarity and unwavering support. Distance, adult responsibilities, and busy schedules may mean we don’t see these friends as much or that we aren’t fully up-to-date on the latest happenings in each other’s lives, but it doesn’t lessen that foundational bond. Time apart just makes reconnecting with childhood friends that much more rewarding and nostalgic. 

Shared Hobby Friends: The Friendships With Overlapping Passions 

As adults, one of the most cherished types of friends we can have is one with whom we share a hobby. A friend you make via shared interests not only understands that passion, but also actively participates in it with you. Whether it’s spending time outside, playing sports, making music, or any other variety of interesting hobbies, this friend fuels your enthusiasm and is creating memories right alongside you. When you share a bond over a mutual love for an activity, it becomes a powerful connection that deepens your friendship and creates a foundation for a long lasting relationship. Having a friend who loves what you do, makes the things you enjoy that much more meaningful. 

Ride or Die Friends: The Best Friendships

If you’re lucky, you have a best friend that is there for you through thick and thin. In adulthood, weeks can pass without catching up, but as soon as you do it’s like you never skipped a beat. The ride or die friends are the type that would drop everything to support us, and probably have at some point or another. They know you better than anyone and have the power to bring joy, comfort and a sense of belonging. They’re who you go to when you need advice or when you just need to vent — and they know the difference between the two. 

For many adults, friendships take on different forms and serve different roles. There are many more types of friends than what we can list here, and they’re all essential to forming a well rounded support system. While we might not have the same consistency that we did in the past, it’s now easier than ever to stay in touch. The internet allows us to check in with friends near and far in many different ways. We now have the ability to e-mail friends on different continents or reconnect with ones we haven’t seen in years through social media. Nixplay even offers digital frames that can be updated via shared playlists. So you can gift frames to friends and share photos via the frames that you’ll see everyday. It’s a great way to stay connected and see what everyone is up to, and it might even prompt an extra phone call or text message from time to time. However you choose to keep in touch, we hope you check in with your friends for International Friendship Day.