My 12 Grandchildren Live Overseas
What is a grandparent to do? My 12 grandchildren live in four different countries, all outside the U.S.
GRANDCHILDRENLONG DISTANCE GRANDPARENTING
Daniel Dore
11/1/20232 min read
HELP! Our 12 Grandchildren are Living Abroad!
When we took our children to Africa, we were so full of the adventure of it all we didn't realize what our parents were going through. We were taking their grandchildren overseas for a four-year term of service. They were supportive on the outside, but, looking back, I wonder how hard it was on the inside.
Now it is our turn. We have four children, and when I started this article idea, we had all twelve of our grandchildren living in four different countries--outside the U.S. Four in Africa, two in Brazil, three in Papua New Guinea, and three in Canada.
After 28 years in Africa, we settled back in our home state of New Hampshire. To see any of our grandkids, we had to travel seven hours to Ottawa, Canada. These were the closest of all our grands.
I was working full time for the Post Office (I still am) so flying to Africa, Brazil or PNG all seemed out of the question. So how to get all the kids to schedule their furloughs (called stateside assignment these days) at the same time? That was the question. Or at least to overlap enough to try to organize a time when we could all be together in one place. Not so easily done.
I guess we deserved it, for taking our kiddos away from their grandparents for four years, and then another four years, and then another. For us it was such an adventurous journey. After our first four years, on the trip home, we visited Paris. The next return stateside we toured Holland. On the third trip home we got to see London. And the fourth was Paris again. Each one was a senior trip of sorts for one of our children, the oldest one at that time. He or she would be going home to NH with us, only to stay behind and not return to Africa with the rest of the family.
We now have 13 grandchildren. With recent family transitions, there are nine living in the U.S., and four living overseas. Of the nine living in this country, two are in college, in West Virginia, while their parents are in Africa. Four are living in Arkansas, at home. And three are at home in New York state. They are the closest. What a treat to be able to see our closest grands by driving just four hours! It is all a matter of perspective. . . .
