For most of this year the Grandma Grandpa train (blog #44) had been churning up quite the miles traveling from one grandkid destination to another. We get a call, or make a call and zoom – the train is in motion – destination …hug city. A few weeks ago the train took a break from the motion mode and morphed into the Grandma Grandpa camp to allow a couple grandkids to take turns staying for a prolonged time at the “station”. Hopefully as each of the 5 grandchildren get older, the “camp” schedule will get fuller.

“Piece of cake – right?” Get the specific child’s parental rule book, prepare a game plan including games, acceptable tv shows & movies (screen time, as the parents call it), approved snacks, lists of places to go, medical records, favorite ice creams, allergy lists, medical power of attorney signatures etc… Not quite the same as when I was taken to my grandparents home. I was usually dropped off from a moving car with a note pinned to my shirt as to when they might be back! Actually our grandchildren’s parents (our kids) mostly just ask us to maintain some semblance of parental rule and try and keep a normal bed time routine (for their children – not for us). Don’t do anything crazy and just spoil them a bit. We can do that!

The past few years have been generically easy – change a diaper or two or twelve, play, feed, listen to them trying to talk and toddle around, gradually moving from baby to toddler to preschool with the intervening developing skills including potty training, using a sentence or two, and eating regular foods etc. We were used to hearing an occasional “no” and “why” and thinking how cute they are!

Something has changed!! Now they are talking (very fast) and reading (even in other languages), and doing math and they can read lips, and have super power hearing and run faster than me.

They are like little aliens – they know computers and tv remotes, – they can show me how to find a program in Netflix!, and they know how to work the stereo and Ipads and Iphones. Who are these children’s parents? I don’t know who they are – are we really related?

This past GG camp with our 7 year old (she was 1 week from being 7 so it counts) she beat me at scrabble, and chess and Putt Putt for heavens sake and just turned 7. Instead of “no” and “why” – it’s “I know, But why?” She asked me how the pulley systems work in the grandfather clock in the living room. Nobody knows that – you just pull the chains and the clock tells time. It used to be that I could just make up something that sounded cool and they would just toddle away – my job was done. But not now! Holy Moly. I go to my old stand by, tried and true answer – “go ask grandma”. Didn’t work – she was way ahead of me. “I already asked her and she said that was your area” she said with a furrowed brow – “so how does it work Grandpa?”

And how do they learn math so young? Suddenly I am being given math quizzes. “Grandpa what is 147 – 23 x 4?” (not just her, but our 4 year old grandson does the same thing). I get cold sweats and flashbacks to the SAT and GRE exams when they do this (if a polar bear is traveling East at 25 mph and the train was going South with 27 passengers with 12 apples…) Who is this kid? She doesn’t want the answer – she Knows the answer- she is testing me. They are all just like their mothers!

And her hearing is like a super power radar. I can be 3 rooms away whispering to Grandma and s-p-e-l-l-i-n-g out a special place to take our “camper” and 3 seconds later she is standing between us using her magical powers and saying “so what was it you were discussing about Chuck E Cheese? Are we going now?” She swore she never played Putt Putt before in her little life. Ha – now Grandpa can show HER how to do something. Good grief, she had a hole in one on the second hole and proceeded to keep score in her head the whole match. She would pick up her ball from each hole and leave mine laying there. She would walk away saying “your ball is in the hole Grandpa” . Gamesmanship – from a second grader. It was like I was back in junior high only now I am being schooled by a little princess.

Even a trip to the Library was daunting. I was going to show her how smart I am to be able to find the books she wanted (duh – I would just ask the lady at the counter). “No need Grandpa”. She proceeded to a computer, sat down, looked up her books of choice and told me if they were currently in stock and in which aisle we would find them. I’m surprised she didn’t just drive to the library herself and pick up the books. Oh wait , they probably do driver training in 3^rd grade.

We have had 2 “campers” stay at GG camp and we have loved every second of it. I assume the “campers” have had a ball and will convince the parents to let them come back. In the meantime the GG train is already back in motion. Currently it has 3 scheduled stops in 3 states and there are still 3 months left on this years train schedule. One thing we do know – the station will be full at Christmas when all the campers and their parents will be “home” for Christmas. I still have time to study my math.