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CHAPTER 1

ROCKING THE CRADLE

BEFORE THE BABY'S BORN:

Try not to ask: 'Should you be doing that in your condition?'

BEFORE THE BABY'S BORN:

A grandmother-to-be should try to avoid turning into a primitive 'Wise Woman', dangling keys or needles over the bump to predict gender.

BEFORE THE BABY'S BORN:

When its parents announce the name they have chosen for your grandchild, try not to wince – or, even worse, giggle.

BEFORE THE BABY'S BORN:

Don't suggest lending your books on pregnancy to the mum-to-be. Fashions in such matters have changed, and the gurus whose advice you followed have been long since discredited.

BEFORE THE BABY'S BORN:

If you want to retain any friends, try occasionally to talk to them about something other than the impending birth.

BEFORE THE BABY'S BORN:

Don't say to first-time parents-to-be, 'You'd better make the most of your freedom now. You won't have any social life once the baby's arrived.' It's true, but there's no point in depressing them before it happens.

WHAT NOT TO SAY AS A GRANDPARENT:

Avoid sentences which begin, 'I always gave you ...' and end, '... and you've turned out all right.'

WHAT NOT TO SAY AS A GRANDPARENT:

Try to avoid saying, 'In our day we just got on with it.'

WHAT NOT TO SAY AS A GRANDPARENT:

Or, 'The odd non-organic vegetable never hurt anyone.'

WHAT NOT TO SAY AS A GRANDPARENT:

Or, 'We didn't bother with any of that nonsense when you were a baby.'

WHAT NOT TO SAY AS A GRANDPARENT:

Never say to a first-time mum-to-be, 'You won't have time to be so fussy with the next one.' While undoubtedly true, it is not what she wants to hear.

WHAT NOT TO SAY AS A GRANDPARENT:

When your grandchild misbehaves, do not overreact by announcing, 'I'm going to change my will.'

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Excerpted from "Baby Tips For Grandparents"
by .
Copyright © 2017 Simon Brett.
Excerpted by permission of Summersdale Publishers Ltd.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

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