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Rod Stewart’s second grandchild in just three days!

<p>It’s been an exciting week for British icon Rod Stewart as he’s been blessed with a second grandchild just three days after the <a href="https://www.oversixty.co.nz/lifestyle/family-pets/rod-stewart-s-son-gives-touching-nod-to-dad-in-new-baby-s-name" target="_blank" rel="noopener">birth of his grandson</a> Louie.</p> <p>The singer’s daughter has just welcomed a baby boy into the world.</p> <p>Ruby, 35, is the rocker’s daughter, who he shares with ex Kelly Emberg.</p> <p>The new mum announced the news on Instagram, revealing she and fiancé Jake Kalick had welcomed a boy named Otis Stewart Kalick.</p> <p>"This love… unlike any other love I've ever known," Ruby wrote alongside a sweet series of snaps of her new bub.</p> <p>"I am only a mirror of what I feel from you… I can't remember what life was like before you…. But nothing else matters now that you're here… Your arrival into the world marks the beginning of our family… it all started with you Otis."</p> <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CsOr_dCM6XX/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CsOr_dCM6XX/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by 𝐑 𝐔 𝐁 𝐘 𝐒 𝐓 𝐄 𝐖 𝐀 𝐑 𝐓 (@rubystewart)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>Ruby’s sister Renee Stewart commented, “Love you so much… can’t wait to meet you Otis! Aunty Nay Nay x”</p> <p>While the singer's ex-wife Rachel Hunter wrote, “Beautiful. Love you"</p> <p>Ruby announced the exciting news on Mother’s Day after the arrival of Otis on May 9.</p> <p>Kalick also took to Instagram to share photos of his newborn, writing, "Otis Stewart Kalick showed up, 12 days late for his reservation, happy and healthy. Otis' Mom is incredible. Happy first Mother's Day <a href="https://www.instagram.com/rubystewart/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">@rubystewart</a>."</p> <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CsOwvtqLIFq/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CsOwvtqLIFq/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Jake Kalick (@itsjakeyouguys)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>Stewart, 77, has eight children and Otis' birth marks his third grandchild.</p> <p>Ruby is Stewart’s only child with ex Emberg. The couple dated in the late 1980s and split in 1990.</p> <p><em>Image credit: Instagram</em></p>

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Woman with 600 descendants poses for "special" family photo

<p>A 98-year-old woman from Kentucky in the US has welcomed a brand new great-great-great-grandchild.</p> <p>MaeDell Taylor Hawkins held seven-month-old Zhavia Whitaker while surrounded by her daughter and grandchildren as they posted for the incredible family photo.</p> <p>The photo was posted by the matriarch's granddaughter Gracie Snow Howell and has since gone viral.</p> <p>MaeDell now has 600 direct descendants – thanks to her daughters and grandchildren all having children of their own when they were 19 years of age.</p> <p>We thought this was special because it's all girls," Gracie, who appeared alongside MaeDell, told <a href="https://people.com/human-interest/six-generations-women-pose-sweet-family-photo/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><em>People</em></a> magazine.</p> <p>The viral photo features MaeDell's daughter Frances Snow, granddaughters Gracie Snow Howell, great-granddaughter Jacqueline Ledford and great-great-granddaughter, and Zhavia's mother, Jaisline Wilson.</p> <p>Gracie recalled MaeDell's long life, as she prepares for her 99th birthday celebrations in July.</p> <p>MaeDell first married in 1940 when she was 16 to a 50-year-old railroad worker with 10 children from a previous relationship, <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/lifestyle/kentucky-woman-230-great-great-grandchildren-meets-great-great-great-grandchild-see-photo" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><em>Fox News</em></a> reported.</p> <p>Her husband Bill Taylor was frequently away for work but the two managed to have 13 kids together, Gracie told the news outlet.</p> <p>"I know she had it hard, but she didn't complain," Gracie told <em>People</em>.</p> <p>MaeDell's love and sacrifice for her family has set the foundation for her future generations, with the family already planning to take an updated family photo for MaeDell's upcoming birthday.</p> <p>"If everything goes well, the baby's doing well, Grandma's doing well - we're all going to meet back in June and get another picture," Gracie told the news outlet.</p> <p>When tallying up Hawkins' biological and step-descendants, she is linked to 623 people, according to a family chart made by Janice Taylor, her daughter-in-law.</p> <p>In terms of direct descendants, she now has 106 grandchildren, 222 great-grandchildren, 234 great-great-grandchildren and 38 great-great-great-grandchildren combined, thanks to the joyous arrival of baby Zhavia.</p> <p><em>Image credits: Facebook</em></p>

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Demi Moore announces the start of her "hot kooky unhinged grandma era"

<p dir="ltr">Demi Moore is excited to be surrounded by kids once again after announcing her daughter’s pregnancy.</p> <p dir="ltr">The 60-year-old first shared snaps to Instagram of her daughter Rumer Willis’s pregnant belly and her boyfriend, Derek Richard Thomas kissing it.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Entering my hot kooky unhinged grandma era,” she wrote with a plant emoji indicating her grandchild has a bit longer to go.</p> <p dir="ltr">In another post, the actress shares an update where she and her daughters, Tallulah and Scout, are standing next to Rumer as she waits for her ultrasound.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Saying hello to the little nibblet!! Overjoyed for you, my sweet Rumer. It’s an honor to witness your journey into motherhood, and can’t wait to welcome this baby into the world!” her caption read.</p> <p dir="ltr">“So grateful for my incredible lineage of women in my family. I love you all so much. This baby is so lucky to have you guys,” Rumur responded.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Also shoutout to Pilaf we couldn’t do it without you.”</p> <p dir="ltr">Rumur’s child will be Demi’s first grandchild and her fans are already congratulating her on the exciting news.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Holiday blessings abound. Congratulations @rumerwillis,” someone wrote.</p> <p dir="ltr">“So excited for you all!!! What a blessing,” another commented.</p> <p dir="ltr">“So happy for Rumer! She’s going to be a great mom,” another wrote.</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Images: Instagram</em></p>

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How grandchild proof is your home?

<p>We all have adventurous little ones in our life who are full of beans and personalities who love nothing more than to explore everywhere and anywhere. Is your home safe for these explorers?</p> <p>It’s a given: little ones can (and will!!!) climb and crawl anywhere and everywhere! Here we have a few helpful tips to ensure your home is a safe place for young children to explore explore!</p> <p>Did you know that accidental falls are among the most common types of injuries that are sustained in the home when it comes to children? Given this, you’ll want to make every effort to keep stairs and hallways clear and clutter-free to make room for your child to explore without tripping. It might also be a good idea to consider temporary fencing around stairways, steps and hallways. Safety gates at the top or bottom of stairs should be securely fastened to the wall and have a locked handle that can be used with one hand. These will prevent toddlers from climbing stairs unsupervised.</p> <p>As you all probably know, grandchildren love to climb, look at everything and pull on anything in their sight. To make sure spaces are as safe as possible, guard any hazards you can see when you look around the house. For instance, conceal window locks and blind cords from adventurous babies. Furthermore, ensure window, back doors and so on are locked</p> <p>Modern technology has many benefits and it’s a tool you can use to help with safeguarding your home. For example, place baby monitors around the home. Baby monitors can provide you peace of mind and now also connect to a smartphone, tablet, laptop or computer allowing them to be managed through a wireless network for parents on the go.</p> <p>Lastly, many child safety products can be DIY installed and keep children safe from hazards such as sharp corners on drawers and tables, power points and stairs. Do a search on the internet or head to your local hardware store or places like Target or Kmart for budget-friendly options. </p> <p><em>Image: Getty Images</em></p>

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Video of Queen Elizabeth playing with first grandchild resurfaces

<p>Royal fans have gone wild over a resurfaced clip of the late Queen Elizabeth playing with her first grandchild when he was just a child. </p> <p>In honour of Peter Phillips' 45th birthday, a royal fan account on Instagram shared the historic video of Her Majesty playing with Phillips in 1978. </p> <p>The video showed an intimate moment in the royal nursery at Buckingham Palace, as Princess Anne presented her son Peter to her mother, the Queen.</p> <p>As the mother and daughter sat on a floral patterned sofa, they were joined by one of the Queen's many dogs - which seemed to delight the one-year-old Peter as he gurgled and smiled.</p> <p>Meanwhile his grandmother, the Queen, could be seen smiling down at him.</p> <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/Ck-rLguIkp6/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/Ck-rLguIkp6/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Windsor Royal Family (@windsor.royal.family)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>The clip was shared to Instagram with the caption, "Happy 45th birthday to Peter Phillips."</p> <p>"Queen Elizabeth II with her daughter, The Princess Royal and grandson, 13 months old Peter at Buckingham Palace in December 1978."</p> <p>The video has racked up over 10,000 likes, with a flood of comments praising the late Queen for always being a doting grandmother. </p> <p>One person wrote, "The Queen was such a sweet grandmother."</p> <p>Another royal fan said, "Wonderful. Her first grandchild. She looks so happy. Missing our Queen so much."</p> <p>"I love how much the Queen loved her dogs, let them on her furniture, loved her grandbabies and taught them about loving pets too," said a third.</p> <p>"You can tell so much about people who are kind to animals. God bless beautiful Queen Elizabeth. Happy Birthday Peter Phillips."</p> <p><em>Image credits: Instagram</em></p>

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Grandma gives birth to her own grandchild

<p dir="ltr">While it might be her fifth time welcoming a grandchild, the way this US woman has done so is a first for her and her family.</p> <p dir="ltr">Nancy Hauck gave birth to her granddaughter Hannah last week, according to the <em>New York Post</em>, and did so for a special reason.</p> <p dir="ltr">The 56-year-old from Utah offered to be a surrogate for her son Jeff and his wife Cambria after her daughter-in-law experienced a traumatic birth and underwent a life-saving hysterectomy.</p> <p dir="ltr">Speaking to <a href="https://people.com/human-interest/utah-grandmother-gives-birth-son-daughter-in-law-baby-feeling-so-blessed/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><em>People</em></a> magazine, Ms Hauck said giving birth to her granddaughter “went perfectly” and that they are feeling “so blessed to have her in our family”.</p> <p dir="ltr">She said the nine-hour labour was a “remarkable and spiritual experience”, but admitted to feeling “some sadness” since the birth.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Even though I know that the baby’s going to my son, I know there’ll be a little bit of that empty feeling,” she said.</p> <p><span id="docs-internal-guid-8b8cb539-7fff-98da-9dd5-146942999604"></span></p> <p dir="ltr">Now, the grandmother plans to take a break from work and write a book about her experience.</p> <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CkihR3cMu-0/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CkihR3cMu-0/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Cambria Hauck (@cambriairene)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p dir="ltr">Her son and daughter-in-law were high school sweethearts and always knew they wanted a big family.</p> <p dir="ltr">“From the time I was a teenager, I knew that if I could only be one thing, I wanted to be a dad,” Jeff told <em>People</em>.</p> <p dir="ltr">"We always had in our mind that we wanted four to six — whatever the Lord would bless us with, is what we would always say," Cambria added.</p> <p dir="ltr">But, the couple struggled to fall pregnant for six years before having two sets of twins, four-year-old Vera and Ayva and 13-month-old Diesel and Luca, through IVF.</p> <p dir="ltr">After giving birth the second time in 2021, Cambria was advised to have a hysterectomy and was unable to safely carry more children - which is when Ms Hauck stepped in.</p> <p dir="ltr">Starting hormone treatments in January this year, Ms Hauck injected herself every day for 12 weeks with the help of her husband Jason.</p> <p dir="ltr"><span id="docs-internal-guid-e9b25e37-7fff-f21e-015b-b8223b6704d8"></span></p> <p dir="ltr">A month later, a fertilised embryo created by Jeff and Cambria through IVF was transferred to Ms Hauck and she became pregnant with her grandchild.</p> <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CgvWEb_LtM2/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CgvWEb_LtM2/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Cambria Hauck (@cambriairene)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p dir="ltr">According to the couple, baby Hannah’s name has a special meaning and is a tribute to her grandmother.</p> <p dir="ltr">Jeff said that six days after the transfer, when his mother tested positive on a pregnancy test, she was “woken up in the middle of the night, and she heard a little voice that said, ‘My name is Hannah’”.</p> <p dir="ltr">Ms Hauck was also convinced her grandchild was a girl even before testing, and soon convinced Jeff and Cambria as well.</p> <p dir="ltr">Cambria explained that they discovered that “the name Nancy comes from Hannah” and that “they both mean grace”.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I knew instantly that that was her name,” the 30-year-old added.</p> <p dir="ltr">Since Hannah’s birth, Ms Hauck and her husband have been adjusting to the idea of being her grandparents.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I hope that we won’t treat Hannah any differently,” Jason said.</p> <p dir="ltr">“But we’ll always have that connection — that Nancy carried her for nine months. Just the magic of the whole experience will always be unique in our eyes.”</p> <p dir="ltr">Ms Hauck added that she wants all of her grandchildren to know that they’re equally loved and she “would’ve done it for any of them”.</p> <p dir="ltr"><span id="docs-internal-guid-fa4cd013-7fff-2175-632c-b33d2ecaa8ce"></span></p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image: @cambriairene (Instagram)</em></p>

Family & Pets

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Woman welcomes 100th great-grandchild ahead of her 100th birthday

<p dir="ltr">A 99-year-old woman has celebrated her 100th birthday early, with the arrival of her 100th great-grandchild. </p> <p dir="ltr">Marguerite Koller, from Pennsylvania in the US, will be celebrating becoming a centenarian in the coming months. </p> <p dir="ltr">However, Marguerite and her family are marking the occasion early with the birth of her 100th great-grandchild, Koller William, named after her late husband. </p> <p dir="ltr">“I'm just thinking how lucky I am,” Marguerite told <a href="https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/montgomery-county-woman-100th-great-grandchild/3331133/">NBC Philadelphia</a> as she held the newest addition to the family, which also includes 11 children and 56 grandchildren.</p> <p dir="ltr">She makes the effort to be there for every baptism and graduation, her family has said in the past, and “has created an amazing legacy spanning through generations,” her granddaughter, Christine Balster, told the local news station.</p> <p dir="ltr">However, Marguerite’s large family almost didn’t happen, as she planned to join a convent and become a nun. </p> <p dir="ltr">She applied to join the local convent when she was a junior in high school, she told <a href="https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/montgomery-county-woman-100th-great-grandchild/3331133/">6 ABC</a> back in 2015, but by the early 1940s, she met William Koller, who she said “talked me out of it.”</p> <p dir="ltr">The couple then welcomed their first child in the Baby Boom after World War II, when Marguerite knew she wanted to have a large family.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I wanted to have a big family. I think it's difficult being an only child — it's lonely.”</p> <p dir="ltr">The couple went on to have 11 children over the span of almost 20 years. </p> <p dir="ltr">Their kids then had a total of 56 grandchildren, who are now the parents of 100 great-grandchildren. </p> <p dir="ltr">She has since credited that big family with keeping her active, and making her feel blessed every holiday even after her husband died in 2008.</p> <p dir="ltr">“It worked out beautifully,” she said.</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image credits: Youtube - NBC Philadelphia</em></p>

Family & Pets

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Australian woman gives birth to own grandchild

<p dir="ltr">54-year-old Tasmanian woman Maree Arnold has given birth to her own grandson after acting as a surrogate for her 28-year-old daughter Meagan White.</p> <p dir="ltr">Meagan has no uterus and was unable to conceive, so her mum suggested the idea of acting as a gestational carrier. Meagan was diagnosed with Mayer-Rokitansky-Küster-Hauser syndrome at the age of 17 after not menstruating during puberty. MRKH is a rare disorder that affects one in 5000 women, and the syndrome means that while Meagan has no uterus, she does have working ovaries, so she is able to have a biological child with the help of a surrogate.</p> <p dir="ltr">The baby, named Winston, was safely delivered following a short two-hour labour on January 13th. Ms Arnold told<span> </span><em>Sunrise</em>, “We arrived at the hospital at 7 am and by 9 am he was born, it was so quick and organised.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I feel really well considering it’s only been a week, so it’s amazing.”</p> <p dir="ltr">Arnold, who had previously appeared on<span> </span><em>Sunrise<span> </span></em>last year while pregnant, told Kochie and Nat, “If I had my time again, I would do the same thing, it worked out perfectly.”</p> <p dir="ltr">Ms White said she was loving being a first-time mum to Winston, who is “not giving us too much grief” and sleeping well. Of his birth, she said, “It’s hard to describe the feeling of when he was born. It was definitely a pinching myself moment.”</p> <p dir="ltr">Experts say mother-daughter surrogacy is very rare and it’s recommended that gestational carriers are under 40 years of age. However, another older mum, 51-year-old Julie Loving from Chicago,<span> </span><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.oprahdaily.com/life/relationships-love/a33013266/mother-becomes-surrogate-for-daughter/" target="_blank">made headlines</a><span> </span>in 2020 after carrying her daughter’s baby.</p> <p dir="ltr">Loving volunteered after watching her daughter Breanna Lockwood struggle with fertility issues for four years. The family welcomed a daughter, Briar, in November 2020, with Lockwood writing on Instagram, “My mom was an absolute rockstar through a difficult delivery. The sacrifices she took to bring this little slice of heaven into our world takes my breath away. Holding my daughter in my arms my heart is bursting. The feeling of how I would do absolutely anything needed for this child is radiating through me when I look at her, and reflects back on what my mom did for me.”</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image: Channel 7</em></p>

Family & Pets

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Sarah Ferguson praises "grandpa" Prince Andrew

<p>Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, gave a special shoutout to "grandpa" Prince Andrew after the birth of their first grandchild.</p> <p>During a reading of the book<span> </span><em>The Unicorn and the Lost Cat</em><span> </span>by Claire Philip, the Duchess reads: "Mums and dads, aunts and uncles," she started by saying before adding with a knowing look and pointing to the camera: "Granny and grandpa!"</p> <div class="embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9"><iframe class="embed-responsive-item" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/XN1vqZLgU2U"></iframe></div> <div class="post_body_wrapper"> <div class="post_body"> <div class="body_text redactor-styles redactor-in"> <p>This is due to Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank welcoming their first child on Tuesday, a son, whose name has not been revealed as of yet.</p> <p>The Duchess of York couldn't be happier with her first grandson, as she posted on Instagram after the pregnancy announcement that she "cannot wait to be a grandmother".</p> <p>"Welcoming a new baby into the York family is going to be a moment of profound joy," she said.</p> </div> </div> </div>

Relationships

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"Such wonderful news": Queen thrilled at birth of ninth great-grandchild

<div class="post_body_wrapper"> <div class="post_body"> <div class="body_text redactor-styles redactor-in"> <p>The Queen has expressed her delight at the birth of her ninth great-grandchild as Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank welcomed their first child, a boy, overnight.</p> <p>Buckingham Palace released the following statement on behalf of the Queen herself.</p> <p>"The Queen, The Duke of Edinburgh, The Duke of York, Sarah, Duchess of York, and Mr and Mrs George Brooksbank have been informed and are delighted with the news," it reads.</p> <p>"This is Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank's first child, The Duke of York and Sarah, Duchess of York's first grandchild, and the ninth great-grandchild for The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh. Her Royal Highness and her child are both doing well."</p> <p>Princess Eugenie made the announcement with a sweet post on her Instagram.</p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CLFEI96lHW1/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="13"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CLFEI96lHW1/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by Princess Eugenie (@princesseugenie)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>Princess Eugenie's parents, Prince Andrew, the Duke of York and Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York are yet to publicly comment about the arrival of their first grandchild, but Ferguson liked the official announcement on social media.</p> <p>The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are understood to have privately congratulated the couple, but the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Princess Beatrice are yet to comment publicly on the birth.</p> <p>There is no word yet as to what the baby will be named, as the royal family typically wait two days before publicly sharing a baby's name to the media.</p> </div> </div> </div>

Family & Pets

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Michael Douglas sees his one-month-old grandson for the first time

<p>Michael Douglas has finally gotten the opportunity to meet his one-month-old grandson for the first time - and the doting grandpa shared a beautiful photo of the touching moment.</p> <p>The 76-year-old and his wife Catherine Zeta-Jones announced last month that he had become a grandfather once again after his son Cameron Douglas welcomed his first son Ryder.</p> <p>In the heartwarming photograph, Michael is seen cradling his tiny grandson with a bottle in one hand and a burp cloth draped over his shoulder.</p> <p>“First time I’ve seen my month old grandson, Ryder!” he captioned the black and white photo.</p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CKOnQNyMT_D/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="13"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CKOnQNyMT_D/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by Michael Douglas (@michaelkirkdouglas)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>This is Michael's second grandchild.</p> <p>Catherine took to her own Instagram to share the happy news, posting a beautiful family photo of Cameron, his girlfriend Viviane Thibes - who had their newborn son Ryder in her arms - and their three-year-old daughter Lua.</p> <p>"And a new Douglas is born!!!!! Welcome to the world Ryder T Douglas," she captioned the image on her Instagram Story.</p> <p>Michael and Catherine shared some funny comments under Cameron's post of the same image.</p> <p>Pointing out how unamused little Lua appears in the family photo over her little brother's arrival, Catherine wrote: "Lua's Face! Like......'whatever.......' Hilarious! Congrats!!" Michael added: "So happy for Vivian and you. Don’t think Lua is sure about this yet! What a holiday present."</p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CJHWr74nA1X/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="13"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CJHWr74nA1X/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by Cameron Douglas (@cameronmorrelldouglas)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>Cameron is 76-year-old Michael's only child with his first wife Diandra Luker; the former couple was married from 1977 until 1995.</p> <p>He has two half-siblings – Dylan Michael, 20, and Carys Zeta, 17, from Michael's marriage to Catherine.</p>

Family & Pets

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Major warning signs your grandchild is a bully

<p>With one out of every four children getting bullied, it's a growing epidemic. But what if your child is the bully? Experts share the signs that indicate your child might be the one causing the trouble.</p> <p><strong>They justify bad behaviour</strong></p> <p>Bullies may attempt to shift blame to the victim rather than themselves. Licensed professional counsellor Jay Clark says a behaviour that tends to correlate with bullying is when a child fails to recognise their actions may be contributing to a problem. Emotions may quickly escalate in intensity in a child with bullying tendencies, and they feel justified in treating another child badly. They may feel the other child ‘has it coming’.</p> <p><strong>They have friends who act aggressively</strong></p> <p>Children who bully often don’t have a shortage of friends. In reality, they usually have a large network of friends and a smaller, intimate group that encourages bullying behaviour, according to the Pacer Centre. No parent wants to find out their child is ill-behaved towards other students. However, if your child’s friends are mean towards other kids, or if they engage in some other type of bullying, your child might be participating in bullying as well.</p> <p><strong>They have difficulty sleeping</strong></p> <p>A 2011 study by the University of Michigan, published in the <em>Sleep Medicine</em> journal, revealed children with aggressive or bullying tendencies were twice as likely to exhibit sleep-disordered breathing problems like snoring or daytime sleepiness. While this study doesn’t prove sleep disorders actually cause bullying, it does show a possible link between sleep problems and contentious behaviour. A lack of sleep impairs mood and decision-making. If you think your child has sleep issues, a visit to the doctor might be a beneficial step to curb potential bullying.</p> <p><strong>They get in trouble at school</strong></p> <p>When Tori Cody received a call from the assistant director of her son’s preschool telling her she needed to talk to her son because he was “messing” with another boy, she felt shocked, saddened and embarrassed. “How could my four-year-old be a bully?” she asked. Realising she needed to take his aggressive behaviour seriously, she sprang into action. She began frequent talks with her son challenging him to consider how he would feel if someone behaved towards him in the same manner he behaved towards his classmate. Though it’s a work in progress, Cody has seen an improvement in her son’s actions at school.</p> <p><strong>They have behavioural problems</strong></p> <p>“Certain behaviours, if elevated, tend to correlate with bullying,” says Clark. Children who are hot-tempered, easily frustrated, impulsive, prone to fighting, and lack empathy towards others have a higher risk of being bullies. Some children may even brag about handling conflict by fighting.</p> <p><strong>They live in a violent home</strong></p> <p>If a child is in a home where they’re seeing violence, or they too are victims of violent behaviour, they are more likely to react violently in pressure situations.  Frustration builds up in kids who experience violence, Clark says. When an explosion of anger is modelled in the home, similarly, they might be inclined to take out their own anger on other children.</p> <p><strong>They have experienced bullying first-hand</strong></p> <p>Occasionally, children who have been the target of bullying will become bullies in an effort to regain some control over their lives. This was the case for Mischa van Loder, whose seven-year-old daughter began getting in trouble after she was the victim. Van Loder credits encouraging her daughter into friendship groups with positive role models as a key to curtailing her daughter’s behaviour. “Parental presence is everything in this situation,” she says. “Without support, love and lots of investigation, the problem is difficult to solve.”</p> <p><strong>They act aggressively towards their siblings</strong></p> <p>Clark suggests if you have more than one child, monitor how they’re treating the other siblings. If they display aggression towards their siblings, it’s likely they may also demonstrate aggression towards their peers.</p> <p><strong>They spend a lot of time online</strong></p> <p>With cyberbullying on the rise, Clark cautions parents to monitor their child’s internet use. There’s a level of anonymity that occurs online, allowing children to say things they might not otherwise say to another child face-to-face.</p> <p><strong>They’re intolerant towards children who are different</strong></p> <p>Licensed clinical social worker Carmen Berzinski says some children she works with show a lack of ability or willingness to accept kids who are different (diverse ethnic backgrounds, gender, disabilities, sexual orientation, etc). In an attempt to exert some control over these differences, a bully might engage in name-calling, sending harsh messages via text or social media, and fighting. For parents, Berzinki has this advice, “Nurture empathy and create opportunities for your child to do good. Reward your child for the positive steps forward they take.”</p> <p>Written by  Jenny Lelwica Buttaccio. This article first appeared in Reader’s Digest. For more of what you love from the world’s best-loved magazine, <a href="https://readersdigest.innovations.co.nz/c/readersdigestemailsubscribe?utm_source=over60&amp;utm_medium=articles&amp;utm_campaign=RDSUB&amp;keycode=WRN87V">here’s our best subscription offer.</a></p> <p><img style="width: 100px !important; height: 100px !important;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7820640/1.png" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/f30947086c8e47b89cb076eb5bb9b3e2" /></p>

Caring

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Grandma bans grandchild, 5, from visiting her home

<p>A shocked mum has lashed out at her husband’s family after the grandmother banned their five-year-old daughter from visiting.</p> <p>The reason for the ban is due to a nickname given to the grandchild by the grandmother.</p> <p>The couple’s daughter is named Collette, but her mother-in-law has given her a nickname called “Letters”.</p> <p>Mum admits that “it’s not the greatest nickname in the world”, but it hasn’t been a problem until now.</p> <p>Her daughter recently asked her mum why grandma calls her letters.</p> <p>“Why does grandma call me letters? My name is Colette," she said.</p> <p>Mum explained that it was a nickname, but Colette quickly decided that it was weird and didn’t like it being used.</p> <p>Mum took charge and politely said to Colette that she can asked to be called by her name if she doesn’t like the nickname.</p> <p>Shortly after the exchange, her husband took their daughter Colette to visit his family, but received an angry phone call from her mother-in-law after the visit.</p> <p>"She tells me that it was really rude for Colette to say she didn't like her nickname and that I shouldn't have told her to say that,” the mum explained.</p> <p>"She said I was raising her to be bratty. She also said that Colette couldn't come over until she apologised and says that she likes being called Letters."</p> <p>"That last part p***ed me off. I told her 'what the f***? You're banning a five-year-old from your house for not liking a stupid nickname'. Then I hung up on her."</p> <p>Asking if she had overreacted to what happened, one Reddit user was quick to defend her daughter’s choice.</p> <p>"Good for you for teaching your daughter to stand up for herself and for doubling down by standing up for her. MIL needs to apologise to the 5-year old for not respecting her name request,” one commenter said.</p> <p>A second commented: "Your daughter is being more mature than her."</p> <p>"I’m honestly just sort of in disbelief your mother-in-law could be old enough to be a grandma and act like that,” a third commenter said.</p>

Relationships

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5 tips to help ease your grandchild back into school mode after the holidays

<p>Most children in Australia are going back to school in just over a week. Children experience a <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/children-australia/article/selfreported-perceptions-readiness-and-psychological-wellbeing-of-primary-school-students-prior-to-transitioning-to-a-secondary-boarding-school/C86DEA7A6CD20AAF29C26C6947A01F7E">mix of emotions</a> when it comes to going to school.</p> <p>Easing back after the holidays can range from feeling really excited and eager to concern, fear or anxiety. Getting butterflies or general worry about going back to school is <a href="https://kidshealth.org/en/teens/school-stress.html">common</a>.</p> <p>Among the <a href="https://media.bloomsbury.com/rep/files/ch2-outline.pdf">biggest worries of preschool children</a> are feeling left out, being teased or saying goodbye to their caregiver at drop off. Concerns of <a href="https://learning.nspcc.org.uk/research-resources/childline-annual-review/">school-aged children are about </a> exams (27%), not wanting to return to school (13%), and problems with teachers (14%). Some feel lonely and isolated.</p> <p>The <a href="https://www.missionaustralia.com.au/publications/youth-survey/1326-mission-australia-youth-survey-report-2019/file">main concerns</a> for teens are coping with stress (44.7%), school or study problems (34.3%) and mental health (33.2%).</p> <p>Not thinking about school until it is time to go back is one way to enjoy the last week of holidays. But for some, this can make going back to school more difficult.</p> <p>Supporting parents, children and young people with back-to-school challenges can help reduce negative school experiences using the below steps.</p> <p><strong>1. Set up a back-to-school routine</strong></p> <p>Create structure about going back with a <a href="https://healthyfamilies.beyondblue.org.au/age-6-12/mental-health-conditions-in-children/anxiety/tackling-back-to-school-anxiety">school routine</a>. Be guided by your knowledge and history of what best supports your child during times of change and transition.</p> <p><a href="https://raisingchildren.net.au/school-age/school-learning/school-homework-tips/morning-routine-for-school">Set up a practical chart of getting ready</a>. You could include:</p> <ul> <li>what needs to be done each day for school like getting up, eating breakfast, dressing</li> <li>what help does your child need from you to get ready?</li> <li>what they can do on their own? (Establish these together).</li> </ul> <p>The first week back can cause disruption from being in holiday mode so don’t forget <a href="https://childmind.org/article/encouraging-good-sleep-habits/">healthy habits around sleep</a> (<a href="https://www.health.qld.gov.au/news-events/news/physical-activity-exercise-sleep-screen-time-kids-teens">around 9-11 hours for children aged 5-13</a> and 8-10 hours for those aged 14-17), <a href="https://www1.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/Content/health-pubhlth-strateg-phys-act-guidelines#npa517">exercise</a> (around <a href="https://www1.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/Content/health-pubhlth-strateg-phys-act-guidelines#npa517">one hour per day</a> of moderate to vigorous physical activity <a href="https://raisingchildren.net.au/toddlers/nutrition-fitness/physical-activity/physical-activity-how-much">three times a week</a>) and <a href="https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/healthyliving/food-and-your-life-stages">diet</a>.</p> <p>Having <a href="https://www1.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/Content/health-pubhlth-strateg-phys-act-guidelines#npa517">consistent bed and wake-up </a> times helps too. The National Sleep Foundation <a href="https://www.sleepfoundation.org/articles/plan-ahead-start-back-school-bedtime-routines-now">suggest starting two weeks</a> before the first day of school to set sleep routine habits. But a week beforehand will help get your kid on their way.</p> <p>In some way, parents go back to school with their children. Consider adjusting your own schedule to make the transition smoother. If you can’t in the mornings, arrange the evenings so you can give as much time as your child needs, especially during the first week.</p> <p><strong>2. Talk about going back to school</strong></p> <p>Most children deal with some level of stress or anxiety about school. They have insight into their school experiences, so find out what worries them by asking directly.</p> <p>You can offer support by normalising experiences of worry and nerves. <a href="https://www.heysigmund.com/how-to-deal-with-school-anxiety-no-more-distressing-goodbyes/">Reassure your child</a> the feelings they have are common and they will likely overcome them once they have settled in. Worries and courage can exist together.</p> <p>Depending on your child’s age, you can also try the following to help:</p> <ul> <li>early years/pre-school – write <a href="https://www.andnextcomesl.com/2018/08/free-social-stories-about-going-to-school.html">a social story </a> about going to daycare or school and the routine ahead</li> <li>primary years – set up a <a href="https://www.education.vic.gov.au/Documents/childhood/professionals/learning/trkpp6.pdf">peer-buddy system</a> where a peer or older child meets yours at the school gate or, if neighbours, kids can go into school together</li> <li>secondary years – establish healthy routines as a family. Support each other around <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-parents-and-teens-can-reduce-the-impact-of-social-media-on-youth-well-being-87619">technology</a> use, sleep and <a href="https://www.education.vic.gov.au/parents/going-to-school/Pages/tips-starting-school.aspx">schoolwork</a>.</li> </ul> <p><strong>3. Help create a sense of school belonging</strong></p> <p>A sense of belonging at school <a href="https://theconversation.com/many-australian-school-students-feel-they-dont-belong-in-school-new-research-97866">can affect</a> academic success and student well-being. Parents can facilitate positive attitudes about school by setting an encouraging tone when talking about it.</p> <p>Also show an interest in school life and work, and be available to support your child both <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs10648-016-9389-8">academically and socially</a>.</p> <p><a href="https://www.webmd.com/special-reports/kids-and-stress/20150827/stress-survey">More than half of the parents in one survey</a> said homework and schoolwork were the greatest drivers of stress in their children. When parents are more engaged in their child’s schoolwork, they are better able to support them through it.</p> <p><strong>4. Look out for signs of stress</strong></p> <p>Research suggests <a href="https://www.webmd.com/special-reports/kids-and-stress/20150827/stress-survey">parents can miss stress or anxiety</a> in their children. Parents can spot stress if their child (depending on age):</p> <ul> <li>is more clingy than usual or tries escape from the classroom</li> <li>appears restless and flighty or cries</li> <li>shows an increased desire to avoid activities through negotiations and deal-making</li> <li>tries to get out of going to school</li> <li>retreats to thumb sucking, baby language or increased attachment to favourite soft toys (for younger students).</li> </ul> <p>If these behaviours persist for about half a term, talk to your classroom teacher or school well-being coordinator about what is happening. Together work on a strategy of support. There may be something more going on than usual school nerves, like <a href="https://lens.monash.edu/@christine-grove/2018/01/18/1299375/no-one-size-fits-all-approach-in-tackling-cyberbullying">bullying</a>.</p> <p><strong>5. Encourage questions</strong></p> <p>Encourage questions children and teens may have about the next term. What will be the same? What will be different?</p> <p>Often schools provide transition information. If the school hasn’t, it might be worth contacting them to see if they can share any resources.</p> <p>Most importantly, let your child know nothing is off limits to talk about. <a href="https://www.heysigmund.com/school-anxiety-what-parents-can-do/">Set up times to chat</a> throughout the school term – it can help with back-to-school nerves.</p> <p><em>Written by Christine Grové and Kelly-Ann Allen. Republished with permission of <a href="https://theconversation.com/5-tips-to-help-ease-your-child-back-into-school-mode-after-the-holidays-129780">The Conversation.</a></em></p>

Art

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Queen's favourite grandchild revealed – and it's not who you think it is

<p>A majority of grandparents will never admit it, but they have a favourite grandchild. It’s often a point of joking and ribbing amongst the grandchildren who’s the favourite, and it appears that this also extends to the royal family.</p> <p>The Queen is reported to have favourite grandchildren, and no, it’s not who you think it is.</p> <p>If you were thinking Prince Harry or Prince William, they might’ve captured the hearts of the world, but the heart of their grandmother remains elusive.</p> <p>An insider source has told<span> </span><em><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.thesun.co.uk/fabulous/9853409/queen-favourite-grandkid-lady-louise-windsor-prince-william-harry/" target="_blank">The Sun</a></em><span> </span>that the royal grandmother has been getting very close with her grandchildren over the summer.</p> <p>In particular, she has been spending a lot of time with the children of her youngest son Edward, who are 16-year-old Lady Louise Windsor and 11-year-old James.</p> <p>Louise and the Queen have been bonding over Louise’s love of drawing, which is said to be a love of the late Queen mother.</p> <p>"Louise loves drawing and sketching and was very patiently trying to get Charlotte to do pictures of rabbits and deer," the insider said.</p> <p>"Because of her obvious artistic skill, the Queen allowed Louise to look through some of the collection of Queen Victoria's Highlands sketches which are kept at Balmoral but are rarely dug out these days."</p> <p>Her Majesty has eight grandchildren in total. Scroll through the gallery to see her spending time with each of them.</p>

Retirement Life

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"Absolutely thrilled": The Queen "beaming" when asked about her new great-grandchild

<p>Members of the Royal Family are “absolutely thrilled” about the birth of Baby Sussex.</p> <p>Despite Prince Charles and Duchess Camilla being in Germany, that hasn’t stopped him from being thrilled about his new grandson.</p> <p>According to <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.hellomagazine.com/royalty/2019050772770/prince-charles-royal-baby-joy-germany-visit/?utm_source=(direct)&amp;utm_m" target="_blank"><em>Hello!</em></a> he told Angela Merkel once he landed that:</p> <p>“We couldn't be more delighted at the news and we're looking forward to meeting the baby when we return.”</p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/BxLN2UdHwhG/" data-instgrm-version="12"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="margin: 8px 0 0 0; padding: 0 4px;"><a style="color: #000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BxLN2UdHwhG/" target="_blank">The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall visited Berlin today as part of a four-day visit to Germany. Their Royal Highnesses met with Her Excellency Angela Merkel, Chancellor of Germany, and Frank-Walter Steinmeier, President of Germany, before The Prince of Wales laid a wreath at the Berlin Airlift Memorial. The Memorial honours the Allied forces who flew provisions into Germany during the Berlin blockade imposed by the Soviet Union in 1948. At Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate, The Prince and The Duchess heard about its history from The Mayor of Berlin, Michael Müller, and had an opportunity to meet residents of the city. Tonight Their Royal Highnesses attended ‘The Queen’s Birthday Party’ at the British Ambassador’s Residence. Her Majesty marked her 93rd birthday on 21st April, and there is an event held annually at the Residence to mark the occasion. During a speech, The Prince said: “Today, we are so much more than simply neighbours: we are friends and natural partners, bound together by our common experience, mutual interests and shared values, and deeply invested in each other’s futures.” Follow @clarencehouse for more.</a></p> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">A post shared by <a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/theroyalfamily/" target="_blank"> The Royal Family</a> (@theroyalfamily) on May 7, 2019 at 1:47pm PDT</p> </div> </blockquote> <p>The Queen was also very thrilled with the news, as she was asked how she felt about the royal family's addition while hosting an event at Windsor Castle.</p> <p>"Life is good for Your Majesty?" she was asked.</p> <p>The Queen smiled and replied: "Yes, thank you."</p> <p>"Congratulations. Another great-grandchild!" she was told.</p> <p>The Queen replied happily: "Yes, I know."</p> <p>She was then asked: "How many of them have you got now?" before replying "Eight."</p> <p>Buckingham Palace said on Monday that the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh were “delighted” at the news of the birth of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s baby boy.</p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/BxK0ptQlcTL/" data-instgrm-version="12"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="margin: 8px 0 0 0; padding: 0 4px;"><a style="color: #000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BxK0ptQlcTL/" target="_blank">🏆⛵️ Thank you to everyone at the Cutty Sark who came out to greet The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge as they launched The King's Cup, which will raise awareness and funds for eight of The Duke and Duchess's Patronages! Visit the link in our bio or our IGTV channel to find out more.</a></p> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">A post shared by <a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/kensingtonroyal/" target="_blank"> Kensington Palace</a> (@kensingtonroyal) on May 7, 2019 at 10:07am PDT</p> </div> </blockquote> <p>Prince William sent his congratulations to the new family as well, welcoming his brother Prince Harry into a new society, according to <a rel="noopener" href="https://news.sky.com/story/royal-baby-the-queen-leads-congratulations-to-meghan-and-harry-11713917" target="_blank"><em>Sky News</em></a>.</p> <p>"Obviously thrilled, absolutely thrilled, and obviously looking forward to seeing them in the next few days when things have quietened down,” Prince William joked.</p> <p>"I'm very pleased and glad to welcome my own brother into the sleep deprivation society that is parenting."</p> <p>Kate was quick to add her congratulations in as well, saying: "As William said, we're looking forward to meeting him and finding out what his name's going to be, so it's really exciting for both of them and we wish them all the best.</p> <p>"These next few weeks are always a bit daunting the first time round, so we wish them all the best."</p> <p>When Prince William was asked whether he had any words of wisdom for his younger brother, he replied:</p> <p>"Plenty of advice, plenty of advice, but no I wish him all the best and I hope the next few days they can settle down and enjoy having a newborn in their family and the joys that come with that."</p> <p>There’s no word as to what Baby Sussex will be named, but with a photo call expected as early as Wednesday UK time, time will tell. </p>

News

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How to watch a scary movie with your grandchild

<p>Many of us have a childhood memory of a <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/5sjstb/whats_a_movie_that_traumatized_you_as_a_kid/">movie that gave us nightmares</a> and took us to a new level of fear. Maybe this happened by accident. Or maybe it happened because an adult guardian didn’t choose the right movie for your age.</p> <p>For me it was <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0070047/">The Exorcist</a>. It was also the movie that frightened my mum when she was a youngster. She had warned me not to watch it. But I did. I then slept outside my parents’ room for months for fear of demonic possession.</p> <p>Parents often ask about the right age for “scary” movies. A useful resource is <a href="https://childrenandmedia.org.au/movie-reviews/">The Australian Council of Children and the Media</a>, which provides colour-coded age guides for movies rated by child development professionals.</p> <p>Let’s suppose, though, that you have made the decision to view a scary movie with your child. What are some good rules of thumb in managing this milestone in your child’s life?</p> <p><strong>Watch with a parent or a friend</strong></p> <p>Research into indirect experiences can help us understand what happens when a child watches a scary movie. Indirect fear experiences can involve <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18614263">watching someone else look afraid or hurt in a situation</a> or <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2882043/">verbal threats</a> (such as “the bogeyman with sharp teeth will come at midnight for children and eat them”).</p> <p>Children depend very much on indirect experiences for information about danger in the world. Scary movies are the perfect example of these experiences. Fortunately, research also shows that indirectly acquired fears can be reduced by two very powerful sources of information: parents and peers.</p> <p>In one of our recent studies, we showed that when we <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28531872">paired happy adult faces with a scary situation</a>, children showed greater fear reduction than if they experienced that situation on their own. This suggests that by modelling calm and unfazed behaviour, or potentially even expressing enjoyment about being scared during a movie (notice how people burst into laughter after a jump scare at theatres?), parents may help children be less fearful.</p> <p>There is also some evidence that <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3189411/">discussions with friends can help reduce fear</a>. That said, it’s important to remember that children tend to become <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27585485">more similar to each other in threat evaluation after discussing a scary or ambiguous event with a close friend</a>. So it might be helpful to discuss a scary movie with a good friend who enjoys such movies and can help the child discuss their worries in a positive manner.</p> <p><strong>Get the facts</strong></p> <p>How a parent discusses the movie with their child is also important. Children do not have enough experience to understand the statistical probability of dangerous events occurring in the world depicted on screen. For example, after watching Jaws, a child might assume that shark attacks are frequent and occur on every beach.</p> <p>Children need help to contextualise the things they see in movies. One way of discussing shark fears after viewing Jaws might be to help your child investigate the <a href="https://www.thewildlifemuseum.org/exhibits/sharks/odds-of-a-shark-attack/">statistics around shark attacks</a> (the risk of being attacked is around 1 in 3.7 million) and to acquire facts about shark behaviours (such as that they generally do not hunt humans).</p> <p>These techniques are the basis of <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/au/blog/in-practice/201301/cognitive-restructuring">cognitive restructuring</a>, which encourages fact-finding rather than catastrophic thoughts to inform our fears. It is also an evidence-based technique for managing excessive anxiety in children and adults.</p> <p><strong>Exposure therapy</strong></p> <p>If your child is distressed by a movie, a natural reaction is to prevent them watching it again. I had this unfortunate experience when my seven-year-old daughter accidentally viewed <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1935859/">Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children</a>, which featured a monster with knives for limbs who ate children’s eyeballs for recreation.</p> <p>My first instinct was to prevent my daughter watching the movie again. However, one of the most effective ways of reducing excessive and unrealistic fear is to confront it again and again until that fear diminishes into boredom. This is called <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-virtual-reality-spiders-are-helping-people-face-their-arachnophobia-73769">exposure therapy</a>.</p> <p>To that end, we subjected her and ourselves to the same movie repeatedly while modelling calm and some hilarity - until she was bored. We muted the sound and did silly voice-overs and fart noises for the monster. We drew pictures of him with a moustache and in a pair of undies. Thankfully, she no longer identifies this movie as one that traumatised her.</p> <p>This strategy is difficult to execute because it requires tolerating your child’s distress. In fact, <a href="http://psycnet.apa.org/buy/2016-23260-001">it is a technique that is the least used by mental health professionals</a> because of this.</p> <p>However, when done well and with adequate support (you may need an experienced psychologist if you are not confident), it is one of the most effective techniques for reducing fear following a scary event like an accidental horror movie.</p> <p><strong>Fear is normal</strong></p> <p>Did I ever overcome my fear of The Exorcist? It took my mother checking my bed, laughing with me about the movie, and re-affirming that being scared is okay and normal for me to do so (well done mum!)</p> <p><a href="https://theconversation.com/you-cant-erase-bad-memories-but-you-can-learn-ways-to-cope-with-them-103161">Fear is a normal and adaptive human response</a>. Some people, including children, love being scared. There is evidence that <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30307264">volunteering to be scared can lead to a heightened sense of accomplishment</a> for some of us, because it provides us with a cognitive break from our daily stress and worries.</p> <p>Hopefully, you can help ensure that your child’s first scary movie experience is a memorable, enjoyable one.</p> <p><em>Written by Carol Newall. Republished with permission of <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-to-watch-a-scary-movie-with-your-child-105973">The Conversation</a>.</em></p>

Movies

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Grandmother furious after 12-year-old grandson served alcohol on flight

<p>A grandmother has revealed how horrified she was after her 12-year-old grandson was mistakenly served alcohol on a Jetstar flight from Brisbane in Queensland to Denpasar in Bali.</p> <p>Taking her grandson – who lives with her – on the trip of a lifetime, after saving up to fly business class on his first overseas trip, Debra Pettigrove did not expect her young grandchild to be served alcohol during the Boxing Day flight last year.</p> <p>Her grandson Dean was allegedly served what she described as a double gin and squash by cabin crew, in what was reportedly a mix-up after the plane hit turbulence during the business class flight.</p> <p>Debra claims her grandson suffered an allergic reaction and was constantly sneezing after being served the beverage by accident, which was intended for another passenger on the flight.</p> <p>“Dean said, ‘This tastes yuck,’” Debra recounted to <a href="http://www.couriermail.com.au/entertainment/confidential/glitter-strip-bare-gold-coast-news-and-gossip/news-story/b9aebe574835410f31a393a513b72d75">The Courier Mail.</a></p> <p>“I thought it must have been lo-cal squash or something … the furthest thing from my mind was that it had alcohol in it.”</p> <p>Debra continued to recall: “I had a swig and, no joke, it burnt my throat – it tasted like metho (methylated spirits). I thought, ‘What the hell is this?’ I went straight for the head guy (cabin steward) and said, ‘What in God’s name is in this drink? Get me a water ASAP.”</p> <p>The concerned grandmother went on to explain, “He [Dean] had a headache and was in a lot of discomfort. It was terrible.”</p> <p>She added, “I was horrified, I couldn’t believe it. You pay for business class airfares and you’re supposed to get business class service, not this.”</p> <p>Debra has since called in lawyers to help her seek compensation from the airline. While Jetstar did offer her a $400 flight voucher, she has hired national litigation firm Shine Lawyers to take on her case.</p> <p>The firm’s travel law manager, Thomas Janson, said, “Our client paid a premium price to have the best care for her grandson on his first international flight, and this has tarnished his experience.</p> <p>“Jetstar have a duty of care to every passenger, and that duty was undeniably breached in this instance,” Thomas added.</p> <p>Jetstar claims the cabin crew manger on duty at the time of the incident did apologise to the family and served them complimentary drinks, as well as checking on the 12-year-old throughout the remainder of the flight.</p> <p>A Jetstar spokesman confirmed, “We are in contact with a family after a mix-up of drinks occurred on a flight six months ago which resulted in a child having a few sips of an adult customer’s drink, according to our crew on-board reports.</p> <p>“Nothing was mentioned to our crew on board the flight about the child feeling unwell,” the airline’s spokesman added.</p> <p>Have you ever experienced a food or beverage mix-up on a flight before? Tell us in the comments below.</p>

Travel Trouble

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How you could be hurting your grandchild's future without even knowing

<p>The best part about being a grandparent is undoubtedly the ability to spend quality time with the young ones without all the responsibility that comes with parenthood. Despite this, there is one responsibility we all have when it comes to the children in our lives, and that’s watching what we say.</p> <p>Any little comment, no matter how well-intentioned, can be taken as a negative and may stay with the child all throughout their development. With this in mind, here are four things you should never say or do in front of them.</p> <p><strong>1. Making comparisons</strong></p> <p>As with your own children, you should never compare your grandchildren. One might be more academic or sporty than the other, but they certainly don’t need reminding of it – chances are, they’re already pretty aware that they aren’t excelling at the same pace. If you’re going to praise one child, do it in such a way that doesn’t put the other(s) down. Remind them that book smarts or athletic achievements aren’t the be all and end all, and always help them try to see the best in themselves.</p> <p><strong>2. Giving them harmful nicknames</strong></p> <p>What you might think is a cute, innocent, playful nickname could be hurting your grandchild’s feelings without you even realising it. Any nickname or label that might refer to their physical appearance or intelligence level should be avoided, as it could stay with them for years, permanently damaging their self-esteem. And not only could names with negative connotations hurt their confidence, but they can also harm your relationship.</p> <p><strong>3. Leading by a bad example</strong></p> <p>Children pick up on every little thing we do and say. They learn so much from us, including how to deal with conflict and navigate difficult relationships. So, if you’ve been known to be a little combative when defending yourself against someone you disagree with, consider the impact this can have on the little one. Do you really want to teach them that physical violence or verbal abuse is the solution to life’s problems?</p> <p><strong>4. Playing favourites</strong></p> <p>Just like with your own children, no matter how guilty you might feel, it’s natural to feel closer to one grandchild over the other. However, this doesn’t mean you should treat them any differently to the others – i.e. giving them extra money at Christmas or not punishing them for something you would punish the others for. Such treatment can unsettle the family dynamics, causing one child to think they’re superior while the rest are left wondering, “what about me?”</p>

Family & Pets

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The funniest thing my grandchild ever said

<p>Kids are fascinating creatures. Everything is new to them, everything is exciting and they need to know the answer to every question. As a result, grandparents, parents, aunts and uncles hear some pretty interesting things come out of their little one’s mouth. A couple of months ago, we asked you, the Over60 community, to share the funniest thing you ever heard the children in your life say – and the responses were hilarious.</p> <p><strong>1. Brutal honesty</strong></p> <p>“I stayed with my three-year-old granddaughter for several weeks and she asked me what I was putting on my face in the morning. I told her it was moisturiser. She asked me why I used it, so I told her it was to protect me from the sun and ensure that my wrinkles didn't get any bigger. On a visit six months later, she was on my lap, staring lovingly at me, and then announced, ‘Your moisturiser isn't working, Nanna. You've got bigger wrinkles.’ Gotta love that honesty.” – Avis Tolcher.</p> <p><strong>2. Brightening a dark day</strong></p> <p>“We had just buried my husband and one grandson, 10 years old at the time, stood at the graveside, head on one side, came over to where I was standing and said, ‘Grandpa's okay… He's not knocking.’ Where he got that from I don't know, but it lightened the situation.” – Jean Clawson.</p> <p><strong>3. Comedian in the making</strong></p> <p>“When granddaughter was five and her twin baby brothers were due, we passed a building site with ‘Pete Construction’ signs. She pipes up from the back of the car saying, ‘We should name them that.’ I said, ‘What, Pete and Pete?’ and her response floored me – ‘No, Pete and Repeat.’” – Noelene O’Donnell.</p> <p><strong>4. A story for their 21st</strong></p> <p>“My three-and-half-year-old granddaughter Tully was encouraging me out of bed to make her pancakes for breakfast. As l rocked and turned to get myself up, she patted me gently on the shoulder and said, ‘Don't worry Nanna, you'll be dead soon’. Needless to say, l will be repeating this story at her 21st in the future.” – Jo Bartlett.</p> <p><strong>5. Chatterbox</strong></p> <p>“Our grandsons live interstate but the oldest, age eight, phones often. After hearing all his news the other night, he said, ‘Sorry Grandy, I've been talking too much. Now, tell me all about your day.’ I'm still gobsmacked.” – Debra Tayler.</p> <p><strong>6. A fair comeback</strong></p> <p>“My husband was in a hurry to take our dog for a walk before he left for his night shift. Our then-three-year-old granddaughter decided that she was going to go too. After about 10 minutes of discussion and arguing, hubby said, ‘I don't have time to stand here and argue with a three-year-old,’ to which she replied, with hands on hips, ‘And I don't have time to stand here and argue with a Poppy.’” – Colleen Spence.</p> <p><strong>7. Soft… like fried chicken?</strong></p> <p>“When my daughter was four, she said to her grandmother, ‘Your skin is so soft.’ Grandmother replied, ‘Thank you,” before Miss adds, ‘It looks like Kentucky fried chicken.’” – Patricia Cohen Lamey.</p> <p>What’s the funniest think your grandchild ever said to you? Share your stories with us in the comments below!</p>

Family & Pets

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