Put me in Your Pocket-The Kissing Hand

When my girls were little, spending time with their Grammies was a priority. Both Grammies lived near each other and over the years after my husband and I got married, they had become very close friends. The girls loved their visits. The Grammie visits were full of creative activities, discovering worlds of adventure while reading books and laughing a lot while playing make-believe. When it was time for them to leave, we would have to get our calendars out and schedule their next visit. For the first 15 years of our marriage, our family lived far away from the Grammies and now we are privileged to only live an hour away. One of the Grammies had a tradition she started with the girls when they were little. As she hugged them good-bye, she would tell them to keep her in their pocket. “Put me in your pocket”, she would say as she gave them their final hug. This way she would stay close to their heart. It was her way of showing them how much she loved them and it gave them security to know that they were precious to her. She has started a legacy of love that is being passed down to her great grandchildren and is being shared with her grand sons-in-law.

Being a Gammie (my grandkids’ name for me) is one of the greatest privileges of my life. I am grateful for every opportunity I have to spend time with each one of my grandchildren. I dream of the day that I can live close enough to the grandkids to be able to have them over to my house on a regular basis, but for now I am content to enjoy my visits to see them at their homes in southern California.

Last weekend, I went to take care of four of my grand kids so that their mom could go on a women’s retreat with her church. We had a complete and total BLAST!!! With the help of their other Grami, we had a grand adventure to the beach one day and a picnic at a fountain squirt park on another day. We played make believe in the backyard, including creating a pretend vegetable garden, playing pirates, setting up a water play area and watching hummingbirds while eating our dinner outside. It was an exhausting but glorious weekend. I was truly blessed by each one of the children and I love the heart connection I feel with each one of them. When I visit, the anticipation of my arrival is full of excitement but the departure is full of sadness.

One night we read a book together called “The Kissing Hand” by Audrey Penn.

I don’t want to give the story away but it had to do with a baby raccoon starting his first day of school. It is a precious MUST READ children’s book that was a New York Times best seller. The book told of a mommy raccoon that gave her baby a kiss on his hand to take with him to the first day of school. The story reminded me of the “Put me in your Pocket” love phrase my mom still (even now that my girls are grown) says to my kids. So I creatively used the ideas in the book to make up a way for my grandkids to remember that I hold them close to my heart. When I am with them and they have to go to bed (like last weekend when I was babysitting) or when I leave them and return home to my house, I kiss each one of their hands. I tell them to put their hand to their heart or to their cheek and pretend I am right there giving them a kiss. I am going to continue this tradition because I want each one of my grandchildren to know just how precious they are to me and to remember always that I hold them close to my heart and in my prayers every day.

What do you do in your family to remind your children or grandchildren how much you love them?