It’s not just the kids who are happy to see Spring Break coming. Some grandparents love this time of year when they babysit their grandchildren. On the menu: activities, the outdoors, but above all, intense cuddling sessions.
“COVID-19 has stolen several breaks in a row, but not this year. I take my revenge! »
Gustave Saint-Germain is a widower, retired and very active. During the break, he takes with him his three grandchildren aged 10, 8 and 6. “I’m in good shape and I want to take advantage of their presence,” says this resident of Sainte-Adèle. It energizes me! »
Ice fishing, skating, sliding, cross-country skiing and downhill skiing, Mr. Saint-Germain has it all planned. He even prepared his menu. “I want to please them and spend as little time as possible doing flat tasks,” says this dapper sixty-something, who will look after his grandchildren from Monday to Thursday. I also want to release my daughter and my son, who have to work that week. They can spend quality time with their spouse and partner in the evening. It’s a win for everyone in the end! »
The daughter of Mr. Saint-Germain, Inès Corriveau, confirms: “It helps us so much, she says. And then, it makes me happy to see him so enthusiastic, so determined. It’s good for him, it keeps him busy, it keeps him bored, it keeps him in shape. »
And fatigue, lack of energy, he knows that? Of course, he laughs. “I go to bed at the same time as them. And when they leave, I’m happy to find some peace of mind…until next time! »
Continuing a tradition
During spring break, Ginette Martel, 63, spends her days with her 7-year-old grandson. The Montrealer has even planned a little getaway.
“I rented a car and we’re going to Gatineau for three days to see my sister,” she says cheerfully. We will go snowshoeing and visit museums, such as the Musée de la civilisation. »
PHOTO PROVIDED BY GINETTE MARTEL
Ginette Martel and her grandson, Hubert, 7 years old
For meme Martel is also a way of giving back and perpetuating a tradition: as a child, her grandmother looked after her during school break and a few weeks during the summer, and her mother did the same thing with her two girls. “I experienced this and I always said to myself: ‘When I’m a grandmother myself, that’s what I’ll do,’ she says. I have maybe another 20 good years left… I don’t want to miss anything. Right now, I’m giving everything I can! »
Walk in the Botanical Garden, craft sessions, walk in the public markets, visit to the Grande Bibliothèque and museums, Ginette Martel runs the activities during the spring break. She does everything on foot and by public transport since “taking the metro with [son] grandson becomes an adventure in itself”.
Aware of her privilege, linked among other things to an iron health and a good pension, Ms.me Martel thinks of grandparents who would like to do more but cannot. “I measure my luck,” she says.
Discoveries
In Brossard, at the Huynhs, we also take advantage of spring break to do all kinds of activities, focusing on those that are free. “There is a great offer in our city and in all the surrounding municipalities,” says Kim Huynh, grandmother of three girls aged 11, 9 and 7. In libraries, arenas, public swimming pools, outdoor skating rinks, all sorts of things are organized especially for spring break. »
PHOTO ALAIN ROBERGE, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
During school break, some grandparents take the opportunity to cook with their grandchildren.
In the week before the holiday, Ms.me Huynh and her spouse plan to check in with their granddaughters and see what they want to attend. One watchword: pleasure. “There is no obligation, insists Mme Huynh, their life at school is already organized enough as it is! We just want to spend time together, without stress or constraint. »
The couple in their sixties likes to plan a few special activities at home: a treasure hunt, an afternoon at the movies with hot chocolate, a morning cooking pancakes and desserts. “We get to know them a lot through all the things we do together,” says Ms.me Huynh. Sometimes we allow them to invite a friend, which also allows us to discover their school friends. »
The big advantage, according to her? “It keeps us young and aware of what’s going on! “, she says, laughing.
Free as the air
Norma Hélie, 74, remembers with emotion those weeks off when she took her two grandchildren to her home in Saguenay. “They took the bus from Montreal, she said, we picked them up in Quebec City and we did all kinds of activities like sliding, doing puzzles, watching movies with popcorn, playing board games. , baking cakes. »
But above all, she says, the schedule was shifted, freer, less restrictive than that of the school routine… and parental! “We didn’t always have plans or outings, she slips, they were free, they got up at the time they wanted. I took advantage of that week to spoil them and be available for them. »
PHOTO PROVIDED BY NORMA HELIE
Norma Hélie and her grandchildren Béatrice and Thomas, photographed 13 years ago. They were then 10 and 12 years old.
Now young adults, her two grandchildren have remained very close to her, underlines Mme Helie. “I believe that these moments spent with them brought us closer. It is a great wealth! I realize that not all grandparents have this relationship: I consider myself very lucky…”
M’s daughterme Hélie, Chantal Lapointe, is also delighted with the very strong bond of attachment that unites her mother and her two children. “They call her regularly, they text her and they visit her, on their own initiative,” she says, a hint of pride in her voice.