most curious cat

As a long term expat in Spain I would really like to develop a more supportive relationship with my parents in the UK as they get older (70s) and their needs and wants change. We have two young children who don't get to spend much time with their UK grandparents. I'm hoping for some practical advice about how to develop new ways of making us feel part of eachothers' lives. We talk on the phone and email regularly, spend time together at least twice a year. What works for you?

Millhouse

facetime. skype is too complicated for the old folk.

bakedbean

Hello and welcome to,the forum

Skype is good. Sorry don't agree with above poster. I know plenty of folks in their 70s and 80s using video chats. Maybe help them set it up next time you're visiting if they are not computer savvy.

Millhouse

ah, but facetime is a one button call and is always there sitting on the docking station in the kitchen.

Skype means, getting the laptop, glasses, finding the charger, sitting in the special laptop chair, getting distracted by the dog, sitting down, trying to remember the laptop password, it not connecting to the wifi, then it connecting, then remembering the mouse so you can move the thing on the screen, getting up find the mouse, plug mouse in, then looking for the blue icon... I could go on. all the time I'm talking her through it over the phone for longer than the skype call would have been.

buying her the ipad was a much easier decision

Shirtback

My dad is much better at Skype than I am; I usually wait until one of my siblings pops round to his place & Facetime on their phone/ipad. Or email him to say pick up the effing 'phone, to which he'll reply that I could Skype ... #1st world problems

My sprogs are grown now, but back in the day (NOT so long ago), they drew pictures/took photos/wrote (gasp) snail mail letters to the grandparents, who wrote back. Both sides seemed to enjoy this immensely.

There's a certain excitement about receiving snail mail that technology doesn't seem to have replaced yet.

Probably depends on the age of your children.

S

Kevin_R

Some TVs have Skype built in so you may have a ready made answer without knowing it.