Grammy Tanda and I love to spend time with our grandchildren in person, but since most of them live in three other time zones, we don’t get to see them as often as we’d like. So some of our most pleasurable moments are when we are chatting “face to face” over the Internet with our grandkids.

If you enjoy talking with your grandchildren on the phone, you will love video chatting even more! It’s video conferencing software you run on your computer that lets you talk with and see your family. It’s just like in the Jetsons cartoon—live audio and video.

What could be worth more than seeing the grin on your grandchild’s face when they see you talking with them on the screen? They’ll be proud to show you how much they’ve grown and to show off their first missing tooth. Even grandbabies will respond to your voice and smiling countenance.

Somethings are just better communicated face to face, where you can see expressions and gestures. Compared to letters, email and even telephone calls, video calls can make conversations much more interesting and intimate. You’ll have more to talk about, and your grandkids will more easily remember you or your face.

Now watch this video. It’s full of examples and cool ideas for you.

A grandparent’s job is to give positive encouragement; to be a cheerleader and a talent scout. ~Grammy Tanda Packer

Fun things you can do on your video chat: read storybooks and show them the pictures, make up stories, sing, dance, play games, help with their homework, be playful, play peek-a-boo, make funny faces, and tell knock-knock jokes.

Ask your grandkids to sing and read to you, and tell you jokes and stories. Have them show you their drawings, crafts, homework, new clothes, acrobatics and somersaults.

Options for free video chat software

You’ll need a computer, a webcam with a built-in or separate mic, and a broadband Internet connection. Different programs use their own protocols, so you and your family will need to use the same software. Each of the following programs allow you to make video calls worldwide.

iChat from Apple is an application that comes free with every Macintosh. If you have a Mac, iChat is the best software for video chatting. You can even have a video conference with up to 3 other Macs at once. Since it uses the AIM protocol, iChat works well with AIM on other computers.

AIM is an application you can download to your computer. It uses the same protocol as iChat.

Skype is another popular program for making video calls. Download the program and sign up for a free account. Computer-to-computer calls and video calls are free.

Google voice and video chat is integrated into gmail in your web browser. It’s a great option if you and your family have gmail accounts. Anyone can sign up for a free gmail account.

How to get started

1. Choose an application and install it. (Consider what your family may be using.)
2. Launch the program.
3. Create a screen name and password (first time only).
4. Share your screen name with your family.
5. Arrange a time to call.
6. Turn on your webcam.
7. Log in to your chat program.
8. Initiate the video call by clicking the appropriate buttons, or click “Accept” if your family initiates the call.
9. Click the video icon by their name to see their video. (Note: Some programs make you click a button to allow them to see your video.)
10. Enjoy!

Videophones are another option for video conferencing. These are special phones with an LCD screen. No computer is needed, but they need a high-speed Internet connection. You and your family both need the same brand of videophone.

If a picture is worth 1,000 words, then live video is worth ten 10,000 words. ~Grandpa Shayne Packer

We know you’ll love video chatting with your grandkids! So go try it.

Enjoy – Grandpa Shayne

Announcement: This post is part of a blog carnival hosted by Susan Adcox, About.com’s Guide to Grandparents.

We’d like to hear from you. Please comment below to tell us about your videochat. What fun things did you do on the call with your grandkids.

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[Editor's note: Grandpa Shayne Packer is also a columnist for GRAND Magazine's new Cyber-Savvy GRAND column.]

“You’ll never get me on one of them newfangled computers!” Have you ever heard a grandparent say that? Are they intimidated by the Internet? Not willing to give today’s technology a try? We’ll show you what you can do to get them online.

Who should read this

• Grandparents who are privileged to have one or more of your parents still living.
• Parents who would like to facilitate a healthy relationship between your children and their grandparents and great-grandparents.
• Anyone who knows a grandmother or grandfather who is reluctant or afraid to dip their foot into the internet.

Technophobia: the fear or dislike of advanced technology. Why doesn’t everybody welcome new technology? Fear of the unknown? Afraid they will ruin or break something? They don’t understand and don’t remember?

One problem is that many senior grandparents just don’t know what they are missing — photos of the grandbabies, emails, family blogs, Facebook, text messages, video chats, sharing their life story. They are not enjoying all the new opportunities to communicate with their families; sometimes from their own stubbornness.

The benefits outweigh the fear

A friend shared a story about a coworker, a grandfather who refused to learn to send text messages using his mobile phone. My friend encouraged the grandfather to learn so he could send text messages to his grandchildren. “Just try it.” Two weeks later, the grandfather reported that he was having a wonderful time texting with his grandkids.

Grandparents need to keep up with the times and communicate with the younger generations on the media the kids are comfortable using. This will enhance the quality of the relationship between grandparents and grandchildren when they may not actually see each other for many months.

Grandparents should realize that being “computer smart” is a way to get closer to their grandchildren. Also, the World Wide Web is a wonderful way to find ideas of things to do with grandkids when they visit.

My oldest sister is a great example of someone who has embraced internet technology to connect with her family. When her daughter recently encouraged my sister to get Facebook, she quibbled, “Why would I want on Facebook?” Here daughter simply replied, “Because that’s where the photos of the grandbabies are!”

So her daughter got on the computer and set up a Facebook account right then. Now my sister has really enjoys Facebook, as well as other websites, email, etc.

God gave us loving grandchildren as a reward for all our random acts of kindness. ~Janet Lanese

3 steps to get grandparents online

1. Sit together at the computer and give them a tour around the Web — all the fun family stuff they’re missing out on. First, you drive. This is especially important for the reluctant grandparent. Do this before you let them know you intend to help them get online. Let them get hooked first.

2. Set up one website at a time for them, and let them know what you are doing (in simple terms). See the Recommended websites below.

3. For each website, put them in the driver’s seat. Let them try things one click at a time. Go slow. Be patient. Go through it twice: first for comprehension, second to create written step-by-step instructions. If needed, go through it a third time to help build their confidence.

You can help enrich a grandparent’s life. Now go do it!

Enjoy! – Grandpa Shayne

Action Items

• Help them choose a computer. I recommend an Apple Macintosh laptop because it is so easy to use and comes with cool, free software.
• Set up a free gmail account.
• Collect a list of family websites and blogs.
• Create accounts on Facebook or other sites where the family posts stuff.
• Create easy-to-remember login names and passwords, and write them down.
• Bookmark all websites. Show them how to access these bookmarks.
• Set them up a free blog or their own on WordPress.com or Blogger.com. (optional)
• If they have a digital camera, show them how to post photos online.

Recommended websites

• Gmail.com
• Facebook.com
• MyFamily.com
• StoryOfMyLife.com
• ScrapBlog.com

More resources

• Our other blog posts about connecting with grandchildren
• Another post “How to help grandparents get online“
• Many senior centers, libraries, colleges, etc. offer classes in basic internet and computer use.

If you know someone who is not online, please print and mail this to them.

Do you have more ideas for helping more grandparents get online? We welcome your comments.

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Thank you for stopping by our grandparenting blog! Grammy Tanda and I really enjoy publishing this blog for grandparents. It’s been getting more and more popular, which is exciting! Our mission here is to enable grandparents to love and connect with grandchildren. We show you ways that you can connect and communicate with your grandchildren using all kinds of cool technology. We believe technology itself is neither good nor evil; it’s just a tool. It’s how people use tools that is important. As grandparents, you and I choose to use technology for good; for the righteous purpose of bringing our families closer together. So, this website focuses on helping you, as grandparents, learn about cool technologies you can use to connect with your grandchildren. Technology is cool when used as a tool to connect with your grandkids.

We live in a marvelous age of technology. But sometimes it can be intimidating: the internet, email new websites, inventions, cool tools, state-of-the-art, newfangled gadgets, and other technology. That’s why here at GrandparentsTLC, we offer free information and tutorials that show you exactly how to use cool stuff. Grandparents are cool! We don’t want to be left out while our grandkids are enjoying the 21st century.

I’m sure you’ve had experiences where you were nervous when faced with using some new gadget or tool. Then someone showed you how to use it. You tried it, and your confidence waxed stronger, until it became a useful tool. Why do you suppose it is that teenagers seem to figure these things out boldly and quickly? Take the internet for example. Do you think they are afraid of breaking the computer if they click the wrong button? Of course not.

Fear sometimes causes us to have reservations about trying something new. Yet, we all know grandparents who love doing something so much that they just do it and get good at it. You’re probably that way yourself. Take genealogy for example. I have older sisters that amaze me with their level of expertise using genealogy software and websites such as FamilySearch.org and Ancestry.com. They love it too much not to learn how to figure it out.

That’s how it is with grandparenting — we all love spending time with our grandchildren so much that we make special treats for them, travel to see them, spend lots of money on gifts (sometimes too much? ) — need I go on?

Something magical happens when parents turns into grandparents. Their attitude changes from “money-doesn’t-grow-on-trees” to spending it like it does. ~Paul Linden

As grandparents, we are willing to learn to use cool new technology, if it brings us closer to our grandchildren. Take digital photography for example. When our families send us an email with photos of the grandkids attached, or posts photos on a website, we want to be able to see them quickly, and perhaps save and print them. So, you should invest in a digital camera of your own and learn how to post your own photos online. 

Now days, it is so easy compared with when I first started using digital cameras when they came out. I wrote Macintosh camera software for Kodak, who, along with Apple, invented the first consumer digital. Back then it was quite a process to download the photo files from the camera to a computer, create a place on the web for them, and then upload them to the website. Today it is easier than ever to get photos from camera to computer to web, like my son and I did for his baby’s photos. Much of the process is automated. Especially if you own a Mac with the free iLife software. (Gee, I wish Apple paid me a commission!) I’ll create a tutorial about this sometime if you like. What do you think?

So, technology is cool when used as a tool to connect with your grandchildren! As one of our readers commented on the blog here, “It is vitally important that all grandparents learn to use the web and technology to stay close to their grandkids.”

What are some cool gadgets, tools and websites you have enjoyed using the help strengthen your grandparent-grandchild connection? We’d love to reading your comments.

All the best! Shayne