What if the moments that shape our families are not the big, orchestrated ones at all, but the small, imperfect, wildly joyful ones that happen on an ordinary Saturday night? What if connection is possible even when you live oceans apart?

This is the story of how a simple idea during a hard year turned into one of the sweetest traditions of my life.

Gran’s Zoom Christmas Party: The Tradition I Never Expected to Love

It was dark outside and the tiny white lights around my window made everything feel twinkly and magical. I sat down for our 6th annual Gran’s Zoom Christmas Party just before we started, and I found myself drifting back to where it all started in 2020. The year everything felt upside down.

The grans were so little then.
The Vanuatu crew, Ella, Katie, and Rob, were just 6, 5, and 4, squeezed into toddler-sized chairs and sharing one Zoom square. Avery and Andy in Davis were 7 and 5. We were happy not to have to wear masks and be distanced, trying to make the holidays fe...

A few weeks ago, I boarded a long, grueling flight to the South Pacific to visit five of my eight grandchildren who live on a small island in Vanuatu. It took almost 20 hours of flying, four airports, an overnight stay, and more than one sleepless night.

And honestly? I wouldn’t trade a minute of it.

Because this is what I mean when I talk about aging boldly. Not skydiving or climbing Everest (though if that’s your thing, go for it). But staying curious. Saying yes to adventure. Doing what brings you alive, even when it stretches you.

And believe me, I said yes to a lot on this trip.

Headstands on the Beach

We did our traditional headstands, something we’ve been doing together since they were tiny and needed to be held up by a parent or the nearest wall. This time, we lined up on the beach, the girls flipping upside down beside me. Little Louise watched with wide eyes, then insisted on trying her own wobbly version, me holding her upside down. Seeing all of us upside down toge...

"To reach real peace in the world, we will have to begin with the children."
Mahatma Gandhi

 It started during the pandemic.

Three of my grandkids were on lockdown in the South Pacific. 
My other three grans were "local" but with the pandemic we had limited visits at a distance and with masks.

Christmas was happening and I felt the sting of being separated from all my grans. I wanted us to all be connected and not forget each other so I had to come up with a plan.

So...I started Gran's Zoom Christmas party.

I had to consider the time difference. The Vanuatu family (in the South Pacitic) is 18 hours ahead of the US. 
There were other obstacles like ensuring I could hold the kid's attention the whole time.

Yesterday we had Gran's 3rd annual Zoom Xmas party.

The two Davis grans, Avery and Andy, came to my house and we celebrated the winter solstice together.

I had decided to also have our Zoom Christmas party on the same day. Why not? 

It was: 

1:30 pm here in California
8:30 am in ...