Tell Cadbury about your shared moments of joy with grandparents - £265 voucher to be won! NOW CLOSED

[JustineBMumsnet]

Whether you spent every weekend with them, just saw them occasionally or had on on-the-phone relationship, grandparents are people who often bring back exciting memories from childhood as well as heartfelt moments in adult life - and with Grandparent’s Day coming up, Cadbury Dairy Milk Buttons would love to hear about them.

So, whether they’re of being taught how to bake, of sculpturing sandcastles at the seaside or intense games of scrabble, tell Cadbury Dairy Milk Buttons about the moments of joy you’ve shared with your grandparents or those you’ve witnessed your children share with your parents.

All those who post on the thread will be entered into a prize draw where one MNer will win a £265 Love2Shop voucher.

Thanks, and good luck with the prize draw!

MNHQ

[StickyFloor]

My father came to stay for a week to help out when my twins were 1yo and I was utterly exhausted. On the day he was due to leave we got them up, washed and fed and settled for a nap as usual. The next thing I knew, I woke up an hour later and dad had missed his train but he said he couldn't bear to wake the 3 of us up so he'd just go tomorrow instead. The same thing happened 4 days running before I made him go as I knew he needed to get home for work. He's dead now, but when I think of him I often see the image of him sat on the sofa behind two sleeping babies smiling at me as I woke up.

[AlpacaLypse]

I loved it when my Dutch grandmother came back after her regular trips home to Rotterdam. She always brought lovely chocolate giant initial letters for each of our names.

They were as delicious as Cadbury's chocolate these days is hideous. Sort the recipe out and then I might consider buying it again.

[Mummydummy]

As a little girl I always loved to sit on my grandpa's lap and have him read me my favourite story from a very old picture book. The story involved a witch who got some elves to steal all the Christmas presents from Father Christmas's workshop. Columbine and Harlequin set out to recover the presents and do so by luring the witch into a trap so that they could steal back the sacks of presents. The trap? A pan of frying sausages. Because her one weakness was her love of sausages. My favourite line was the witch saying 'Sniff, sniff, I smell sausages...' But often my very dear, sweet kind Grandpa would fall asleep whilst reading the story much to my consternation. 'Grandpa, why've you stopped? Where's the sniff sniff sausages?'

Another time at Christmas the family were playing a party game where everyone had to think of answers under categories all beginning with a letter of the alphabet. You'd get 1 point for an answer and 2 points if no one else thought of the answer. The categories included, town, country, river, food, boys name, girls name. The letter chosen was P and we went round the room reading out our answers for boys name. Peter, Paul, Patrick, Phillip... When it got to Grandpa he said, 'oh I couldn't think of one, so I put Pieface!' That was a family joke for many years, every time you'd try to think of someone's name, someone would pipe up 'was it Pieface?'

[Pixie2015]

Watching my son now age 8 going off to the football hand in hand with his Grandad wearing matching hats and will a bag of treats always makes me smile - makes me remember the good times with my Granparents rather than nursing them with dementia ❤️

[Mama1980]

So many my grandparents were wonderful. My nan it would be shelling peas with her on the back step squished together chatting away, then shelling them one for the pot, one for her and one for me....she always bought enough peas to allow that :)
My grandad gave the best hugs so tight they hurt but I just knew he would slay dragons for me, him staggering into the hospital a couple of weeks after the birth of my ds1 he was born traumatically at 26 weeks, with a enormous teddy bear. The biggest I have ever see. No one else at that point had bought anything or said congratulations as we were both touch and go. I sobbed in his arms then he chatted to me about how ds1 was going to love the bear and where it could go In the house- I so badly needed someone to be happy with and he gave me that. He died this year devastating us all but ds1 especially. But the memory of him makes us smile, and as my nan used to say that if all she ever becomes was a faded photo and a smiled memory then hers was a life well lived.

[amysmummy12345]

My DD adores her "gangan", here they are wild camping in my dad's back garden 😂 my poor dad can hardly walk these days and yet he still gets down with her 😍

[amysmummy12345]

Oops forgot photo!

[dippydeedoo]

My grandparents lived in Suffolk so we used to holiday there and one summer we were on the beach in Great Yarmouth and I got lost, I can still feel the panic in me when I think of it - I was running around trying to find my family -crying my hair was sticking in my face,sandy grit was hurting my eyes as I rubbed them as the tears rolled down and then he found me - my handsome 6ft grandad John scooped me up held me tight,dried my tears with his crisp hanky and holding my hand we walked back to where they'd arranged to meet back up.
My nanna was very angry, my mum was cross too and my brother having been sent to look for me took this as a chance to stay in the arcades all afternoon.
I was punished (unfairly I thought) and was made to sit in the car alone (it was the 70s) whilst they went off to play bingo - grandad John came back to the car and we sat eating ice cream and colouring in.

[Pinkerbeller]

I lived with my maternal grandparents for a short time and memories of Saturdays will stay with me forever. Nana would put me in her wicker shopping basket on wheels and we'd go to the butcher, greengrocer and fishmonger. Lunch would be cheese and crusty bread that she'd cut on the folded down flap of the kitchen larder and the afternoon was spent sitting by Popsy's feet watching the racing once we'd picked out and placed his bets. Evenings were when the rest of the family came over for tea and all us grandchildren would sit lined up along the hallway eating sprats from tupperware bowls.

I have my own grandchildren now and model myself on her.

[hermancakedestroyer]

My Grandad lived in Devon. He died a year ago aged 92. I shared many happy times with him. Walks to the beach, a trip to Lundy Island, little things like preparing lunch for us consisting of a chopped pork pie and home grown tomatoes. I loved him so much - still do. I'm thankful to have shared my life with him.

[AugustRose]

My maternal grandmother died when I was only 5 so I don't really remember her but I had a wonderful relationship with my grandad. He would sometimes look after me on a Saturday afternoon while my family went shopping (my mum told me years later it was to keep him company as he got lonely). We would watch the wrestling eating chopped pork sandwiches with strong tea, then have a nap on the settee

I also remember him taking me home one day and it was raining heavily, we hid under a hedge for what seemed like ages waiting for the rain to die down. He always arrived at our house with a pocket full of boiled sweets and one time he made us a mars bar sandwiches with whispers of 'don't tell your mam'. He died when I was 15 and I was devastated.

[Larnipoo]

The moment I remember with my grandparents was at Manston Airshow. We all had ice creams and my grandad made a beak out of the end of the ice cream cone. I always do this now with my son - family tradition

[RoosterCogburn]

I don't have many memories of my grandparents as sadly they had all died by the time I was 4 - the clearest one is brought back when I hear the theme to Black Beauty, i remember sitting on the settee with my Grandad watching it.

[bettythebuilder]

I loved my Gran and Grandad so much! In my teens Gran and I went on holiday to Jersey together, just the 2 of us. It was so exciting to go away together and we had such a great time, I still have all the photos, postcards, tickets, etc etc that I collected as souvenirs 3 decades later

[wannabestressfree]

I will never forget the love my grandparents showed me and regardless of how long this page is could never do them justice. My nan was a domineering type with infinite amounts of patience with the four of us. She went in goal, took us on holiday, fed us the same meals day in day out, taught me to rub brass on a Saturday, that a strong work ethic was important and the washing machine could ALWAYS fit something else in.... On quick wash.... With a teaspoon of powder. I adored her and she died two years ago aged 92. I miss her terribly.
My grandad was an 'anything for a quiet life' chap with zero get up and go. I had a child very young who was diagnosed with asd and the only place he would settle would be on my grandads crackerly chest that bubbled as an affect of the mines :( they watched countdown and cat napped. He passed away as I was giving birth to my second son years later but wrote my name on a piece of paper just before as he wanted to know I was ok.
I was blessed with lovely grandparents.

[forkhandles4candles]

We stretch out our generations here and so for me GPs are always very very old, wise, havjng lived great lives with many stories to tell.. walk ng history books. Thankfully my DC love history, as do I.

[DanyD]

My daughter Gia loves her Grandad more than anything. Here they are pond dipping at a nature reserve. He teaches her martial arts at his dojo and takes on lots of holidays. Top Grandad

[ailsasheldon]

I saw my grandparents every day and my favourite memories are of Saturday nights when my parents went out to a party. We would drink fizzy, eat prawn cocktail crisps and watch the muppets. Bliss!

[dickinson13]

I have fond memories of visiting my grandparents and my grandad playing the piano while my Gran would sing along. He played by ear.

[ILikeThatSong123]

Due to my parents' jobs, we lived in different parts of the country, but every summer we used to go to visit and stay with both sets of grandparents. Both sets of grandparents were affectionate but my mother's parents have a very special place in my heart. They were the most loving people I can ever imagine. As soon as we arrive in the summer, my grandmother used to bring out a doll and some other toys she kept aside just for me, from the attic. She had other grandchildren too and some of them were girls but that doll and related toys, were kept away from them, just for me. Again, as soon as we arrive, my grandfather used to make a swing for me with some rope and fabric and cushions. He then used to push me in the swing forever.
I sooo much used to look forward to visiting them every summer.
Their house was also very child -friendly compared to the paternal grandparents. They had a lovely lush garden at the back of the house, with lovely smelling roses and all sorts of flowers, sunflowers

[ILikeThatSong123]

....sunflowers that turn to the direction of the sun, a water well, nearby beaches and lots of friends to play with (neighbours' kids at our age). So those were such idyllic times. I remember all my grandparents with great love and respect.

[ILikeThatSong123]

My maternal grandparents' other granddaughters were able to visit quite frequently since they lived nearby but the toys from the attic were just brought in for me when we arrived and were put back into the attic just before we leave. I also loved looking into her cupboards and drawers, she used to let me... I used to find interesting buttons or piece of tulle, or a lovely piece of fabric or an empty box or wedding favours...and she used to let me keep them. My grandad used to take me to the local shop for me to choose some special chocolates with shiny wrappings , after chomping off the chocolate, I used to keep the shiny delicate wrapping, inside of my book forever. Lovely, lovely days. Rest in peace grandparents

[MumboNumber5]

Toasting marshmallows on the river beach with DGF1, day trips to London with DGM1, getting woken in the night by DGM2 for midnight feasts.

[vedden1978]

I remember visiting my Nannie and Grandad for the summer holidays as they lived 6 hour drive away. My brother and I would sneak into their bed in the morning to have a cuddle and spend the days collecting strawberries and making jam with them, or making cakes and eating the cake mixture and stealing cherries off top !!

[Nottheshrinkingcapgrandpa]

My grandad was the most amazing, positive and supportive person I've ever had in my life and is the role model for how I am with my own children. They may never have met him, but they know all about him and how wonderful he was. He was truly the only person who had time for me or understood me when growing up ( I'm an undiagnosed Aspie but just didn't understand back then why I was so different to everyone else) and my life would not have turned out the way it has had he not been such a big part of it.