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Do we think of grandparents as unpaid maids or second helpers for kids?
Grandparents are an invaluable source of childcare support. But adult children should not take advantage of them and seniors should learn to draw boundaries too.
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The National Survey of Senior Citizens 2011 found that of those who had grandchildren, 29 per cent were involved in caring for them.
ST PHOTO: KELVIN CHNG
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Here is a stark question: Do we think of grandparents as maids for our children?
Most of us would have a knee-jerk reaction and scream a resounding “no”. But those of us who are honest might give a guilty, nuanced answer after some deep reflection and pained soul-searching.
Walk past any primary school or childcare centre at dismissal time, and you can see parents and foreign domestic workers hover at the entrance together with a grandparent or two. Taxi driver uncles are known to take time off in the mornings because they need to ferry their grandchildren to and from kindergarten.
A car can be handy. It’s not uncommon to see a tag team where grandpa drives while grandma hops off to deposit or pick up the child after school or an enrichment class. A family friend and his wife help out with the primary school run. Grandma keeps an eye on the children in the back seat and provides snacks on the days with back-to-back classes; grandpa keeps his eyes on the road ahead.
