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Does your extended family live close by or far away? Do you like it that way?”

Asked by mamajama on 12th December 2007

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Since my son was born , my in-laws have moved in with us and my parents also live close by.My son is enjoying complete attention of all his granparents. They just dote on him.
He ,being the only grand child at the moment, loves it.
Though life gets tough a bit at times but then the joy everyone gets from being with my son makes it worth!!

Flag as inappropriate Posted by early_quick on 13th December 2007
We have family close and far too. There are unforeseen complications with this setup though. For one thing it's hard to always try and keep things fair. In particular, it's hard to try and give the part of the family that is far away enough time with our daughter. They really love seeing her, but it's hard to travel.

Flag as inappropriate Posted by mamajama on 13th December 2007
Our families live so far away we often joke that we feel like orphans. We never have family to share holidays or birthdays with. Sniff, sniff. On the other hand, like any families, ours have had their problems and personality clashes, so it's nice to be cut off from that. Also, we have a certain freedom to invent our own traditions, too. I try to look on the bright side, even though I feel a bit lonely at times.

Flag as inappropriate Posted by Diane on 12th December 2007
all of our official extended family lives far away. I don't like it because the kids don't get to spend alot of time with their grandparents, and my younger son doesn't get to run with the tribe of cousins. I DO like being removed from the day to day family dramas ; 0 I've hated it when I needed immediate contact and support..but for the most part, it's okay.

We have a strong network of friends and neighbors who act as surrogate family (it took my older son years to figure out who we were actually related to).

Flag as inappropriate Posted by OliveMartini on 12th December 2007
i have a lot close and a lot far (big family!) and it depends on the day ;) but a lot of times i do really like it :)

Flag as inappropriate Posted by Kate on 12th December 2007
We moved to be closer to our families this year - on balance, it's a positive for us. Our daughter loves to see her grandparents, they are thrilled to see her more often. My grandparents are also alive, in their 80s, and when they are with her they even look younger. But of course, family close by is not without complications:)

Flag as inappropriate Posted by Nataly on 12th December 2007