Bridging the Generation Gap Between My Teenage Daughter and Her Grandparents
Miranda, right, with her grandparents, Laverne and Jim, aboard Sapphire Princess.
March 6, 2012
by Dylan Schulz
For anyone who has ever known a teenage girl, getting one to do something she doesn’t want to do is nearly impossible. And should you succeed, a hefty price will be paid in long sulks and lengthy complaints. This was the scenario last year as I told Miranda we’d be taking a Thanksgiving cruise to Mexico with my parents.
“They are old and uncool, and I’ll die of boredom,” Miranda said. But it was very important to me that Miranda know her grandparents. Unlike her older brother, who grew up near them, we moved when Miranda was two. She rarely saw my parents. A cruise on Sapphire Princess seemed just the thing to make a genuine connection and bridge a 50-year generation gap.
The first few days of the trip, Miranda did her own thing. She’d join us for dinner each night but would gobble her food and ask to be excused to go off to the teen club. She’d stay out late, sleep in and then lay out by the pool to get the tan she’d told her friends would be the only worthwhile aspect of the trip.
Meanwhile, my parents and I were having a wonderful time. We filled our days with trivia games, cooking and mixology demonstrations and our evenings with shows and playing cards in the game room, enjoying each other’s company.
On the third day, Miranda surprised us by coming to morning trivia. Little did she realize that while she was sleeping in, her grandfather was tearing it up. “How did you know the capital of Albania, Grandpa, without Googling it?” she asked. My father tapped his head and said, “I use this Google.” Our team won the trivia contest and we all received a Princess lanyard, which was a perfect prize for Miranda since she kept misplacing her room key.
That afternoon, Miranda saw her grandmother in a new light. In the main pool, amid people half her age, grandma was participating in pool games. Miranda grabbed her iPhone and began recording grandma perform a synchronized swimming routine. She jumped up and down, loudly cheered her on and praised my mother when she returned to her deck chair with a gold medal around her neck.
That day, Miranda stayed with us and she was much more animated at dinner. Instead of taking off for the teen club after dinner, she decided to join us for a newlywed game show. She laughed so hard at the embarrassing questions, and we all agreed how glad we were that none of us were contestants.
The thaw had arrived. The rest of the cruise was marked by great fun for all of us. Miranda, my mom and I took a raucous banana boat ride in Cabo San Lucas that had us screaming in exhilaration. She couldn’t believe her grandmother would do such a thing.
That night at dinner was so wonderful. Miranda seemed to have forgotten how miserable and bored she was supposed to be. She sat next to her grandmother and was genuinely enjoying herself. She admired my mother’s knit shawl and asked what else she could knit. My mother asked her what she wanted and Miranda told her about these headbands she had seen at Abercrombie. The two of them goofed around all dinner and even put on a little puppet show with the clamshells.
The remaining days were absolutely priceless. Miranda was so pleasant and engaging that I almost forgot she was a teenager. The cruise had done the impossible–it had bridged the cavernously wide generation gap and brought our family together.
As we said our goodbyes, my mother handed Miranda the headband she had quickly knitted for her. Miranda was impressed! “How did you do that so quickly? My friends are going to be so jealous.” Miranda dove into my mother’s arms and hugged her goodbye. “We need to do this again,” she said.
A huge grin came across my father’s face as he announced, “I am glad you think so because I took the liberty of booking our next cruise on board. How does Alaska sound to you pumpkin?” Miranda delightfully nodded her head and exclaimed, “That would be awesome!”
While we look forward to that summer cruise, I am happy to report that Miranda and my parents remain in close contact. My mom opened a Facebook account and she is getting a huge kick out of reading Miranda’s postings. Hardly a day goes by that Miranda and her grandfather don’t talk. Grandpa is a retired math professor. He and Miranda go over her advanced calculus homework and prep for her AP exam.
I benefit, too. To see my daughter and my parents forge a relationship based on love and friendship and not routine family responsibility, is truly a beautiful thing to behold.
Dylan lives in Temecula, Calif., and she’s enjoyed two Princess cruises. Her parents have cruised with Princess 10 times for a total of 81 days.
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Continuing the Discussion
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says... December 19, 2012 | 2:41am
[...] To Bridge a Generation Gap [...]
Dylan, your story certainly resonates with many parents! Reading about the bond forged between Miranda and her grandparents is truly touching and we’re thrilled your cruise brought them together!
Absolutely enjoyed your story. Think this was the best cruise story I’ve read so far.
Just look at how much Miranda looks like her gorgeous Grandma–look at those smiles!
You’ll all love Alaska in the summer!
Wow, Dylan, that was such a great story!! This is actually the only “Inspired to Cruise” story I have bothered to read so far since subscribing. I took my first cruise with my sister, brother-in-law and their 3 children back in 2007 — I’m in California and they’re in Virginia and it was so great going on day trips and sharing meals with all of them, so I can relate. Have a fabulous time in Alaska!
What an awesome story!
We just cruised on the Ruby with my daughter and her husband and three grandchildren. We had such a good time together. We all can’t wait to cruise together again and have already booked a 10 day cruise for next year’s school vacation. The kid’s clubs were great. Our little 5 year old had a hard time waiting for them to open in the morning. The time together was priceless. The photographer’s have given us beautiful family pictures to remind us of the fun we had.
Awesome stories and experiences like this is truly a memory to treasure.it is one of my wishes to go on a cruise with my children and grandchildren one day. Hopefully soon in Gods time.
what a awesome story ,it brought tears to my eyes..cherish those memories miranda. they are precious.. enjoy your next cruise..
I actually was on the Thanksgiving cruise as well with my husband and my parents. Something about that cruise I think drew all families closer to each other. Thank you so much for the wonderful story and to many more cruises with your family.
That actually brought a tear to my eye, Grandparents are the most wonderful people in the world, i’m thankful my daughter was brought up close to my parents and its only in recent years whilst at University that she doesnt see them so much, but still manages to call regularly, we are off on a Meditteraen cruise in a month, which will bring some of the family together, my mum and dad 80 and 88, my partner 73 me 51 our daughter 20 and introducing to cruising both her boyfriend 19 and my nephew of 12,
What a lovely story. Brought tears to my eyes. We also had a lovely cruise in 2001 with my daughter and her grandma. Sadly my Mum died in October 2011 but we have wonderful memories.
And memories are what last forever. What an inspiring thing. I wish I had a memory of my mom like that.
On a cruise through the Panama Canal in 1975 i was just 23, and I saw 3 generations of a family enjoying a cruise just as Dylan described. I came home from the trip and became engaged. Years later I have cruised with my children and son in law and am about to become a grandmother. I am already planning a 3 generation cruise of my own. I have cruised 26 times with Princess and hope to keep on cruising until I can’t!!
fairseas always. patti
I neglected to say that my husband of 35 yrs and I cruise together too, and everyone says we get along better at sea than on dry land!
This post was written and exaggerated beyond belief so all of you posting would react this exact way. Now run and go book a Princess cruise!
How sad that you are so cynical. I hope at some point in life you have a wonderful memory like this to look back on. Would be sad to go without one.
Dylan….you certainly have a gift for writing and I so enjoyed reading about your cruise. Our family suffers from distance factors and this seems like a really special way to spend some quality time together. Thanks for sharing your heart-warming story.
Jan
What a touching story! I think it has inspired me to share one .There are so many stories to be told.I wonder if Princess realizes how many lives they have changed.
My brother in law is suffering from end stage Alzheimer’s so while he could reme,ber a few things my sister planned a cruise for her two daughters and planned for the older daughter’s friend to go a long as a surprise because my sister was going to need help my with brother-in-law. The friend going along made all the difference in the world for my niece. Initially she wasn’t too crazy giving up part of her summer until she found out that Dee was going but Becky’s family had practicallly raised Dee so this was more of a family excursion. I don’t know which cruise line this was; I do know that it was a wonderful memory for them all. My brother-in-law is loosing so much of his memory but he will still say, “That time we all went on the cruise.” My husband wants to go back and visit Alaska.” The only way I will do it is if we take a cruise ship.
Loved reading your story and yes it is very touching that cruising has this incredible effect on people. I feel that the best memories I have is when I have been on the sea with my husband and with my 2 kids. Princess does give you unforgettable experiences and memories to last a lifetime. Have a wonderful time in Alaska and keep making wonderful memories together.
A wonderful story.
Dylan, if you have the time, do a Princess Cruisetour to Alaska, not just a cruise. We did a cruisetour last August, with the land portion first. We flew to Fairbanks for the first day, then 2 nights at the Princess Lodge in Denali National Park, then 2 nights at the Princess McKinley Lodge, and then a 7 night cruise from Whittier to Vancouver. All arranged through Princess.
The 5 days on land and the 7 day cruise were all fantastic!!!
Wow!! What a moving story that brought tears to my eyes. I’m hoping to get my granddaughters on a cruise. The oldest one is afraid to get on a large ship and be on the ocean. She is taking a short cruise on spring break because her dance group is performing so I’m hoping it is great and we’ll be on a ship soon. Have fun on that Alaskan cruise and yes, the land tour is great!!
Dylan, Ihave enjoyed your story of your cruise with your teenage daughter. It is wonderful to have your children connect with their grandparents.I have wonderful memories of my grandparents. You never lose those memories. Great story! I am also very glad to read the comments about the Alaskan cruise. This summer my husband and I ,to celebrate our 25th wedding aniversary are flying into Fairbanks to go on the 15 day Alaskan land tour 7 days and 7 days cruise. I am so excited, I can hardly wait. I am glad to hear that Kay, and Steve both say this tour is fantastic. Maybe Dylan, my husband and I will get to meet you and your daughter and parents in Alaska. Wouldn’t that be a miracle that all of us would be on the same tour/cruise? I hope you all have a terrific time in Alaska!
I also took my awesome 8 year old granddaughter on a grandma cruise. It was just the two of us and a reward for her straight A report card. Now she’s suggesting that it would be nice “for us to see” the Eiffel Tower and also the Great Wall of China. I think I have opened Pandora’s Box !!!
This was such a moving story. Tears still in my eyes. How marvelous to see a sullen teen connect so beautifully with her grandparents. Such a gift and such a memory.
Am I the only one a little disgusted that this teenager complained about a cruise to Mexico?
First world problems.
I love this “true life” story. I was very close with my maternal grandparents, but we had half of the US between us. When we were together (not often), we TRULY enjoyed the special time we had together.
Wonderful story. What a priceless gift for everyone!
That was a awesome story. I’ve cruised with Princess twice–both fabulous trip’s. I have found
it help’s to diet for couple week’s prior to you’re cruise. Princesses food is great, and who can pass up their buffet’s. lol I was able to take my wife on a Caribbean cruise with Princess
prior to her passing away in 2009 — I will cherish those memories always.
yes, of course, tears in the eyes, been there, done that. My first ever cruise was in spring break 2004 in the Western Caribbean with my 13 year old son 17 months after his father died. The Grand Princess was cool and my son was so impressed by Princess and how organized they were with everything at all. So one of my daughters who picked up up at the airport coming home said let’s take grandma on a cruise in fall when she comes from Germany. So we did go RT Puerto Rico Eastern Caribbean, my 78 year old mom, that daughter, my son and I. And boy, that was a “crappy cruise”. Eventually he quit saying it and took photos with his new digital camera. He had turned 14 by fall and was a “changed person.” Nevertheless, he always had a great relationship with that sister, his favorite, and also his grandmother from Germany. Teens are just difficult, and he is the last after 4 sisters. In 2005 we took a Mediterranean cruise, he and his fave sister and I and afterwards we stayed 2 weeks in Germany and things were fine.
What a blessing! Thanks for the great story!! I am so happy for you and your family! One of my dreams is that one day our entire family will be able to cruise together!
Wonderful story .
Tears still in my eyes!!
Priceless story!! Everyone will enjoy the cruise to Alaska!!
I can only say that my husband and I have taken our granddaughters on three cruises, the first one was just a four day cruise when the oldest one graduated from college, and our girls enjoyed it , so when the youngest granddaughter was going In to her senior year, we again took them on a Alaska Cruise. They were a little older and met up with the nicest three generation family, to say they had a good time is an understatement. I told them on the way home, that they will judge all futures cruises on that one, because nothing could be more fun then that one. They knew all the members of the cruise , many of the performers and rested for a full day after returning home. The next year when the youngest one graduated, my husband was in the hospital and she came in to see him after graduation and put her honor ribbons around his neck. He had the biggest smile on his face I ever saw. He passed away nine days later. I did take them on a cruise last year, but it was not the same for any of us. For grandparents, go for it , you can not replace those good times.
I just experienced something similar as I recently returned from a 3 generation cruise with my parents and my 14 and 16 year old daughters on the Ruby. This cruise brought everyone closer together and was so much fun. We especially enjoyed staying on board one day in port. We happily played Monopoly in the Piazza near the International Cafe. What fun running to get get delicious treats to share with everyone and watching the kids try to outfox Grandpa. The memories are priceless.
A great story Dylan!
We are neighbors as my wife and I live in Temecula. We have cruised every year for the last several years and did the Alaska cruise on Princess. You will love it!
Next up is the Western Carribean where we are taking our 22 year old Son, our 25 year old Son and his wife. My wife’s brother, wife and 2 sons are also joining us along with my Mother in Law. Ten of us! We also have an Australia & New Zealand cruise booked on March 2013 with Princess. As a vacation, it can’t be beat. Have fun!
I really enjoyed your story Dylan. It was so considerate of you to do what you did to bridge the gap between your daughter and your parents. What a great parent you are and thank you for sharing your story.
Tears still in my eyes!! I hope you are going to Alaska on the August 11, 2012 Sapphire Princess! We are taking my 18 yr old nephew for his Christmas, Birthday and Graduation gift!! He would love to meet a nice girl like Miranda! Have fun in Alaska, it is definitely worth taking the cruisetour! 7 night cruise from Vancouver, the 4 nights land tour, Denali Explorer is the bomb!!
Absolutely beautiful! Sharing time with family is truly priceless. It is so important to spend quality time with our older family members .They have so many life experiences ,and wisdom to pass on to our generation.One must never pass up the opportunity to share this precious time together.
This is fantastic…made me cry. We lose touch with our family so easily with busy lives and not living near each other. Travel is a wonderful way to get to see each other in another light and to grow in so many ways.
You’ll love Alaska and most of all to share more time with each other.
That Was fantastic. Was great it got your family closer. Yall will enjoy the Alaska cruise, we went on it and was on the Diamond Princess Cruise Ship Was a beautiful ship You would love it. Wonderful cruise. Have a great cruise Have a great time together.
A wonderful story and a heart warming ending. I hope my dream of taking my entire family on a princess cruise next year will come true.
This was the best story so far, and like many other readers, it brought tears to my eyes. I’m not cynical about the power of an amazing trip to bridge the generation gap, as my parents invited us and our 14 year-old son to Italy in 2002, and although it was not a cruise, it definitely was a sweet bonding experience. Last summer we took our first cruise to Alaska on the Golden Princess with a couple of old friends celebrating their 50th as we were celebrating our 25th wedding anniversaries. I think that bond will last a lifetime. I hope to cruise again with family some day.
Although this is good PR for Princess, it was a GREAT story none-the-less. Great to see an intimate setting like a cruise bridge the gap between the generations. Without having been on a cruise in my life, I did, several years ago, do a lot of research on cruising. I have a question though that maybe the moderator in here can answer. Does Princess have cruises designed with this goal in mind? I’m speaking about cruises designed to bring families closer together? I would think that a “teen club” would be counter-producitve in this regard. I would think that events, games, and other activities onboard, designed for both teens and parents and grandparents together, would be productive in this regard.
I also had tears in my eyes.That was a very good story.There is nothing beetter than grandchildren with their grandparents. Our daughter got married in 2007 at Magans Bay. We were all on the Caribbean Princess for a week and had a wonderful time. Since then we have taken our oldest grandchild (18) with us on two other cruises with Princess and it certainly does bring families together. For an eighteen year old male to say he had a wonderful time with his grandparents for 10 days is a miracle within itself. We can’t wait to do it again and neither can he. Thank You Princess! Miranda, for the next cruise you’ll count down the days in anticipation.
We just returned from the Caribbean Princess, our daughter and two granddaughters joined us. It was such a joy for us to sit on our balcony at night and watch our older granddaughter -17-amaze us with her “app” for star gazing, and then amaze them by our skills in trivia “where in the World Are We”. We all got really silly going through the rock formations at the “baths” in Virgin Gorda, we made it with a little help from the younger generation. Cruising is a great way to connect and Princess makes it happen.
I sailed on a 14 day Carribean cruise to Aruba, Cauuracaao, Barbados, Grenada, st Vincent, the St Thomas and Turks Island…It was a wonderful trip of discovery, being exposed ty the geographic and political reality of those islands…Being from North America, I had no appreciation of that area, what it meant to 16th Centruy Europeans. Hoverver, I made the mistake of not Bringin adequate reading material with me, about the history of the area, and I, honestly, could not find anything in your library. I could not even find an adequate map of the Carribean anywhere…the closest theing i had was very, very tiny map of the area in the Grenada tourist magazine….I was starved for reading material. Therefore, I suggest you provide a shelf full of World atlases so a person can see where he is, when he is in the open ocean. I also suggest theat, instead of selling that rip-off coupon book, you sell “The Caribbean by Cruise Ship’ or similar…I was sick to death of seeing jewellry ads. That cruise is meaningless without adequate reading material, in my opinion. What really crowned that cruise experince was: #1-A christmas gift of the above mentioned book; #2-The gift from my daughter of the ‘The Republic of Pirates’. Thes two books, in conjunction with the cruise, made the whole experience tremendously worth- while.
My in-laws have booked a family Christmas vacation every year for the last 5 years. They said the most wonderful Christmas gift they could give our 3 grandkids is time and memories. At first to give up an at home Christmas was difficult, but now… we pack a small tree and have the cabin stewards help us play Santa. We decorate our doors and have a mini contest to see which one of us has the best door. FUN!! Started out as toddlers doing this and now, my youngest is 7 and looks forward to the next cruise with grandma and grandpa. Cruising is a wonderful way to connect. At dinner we talk about roses and thorns… that way we all can share the highlights of our day.
That is great and I agree with “Bridging a Gap.” My wife and I have started taking each of our grandkids on a cruise when each reaches 8 years old. We have three more to go. Then, although we have not told them yet, we will start over as they reach 13 years. It has been, and is, a wonderful experience and a great time to bond. I recommend it for all.
Such a wonderful story!! I’m 30 now and got to go on several cruises with my grandparents when I was younger and it was priceless! They’ve since both passed away, but I still enjoy cruising w/my family & friends. I actually came across the key card from our first cruise from August 1995 (when I was about Miranda’s age). I love the wonderful memories I have from those times together! I hope all teenagers (and people in general) can have this kind of relationship because you never know when that loved one (parent, grandparent, sibling or friend) won’t be there. Cherish the time you have together!!
Fantastic story! I took two cruises with my Grandmother then in her late 90′s. Even roomed with her and watched her strut her stuff in the pool deck fashion show. Priceless!
I can’t believe your mother went on a banana boat ride, if she had fallen off the shock could have killed her or else she could have fractured her brittle bones.
This story is so corny I wonder if it’s been made up?
Awesome story! I love that the grandparents are still living like ‘kids’, which is what the younger generation needs to see. Age is an attitude, and I’d say Miranda’s grandparents have a great attitude! We took our 17yr old “kid” just recently on a cruise with her aunt and uncle travelling with us. They were so impressed with our daughter’s behavior around 4 adults (we tried to get a friend of Chelsea’s to come along, but the plane tickets prevented her best friend from accompanying us). When I told Chelsea I was sorry that a friend could not join our ‘senior’ cruise (she graduates this year!) she was perfectly fine hanging out with her parents and aunt and uncle. We were blessed as well to be able to spend a week with our otherwise busy daughter.
I was blessed to have all four of Grandparents in my life and was 42 when my last living Grandfather died. I traveled with both sets of Grandparents and while we never took a cruise together we take some wonderful trips and I have many wonderful memories from those. I was lucky that they were also apart of my daily life as well. I’m 44 and not a day goes by that I don’t think of them and all of the memories we had together. SO, I encourage children to get to know there Grandparents
This is truly priceless. Family is so important these days and being able to “bridge the gap” taking a cruise where there are no distractions and phones, texting, facebook, and email can really bring a family close together as they should be.
We have taken six of our eight grandchildren on a cruise to the Caribbean two-by-two and got to know each of them much better even though we do not live too far apart and get to see them often. They all seemed to really enjoy each cruise and being with a cousin from another one of our kids. The other two went to Denmark with us for a special occasion there with our AFS student that lived with us for a year. Princess is the best!
I feel especially thankful … I am going on a cruise to Alaska with not only my grandchild & her husband, but her three children, so me and my great grandchildren will have a great time, I am sure!! Of course, the fact that they live just across the street from me, doesn’t count!! Not only are we (all six of us) going on a cruse, but also, my two sisters, a niece and her husband! We expect to have a wonderful time.
I had tears in my eyes as I read this amazing story. In June I am taking my 16 year old and my
15 year old granddaughters along with my two daughters, their mothers, on a 12 day cruise
the Crown Princess to Italy, Greece, etc. We all can’t wait. So excited. Girls Only. Will have to write a blog when we get back.
Their brothers want to know where & when their papa is going to take them.
“forge a relationship based on love and friendship and not routine family responsibility, is truly a beautiful thing to behold.”
I love the phrase. It’s a wonderful story.