Long-distance grandparents: 12 ways to stay close at Christmas

By Kate Mirynowski, founder · October 26, 2026

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When Grandma lives a plane ride or a long drive away, Christmas can feel a little lopsided. The kids are growing fast. She sees them on a screen most of the year, and in person maybe twice. You want her to feel like part of the season, not like someone watching it from far away.

You don't need a big plan. You need a few small things that happen on purpose. Here are 12 that work for busy families, with very little setup on Grandma's end.

1. Send a real card with a video inside

A phone call ends. A card stays on the fridge. A card with a video inside does both. Record the kids saying Merry Christmas, singing a carol, or showing off the tree, and put it on a printed card she can scan whenever she misses them. (This is what we make at Pigeon Post. More on that below.)

2. Share one tradition on the same day

Pick one thing you both do on the same evening. Hang one new ornament each. Light a candle at dinner. Watch the same Christmas movie and text during the good parts. Doing the same thing at the same time makes the distance feel smaller.

3. Bake together on a video call

Choose one easy recipe, ideally hers. Send the list a week ahead so you both have the ingredients. Prop the phone up on the counter and let the kids measure, spill and taste while she coaches. Mail her a few of the cookies if they survive.

4. Ask her to read a bedtime story

Grandparents love this one. She reads a Christmas book on video, at bedtime, once a week in December. If the time zones don't line up, ask her to record it so the kids can play it whenever they want.

5. Mail her something the kids made

A handprint ornament, a drawing, a paper snowflake, a list of "10 things I love about Grandma." It does not need to be good. It needs to be theirs. Kids can help address the envelope too, so it feels like their mail.

6. Interview Grandma

Before Christmas, have the kids ask her questions on a call. What was Christmas like when you were little? What was your favorite present ever? What did Mom do that got her in trouble? Record it. Years from now, that recording will matter more than any gift.

7. Put the Christmas morning call on the calendar

Agree on a time ahead of time, and tell her what to expect. "We'll call at 10, after presents, before the chaos." A set time means she isn't waiting by the phone all morning, wondering.

8. Open her gift together

Hold back the gift from Grandma and open it live on a video call. She gets to see the reaction, which is the whole reason she sent it. If you can, do it the other way too, and let her open yours while you watch.

9. Keep a shared photo album

Make a shared album on your phone and add a few photos every week in December: the tree, the school concert, the snow, the messy kitchen. A little at a time feels like a window into your days, not a dump of 200 photos on Dec 26.

10. Let the kids write her a real letter

Not a text. A letter, in their handwriting, with a stamp they picked. Ask her to write back. Kids who get mail of their own tend to want to send more of it.

11. Make her recipe, then tell her about it

Ask for the family recipe she always makes, and make it at your house. Send her a photo of the result, good or bad. It tells her the tradition is still going, and that it's going in your kitchen now.

12. Plan the next visit before the holidays end

The hardest part of a long-distance Christmas is the quiet after it. Put the next visit on the calendar before New Year's, and let the kids make a countdown. It turns "we miss you" into "see you soon."

A note for the grandparents reading this

If you're the grandma, you can start any of these yourself. Ask for the Christmas morning call time. Offer to read the bedtime story. Send the recipe before anyone asks. Parents in December are running on empty, and a grandparent who suggests the plan often makes it happen.

Make it easy on Grandma's end

Whatever you pick, keep the tech simple for her. A video call app she already uses. A card she just has to open. A QR code she can scan with the phone camera she already points at the grandkids. The fewer steps for her, the more likely it happens.

Start with the card

If you only do one thing on this list, do number one. With Pigeon Post you pick a family photo, and it becomes an illustrated watercolor Christmas card. Add a short video from the kids, and it prints as a QR code inside. We print it, stamp it and mail it to her door. When she scans it, she sees them. And with the second code on the back, she can tap "Tell them you got it," so you know it arrived.

Your first card is free, printed and mailed. Order by Dec 15 to arrive by Christmas.