As I reflect back on my life, as a little girl there were a number of roles I had visions of, college graduate, successful business woman, wife and mother. The one role I gave no thought to was being a Grandmother. The reason I never really thought of that role is that I never really thought of getting old.

When we do think of being a grandmother we imagine a matronly woman, home knitting and cooking, and basically having the whole world revolve around waiting for your grandchildren to visit.

About 6 years ago, I was out with some girlfriends for one of our bi-monthly dinners. My friend Pam announced she was about to become a Grandmother, and we were ecstatic for her, but then we all stopped and said wait, how’s that possible? Pam, doesn’t look to much older than 35 ! Pam quickly announced,

“You will all call me GranDiva, because I’m definitely not a Grandmother.”

So that, my friends, is how I began to think about the whole issue of redefining the role of grandmothers.

Over the past 6 years, I began to collect articles on the topic and there were many, all spouting the same basic contention, that this generation of baby boomers are not happy to be classified as Grandmothers. This should not be a surprise since baby boomers have bucked the majority of any labels bestowed upon them.

Earlier this year after bucking another trend, retiring in my mid- 50’s and looking to rewire myself, I finally found the time to review the articles and give the whole issue of grandmothers some thought. I re-read the articles and then plotted the different characteristics between the traditional vs, what I call the New Millennium grandmother. I also tested Pam’s term of “GranDiva” on friends, family and business associates, some thought the term clever, others felt the term “Diva” had a bit of a negative connotation to it.

Once I completed my list, I realized there were similarities but mostly there were striking differences, and these differences were due to the fact that New Millennium grandmothers are leading very active lives. These women are not sitting home waiting for grandchildren to visit, they are out in the world. This new generation of grandmothers are leaders in corporations, politics, and the community. They know the importance of being fit and exercise as part of their daily lives. They are fearless and driven and consequently are exceptional role models for their grandchildren. And finally they are glamorous, stylish, chic and yes SEXY!!!

One additional key and important fact: this change is about attitude not age.