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My granny never left the house without a hat, and, when I was very little, I used to watch in total awe and wonder as she secured it by sticking a hat pin right through her head. Or at least that was what I thought she was doing!

My nan was a cook at Windsor castle, and my grandad a gardener there, thats how they met. I would spend time with nan in the kitchen learning how to bake cakes as she boiled the kettle on the hob. She could knit at bionic speed while watching the tv and tried to teach me to no avail. My grandad was always in the garden growing veggies, and in his shed as he was also a printer with his own printing press. So I would go to his shed and help him, and he always gave me a mint humbug which he kept in a glass jar.

Both my Grandfathers 'died in harness' so I only knew my Granny and my Gran. They were like chalk and cheese. Granny (Mum's Mum) wash posh. A semi-invalid she was always immaculately dressed, with snow white permed curls, shampooed and set by my Mum at least twice a week. My spinster Aunt who lived with Granny and my Mum both worked full time but between them they waited on Granny hand and foot, while my Dad did her garden, painting and decorating etc. She only went out if taken by car, sitting in the back seat in a fur coat and hat with a travelling rug and a stone hot water jar at her feet, waving to anyone she passed like the Queen. We were expected to be 'seen and not heard' in her presence and behave in a ladylike fashion.

On reflection, I believe she was the only person I ever knew who did not like my lovely, kind, helpful Dad.

My Gran (Dad's Mother) never seemed to sit down, always busying about her room and kitchen, chatting away, in broad Doric, while stoking the range, baking and cooking, making jam, ironing on the kitchen table with an iron heated on the fire, taking meals to sick or elderly neighbours, washing clothes by hand and running downstairs to hang them out in the back yard. She was always telling my sister and me that she had no idea what to do with girls (having only had three sons) so she would just treat us like boys, So we were sent on errands to the shop ('and there should be enough change to get you each an icecream'), given our Dads Meccano set or a football to play with, and most importantly given the job of sorting out the jar where she put her Co-op 'flimsies' which had to be put on a metal spike and counting the loose change which had also been flung in the jar. Once counted we had to do the sum, in our heads, of dividing the total by 2 and if correct we would be rewarded with half of the money each as "the jar was getting too full". Every time we went through this ritual, Gran would express her amazement that 2 girls could complete what was really a boy's job. This from the woman who had taught all three of her sons to cook, clean, sew and iron. She used to call us random names like Toots or Teenybash and when asked why mysteriously explained that it was only safe to use proper names on Sundays. She used nicknames for her sons and husband too.

I loved her to bits.

I remember when I was little and would insist my grandparents take me everywhere with them, so much so that I would lie across the front door so they can't sneak out without me. Little did I know they would sneak out round the back to get out.

When I was young, I stayed with my grandmother whilst my mother was having my brother. After lunch she always wanted to play the same game with me, it did not have a name, but to play it we both had to sit in an armchair, then she used to say' let's see who can keep their eyes shut the longest'. Needless to say, I fell asleep. Whether she did I don't know, but I do know that when I woke up she was always up and doing something like cooking or cleaning.

Going with my Nan and Grandad to a door at the end of the garden thinking it was fairy door and it went straight on to their allotment and helping pick our vegetables for dinner.

I'm a little jealous of some of these lovely memories, as I never knew any of my grandparents. My grandfather was from Orkney and my grandmother, from Keith, lived in Aberdeen. At first I thought he was a scoundrel because he got my grandmother pregnant and didn't marry her - this was in 1920 - and after she died in childbirth he didn't raise my mother. Through family history research, I met a distant relative who had known my grandfather, and who told me about him. I realized that he did visit and keep in touch with my mother, and that perhaps he became a nicer person as he got older. I think I would have loved him and I certainly love Orkney and am proud of my connection to the place - although I am American. (My grandfather "made his fortune" for 30 years in America and returned to Orkney, bought a hotel, and finally get married at the age of 55!) I am my grandchildren's only gran, so I do my best to make special memories for them and hope they will remember me as fondly as some of you gransnetters do your grandparents.

my memory of my grandad was seeing him complete walking the south downs way when he was well into his eighties - so proud!

My maternal grandparents had 12 children. The youngest was only about 10 years older than me but for a long time the one I thought was the youngest uncle was actually a cousin, born illegitimately and brought up by our grandparents, who he called Mam and Dad. The radio was by Grandad's chair, so he controlled what everyone listened to. Grandma loved cyclamen flowers and the plants still remind me of her. She always wore a wrap-around pinafore and sat in her rocking chair by the range, cooking for her family. The umarried ones still lived at home and were all working. However there was always a meal ready for each when they came in at differing times. Grandad was a shepherd and there were 3 outhouses at the back of their house - one a 'privy', one a coal shed and one for his sheepdog.

My paternal grandma was widowed before I was born and had also lost her eldest son during WWII. My mother accompanied her to a commemorative service in Westminster Abbey while she was pregnant with me. She met Winston Churchill there and always claimed I looked just like him when I was born! Grandma was a lovely little lady who looked like the fairy godmother in Disney's original Sleeping Beauty - bibbity bobbity boo . She had many sadnesses throughout her life but always held her head up and smiled.

My grand father letting me have the cherry from the top of his cake. We rarely had cakes, so it clearly left a lasting memory!

I was very lucky to have all my grandparents. My dear Nana died when I was 16. We used to gather buttercups in the park and take them back for Nana. She had a china log to put them in and stand it on the windowsill. We used to sit beside my Granny in Church ( my Dad's mother). If we fidgeted she gave us a poke with her finger. We went to Granny and Granddad's house for tea every Saturday afternoon. Granny bought marshmallow wafers as a treat for my sisters and I. Lovely old people, happy memories.

My paternal grandfather was just lovely. He told stories of his childhood, he told us how he'd spend his money 'if he won the pools' all on us. He bought us lucky bags every Sunday. He took us out in his taxi cab. Mostly he made us feel special, he made us feel loved. I hope I leave that kind of legacy for my grandchildren.

I have sadly no memories of either grandfather as both died before I was born. But many lovely memories of my grannies who both lived into their nineties. Taught me to knit, sew, cook, bake and garden and the rules and joy of snooker!

My grandparents used to save up all their 2 pence and 1 pence pieces for us in a jar. When we got around to their house (my brother and I) had to share them out between us and then we each counted up to see how much money we had.

My most special memory of my Grandparents is of a childhood holiday my parents and I took with them to Austria. It was their first time abroad and they loved every minute. They spoilt me rotten and made the trip so magical. They were always so loving and caring and knew how to have fun =)

My mother was an 'older mother' in the 1950's...her father had died some two years before I was born, as had my fathers mother. My grandma lived with my (widowed) mum and me...she was an invalid and to my shame I used to creep up to her room at mealtimes and if there was any wafer thin bread and butter needing a home, it found one in me! I think that my mum must have believed that my Grandma had a better appetite than was the case!! In fact Grandmas speech had been affected by a series of strokes, so my memories of her are of beautiful kind blue eyes and a halo of white hair, she had a very gentle touch and I did love to sit beside her in bed and look at picture books. I'm sure that prior to her strokes, we must have had good chatty times together, however I was only four and sadly don't recall them. I have photos of me as a young baby, with my Grandpa, but he died when I was barely two, so the photos are the only memory - he looks like he would have been great fun, he had a real twinkle in his eye!

I can still taste the boiled milk in my granny's tea, was it before refrigeration and boiled milk didn't go off?

My grandparents weren't very cuddly ( typical of their generation imo) but they were always there when you needed them I remember my maternal grandmother turning up at our house just before Christmas one year, my dad had been off work due to an accident at work and we were really struggling she had got three buses to get to our house and she was laden down with bags of toys food and warm winter clothes for us kids, how she managed it. I don't know mind you I can also remember being at her house and coming over faint think it was when my period was due I was about 14 and she sat me down and made down a glass of brandy in one go it nearly choked me ?
My maternal grandad hardly said two words to his grandchildren but I remember when I used to go to their house he used to say to me your bottles are behind my chair and I would take all the empty beer bottles he'd saved for me back to the off license and get the money for the empties

I love the other people's stories and wonder at how much they learnt from their grandparents and the good times.

We moved away from my grandparents when I was 3 to the coast as my father was in the navy, I had 2 older brothers who were closer to them than me as they had spent all the war living in the same village.

What I remember, the pig down the garden we always visited, obviously not the same one, the water pump I could never turn to get water and the smelly bucket toilet I avoided using. Grandad's chair by the range and the smell of his pipe, the wide variety of home made wines brewing in the cupboard. As I got older, my brothers were working so didnt visit with us and I was bored. The conversations they had with my parents about extended family and neighbours which didn't mean anything to me but recently visiting the village I recognised those names in the churchyard.

As we lived so far from all my grandparents I don't remember any attachment for me but my brothers yes. I missed out on having an extended family and envy my husband who spent a lot of time with his grandparents.

My nanny Jones was a little old lady who wore a hat. I often use to go and stay with her in an old cottage in a small village. she had three taps in the kitchen, hot, cold and drinking wate and the dog drank his water from what we discovered was a really lovely Clarice Bowl. Her bedroom was wallpapered with pictures of the royal family and she didn't like having a bath. Everyone knew her as she would old lady sit for people,and I would go to church with her She use to go to all the different churches and liked the Methodist best because they came and picked her up. Found out after she had died that she was a Quaker!

My Grandmother lived with us and looked after me whilst Mam and Dad were working.She made the most amazing steamed sponge puddings every day for lunch.They took ages to cook but didn't last long when smothered in custard.

I have so many memories as I was lucky enough to be bought up by my grandparents and to this day I think I had the best there ever was or could be.
My favourite memories were firstly going out on deliveries with my grandad in his lorry, we had sausages and sauce sandwiches and everyone at his firm treated me like a princess. Secondly was hand washing my dolls clothes next to my Nan in the kitchen (who was doing our laundry by hand) and then we would both peg the washed clothes on the line outside. For me these were wonderful days. I miss them both ever so much. Now I'm a Nanna and when my grandchildren get bigger I hope to leave them with wonderful happy memories.

My gran was super-cool - she had an illegitimate daughter (my aunt) in the 1930's & kept her, and she used to tell me stories of how she dealt on the black market during WW2 :-)

I don't remember my grandfathers but both my grandmothers left a lasting impression on me
Paternal grandma lived 6 hours away so we only visited a couple of times a year. She had a parlour with velvet curtains and a wind-up gramophone. She was really tiny and kept lavender water under her pillow. We could find her in the house by following the aroma of lavender. She scuttled about in her old-fashioned kitchen and served crumpets for breakfast every day. Having lived through two wars, she was extremely careful not to waste anything, including food, so she used everything in strict date order. As a result, fresh food always went into the cold cupboard and we were always served the very old canned goods and wrinkled, mouldy produce!
Maternal grandma was local, and very patient with us and she was also a wonderful cook. Each week when she visited she would turn up with a cake tin of sponge or cakes that Mary Berry would have been proud of. Her Christmas pudding with silver threepenny pieces was nothing less than sensational and I regret never asking for her recipe. However, she was also a lifelong smoker and had an awful smoker's cough which was difficult to listen to. Luckily, it put my sisters and me off smoking for life so none of us ever touched cigarettes!