Dear Abby: My mother never showed interest in my kids … until now

DEAR ABBY: I am a mother of six and a grandma to four. We are a close family and enjoy each other’s company. My mom is nearly 80. For reasons I could never understand, she didn’t enjoy my children when they were growing up and didn’t connect deeply with them. She once commented to me that she was bored with women her age because they were “obsessed” with their grandchildren and she wanted deeper conversations.

Mom moved away and would mostly visit just for holidays and birthdays. When the children tried to share things that were going on in their lives, she wasn’t interested, and we eventually stopped inviting her to sports events and recitals because she seemed annoyed to be there.

Now that her grands have almost reached adulthood, my mother wants to connect with them. She…