family

Staying In Touch With Far Away Family

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Last week we flew back to Pennsylvania to visit Pete’s Grandma. The girls treasure their time with her and the wisdom that they learn from their great grandma. Thank you to TracFone for sponsoring this post on how to stay connected with family far away during the holidays.

keep in touch this holiday season

Since we returned home this week from Pennsylvania, we’ve been thinking a lot about how we can best stay in touch with Great Grandma.

At 88, she is having vision issues, so letter reading is getting hard for her and the girls want to be able to talk to her more often. She has also had a few strokes so she lives in a facility that can help take care of her, but that means no long distance phone calls. While we were sitting with her saying our “see ya laters” I realized that she needs a TracFone. With a phone of her own she can call us whenever she wants and we can do the same.

Like how I use my TracFone device to help me stay organized and connected with my family, she can do the same! There are so many ways that my TracFone device is helping me during Thanksgiving time. From downloading a recipe app to help me with all the baking I’m doing, to the note feature that helps me keep track of all my travel schedules, I’m depending on my TracFone during this period leading up to Thanksgiving. It’s really helping me keep my sanity.

fall leafs

When we were visiting Pennsylvania this past week, I did a lot of thinking about and prioritizing.

It’s hard not to when you are surrounded by beautiful views like this. What makes me happiest is seeing those I care about happy and spending more time with them. TracFone helps me do both and I’m going to focus on using my phone to keep my mind focused on those things. More phone calls to those I love are in my future… and in Grandmas too with her new phone!

family pictures in pa

I’m excited about TracFone’s recently launched new 90-day Smartphone Only plans for smartphone and BYOP® users.

The Smartphone Only plans start for as low as $35 and are available online at tracfonewireless.com. Now you can Bring Their Own Phone to TracFone, sign up with a Smartphone Only plan and enjoy a stress-free holiday with the minutes, text and data you need to be connected with the people and things they love! We have a bunch of phones in our home so we will be sending Grandma one of these and setting her up on a TracFone plan. This is a great option for us because we can easily regulate her plan for her so she doesn’t have to do a thing. We can add minutes and everything right from our computer.

These new plans were just launched online on October 28th and they provide all current TracFone brand benefits that we love, including Unlimited Carryover, stacking of service days, basic international calling, and more!

We use TracFone because it is one of America’s largest no-contract wireless service providers where we can “Do Everything For Less®”. TracFone has No Contracts, No Bills, No Overages, No Credit Checks, & No Activation or Cancellation Fees. You can get unbeatable Nationwide Coverage on America’s largest and most dependable networks with TracFone and with Unlimited Carryover® from TracFone, customers get to keep their unused minutes, texts, and data as long as their service is active and in use within each six month period.

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There are different plans & services available to fit everyone’s needs.

90-Day Android Smartphone Minutes, Text and Data Plans- TracFone offers 90-Day Android™ Smartphone Minutes, Text and Data plans starting at just $19.99, an average monthly cost of only $7. Disclaimer: A month equals 30 days. Airtime Service Plan required for activation. Phones/Plans sold separately. Disclaimer: Triple the face value of airtime service plans, excluding smartphone only, data only, and text only cards. Double minute cards do not apply.

90-Day Smartphone Only Plans for smartphones and BYOP®- These new plans will provide all current TracFone plans benefits, including Unlimited Carryover, basic international calling and others, and start as low as $35.00. Disclaimer: These plans do not triple.

Triple Everything- Get Triple Everything, 3X Minutes, 3X Text, 3X Data when you purchase any no-contract plan for your Android™ smartphone device. Disclaimer: Triple Everything except with ‘smartphone only’ plans.

International Long Distance (ILD) App- Call Mexico, Canada, China, India and many more destinations around the world. This free app allows you to directly call stored contacts or international numbers minus the hassle of dialing access numbers. Available on Google Play.

Airtime Plans- TracFone has a variety of airtime refill options available that you can add at any time so that you have enough minutes for whatever you need. Data Cards and Add-On Text cards are also available online at TracFone.com.

FREE My Account APP for Smartphones- Customers can check their estimated balance and service days with the FREE My Account App. Disclaimer: When using this App, standard data rates may apply. Information may be transmitted with a delay and may not reflect actual balances.

BYOP LTE- Now you can enjoy the smartphone you already love in a whole new way. Bring it to TracFone and get one of the most affordable plans in America on one of the two largest 4G LTE networks. The only thing you’ll lose is your contract. Learn more at tracfonebyop.com. Disclaimer: Requires a compatible or unlocked smartphone. Most GSM and CDMA smartphones are compatible.

thanksgiving tracfone

How are you keeping in touch with loved ones over Thanksgiving?

Heather Reese
the authorHeather Reese
Heather Delaney Reese is the storyteller and photographer behind the lifestyle and family travel blog, It's a Lovely Life®! For the past decade, she has vacationed over 150 days a year with her family. She is a vegan, and loves being by the water, spending time with her children, husband, 2 Shih Tzus and Cat.

44 Comments

  • it can be so hard to keep in touch with faraway family. I love how technology is making it easier for us.

  • The Tracfone sounds awesome for keeping in touch at a low price. It’s awesome that you’ll be able to send Grandma a phone and manage the Tracfone plan yourself!

    • I have always thought that Tracfones were a great way to have cell phone service for cheap. I am thinking about getting the kids one!

  • My family lives about 200o miles away so we try to keep in touch with them as much as we can. This would be a great way. I miss my family and this would bring us even closer.

  • Most of our family doesn’t live close to us. Also, some of our family travels further away during the winter! Phones are a must have in order to stay connected.

  • My Parents live in Florida for the winter so we Skype to keep in touch. My Dad loves to walk outside and show me the beautiful sunshine while i am here in the snow.

  • This is an excellent way to put technology to good use. I am sure your husband’s grandmother appreciates being able to stay connected.

  • This is a wonderful idea for distanced family. The use of this one is simple and without a hassle so I am sure your husband’s grandmother is truly grateful!

  • Keeping in touch with family is a must not only during holidays but everyday. I have family in Scotland, Sweden, in California, Texas and Nevada! During our annual family reunions, we make sure they get a phone call from us! TracFone is an inexpensive way to do just that!

  • I love that this is a priority for you. It’s hard to imagine what it would be like at a Great Grandmas age and how little you are able to see her. We all have such busy lives. It’s great to fold her into that with this phone.

  • When you think about it.. technology is really a wonderful and awesome thing and most of those who are away from their family and loved ones would appreciate it most.. it helps staying connected though nothing beats being with them physically – but being able to connect with them instantly.. is such a wonderful thing, still.

  • I think Trac phones are great for kids and for my elderly parents. We will be doing a lot of calling over this holiday weekend to keep in touch with our extended family.

  • This is a great idea for far away family or for kids away at college. It is so important to keep in touch, but it can also be expensive! Good thing there is Trac phone!

  • It can be so hard and SO expensive to stay in touch with family and friends especially when they live far away. So this is great to see! I’m sure it will be a huge help to many especially during the holidays!

  • I live a few hours away from any of my family and it’s kind of hard staying in touch with them sometimes. Thank goodness for social media!

  • I’ve had Tracfone for years. don’t use my phone a ton so it’s a great price for what I need.

  • I want to get my mom a tracfone for Christmas. She doesn’t use internet but she would lovea portable phone.

  • Some adorable pictures & I love that picture of the grandma & the kid in particular. TracFone looks like a wonderful option to stay in touch with family & friends who are far away from us & I love how they have great plans for a family.

  • TracFone is a great way to stay in touch, particularly because of its affordability. I keep up on what the family and friends are doing through FB, but like knowing the smartphones make it easy to hear them in person anytime.

  • I’ve heard so much great stuff about TracFone. One of my friends is actually using it. Anyway, our family are all here in NC and we always celebrate Thanksgiving together.

  • When my nieces were studying abroad it was so hard to keep in touch. It’s great to know there are ways to stay in touch without breaking the bank!

  • wow $35 is such a great phone. My dad doesn’t have a cell phone so it’s hard to get a hold of him if my step-mom isn’t home. I think this will make a great Christmas gift!

  • What a lovely family you have! We use our phones to send pictures and text messages daily. It helps us to stay in touch with our family members who aren’t close by.

  • I got my mom a tracfone last year and she loves hers! I am thinking of changing her phone soon though, she now wants one with a way better camera, I think I created a monster, LOL! It’s great that you got her a tracfone and now she can keep in touch with her grandchildren whenever she wants! Sending holiday wishes your way!

  • This is so great! I have a ton of cousins who live in Italy, so being able to keep in touch with something other than WhatsApp and Facebook would be a big plus! : )

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