As many of you already know, my daughter, Sheri Jedell, had a baby girl, Emily-Reese, on March 30, 2005. And her arrival has turned many of my pre-conceived notions upside down. First of all, it has been a while since Sheri was an infant-over two decades. And in the ensuing years, I've started to think that every baby looks alike. Au contraire. No way. No how. My little Emily-Reese is one of a kind, a treasure to hold and behold. I never dreamed I'd feel this way.

Today, those of us whose children are having children are feeling and looking great. After all, isn't 50 the new 30, and 60 the new 40? Just brace yourself, though, for the new image that will be thrust upon you, the minute the baby is born. Almost everyone, from the nurse on the maternity ward to your doorman, will most likely greet you with a sunny, "Hello, Grandma!"

That G-word! There it is, confronting you like a bucket of cold water. You greet the words with an icy smile, while your mind presents unsettling images of your own grandmother, who surely was much older, grayer, stodgier, and frumpier; more sedentary; more into domestic arts (sorry Martha!); and more eager to say, "Come to Grandma!"

How did it come to this? Seemingly overnight, we've gone from obsessing about G-strings and G-spots to squirming in our seats and wincing when the G-word is mentioned. I announced right away that there would be no G-word for me. I am MoMA, a namesake of the Museum of Modern Art, poised and ready to show Emily-Reese the good life.

But what kind of good life will it be? Since 9/11, and certainly since 7/7, it's a very different world-and city-than it was when my G-ma was starting out in her role. Yes, my little Emily-Reese has a younger, hipper, more energetic MoMA than I did, but she is also now growing up in a more fortified, edgier, terrorism-conscious city, in which getting on a bus or subway is a potential risk, and a Gucci bag carrying a furry pooch may get searched by a gun-toting officer. A certain joie de vie has gone out of tooling around NYC; the carefree abandon and frivolity have vanished, perhaps never to be recaptured. Will Emily-Reese and her contemporaries ever know the innocence and peace of mind that we once knew?

As I ponder this, I also realize that we Baby Boomers really did spoil our kids rotten. Our new generation of moms needs to mend our ways. Too much giving without earning equals a dull grown-up with a lack of incentive to accomplish anything-professionally or personally.

I raised my daughter at the young age of 18, with no financial help. I am Exhibit A that women can work and do it all. Now it troubles me that more women are choosing to leave their jobs to be stay-at-home moms. Hey, new mothers, please don't forget what we Boomers fought for-so you can be equal to men in the workplace. Don't let that all fall by the wayside now. We've "come a long way, baby!" Being a mom is important, but feeding your brain and contributing to society is something we fought for, and won! You now have opportunities that we earned for you, so don't give them up! Perhaps there can be a balance-try working from home if office commuting is just too time-consuming. Respect our sacrifice and the rights that we gained. You can do it all, too. Take it from moi!

I'm thrilled with my new MoMA status. And my advice to you is this: When your children begin auditioning baby names, you should begin trying on alternative G-names for size and fit. The recent trend of adding a first name after the G-word: Grandma Kate, thus distinguishing among the many G-mas in a blended family, avoids confusion, but keeps that stereotypical G-word. And surely another term is called for in May/December serial marriages. In just a few short years, Melania Trump will most likely need a chic G-word by which the The Donald's progeny can address her. And Ivana surely would be grateful to find a suitably stylish G-word alternative.

Some clever G-mas have opted for variations on their names. Annette became Momette, Nancy chose Grancy, Patty became Ti, and Shirley selected ShiShi. One woman of Italian heritage ran with MommaMia! There is always the traditional Nana, but also consider Nona (Greek for grandmother), Dida (Bengali), Lola (Grandma in Tagalog, in the Philippines), Babushka (Russian), Oma (German), Nonna (Italian), YaYa (Spanish), or Tutu (Hawaiian). And who ever realized that the first name of the eternally glamorous, nine-times-wed, Hungarian-born Zsa Zsa Gabor is the Polish term for Grandma?

It's hard to imagine Goldie Hawn, Blythe Danner, or Joan Collins answering to the G-word, but perhaps they do. Here in NYC, though, the ladies who lunch can certainly come up with other options. Here's one of my ways around the G-word: When out and about with Emily-Reese, I simply introduce her by saying, "This is my daughter's baby, Emily-Reese." After all, she has her own identity.

Remember the days of trucker CB radios and identifying handles? Contemporary G-mas could carry through with their e-mail addresses-HotMama, GardenGrams, BikerMom. Maybe the best idea is to have mega-philanthropists promote their personal causes through their G-word. Similar to my MoMA, consider MetMa, MADMa, or just Whitney. The ultimate honor for a celeb with a cause: Selling G-name rights to a corporate sponsor (as in the Continental Airlines Arena), then mentioning it in press releases and every interview given. All funds generated could be donated to a favorite charity, or used to finance the grandchild's-oops, I said it!-private-school or college education. Possible corporate G-names we suggest are: PepsiMitzi, MicroSoft Mary, MamaMerck. After all, if Wildlife Conservation Society Trustee Daniel Thorne would pay a staggering $85,000 for the right to name a newborn female rhino at a city zoo, anything is possible!

Talk about generating G-notes! G-whiz! You heard it first here.