Boomers Caring For Aging Parents

Boomers Caring for Aging Parents

As your parents age, it may be necessary for you to begin to assume the role of caregiver. It becomes more important to pay attention to what they are and are not capable of taking care of on their own. Through frequent visits, you can begin to assess the home situation, and begin to assume the role of caregiver where necessary.

Speak to your parents openly when possible about the role you will be assuming, and how you will be helping them to take care of their finances, equipping their home for safety, and helping them with their day-to-day routines. Beginning to assume the role of caregiver for your aging parents can be a difficult process, but clear communication along the way can help. Organization and diplomacy will go a long way towards a smooth transition.

As you begin assuming a helping role in your parents’ lives, it is important to gather necessary information. Designate a binder to store medical and personal information for the household. If you aren’t living with your parents, you may want two identical binders, so you have one copy in their home and one copy to keep with you. In each binder, store important information such as doctor’s names and contact information, pharmacy contact information, lists of medications and dosages, insurance policy information, etc. This information will come in handy when you are scheduling appointments and speaking with professionals.

You will also want to equip your parents’ home for safety. Many volunteer agencies will provide a safety check of your home, or you can do this on your own. Install safety equipment such as bathroom grab bars. Switch out lamps for higher watt light bulbs to aid visibility. Anchor rugs and cords to avoid falls. Consider widening doorways if a walker or wheelchair is used in the home. Take the time to place a list of emergency phone numbers near each phone, with numbers listed in a large bold font. These precautions will extend the amount of time your parents can live in their home independently. The goal is to make the home as safe and accident-proof as possible. Be sure to ask your parents for their input throughout this process – they know what areas of the home they struggle to get around in.

If your parents’ mental health begins to decline, you may want to consider becoming their power of attorney. This would allow you to make financial decisions for them, and help you to better manage their assets. Even if you are not a power of attorney, sit down with your parents and discuss financial paperwork, wills, and what types of accounts they have. Be sure that all this information is written down in a central location. If you are going to help them with financial activities, or if you will need to manage their finances if they become disabled, you will need access to this information. Be aware that this will be a difficult conversation to have, as your mother or father will not want to admit that they are losing focus and cannot do activities that they were once capable of. Reassure them that you merely want to help them, and are not trying to take over their life.

Throughout this process, pay attention to your parents’ desires and fears. Be sure to validate the way they are feeling, but help them to understand that you are helping them to stay in their own home by acting as their caregiver. Honor their wishes when possible, and when it is impossible, treat them with respect. Taking time to explain why you are doing things the way you are will help a great deal when you are caring for your aging parents. Remember, they are used to caring for you, so this is a difficult transition for them as well.

Marcia Ripperger is a work at home mom and grandmother in Minnesota. She is the owner Work At Home Choices LLC and of a Christian Work From Home Moms website at Faithful Grannies http://www.faithfulgrannies.com bringing generations of Christian Work From Home Moms, Grandmothers, Parents, Boomers and Families together while providing resources, inspiration and affordable advertising while balancing the work at home experience. She holds a degree in Business and is a CMOM.

Article Source CWAHGrandparents.com

Mess Free Easter Egg Decorating

Mess Free Easter Egg Decorating

Dipping plain white eggs into a bowl and watching them turn a different color is almost magical for children, but may be a bit intimidating for parents seeking to avoid a mess. Here are a few tips for mess free egg decorating:

1. Stick with Stickers
If you (or your children) are not attached to the traditional dying of eggs, this may be a way to minimize the muss and fuss of egg decorating. Stickers make easy decorations. There's nothing to clean up afterwards. To try this easy technique, simply purchase ordinary Easter stickers and stick them onto the eggs. You may be pleasantly surprised by the colorful results.

2. Dye Your Eggs at the Stove
Avoid the mess that comes with giving your children their own dye cups. Mix the dye ingredients in a five quart stock pot or Dutch oven. Let the child take the dried boiled eggs and place them in the pot of dye solution on the stove. When the eggs are ready, use a slotted spoon to lift the dyed eggs out of the pan. This type of spoon leaves less liquid on the spoon which means less liquid to make a mess. Carefully spoon the eggs back into the carton.

3. Work on the Kitchen Floor
The closer you are to the ground, the shorter the distance an egg has to fall. Spread an old plastic tablecloth or tarp on the floor. Give each child an apron and a pair of latex exam gloves. These gloves allow the children to easily dip the eggs with their hands instead of struggling with a spoon.

4. Buy a Ready to Use Easter Egg Kit.
PAAS® has been making egg decorating materials for years, and constantly come up with new ways to make the egg decorating process easier and faster. Their egg wrapping kits use only boiling water and make no mess at all. They also offer egg cups complete with dye and dipper so you don’t need spoons at all. You can purchase PAAS® products wherever decorating items are sold.
Egg decorating is great for everyone, but no one likes to clean up at the end. Make it easier on yourself this year, and use our tips for some good clean fun.

Atricle Source: Faithful Grannies and Wahm Choices

Marcia Chumbley is a work at home mom and grandmother in Minnesota. She is the owner of a Christian Work From Home Moms and Grandparents web site at http://www.faithfulgrannies.com/ and WAHM Choices-Work at Home Moms Choices http://www.wahmchoices.com Bringing generations of Christian Work From Home Moms, Grandmothers, Parents, Boomers and Families together while providing resources, inspiration and affordable advertising while balancing the work at home experience.

The Egg Hunt

The Egg Hunt


The egg hunt is a longstanding Easter tradition for many families. Whether you attend an old fashioned community egg hunt, or have a simple affair in your own back yard, take time to make the egg hunt an enjoyable part of Easter.

For young children, hiding real or plastic eggs is a rite of passage at Easter. If you choose to use real eggs, limit the number that you hide. Always keep your boiled Easter eggs refrigerated until shortly before the start of the hunt. Otherwise, long periods at room temperature combined with being hidden outside where its warm could spoil the eggs. Save the cartons as you color eggs, and after the hunt, give each child a big enough section of the egg carton to hold their eggs. Award prizes to the top three egg finders, to make the contest even more enjoyable.

Older children probably won’t be as interested in an old-fashioned Easter egg hunt, and may need you to spice it up and make things a little more challenging. Hide plastic eggs instead of real ones. Plastic eggs can be filled with coins, candy, small toys, and dollar bills. Older children will find this particular type of egg hunt fun, and will enjoy looking for the unique prizes.

If you have middle school age children who still want to participate, turn the egg hunt into a scavenger hunt. To work well, this entire game must be thoroughly planned out from beginning to end. Inside each plastic egg, place handwritten clues. The kids can divide into teams. Each team is given the same clue to start. When one clue is figured out, it will lead them to another egg with another clue inside. The team that finds the prize first, splits it among team members.

Eggs are still hidden and hunted for on Easter, carrying on this unique tradition. A little creativity can make the experience enjoyable for kids of all ages. Happy hunting!

Marcia Chumbley is a work at home mom and grandmother in Minnesota. She is the owner of a Christian Work From Home Moms and Grandparents web site at http://www.faithfulgrannies.com and Work At Home Divas Online http://www.workathomedivasonline.com Bringing generations of Christian Work From Home Moms, Grandmothers, Parents, Boomers and Families together while providing resources, inspiration and affordable advertising while balancing the work at home experience.

The History and Observances of Easter

The History and Observances of Easter

Every year, Christians worldwide celebrate the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ during the Easter season. Contrary to popular belief, however, the celebration of the Easter holiday is not of Christian origin.

The name 'Easter' is derived from the name of the Saxon goddess of Spring, Eastre. According to Pagan beliefs, Eastre's sphere of influence is fertility and renewal. Each year at the Vernal Equinox, a great festival was held to celebrate the coming growing season and the continued fertility of the Earth.

Jews have also celebrated their own springtime festival, Passover, around this time as well. Passover commemorates the end of the Israelite's captivity in Egypt. It is called Passover because when the Angel of Death came for Egypt's first born sons, the Israelites who had lamb's blood on the door were passed over and spared.

Because of the state supported persecution of early Christians, many Christian feasts were celebrated about the same time as Pagan holidays. Easter is no different. While the religious meanings of the different festivals are different, symbols like the egg, rabbit, and the cross are shared.

The egg has always been a symbol of new life and springtime renewal. Children across pre-Christian Europe were given decorated eggs as a symbol of the renewal of springtime. In modern times, children decorate and hide eggs.

The rabbit was the symbol of the goddess Eastre in Pagan Saxony. During the early American period, German settlers brought with them the connection between the Easter holiday and a rabbit. Today, Children believe in the Easter Bunny, who brings candy and gifts on Easter Sunday.

One of the central Christian symbols is the cross. It symbolizes the crucifixion of Christ, but in Pagan Rome, it was a symbol of Roman punishment. Crucifixion was always a favorite method of execution in Roman times, but after the death of Jesus, it became a rallying symbol for early Christians.

The Easter holiday is very old indeed, and it's meaning and symbols have evolved over time. Whether Pagan or Christian, symbols add to the meaning of the holiday, but do not change it.

Marcia Chumbley is a work at home mom and grandmother in Minnesota. She is the owner of a Christian Work From Home Moms website at Faithful Grannies http://www.faithfulgrannies.com bringing generations of Christian Work From Home Moms, Grandmothers, Parents, Boomers and Families together while providing resources, inspiration and affordable advertising while balancing the work at home experience. She holds a degree in Business and is a CMOM.

Article Source: Christian Work At Home Grandparents - CWAHGrandparents.com

Planning a Children's Easter Party

Planning a Children's Easter Party

If you'd like to do more this year for Easter than a traditional egg hunt, consider planning a party as well. Kids love to have fun, play games, and earn prizes while searching for eggs. Here are some ideas for activities you can do to make your party a hit.

Pin the Chick on the Egg
Draw a large egg on a piece of white poster board. Cut it out, decorate it, and pin or tape it to the wall. Mark the center clearly. Let the children draw chicks on construction paper and cut them out. When they are done, fold a piece of tape and stick it to the back of each chick. Blindfold each child in turn and let them see who can tape their chick closest to the center of the egg.

Word Games
Many Easter word games are available on the internet for free. Search for “Easter word games”, and print out a few to photocopy for your guests. These printable pages have activities like word searches and word scrambles that are grouped by age. Give a prize to the winner of each game.

Duck, Duck, Goose!
Have all the children sit in a circle. One child will walk around the circle behind the others tapping each “duck” on the head until they decide which one of their friends will be the “goose”. The “goose” has to get up and chase the first child. If the first child makes it back to the empty spot without being touched, then the second child becomes the new “duck”.

Easter necklaces.
Cut strips from pastel colored construction paper. Show the children how to make chain links. Fold the paper in a circle, dropping a spot of glue or using a glue stick on one end. Then press the two ends together to form a circle. For each new link, fold the paper in a circle around the previous link so they form a chain. When the chain is long enough to fit over the child's head as a necklace,add one more link to join the two ends of the chain.

Treats
Everyone loves fun food. Serve party snacks like little sandwiches, juice, and a small dessert. For a change, use cookie cutters in the shapes of Easter characters to cut the sandwiches. There many fun recipes on sites like http://www.foodnetwork.com/

You don’t need too many activities to keep children happy at a party. Remember, there's also the excitement of the egg hunt to keep them entertained. Have fun making this an Easter to remember!

Article Source: http://www.faithfulgrannies.com

Marcia Chumbley is a work at home mom and grandmother in Minnesota. She is the owner of a Christian Work From Home Moms and Grandparents web site at http://www.faithfulgrannies.com Bringing generations of Christian Work From Home Moms, Grandmothers, Parents, Boomers and Families together while providing resources, inspiration and affordable advertising while balancing the work at home experience.