Breathing Space

Holidays can be an extremely stressful time of the year.  Especially for caregivers.  So it's important to remember to take time for good self-care.  As an observant botanist on a talk show said, trees grow big and strong because they have their growing season and their rest season.  We humans, however, revel in our mile long to-do lists day in and day out, celebrating our exhaustion as a badge of honor.  And there's always the anti-depressants to pull us through.  Think about that.  Does that seem to be the way life should be going?

But you're going to tell me that your life and your job demand constant attention with nary a minute per day for yourself.  Been there and know that such situations truly exist.  So why not some mini giggle breaks.  As laughter is the best medicine, and stated by the infamous "they", I have a reading recommendation, which I'll give with a disclaimer.

The disclaimer is that the author is not shy about using words that might shock your grandmother.  If you're in the camp with your grandmother you might want to skip these books.  If, however, you just slide past such words and go for the giggles, I think you might enjoy.  But enough explanations.

One of my favorite giggle break authors is Sloane Crosley.  Two of her books that I've enjoyed are "I Was Told There'd Be Cake" and "How Did You Get This Number."  I like her books because they make me laugh and because they're essays, so I can pick up a book and read a short section without having to remember a plot or where I was in the story.  Essay titles include "Bring-Your-Machete-To-Work Day" and "The Good People of This Dimension."  You get the idea.

After a few pages you might be ready to get back to your real life and figure out what to buy for that favorite person on your holiday list who is simply impossible to buy for.  Maybe get them some books.

Peace

Lovely Ornaments

This month we resurrected an activity that we did last year.  It's simple and fun and the residents were anxious to repeat this project which produces such lovely ornaments.

Supplies:
  Clear plastic ornaments
  Acrylic paint
  Small plastic cups

I purchased the clear, plastic ornaments at Michael's.   They were already on sale at mid-November which gave us plenty of time to fit the activity into our holiday schedule.

The acrylic paint we prefer for this project, although any craft paint will work, is the Prang metallic paint that comes in a variety of glowing colors.  For the ornament nestled on the stars above we used Prang red and gold metallic paint.

First remove the top from the ornament.  Next, simply pour about two teaspoons of any color you choose, letting it pour down the inside of the ornament in two or three different places.  Select a second color and repeat, allowing this color to flow in between the strips of the first color.  Finally, hold a finger or thumb over the opening in the ornament and shake.  We also found that tapping the ornament lightly on the palms of our hands got the paint to flow around and coat the inside of the ornament completely.

Tips - choose two contrasting colors, such as gold and red to get a nice effect.  Also, choose colors that will create a lovely third color when mixed.  This will help avoid the muddy look.  Also, don't be afraid to try three or more colors inside an ornament.

Besides decorating a tree in the facility the residents can use the ornaments to give as gifts to family and friends.   Happy Holidays!

Update

Two short things to report.  First, I tried the written note with a resident who asks repetitive questions.  (See - Leave a Note, from 11/30)  It worked!  I used an 8.5x11 sheet of card stock and a colorful marker.  One of her questions is whether her children know where she is.  The note said, "Mary's children know where she is."  She read the note on and off and stopped asking the question as we did a craft project and found that that was enough for reassurance.

Number two, for those of you who've purchased Book Two of creative ideas.  The project for dying silk scarves with tissue paper lists the company for purchasing silk scarves as Dharma Trading Company.  However, to find them on line it's dharmatrading.com, NOT dharmatradingcompany.com.  They're two different companies.  The dharmatrading.com will get you to the scarves.

Thanks to an activity person who's gearing up to create some awesome scarves for that information.