SUNSHINE !!!

Believe it or not as I am writing this the sun is shining on the fields and the lambs are doing what they should…springing around !!

What a treat to feel the sun again. I know that several of our ladies and gentlemen have taken advantage and have started being taken for a promenade around the garden. It is great that the staff fit this into their busy schedule.

We continue with our Monday morning exercises followed by a bit of a sing-song and a Reminiscence Session. One week we discussed where and when we were born. 1917/1921/1918/1926/1920/1925/1922 and 1914 were among the years mentioned. One lady was born in a village Hospital in Bacup near Rochdale, other places remembered were… Southgate in London… being born at home in Piddinghoe, Liverpool and Walworth. Another gentleman was born in Muswell
Hill and another in Durban South Africa. A lady remembered being born at Craig End Cottages in Edinburgh in 1925. Do any of these dates and places ring a bell with relatives ?

We enjoyed a lovely morning of Rhyming Slang where the staff joined in. It is amazing how, even if you do not know the slang, that people were working it out…..’up the apples and pears to wash your boat race with a Cape of Good Hope and have a drink of Fisherman’s Daughter when you clean your Hampstead Heath’….Hope you got all of that !

Gemma runs two very Successful sessions on Sundays and Thursdays where she shares her knowledge on various subjects. This last week one theme was Castles….a very popular activity.

We had a couple of Theme Days. The Queen’s Birthday of course where there were decorations and scones jam and cream. There was a DVD shown on the Queen’s Life. We must not forget St.George’s Day which we find is getting more popular. There were decorations and a Quiz.

Play Your Cards Right, Tin Can Alley and Giant Snakes and Ladders were on offer for those who wished to join in.

Enjoy the better weather.

See you next month
Robin

Brrrrrr !

Have you ever known weather like this in recent years !

Well despite a few setbacks we had a few Activities during March.

Skittles, Quoites, Hoopla and Exercise and two sessions of Reflexology were on offer.

A Reminiscence Session on the run up to Mothering Sunday had us remembering our Mother’s names. See if any of the following ring a bell with you….Lucy Eleanor, Frances Ellen, Joyce Elouise, Elizabeth, Winifred, Kathleen and Hetti. It was lovely remembering our mothers and sharing it with everyone.

We had decorations and Quizzes for St. David’s Day and St. Patricks Day as well as Irish Music and a Video of Riverdance. Unfortunately Zoe and I could not find a single daffodil in the shops for St. David’s Day…we think it must have been due to the weather and demand…first year this has happened.

I would like to take this opportunity to commend Zoe and all the staff who have managed to keep Valerie Manor afloat during the couple of difficult weeks.

Happy Easter !

Robin

Hello again,

I hope you are all keeping warm….the sun actually shone a couple of Mondays ago….so much so we had the Conservatory windows open! ‘It is only February’ everyone keeps saying so I suppose we must not grumble too much.

We have enjoyed visits from various sources this month including Reflexology, B.Balanced, John Paul Miller and the Clever Cavaliers…a real variety for those wishing to be a part of the Activity Programme.

Giant Snakes and Ladders, Throwing Rings and Tin Can Alley helped with our co-ordination and movement.

The ‘Mind Benders’ included Matched Sets, A film Quiz, Occupations and The Apple Quiz.

We enjoyed music from the 70’s as requested as well as Memories of the 1940’s. On Valentine’s Day we enjoyed listening to some Love Songs remembering our favourites from years gone by.

One Activity which is very popular and we have on a regular basis is decorating fairy cakes……it is nice to make a mess and let someone else clear up !

Fresh flower arranging with Joyce continues to be on the programme and is enjoyed by many, some choosing to join in whereas others simply enjoy watching as the creations take shape.

We celebrated Chinese New Year of the Snake with some Fortune Cookies and a lovely meal cooked by Chris.

On the evening before Valentines Day and the Chinese New Year meal I arrived at Valerie Manor armed with scissors, Blue Tac, Sticky Tape and thread……We like to decorate the Themed Days the night before so that everything is ready for when our ladies and gentlemen go to breakfast….. As soon as I walked in the door and started sorting the decorations one lovely Carer offered to help. This is what makes Valerie Manor so special as everyone is very willing to go that extra mile to make it such a lovely place to be….I was doubly lucky as the Carer was much taller than me so I did not need a ladder!! The Conservatory was covered in Love Hearts and the Dining Room Chinese Dragons and hanging decorations.

Another lovely addition to the Programme was suggested by Gemma. When she is around when we have our Reminiscence Sessions she always joins in and comes up with some lovely Local Knowledge. She works every Sunday and has offered to run a regular session each week. She is a very enthusiastic young lady and everyone really benefits from her lively sessions. Thank you Gemma.

One of my Reminiscence Sessions involved pets. We had memories of a cat called Tony, a very large black cat, a Manx cat that was a real hunter, dogs called Penny and Bobby, a white Poodle called Dandy who used to be washed in the back garden when it got muddy…Dandy was 19 years old ! Another lady remembers a young budgie that had difficulty feeding and was fed with milk on a paint brush and we must not forget the tortoise, Timmy, who liked rice pudding !

Busy March is upon us !

Robin

Hello….and whoosh it was gone !!
January I mean….where did the month go ?
One minute we were putting away Christmas Decorations and the next we are thinking about Valentine’s Day !

January saw us busy as usual with lots on offer for those who wanted to join in. Our lovely Reflexologist, Caroline, paid us our twice a month visits. B-Balanced and Skittles were also on the Programme. I have my regular little group for my Monday morning Exercise from your Chair Sessions where we have a slow stretch warm-up followed by a sing-a-long with more up tempo music ending with our Reminiscence Session.

We celebrated Elvis Presley’s Birthday with decorations, music and a themed meal and watched his tour of ‘Gracelands’ Video. There was an Australian Day Quiz as well as The Name Game, The Alphabet Game and Crosswords and Word Search.

More physical exercise gave us Indoor Boules, Giant Snakes and Ladders and The Parachute Game.

The Highlight of the month must have been our get together for the 5 year celebrations of Zoe owning Valerie Manor. Again we welcomed relatives whose Mother, Father, and other family members are either with us now or have sadly passed. This proves what a lovely ‘family’ we have at our lovely home when relatives come back to see us even though they have nobody to visit personally but have a chat with Staff and Residents. Very well done to Zoe and her staff for bringing Valerie Manor to such a lovely place to stay and visit.

After listening and exercising to Abba….a request !….we really enjoyed one Reminiscence Session…..’What were you doing when you were sweet 17 ?…..was our subject. One lady was still at school taking examinations, another was on Fire Watch during the war sitting on a factory roof with a tin helmet an stirrup pump, another was studying Biology whilst Commerce and Greig Shorthand was also on the list. One lady was learning to drive in a Clyno open top car !! The gentlemen’s memories were of Gardening for a job, attending a Private School in South Africa and waiting for the National Registration Number and trying on Gas Masks ! We finished laughing when one lovely lady told us that she was having a good time with her four elder sisters and really let her hair down much to her mothers dismay ! The staff join in with these discussions which is great as we all get to know more about each other. A younger member of staff being still at college and another getting married and buying her wedding dress for £27.00. I paid £5.00 for mine ….less staff discount !!

See you next month
Robin

Happy New Year Everyone!

I do hope you all enjoyed the Christmas Festivities with family and friends. Valerie Manor was like a whirlwind in December…..so much going on for those who wanted to participate.

See our separate write up on the various visits from Reverend Challis, the beautiful Carols performed by the Towers School, Marmalade and her band of helpers who came to decorate our home and the entertainment provided by my adults and Sally-Ann’s youngsters. We would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who gave their time and energy so generously to help make the run up to Christmas so very special for everyone.

The staff were on form joining into the spirit of the Festive Season donning tinsel and Santa hats whenever they could ! The Family Day was very successful even though the weather kept some relatives away…again a great spread from Chris who was assisted by Martyn every step of the way.

Staff enjoyed a great meal and ‘knees up’ organised by Zoe and Alan as a thank you for all the support given over the year.

John and I had a bit of a treat on Christmas Day……our eldest son was in Warrington with his Fiancé and her parents….Sally-Ann, Mike and Reuben were in Findon with Mike’s family and Zoe and Rob never leave Valerie Manor until after everyone has enjoyed their lunch. Both the girls and their partners and little Reuben were coming to John and I for a Christmas Supper. It meant for the first time in about 35 years I was not cooking Christmas Lunch !!! Zoe suggested we joined everyone at Valerie Manor for a meal !! Well we did and what a wonderful time we had too….the food was delicious….the company and atmosphere very very special….so a big thank you to Chris, his assistant ’Father Christmas’ Martyn, the wonderful staff but not forgetting the Residents with whom we shared a very special meal. Both John and I have no parents now so it was wonderful sharing a special meal with ‘surrogate’ mums and dads. We had a great evening with our children later !

We continued our Activity Programme throughout the month including lots of Mind Bending and Physical moments….here’s to 2013….Well done Zoe, Alan and all of the staff for a very successful 2012…very proud of you all !!

Robin

Rain rain go away come again another day ! I think that sums up November don’t you? At least our ladies and gentlemen are nice and warm and dry at Valerie Manor !

Lots of Activities on offer again last month for those who wish to participate. Our Mind Benders included World Vacation Spots, Matched Sets, Closure Phrases as well as a quiz for Thanksgiving Day about turkeys…yes that is what I said ! also a Scottish quiz on St Andrew’s Day.

Chris, the Chef, cooked a beautiful Roast Turkey dinner to celebrate the Thanksgiving Day as well as a Curry for those who wanted it for Curry Week.

Our residents love the Theme Days when we decorate the Dining Room and Conservatory. The hustle and bustle that goes on when we prepare for these events see our ladies and gentlemen sharing in ideas about what goes where and watching with delight as the different decorations go up. We usually do this the evening before so that everything is ready for when the Residents go into breakfast…it really puts a smile on their faces…something different to talk about and see.

Alan did his usual grand job at lighting the fireworks and a lovely ‘firework supper’ was presented by Chris. John and I had to tear ourselves away after having a nibble of what was on offer !

Target Toss, The Parachute Game and Velcro Darts were amongst the Physical Activities. We enjoyed our Exercise Session to Indian Music during Curry Week as well as having some Poppadoms with Mango Chutney and Cucumber and Mint Raita dips with our coffee.

Remembrance Day was enjoyed watching the service with a glass of sherry with staff making sure everyone had a Poppy to wear. The Steyning Girl Guides once again visited us and gave a lovely Remembrance Service which was really enjoyable. We thank the girls and their Leaders for giving up their time to visit Valerie Manor.

Crochet and card making were requested which were on offer in November.

We had a Reminiscence Session about favourite sweets. The discussion went as follows….One lady had 1p every Saturday to spend and would buy less than an ounce of her favourite Jew Jews. One gentleman was allowed to walk to the sweet shop on his own and enjoyed Sherbet Dips. Jelly Babies were a firm favourite and the heads were bitten off first ! Gobstoppers, Aniseed Balls Humbugs and Liquorice Sticks were also favourites.

The countdown is on to Christmas now……can’t believe it. Lots coming up for everyone ! I am sure I will see some of you at our various events if not a very Happy and Peaceful Christmas to you all.

See you in the New Year !
Robin

The clocks have been changed and although the evenings are getting darker earlier and we don’t like it too much everyone is nice and cosy at Valerie Manor looking forward to everything that we have planned for the next couple of months of 2012 !

October saw us enjoying some 1940’s music, a Beatles Video and Quiz to celebrate John Lennon’s birthday who was born on 9th October 1940, the music of Al Jolson who passed away on 23rd October 1950. We also had a Musical Quiz. Still thinking hard we planned a day’s Menu, and enjoyed Sensory Identification…Touch…and were quizzed on Expletives Deleted.

Physically we played Shove Ha-penny, Tin Can Alley and Balls in the Box along with our usual Exercise from our Chair. We also had our monthly visit by Claire for our B Balanced Session. Never a dull moment at Valerie Manor for those who want to take part.

Two themed days were enjoyed……Oktoberfest……with a decorated dining room and German Music and Halloween again with a decorated dining room and lots of ‘spooky’ goodies along with Musical Witches Hat. We decided to leave the decorations up for 1st November when we are having our firework display.

Residents, staff and visitors enjoyed the Go Green Day for St. Barnabas Hospice – see the separate report.

One Monday morning when we were exercising I looked down at my feet and noticed……much to my disgust……that my shoes were really dirty and scuffed ! I was quite ashamed and it made me think of my dad who I always remember as having shiny shoes ! That triggered off the Reminiscence Session…..What do you remember about your parents ?

One gentleman remembers his dad always whistling and his mum singing hymns, somebody else remembers her dad being called George William and her mum Winifred. They were both in the Fire Service in the war. Another memory was of his dad playing cricket for the County and his mum being a busy housewife. Mary and Samuel were another mum and dad the latter enjoying cycling. Elizabeth, better known as Lizzie and William, better known as Bill were the parents of another lady. She remembers her mother very busy making the children’s clothes and her father smoking Woodbine Cigarettes which were 2 1/2 pennies a packet. Another lady remembered her dad always smiling and also smoking Woodbines…his name was William, her mum’s name was Eliza. Another gentleman who lived in South Africa as a child had parents called Harold and Mary.

The saddest story was of one lady whose father, Harry, who was a Chaplain in the 1st World War never got to see his daughter as he was killed before she was born. However she had a lovely mother, Hettie who was a teacher and used to run craft classes from home. Our lovely lady said she used to get into trouble dabbling with the water that the canes for the weaving were being soaked in ! I really enjoy these Reminiscence Sessions as it makes me remember too often with a tear in my eye !

That’s all folks.
See you next month
Robin

October already…. my doesn’t time fly !

We were very lucky to see some of the Shoreham Air Show from Valerie Manor at the beginning of the month… we certainly heard it !

Physically we enjoyed our usual visit from Nick and his Skittles Game, Bean Bag Toss, Hoopla, Darts, B-Balanced exercise and Line Dancing from our chair where we donned some cowboy hats to get us in the mood ! Our Mind Benders this month included Do You Know Your Flags, Famous Couples, and The Apple Quiz. We celebrated Mexican Independence Day with a decorated dining room, Mexican Music and a Mexican Quiz. Some residents enjoyed making Tissue Flowers which are on display in the conservatory.

The monthly meetings with Zoe and Alan are a huge success. Our ladies and gentlemen have requested certain Activities. These include Crocheting, Knitting blanket squares for the homeless and more Craft Sessions. We will be including these request in our Programme.

We had a discussion about holidays and the following are some of the memories of places visited in the past. Egypt, Devon, Russia, America, the Lake District, Rome and the Canary Islands. The Pyramids was a firm favourite as well as quite a few cruises. It is lovely that as the Staff walk through during these Reminiscence Sessions they join in with their own experiences telling us about their diving and snorkelling. It is great that we all get to learn a little more about each others lives outside of Valerie Manor.

Keep dry and warm just like us at Valerie Manor and see you next month.

Robin

The rain finally went away and we enjoyed a few lovely sunny days !

We were very lucky with the weather on our Valerie Manor Olympics Day ….wall to wall sunshine. What a wonderful day it was too. Residents, staff and visitors had a lovely time. Residents especially delighted to see the young visitors taking part. We had 4 generations of some families attend ! Please see our separate write-up on the day.

Keeping the theme of the Olympics, Zoe found an Olympic Crossword and Quiz for Residents to enjoy as part of the ‘Mind Benders’ section of our Programme. We also enjoyed a Nautical Quiz for Cowes Week, Matched Sets, The Alphabet Game and Happy Grouchy Stuff !

Physically we had our regular visit from our Zumba lady Clare, and played Table Tennis, Tin Can Alley and Hoopla. I was lucky to be invited to a Skittles Game which was organised by Nick for our Residents to visit another Care Home in the area. Six Residents, a car load of Carers and Zoe and I enjoyed an outing where a ‘Tournament’ was played between the two homes……everyone a winner ! We were then given afternoon tea with a lovely cake and a chocolate ‘Medal’ presented to all the Players. It was so successful we are hoping to return the invitation in the future…look out for the photographs.

On the last day of the month Chris made some lovely fairy cakes which were decorated by those who wanted to do so….they looked very pretty….look out Nigella !

We had a discussion on holidays taken in years gone by. Deal was mentioned which had a very pebbly beach, a visit to the Romney Marsh Steam Railway, Bed and Breakfast in Lancashire, Lunch being taken near Land’s End, in 1925 one Resident remembers going to Hayling Island by train, Edinburgh was a favourite as was Hastings. Most people remembered the Bathing Huts where they changed to go swimming.

See you in September
Robin

Hello…sorry I missed June’s write-up on our Activities.

John and I have finally moved….. to Upper Beeding ! Very excited but having lived in our last house for 35 years it took up more time than we could have imagined packing up and preparing for the move. We are now 6 minutes (yes I timed myself !) walk away from Valerie Manor.

Onto business. July was a very busy month with American Independence Day… decorations, themed food and an Independence Day Quiz were enjoyed. Then there was Bastille Day…again with decorations, French Music and a Quiz.

We’ve also been enjoying the sunshine with outdoor activities such as skittles, as well as lunches and suppers served in the gardens at every opportunity. Table tennis was enjoyed in the conservatory, assisted by our work experience students,  with a cool breeze blowing in from the gardens to cool the participants!

One of the highlights of the month must have been the excitement raised running up to the Olympics and looking forward to our special Valerie Manor Olympic Day on Thursday 9th August that everyone is invited to. Staff will be competing with good old fashioned games like Tug of War, Egg and Spoon and Sack Races not to forget the Obstacle Race and much more. Come and support us if you can either by joining in or cheering on the competitors. In true Valerie Manor fashion the event is also raising money for this years chosen Charity… St. Barnabas Hospice. Chris the chef is busy organising working his magic for everyone to enjoy his culinary skills. A must for the children to be involved in the fun !

Famous couples, The Apple Quiz, and Crosswords and Word Search were enjoyed. Giant Dice, Balls in the Box and The Parachute Game were amongst the Physical Exercise on offer.

Fresh flower arranging proved popular with either ladies and gentlemen joining in or watching lovely creations being made. They were on display throughout our home. Various colours of carnations were used with greenery from the garden….. Zoe and Robin returned back to the car park seeing me cutting conifer branches for the displays… ’are you trimming the whole hedge ? ’ was their reaction laughing from the car.

Our reminiscence Sessions continue weekly after our Exercise from the Chair. The Olympics prompted us to discuss sports enjoyed when we were younger. Mixed Hockey, Tennis, Netball, Le Cross, Football and Soccer were amongst memories. One lady remembered when she was a Nursing Midwife playing a game of hockey with other Doctors and Nurses and being hit on the nose with a hockey stick… she recalls her colleagues singing ’two lovely black eyes’. This was in a hospital in Surrey. A gentleman remembered wearing Red and White as the colours of his local football team of which he was a member. Another lady actually taught PE (that’s what it was always called !) and Games when she was younger.

That’s all for now. We look forward to seeing you on 9th August.
Robin