Birthday/Christmas Presents

[Lila13]

I got my mother a microwaveable teddy bear (safer than a hot water bottle), which for a short time was useful for keeping her warm last winter, and also encouraged her to learn how to use the microwave which she'd been so annoyed to see when it appeared in her kitchen without her consent. For a while she was very fond of it and treated it as a baby, or a friend, it was "Gordon", "my baby bear" and she told me "it isn't a real bear you know", but then it suddenly turned into a "bad bear" and had to be thoroughly thumped and thrown out of bed, was several times rescued from the rubbish bin.

I'm still using it, and using up all her lotions and potions, talc etc. The new nighties disappeared in hospital.

I think the presents that had most lasting value for her were indoor plants, hyacinths and an amaryllis which really did start flowering exactly 9 weeks after being taken out of its box.

She threw away 10 albums of photos shortly before we realised she had dementia.

Lila

 

[jenniferpa]

Regarding the clock - I bought one for my Mother in Boots gift department last year. It's got the day, date and time and I think it cost me ¢16.99. It's only downside is that it isn't illuminated, but it does self-adjust when the clocks go back and forward.

 

[CassElle]

With regards to ideas for presents I think we all share the same problem. Although my mum can no longer remember how to do things and her level of concentration is practically zero, she loves to look at things that move and bright colours. My sister came up with the idea of a bubble lamp for her for Christmas.

As for the sweets and chocolates etc, why not? Let's be honest, there is very little that can still be enjoyed and appreciated by Alzheimer patients. If the occasional sweet brings a smile to their face, then why deprive them of that pleasure? Life has robbed them of enough!

 

[CassElle]

Clocks with Dates

With regards to clocks, we bought an excellent clock/radio via QVC Shopping Channel that is manufactured in America - Emerson SmartSet with Auto Time Setting. The LCD time display has very large numbers, at the side of which are the day and date.

A really handy feature of the clock is that if you unplug it for any reason, whenever you plug it back in, it automatically displays the correct time, day and date. The same applies when clocks go backwards and forwards an hour, the clock does it for you automatically. Hope this is of some help to you.

 

[Margarita]

This may sound silly and not a thing to entertain, but my mother love perfume. for my mother, she ask me to get her a perfume she loved to ware in the past , now in the future when mum not around all I have to do is small that perfume and it bring all that happy memories I had with her as

I was thinking when you said

Tenderface - I have a funny feeling that this Christmas may be the last one that my Granny has, at home at least, so we want to make it special, so I will be taking lots of photos!

If your grandmother does not remember what perfume she like , maybe your mother does , or just buy her one that you like so on Christmas day not only do you have photo , you have a lovely small that you can wear that remind you of what a lovely last Christmas day , you had with her and all your family around her at home xx

 

[sony]

Thanks for the ideas about the clocks - I tried Boots but no luck unfortunately! I have, however, found one on Argos, the day and date aren't as big as I would've liked, but it'll have to do, here is the link if anyone else is interested: http://www.argos.co.uk/webapp/wcs/s...catalogId=10001&langId=-1&searchTerms=0270706

CassElle, I agree wholeheartedly with you as regards to sweets/chocolate - my granny doesn't drink or smoke or anything, so if sweets or chocolate give her some sort of comfort or enjoyment, so what?? She deserves it!

It was my Granny's birthday on Saturday, I got her a box of fruit jelly sweets and wrapped them up, she got them half opened, read the label and put them to one side, so I took the rest of the wrapping paper off them and handed them to her, saying 'these are for you for your birthday', she handed them back to you and said 'no, I'm giving them to you'!! So, I just left them on the cabinet and said nothing, didn't wanna argue with her!!

Thanks again to you all, hope you all find something good for your loved one's!

 

[tubbie]

Hi Everyone

I got Dad a wall clock for Xmas too but unfortunately it doesn’t have a date feature so am thinking of swapping it for the Argos one Sony found. I like the one Dina showed us, just wish it wasn’t quite so pricey!

As TenderFace suggests I think buying an experience is a great idea. We took Dad to Duxford Imperial War Museum for Remembrance Sunday (we are fortunate enough to live very close) and he loved it! His face lit up like a Christmas tree every time he saw something he recognised (a Spitfire, an Anderson shelter, a photo of Monty…), it was one big hit and I thoroughly recommend it as a special treat. We took a photo of him next to a Spitfire which I am going to add a few words to, to remind him of the day, and pin it up on his wall.

I have bought Dad a calendar with pictures of steam trains which will take him back to his childhood. I also got him, from M&S, a gift set comprising a large mug with a picture of Spitfires on it and a pair of RAF socks. He was only a child in the war but he did his national service in the RAF and drinks coffee like it’s going out of fashion so hopefully he will use the mug every day. My Dad has a real sweet tooth and if stuffing his face with cake and chocolate (which he does) makes him happy then I’m with CassElle - “let him” is what I say!

Dad lives alone and will wear the same clothes everyday for weeks. Trying to persuade him otherwise is very hard so we tend to let him be. It does mean however that on the odd occasion we persuade him into something clean the dirty clothes are beyond washing. This opens up opportunities for us to buy new clothes as presents so I may get him a couple of winter weight shirts too.

Tubbie xx

 

[Splat88]

Well I hope you have more luck than me and my MIL!!

Last Christmas we bought her some very pretty new vests to replace the ones that had become threadbare, only to find that she won't wear them because "they're not hers"

It opens up a whole new set of troubles, her shoes and clothes are increasingly held together with safety pins etc, but new clothes are not recognised and she won't wear them. Her shoes are desperate, but I know that even if we decide on a pair she likes, they won't get worn. She has loads of shoes, but nealry all have heels she can't cope with now.

Yesterday, I gave her a cup of tea in a different cup, and she left it because she didn't think it was hers. What happens if her cup gets broken and I can't replace it?

 

[jenniferpa]

Not directly related to presents, but I do wish that othe people (i.e. professionals) wouldn't be so "this is the right way" about sweets. I had to speak quite firmly to the catering staff at my mother's - they were "holding" her dessert for sometime after they had delivered her main course because "otherwise she eats her dessert first". For God's sake, if at 89 you can't eat dessert first, when can you? Frankly, she doesn't eat much main course at the best of times, and if you hold off serving dessert, she forgets that she's in the middle of a meal anyway and goes back to bed.

Sorry - we will now resume normal programming.

Jennifer

 

[Lila13]

When my aunt came to stay for a few days, she started hiding the pudding when meals on wheels arrived. And afterwards my mother hid her own pudding, but never got through much of the main course before searching for and finding the pudding. I said why not give up on meals on wheels and just have 2 or more puddings, if that's what you want.

It is lucky that Wiltshire Farm Foods do suitable puddings for diabetics. Before we started on them my mother had given too many things up.

I was surprised how readily she did accept new things (like a toddler), she liked her hairbrush, and the velcro-fastening slippers, not that she got much use out of them as they only arrived 3 days before she died. So many things she hadn't replaced because "I'll soon be dead anyway".

Lila