CAREGIVING:

I’m Hungry, I’m Starving. An excellent article from Alzheimer’s Reading Room .

Important reminder from Dale Carter of Transition Aging Parents : June 12 is Digital TV Transition Day. If you have an aging parent, be sure to check all of their TV sets.

Encouragement: Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the lord.

Check out Rest Ministries on how you can really celebrate your senior citizen dad this year – on TV! It’s definitely one of the best Father’s Day gift ideas I’ve seen.

Here’s a sweet story of loving caregiving – From Pastor to Caregiver .

Then read an interesting article written by that caregiving husband as he talks about one aspect of his life as he and his wife deal with her Alzheimer’s Disease.

This looks like it it would be a good resource for caregivers – an intuitive group calendar to help coordinate caregiving help.

The economic Downturn Puts a Chokehold on Those Caring for Family Members by John Leland of the New York Times.

If you missed  the HBO series on Alzheimer’s Disease , the Eldercare Support Group has it.

GRANDPARENTS:

Here’s an excellent resource for your grandkids’ homeschooling program .

Biblical Holidays is another useful site to check out for homeschooling supplies .

The government has a variety of ways to help grandparents caring for grandkids . I have to wonder, though, how much will get canceled due to the economy.

Looking for something new to read to your grandkids this summer? My grandkids and I have been enjoying reading The Boxcar Children .

Encouragement – Casting all your care upon God; for He cares for you.

Do you have a new grandkid on the way? A great gift for their parents was just published – Consumer Reports Best Baby Products.

SANDWICH GENERATION:

Good information for caregivers about unnecessary medical tests AND Achilles tendon ruptures!

Welcome to a Taste of New England Food. Yummy resource for those caregivers who love to cook !

Secret Hiding Place is a great article by Lynn Mosher with an adorable picture. It definitely encouraged this Sandwich Generation caregiver’s heart and I hope it will yours as well.

Be sure that your business emails have all the necessary contact info to help readers reach you. Missing information can mean lost opportunities. Even if we are not “in business,” as caregivers, we often do send out “business” emails to doctors, therapists, etc . Contact information in those situations is just as vital.

Study Shows Vitamin D Helps Brain Speed Up Information Processing. Hmm, I need to add more Vitamin D to my Baby Boomer Generation brain. It definitely needs a bit of speeding up. Of course, Pepsi works wonders, too.

Encouragement – Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Father’s Day Gift Ideas:

Are you looking for a fun activity to do with the grandkids this week? How about a project that will be fun for you and them, do some great character building, and be a blessing to your adult kids? Father’s Day is coming up in just three weeks! How about having the grandkids help you with one or more of these fun Father’s Day gift ideas – Gift Baskets ?

Gift Basket Supplies :

I love to pull together several little things and put them into one big thing turning them into thoughtful holiday baskets. Have the grandkids help you to brainstorm what kind of interests their dad has. If they are old enough to write, they may enjoy writing up the list of ideas. For the younger ones, you’ll get to play “secretary.”

If you enjoy shopping with them, you can take them out with you to buy the gift basket supplies. If not, do the shopping with your regular errands on another day, then have everything ready for the next time you and they get together.

What to Put In the Holiday Baskets:

Is dad a model train fan? You could go to a local hobby store and buy a couple of new cars, some tiny layout decor like bushes, trees, lamps, etc. How about an issue of a model train magazine, like Model Railroader? That was always one of my husband’s favorites. I would imagine you could find one at the hobby store or a major bookseller like Borders or Barnes and Noble. Model Railroader’s website has lots of free goodies you could print out as well, to tuck into the basket.  You could even add a fun field trip as well as personalized photo gifts by taking the grandkids to a train museum in the area. Take lots of photos of them on or near the trains. Make a collage of the photos and tuck that into the gift basket as well.

If their dad is more into sports, you and your grandkids could put together a fun sports basket focusing on their dad’s favorite sports and teams. You can find fun hats, shirts, pictures, and more at almost every store out there. I would include a ball that he and his kids could have fun playing with on Father’s Day, giving them some fun family holiday memories in addition to a thoughtful gift. Again, you could add to the fun and the personalization factor by taking photos of the kids holding various items associated with this sport. Visit Smilebox.com and create amazing greetings with your photos, videos, and music. Email them free.
They have a cute Father’s Day coupon book you and the grandkids could have fun making for him. In addition to emailing it to him on Father’s Day, you could print out a copy to tuck into the basket.

Creative Holiday Baskets & Fun for Grandparents & Grandkids:

I hope these ideas have whet your creative grandparent juices. They have mine. If you have more Father’s Day gift ideas, send them our way and I’ll try to include them in another article. For that matter, if you make any of these holiday baskets, take a photo and send them in. They’d make a great addition to the upcoming Father’s Day post.