News of interest to you in the Sandwich Generation: Caregivers, Grandparents, Baby Boomer generation, and more. That’s what Thursday’s SandwichINK tends to focus on and this Thursday is no exception.

But today’s news is special. Rather than pulling a news story from the headlines, SandwichINK is making its own headlines. As you may recall, we had our first ever contest, featuring a WalkerWonder banner for aging parents and others who use walkers or rolling walkers. I want to thank everyone for participating! AND I want to thank Kathleen LeRoy and WalkerWonder for this high quality and special walker banner for dads! The contest is over and the winner has won!

And now the moment we’ve all been waiting for. Drum roll please!

The winner is:

Mary from EldercareABC

CONGRATULATIONS MARY!

I will be collecting contact information from Mary and mailing off her banner by this weekend. Once again, thank you to all who participated! We appreciate you ALL! 

Post from: SandwichINK.com

Big News for You From SandwichINK!

When my dad’s Parkinson’s Disease started to progress more dramatically, his doctor finally told him he needed to use a walker rollator to protect him from falls. We were able to get him a very nice looking red walker on wheels and he continued to enjoy his mall walks pushing his walker ahead of him, and sitting on its little seat when he needed to rest. It was very practical and spiffy, though not necessarily the most stylish thing in the mall. When I broke a leg and was stuck on crutches for several weeks I bought a really cute little tote bag that stuck on to my crutches through the use of small patches of Velcro. The goal was to give me something to carry the different things I needed to tote around with me without having to use my hands, while looking at least a little stylish. It looked cute but, sadly, didn’t work very well. It just kept falling off, which drove me nuts, and eventually I gave up on it. WalkerWonder has come up with a stylish, practical product for a walker or walker rollator that takes the best of both those products and makes them much better. The company was founded with the desire to brighten the lives of those who depend on mobility aids, and from the looks of the sample they sent me, along with a close look at their website, I would say they are doing a great job at it.

When I opened their box, I discovered a well-made, sturdy, brightly colored, heavy fabric banner that is custom made to fit snugly on the front of a walker, whether the traditional lifting type, or the more contemporary rolling style (the walker rollator). In addition, there are four “bumpers” that fit on each of the legs of the traditional, non-wheeled walker to add even more color. All of these products use very secure Velcro to stay put. They even tuck in a sheet of cute stickers to add even more opportunity for your aging parent to customize their “wheels.” I asked if you could use these banners on walkers with baskets. Kathleen LeRoy, President of WalkerWonder, wrote, “if a person wants to use a basket in conjunction with the banner, it depends on the configuration of the walker or rollator.  Our website lists the brands of walkers and rollators that the banners will work with and it also provides diagrams to show how the banners fit.” Not only that, they also offer a 100% Satisfaction Guarantee if you find that you order a product that does not fit to your satisfaction. As a matter of fact, their goal is your 100% satisfaction.  “Within 30 days of your purchase you may return your WalkerWonder product for any reason whatsoever.  You can choose either a refund or a replacement.” In addition, their products also come with a one-year warranty. That’s better than half the products in my house!

The banners have all sorts of cute sayings, from Christian Bible verses, such as “With God, all things are possible,” to cute sayings like my dad and I always enjoyed, “The Cat’s Meow,” to special greetings for parents on Mother’s Day and Father’s Day, to patriotic flag styles. That would have been my dad’s first choice! If your elderly parents love to show off photos of the grandkids, they have a banner for that. If they prefer a personalized one with their own name, they’ve got that too!

When I reviewed their website, I discovered that they’re not just good looking and sturdy, they are also practical. The banners and bumpers have been pre-treated for stain resistance. They are hand washable, and line dryable, though if your washer has a delicate setting, they say you can use that as well, though carefully and rarely. Walkers are wonderful blessings to our aging parents,when they need them, but they are not the most attractive items. Even my dad’s, which I thought looked quite spiffy, still looked like a walker. WalkerWonders gives them a nice sense of personality. As someone who loves the occasional bumper sticker to give my car that touch of personality, I really like that. Particularly with the more sterile-looking traditional silver walkers. These would make a terrific gift for grandma and grandpa on each of their birthdays, Mother’s and Father’s Day, or Christmas. At a base price of $59 (even less for the walker rollator cover as they don’t use the bumpers), they would make a great gift for all the grandkids to chip in on. If your senior parents are like mine, they are often saying, “I have no room for more presents.” These would not only not take up more room, they’d brighten your parents’ room! You can order the banners yourself or get a gift certificate so your elderly parent can pick out their own style. You can learn more about these spiffy looking walker banners at WalkerWonder . They have complete assembly directions for both walkers and rollators, and even an interesting blog. I think you’ll find them a delightful gift to share with an aging parent to help them enjoy their walker in a more personal way. Now I have a very fun announcement to make. WalkerWonder is sponsoring a fun giveaway for SandwichINK readers, offering one lucky reader a special "One in a Million" banner set for someone's special Senior Father! This is coming just in time for a special Father’s Day gift or as a delightful gift for any birthday.

It’s also a great way to inaugurate my brand new email service! I have just started using Feedblitz and, in exchange for celebrating that milestone with me, YOU get a chance to win this terrific gift for that special Senior in your life. In order to be entered in the random drawing, just sign up to receive SandwichINK free in your email each day. You can fill out the form below or up in the top right corner. They both work the same.    Then leave me a comment below and be sure to include your email or other contact information so I can notify you if your name is drawn. The recipient of this special giveaway will be picked in a random drawing. If you’d like more ways to enter to win this special Father’s WalkerWonder, in addition to signing up for the free email subscription to SandwichINK which must be the first step, they can include:

• Signing up for SandwichINK's RSS feed (in addition to the email subscription)
• Blogging about it on your blog
• Adding SandwichINK to your blogroll or linking to SandwichINK on your blog
• Tweeting about SandwichINK and the contest on Twitter
• Telling friends at Facebook

For each of the above items, you must leave a separate comment with the link to the item (a link is not necessary for the RSS feed). If you are already doing one or more of these, just leave a separate comment for each explaining that and leaving the link (again, a link is not necessary for the RSS feed). Each comment counts as one entry. Please note that you must continue the subscription for the entire length of the giveaway. Please see SandwichINK’s Policies Page for complete rules and more information. The giveway for this walker / walker rollator banner will end at midnight May 29, 2009 . Have fun

Post from: SandwichINK.com

How to Perk Up Your Aging Parent’s Day by Spiffing Up Their Walker

My dad developed Parkinson’s Disease in the mid-1980s. He dealt wonderfully with it. He stayed active, playing golf and walking every single day. He was able to live a relatively normal life for over a decade. Eventually they moved to a house close to me the same year my first grandchild arrived. That was my introduction to the Sandwich Generation .

A few years later his Parkinson’s had progressed considerably and we decided together that it was time for them to move in with me. We knew it would make it easier for mom and me as joint caregivers . It also gave my dad great peace of mind! When I bought my new house a couple years prior to this, I made sure it was easily accessible with no stairs, higher toilet seats, and hand rails in both bathrooms. Shortly after they moved in, my dad had to give up his beloved rolling walker for a wheelchair and I discovered some things I hadn’t thought of. Inches and ramps! Inches as in, “how many inches in my doorways?” “How many inches in the turning radius of a hallway?” “How many inches wide were the sidewalks and walkways?” I totally panicked, then breathed a sigh of relief when I realized that everything was wide enough for his new wheelchair !

Ramps were a bit trickier. I didn’t have any clue where to buy them, what kind to get, or how long I would need them for. Since my house was a single story with no major steps, just a threshold in front and one step down in back, we decided to go with threshold ramps . I was able to find a store three cities away and bought two different kinds. They screwed into the threshold and really did work quite well for us. In doing some research, I discovered several new articles out there that I wish I’d had five years ago. One thing I would suggest, that I didn’t think to do then. Ask your doctor/insurance company if the ramps (or any other necessary equipment) are covered by insurance. I didn’t learn to do that until after we bought the walker AND one wheelchair! Fortunately, we really loved that wheelchair as it was very light weight. It was perfect for travel. I’ll be writing more about that in a later post. In the meantime, here are some links you may find useful if you need wheelchair ramps for your aging parents:

• New Disability
• Discount Ramps – threshold ramps - They have a wide variety of ramps, in addition to these threshold ramps
• Handi Ramp
• Lite Ramp

Post from: SandwichINK.com

Wheelchair Needs For Caregivers: Inches and Ramps