Tired of being cooped up in the house all day? So is your senior client. And, let’s face it, even the same series of weekly errands and appointments get boring after a while. Let us help you with some simple but fun outing ideas.
5 Outing Ideas To Break Up The Day
The following ideas will help shake you both out of the routine rut and bring a little spring back into your steps.
Join an exercise class
Between yoga and Pilates classes, gyms and the recreation centers in your area, there are plenty of senior-specific exercise classes available. Exercise has a myriad of benefits for seniors, including improving appetites and sleep habits, slowing the progression of Alzheimer’s and other dementia-related diseases and elevating moods.
Most senior-centric exercise classes offer modifications for chair-bound seniors, but you can always call ahead to verify. As long as you’re at it, you might as well join in or attend a class in the same location so you’re on the workout path together.
Hit the movies
In an effort to garner more business during the slower times of the day, many theaters offer specific senior day discounts that go beyond the normal matinee pricing. In addition to showing box office hits, they may also re-show some of those classics your client loved back when they were young adults.
Here is a link to Cinemark’s Senior Day Discounts – just type in your zip code to find participating theaters near you. If you aren’t a Cinemark moviegoer, check in with your favorite local theater next time you’re there to see if they have special senior offerings.
Get involved with animals
Animals provide a wonderful way for seniors to express their love and feel that love returned. While owning an easy-to-care-for pet is certainly an option, there are plenty of other ways to enjoy the human-animal connection if pet ownership isn’t possible.
Examples include:
- Visiting a local bird sanctuary or an easy-access spot at a local nature reserve or park to picnic and observe nature
- Volunteer together at a local animal shelter or SPCA
- Put up ads to walk a neighborhood dog for free at a certain day/time each week (perhaps for a new mom or a busy single parent who can’t afford a dog walker)
- Get something hot or cold to drink and sit at the local dog park to watch the dogs romp
- Find the best pet store in town and browse their animal collections
- Head to a local zoo and enjoy their senior discounts
Let’s face it; animals are entertaining and heartwarming, so it’s hard to be anything other than happy in their presence.
Visit your local senior center and community event’s website
Most Bay Area senior centers are bustling centers of organized activities. Whether you choose to attend one of their events, or check-in about the most senior-friendly events and venues this time of year, odds are you’ll learn about compelling opportunities you weren’t aware of before.
For example, Alameda’s Mastick Senior Center is incredible. Membership is free (but required to attend/participate in events) and the activities they offer seem endless. Workout rooms, bocce ball courts, arts and crafts classes, sewing/handwork sessions, and off-site day trips and excursions are all available. It’s a wonderful way to get out and connect with other seniors and caregivers in the area.
Similarly, most communities, towns and/or cities have event websites advertising all the great goings-on from month-to-month. For example, here’s the Special Events page for Alameda; perusing it each month with your clients allows you to learn more about their interests – letting them guide the way to the events, shows, fairs and activities you both attend.
Treat yourselves to delicious foods via Farmer’s Markets and Food Trucks
Phase One of adding support often begins via in-home aides that offer driving services and/or meal preparation services. Both are important, but since seniors are so prone to malnutrition, the latter is a top priority.
Farmer’s Markets can be instrumental in not only getting seniors out and about once in a while but also allowing them the sumptuous experience of eating fresh, seasonal fruits and vegetables, which are much more flavorful than their grocery store counterparts. Food trucks (have a food truck park nearby?) are another fun alternative to restaurant dining and often involve creative, artisanal foods and drinks that aren’t your average chain restaurant fare.
We Can Help With Outing Ideas
Wish your senior loved one could get out and about more often? Licensed caregivers, in the form of companions, can be hired as minimally as once a week or as much as needed, and often pave the way for experienced, compassionate home care services as seniors need it along the way.
Contact HomeAide Home Care, Inc. today to learn more about how to ensure your senior loved one can get out and about more often – with the assistance of our outing ideas and heartfelt caregivers who provide personalized assistance tailored to our clients’ needs and interests.
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