Christmas Fun!

Here's a fun story to share with your group:

There's a romantic full moon when Pedro says, "Hey, mamacita, let's do Weeweechu."

"Oh no, not now, let's look at the moon!" say's Maria.

"Oh, c'mon baby, let's you and I do Weeweechu.  I love you and it's the perfect time!" Pedro begged.

"But I wanna just hold your hand and watch the moon," replied Maria.

"Please, corazoncito, just once, do Weeweechu with me."

Maria looked at Pedro and said, "OK, one time, we'll do Weeweechu."

Pedro grabbed his guitar and they both sang...

"Weeweechu a Merry Christmas, Weeweechu a Merry Christmas, Weeweechu a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!"
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Dirty Santa

Every December our SilverSneakers class has a party.  We all look forward to it- it's sooo much fun!  I bring the ham and they bring the side dishes and desserts.

We all bring a wrapped present (under $10) and we play a game where we steal the gifts from each other- some call the game Dirty Santa.  Each participant draws a number.  The person who draws Number 1 gets to unwrap the first present.  Number 2 can then unwrap another present or take number 1's present.  If they take number 1's present then number 1 gets to choose another present to unwrap.  You go through the group with each participant getting a gift.  At the end of the game, Number 1 gets to make one final decision to either keep their gift or steal someone elses.  We usually limit how many times the same gift can be stolen - usually 3x's. 

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Musical Present

For this game, I start by wrapping a present in a small box (a gift card works well).  I put lots of tape on the package to make it hard to unwrap.  I then repeat this by wrapping the small box in a bigger box and so on.

We sit in a circle and I hand the package to the first person.  Everyone counts to ten as the person tries to unwrap the package.  (Or you could  play music for 10 seconds)  They are surprised when they find that there is another wrapped box inside the first!!  Continue around the circle until someone finally gets to the gift.  That person gets to keep the gift. 

These games are lots of fun!!  Please feel free to e-mail me if you have any questions about them.  Please share any games that you play this time of year- We could all use some great ideas!!!

Alice's SilverSneakers Story

I want to share this great story with you.  It's from Alice J. Howard who attends the Chickahominy Family Y in VA.

How SilverSneakers has Affected my Lifestyle

I returned to my SilverSneakers class after being away for more than a year.  I celebrated my 67th birthday and decided to give myself a present of a more healthy and active year.  I was so happy to meet all the wonderful seniors who participate in the SilverSneakers programs.  Our instructors are an exceptional and dedicated group of professionals who make exercising fun and rewarding!

Recently, I was talking to my son, Reginald, on the telephone and noticed a knot in my right upper arm.  I mentioned it to my son with great concern.  He told me to look at my left arm and lo and behold there was a knot there, too!  Reginald said, "Those are your muscles, Mom!  SilverSneakers is working for you and you need to stick with it."  I hadn't seen muscles in so long, I thought they were gone forever!  We both laughed at my new found discovery and talk about all the  benefits of exercise for seniors!

Thank you SilverSneakers!  I am even more motivated to continue my quest for good health and well being through exercise and eating healthy!

The Green Thing

The following has changed my view about being "Green".  It's harder to be more green than how those of us among the "older generations" were raised!

The Green Thing

In the line at the store, the cashier told the older woman that plastic bags weren't good for the environment.  The woman apologized to her and explained , "We didn't have the green thing back in my day.

That's right, they didn't have the green thing in her day.  Back then, they returned their milk bottles, Coke bottles and beer bottles to the store.  The store sent them back to the plant to be washed and sterilized and refilled, using the same bottles over and over.  So they really were recycled.

But she didn't have the green thing in her day!

Back then, they washed the baby's diapers because they didn't have the throw-away kind.  They dried clothes on a line.  Kids got hand-me-down clothes and not always brand-new clothing.

But that's right, they didn't have the green thing back in her day!

Back then, they had one TV or radio in the house - not a TV in every room.  And the TV had a small screen,  not one the size of  the state of Montana!

In the kitchen, they blended, stirred and washed by hand instead of having a machine to do it for them.  When they mailed a fragile item, they used newspaper to cushion it, not Styrofoam or plastic bubble wrap.

Back then, they didn't burn gasoline just to cut the lawn.  They used a push mower that ran on human power.  They exercised by working so they didn't have to go to the gym to run on treadmills that use electricity.

But she's right, they didn't have the green thing back then!

They drank from a fountain instead of a plastic bottle when they were thirsty.  They refilled their pens with ink and replaced their razor blades instead of just buying new ones.

But they didn't have the green thing back then!

Back then, people took the streetcar and kids rode their bikes to school or rode the school bus, instead of turning their moms into a 24-hour taxi service.  They had one electrical outlet in a room, not an entire bank of sockets to power a dozen appliances.  And they didn't need a computerized gadget to receive a signal beamed from space in order to find the nearest pizza joint.

But they didn't have the green thing back then!

Life's Shipwrecks

The only survivor of a shipwreck was washed up on a small, uninhabited island.  Everyday he would long to be rescued as he scanned the horizon for help.
He eventually managed to build a little hut out of driftwood to protect himself and his few possessions.  Everyday he would scavenge for food and driftwood.  One day as he was returning home, he saw his small hut in flames. 
He had lost everything!!  He was stunned and shouted in grief and anger, "How can this happen to me?"
Early the next morning, he was awakened by the sound of a ship approaching the island.  It had come to rescue him.
"How did you know I was here?" he asked his rescuers.
"We saw your smoke signal," they replied.

So remember the next time your hut is burning to the ground...it just may be the smoke signal you need to bring help!

Rut Blocker

Stretching helps us to keep the full range-of- motion in our joints, especially as we age! 

Great Upper Body Stretch

Sitting or standing:  Reach both straight arms up over your head.  Feel yourself getting taller!  Now, try to extend the right hand even higher.  Relax and repeat with the left hand.

Kids Say the Greatest Things!

Sandra Slocum, a wonderful instructor in Richmond, sent me the following:

Kids Say the Greatest Things!

1.  Nudity

I was driving with my three young children one warm summer evening when a woman in the convertible ahead of us stood up and waved.  She was stark naked!  As I was reeling from the shock, I heard my 5-year-old shout from the backseat, "Mom, that lady isn't wearing her seat belt!"

2.  Opinions

On the first day of school, a first-grader handed his teacher a note from his mother.  The note read, "The opinions expressed by this child are not necessarily those of his parents."

3.  Ketchup

A Mom was trying hard to get the ketchup out of the bottle.  During her struggle, the phone rang and her 4-year-old answered it.  "Mommy can't come to the phone right now," she heard her daughter say.  "She's hitting the bottle."

4.  More Nudity

A little boy got lost at he YMCA and found himself in the women's locker room.  When he was spotted, the room burst into shrieks, with ladies grabbing towels and running for cover.  The little boy watched in amazement and then asked, "What's the matter, haven't you ever seen a little boy before?"

5.  Police #1

While taking a routine vandalism report at an elementary school, I was interrupted by a little girl about 6 years old.  Looking up and down at my uniform, she asked, "Are you a policeman?"  "Yes'" I answered and continued writing the report.  "My mother said if I ever needed help, I should ask the police.  Is that right?"  "Yes, that's right," I told her.  "Well, then," she said as she extended her foot toward me, "Would you please tie my shoe?"

6.  Police #2

It was the end of the day when I parked my police van in front of the station.  As I gathered my equipment, my K-9 partner, Jake, was barking and I saw a little boy staring at me.  "Is that a dog you've got back there?" he asked.  "It sure is," I replied.  Puzzled, the boy looked at me and then towards the back of the van.  Finally he said, "What'd he do?"

7.  Elderly

While working for an organization that delivers lunches to elderly shut-ins, I used to take my 4-year-old daughter on my afternoon rounds. She was unfailingly intrigued by the various appliances of old age, particularly the canes, walkers and wheelchairs.  One day I found her staring at a pair of dentures soaking in a glass.  As I braced myself for the inevitable barrage of questions, she merely turned and whispered, "The tooth fairy will never believe this!"

8. School

A little girl has just finished her first week of school.  "I'm just wasting my time," she said to her mother.  "I can't read, I can't write, and they won't let me talk!"

Rut Blocker

Have students sit forward in their chair and start marching.  As the R leg marches, have the L leg step out and in (like a V-step on just one side).  Repeat having the R leg step out as the L leg marches.  Fun coordination move!  Thanks, Susan Waters, for this move!!

Fun Coordination Move!

I tried this move with my class last week.  We had fun but we still have some work to do to get it down!!

Here's the move:

While standing, do alternating toe taps to the side.  Let them get used to this move.  Then:
     As you tap to the right- bring both arms straight up overhead
     As you tap to the left- bring both arms straight out to the sides
     As you tap to the right again- bring both arms down
     Then tap back with your left toe as you press both hands back

Without missing a beat, repeat the sequence 4 to 8 x's.  Then repeat sequence starting with the left foot.

This is fun and we feel such a sense of accomplishment when we master it!!

Let me know if you have any questions.  It is so hard to make a move clear with out pictures!!

Happy New Year

Here are some New Year's Wishes sent to me by Lloyd Langston, a wonderful SilverSneakers instructor in Williamsburg, VA:

New Year's Wishes

May you get a clean bill of health from your dentist, your cardiologist, your gastro-enterologist, your urologist, your proctologist, your podiatrist, your psychiatrist, your plumber and the IRS.

May your hair, your teeth, your face-lift, your abs and your stocks not fall; and may your blood pressure, your triglycerides, your cholesterol, your white blood count and your mortgage interest not rise.

May New Year's Eve find you seated around the table, together with your beloved family and cherished friends.  May you find the food better, the environment quieter, the cost much cheaper, and the pleasure more fulfilling than anything else you would ordinarily do that night.

May what you see in the mirror delight you, and what others see in you delight them.  May someone love you enough to forgive your faults, be blind to your blemishes, and tell the world about your virtues.

May the telemarketers wait to make their sales calls until you finish dinner, may the commercials on TV not be louder than the program you have been watching, and may your check book and your budget balance-and include generous amounts for charity.

May you remember to say "I love you" at least once a day to your spouse, your child, your parent, your siblings; but not to your secretary, your nurse, your masseuse, your hairdresser or your tennis instructor.

And may we live in a world at peace and with the awareness of God's love in every sunset, every flower's unfolding petals, every baby's smile, every lover's kiss, and every wonderful, astonishing, miraculous beat of our heart.

Wishing you the best in 2011!

You can find this e-card at www.llerrah.com. 

Another idea:

Go around the room and ask participants to share their wish for the New Year in one word.  They may suggest things like:  Prosperity, Health, Love, Hope, Peace, Joy, Happiness, etc.