Help on washing elderly mother clothes (soiled with diarrhea)
georgeb122
7 years ago
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MDLN
7 years agoRelated Discussions
Gifts for the "elderly"
Comments (59)What a great collection of ideas. I almost wish I had to buy a gift for an old guy. The charity donation is a great idea for the right person. Some people need the exchange of actual gifts to give and receive the feeling of being loved. My in laws are gift people and there's nothing wrong with that, it's just how they express love. They won't donate in my name, as I've requested, because it's just not something they understand. So we exchange gifts. OTHO, my Mum makes donations to charities in the grandkids names instead of buying them gifts. She picks things that represent them. She donated to a cancer charity to pay for yoga lessons for patients in honor of my niece the yoga practitioner. She donated to provide musical instruments for schools with underserved kids in honor of my nephew the musician. She donates to Heifer International and some of us 'get' bunnies or chicks or bees. We all prefer it to getting more stuff....See MoreHelping elderly parent with sale, frustrating
Comments (19)My sibs and I delt with this last summer/fall. My Mom swore she wouldn't be like her mother and leave a full house for the kids to deal with -- but she kept finding reasons not to downsize from a 5 bedroom house to senior living until a health crisis! Her home was in relatively good condition and in a desirable area. But it needed some work to take it from "40 year old nice" to really ready to sell. We all have our quirks and Mom was no different. For example, she had a hard time understanding why we insisted that the dark, unvarnished doors and woodwork in the upstairs hall be painted. But what a difference that made. From dark hole to bright and clean looking (I know some of the painted over handprints were mine from 30 years ago!). Mom was proud of her home and how nicely she had decorated it. And it was nice ...but a "grandma house" and like all of our homes full of more stuff than is ideal for selling. We talked about some things and started on some small things while she was there but waited for the painting and major staging until she had moved out of state. That was much better for all of us. My sister in law could go into business as a home stager. She did a stupendous job moving things around and adding a few items borrowed from her home or bought cheaply at target to really make the house look more updated and spacious. Some of the things we did: Kitchen-Thoroughly degreased kitchen cabinets, replaced pulls with inexpensive ones off ebay, took valences down and decluttered. Family Room-Updated colors by Padding and arranged a nice throw cover on her 50's sofa, removed shabby recliner, took everything from built in bookshelves and put a select few books back with a few display items. Took down window coverings to enhance light and update. Wrapped fabric around window seat cushion to blend with updated colors.Removed endtable. Room looked more spacious and inviting. LR-Rearranged and packed away boxes and boxes of very lovely knicknacks, and art work. Took up rugs that were on carpet. Had sheers and drapes open for more light. Bedrooms- took up rugs to show hardwoods,painted dark slider closet doors, took out many small items of furniture including bookshelves, sewing machine, computer desk, etc. Moved some stuff into other rooms for better balance. A br papered with a small ruby pink print wass transformed by putting a dark tan spread on the bed and removing some dainty accessories and adding a small wood dresser from another room. It was amazing how the changes neutralized the pink and pulled out the neutral tan from the paper. In the mbr her worn out bedding was replaced by a nice comforter and plenty of pillows (on sale a target)all arranged like in a magazine. The family photo galleries were taken down and walls repainted as needed, many curtains taken down and replaced by inexpensive sheers. The carpets were professionally cleaned and , boy, did that ever spiff things up. All in all, it was a lot of work upfront but the result was that my Mom got a good price quickly as compared to some homes that have stayed unsold. The area in NJ had a slowing market but we felt that being in a desirable neighborhood, by a good school, and now in move in condition, that the house would sell w/o difficulty. We priced it fairly but not too low. The first looker made a low offer we rejected much to the realtors dismay. Within 10 days the a much better offer was made by a much more qualified buyer. They love their new home. Wish I'd known about the Mr Clean trick for her counters. Good luck with your Mom. If you can, get her moved, then get the condo spiffed up. In the long run it's easier on everyone and the only way to do some things w/o offending her. Keep stressing how you fix up a home to sell is not the same as how you live in it--that it needs to be a little bare....See MoreWhy can't I have sheets like my mother-in-law?
Comments (82)Hello friends, I'm chiming in just now after a slight absence and cannot resist tossing in my two cents worth on this topic, as I've had quite a similar experience. Some time ago my mother-in-law gave herself a wonderful birthday present, in that she bought all new everything for the boudoir, down to and including new carpeting, and I said, "Way to go, Rosemary, you and Johnnie deserve this treat!" She had a couple of old sheets that she earmarked for the church's charity drive but I wheedled them away for use in my own bedroom. One set, which I believe was Wamsutta, was like the silky ones your mother-in-law has, and the they were designed by Yves St. Lawrence, in awesome pinks and purples. The colors nothwithstanding, those elderly, well-worn and washed, and much beloved sheets were pure perfection to my husband and me. The lovely smoothness of that old bedding transported us into the sleep of the angels. I promise, we NEVER noticed the pink and purple designs, and we slept on them for another 20 years until they could no longer manage to hold together in one piece. Oh! Holy cow, I just came out of my reverie and realized you had asked a question! Mea culpa! My bad! Here's my suggestion for silky sheets, or at least for as close we can come these days: Buy 100% Egyptian Cotton in a reasonably good thread count, like 300, 400, 500. I'm now a retired senior with rather thin, frail skin, which I feel warrants the smoothest, most silky bedding I can afford. And I buy my Egyptian cotton sheet sets from Penney's, when they go on sale twice a year. And they last forever, well, I'm still using them 8 years later! I have 3 sets and just rotate. Give them a whirl; they're quite reasonable on sale, and enjoy! Kaye...See MoreThe shushing of an elderly gentleman
Comments (15)I've had experiences with both types of scenarios mentioned here. The first is similar to the shushed old man and to this day I wish I'd made a stand but I was also so shocked that I didn't move fast enough. I was in a pharmacy where the front cashier was right next to the exit door. The old man ahead of me was very slow and unsteady on his feet and was still slowly trying to make it to the door by the time I had made my purchase. All of a sudden an entire family rushed past him, the old man nearly fell down as they all pushed him aside trying to beat him out the door. I was so appalled I didn't have the sense to do or say anything, since it did happen so fast. But I've also witnessed disabled people really acting selfishly especially when they are riding those carts in the grocery store. They will suddenly back up without looking, they will park the cart in the middle of the aisle while looking for something and not move an inch when someone is trying to get by. And when there are aisles that are crowded with shoppers and carts they will glare and even verbally chastise others that they are in the way. I have sympathy for the disabled but the fact that they are disabled doesn't give them the right to behave like a royal despot. There was once where I took up for this poor mother trying to pack all her little kids and groceries into the car as quickly as she could and the parking space next to her was for disabled. The man who wanted that space started yelling at her to hurry up and close her doors. She was in the middle of trying to buckle one of the kids in and he kept blowing the horn and yelling at her. I went up to his window and said "man, can't you give her a break, she's going as fast as she can with all those kids" - he then started yelling back at me and said "someone needs to give me a break, I'm disabled". I told him he needed to cool his jets and called him a name I won't repeat. The woman thanked me for taking up on her side....See Morewekick
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