Week One

This week was significant for the USA as they celebrated Independence Day. Not really a celebration for old Blighty yet some of the residents had a chat about some interesting USA facts and a number of our residents have visited America, which we can see from the wall map in the lounge. 

We also enjoyed reading poetry from a lovely book from our library service. The mobile library visits regularly and leaves books/CD’s/videos for our residents. A super book was introduced to the residents reminiscing about the years covering WW2. Our residents remembered foods, pastimes, games and lifestyles from then and we had a very interactive session recalling this time. 

We also raised the roof a few times with a few sing-a-longs including some lovely hymn singing. 

This week saw International Chocolate Day and with perfect timing, chocolate-based goodies adorned the sweet trolley. Yum! 

Our residents enjoyed a few movies in the lounge including Oliver and The Sound of Music and some of our residents sang along to the more memorable songs. One of our residents, Veronica loves to sing and knows many of the words. 

Week Two

The temperatures started to rise this week, almost preparing us for what was to come.  Some of the residents sat outside and enjoyed the mild breezes.  

We do like a quiz here at Allenbrook and therefore a quiz testing our knowledge of hot countries came to mind. There were some great guesses which prove our residents know a bit about world weather. 

Mandy presented a great interactive quiz whereby the residents call out answers always a hit and the staff join in too! 

International Snake day slithered into this week and a few of our residents answered some tricky snake-based questions. The longest snake on record? Approx 32.5 feet. A reticulated Python!  One or two of our residents guessed very close to the answer indeed. 

For our residents that prefer the comfort of their room – we take the quizzes to them and our residents across the board are a clever bunch! 

We welcomed some new residents this month also, Pat, Peter, Audrey, Freda, Agnes and  Phillipa. A big hello 🙂  

Week Three

The weather hit some high temperatures this week and it was very important for our residents to keep as cool as possible and hydrate. Cool drinks were readily available, fans were distributed all over the building and ice creams as always – proved a hit… one cannot beat a choc ice in the warm weather! 

A Cliff Richard DVD in concert was enjoyed along with Brigadoon, a lovely tale with Gene Kelly. One of our residents donated an Andre Rieu video and we were swept away by the lovely costumes and classical music. 

Thursdays see our hairdresser visit Allenbrook and our residents always look very smart indeed when they have visited our salon on the first floor. 

Week Four

Every week we play Bingo and we have some lively sessions especially as there are chocolate prizes at stake! This week was no exception and a big well done to all our winners which this week saw Jane, Ann, Maria, Stan and Betty enjoy their well-earned yummy confection! 

The Commonwealth Baton arrived here in Halesowen and to show our support we decorated it with Union Jacks. We wish Teams England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland the very best of luck. 

We played our own version of the Game with the popular balloon tennis and our residents represented their home towns, some of the participants can certainly pack a punch as the balloon went flying over the lounge. Great efforts!