I came up with this idea to hi-jack them for an afternoon and pretend we were in Italy. Me and my partner both had the day off from work during the week and we wanted a weekend alone. So, we concocted a plan to entertain them on a Friday so that the standing Saturday morning breakfast could be skipped. You see, my partner is a nurse who works from 2pm to 10:30pm; I work days. We are constantly on opposite shifts except for every-other weekend when he has two days off together while I am also off.
The experience is one that the parents STILL talk about and relive as a happy memory. Here is how we planned the day:
1) Me and my partner agreed to use a day of vacation to pull this off and selected the date.
2) I found an authentic Italian restaurant in a neighboring city about 30 miles from home. Great food reviews. I also double-checked their hours of a late lunch option so that the place would be less crowded.
3) I created an invitation using Microsoft Word. I took a photo of a Venice, Italy canal and gondola and used that backdrop as the front of my invitation. The inside spelled out simply instructions and helped to ease concerns and set expectations for time, apparel, etc. (See photos) I mailed the invitation on Monday so that it arrived by mail on Tuesday. Retired folks like to plan ahead and think about what they will be doing. The invite include the day, time, and the Italian Day-cation theme, but we specifically left off the name of the restaurant or what we'd be doing for the afternoon.4) I hand addressed the envelope and put Italian stickers like postage marks, Leaning Tower of Pisa, Roma, etc. all over the envelope so that it was loud and obnoxious, not to be missed in their stack of junkmail.
5) Throughout the week I burned a cd for the car with mostly Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin. The plan was the have the car turned on and Sinatra playing as they entered the vehicle. Who of that era doesn't love THAT kind of music!
6) On the day of the Day-cation we dressed well and made a pit-stop at the liquor store on the way to grab a bottle of Italian vino to leave behind after we went home.
Here is where it gets cheesy. My parnter's parents are still pretty sharp and have a great sense of humor, so we used that to enhance the atmosphere. Upon arrival we both spoke in the best fake Italian accents that we could muster for the duration of our afternoon. We assumed the Italian sounding names and played the part. We had a lot of laughs.
Once at the restaurant and after ordering lunch, I whipped out a family Crossword puzzle that I created with questions, clues, and answers customized specifically all about their family. Dad is just crazy about crossword puzzles so I figured this was an excellent way to keep them occupied until some of the din of the lunch crowd died down and the background noise diminished. (I created the free puzzle here http://bit.ly/USmuRB). The parents had never had "real" Italian food before so everything that was ordered was a new experience for them.After we left the restaurant we chauffeured them a few miles away to a high-end, incredible chocolatier. With chandeliers dripping from the ceiling and jewelcases filled with faceted truffles, this place made the couple a little squeemish! LOL -- These simple, kind folks are not fancy people so they were perfectly comfortable leaving this place just as soon as we entered. We stayed only long enough for one of them to use the restroom and me to load up on my favorite chocolates there.
Once we arrived back at the ranch we worked as a team on the rest of the crossword puzzle. Clearly, with 40 clues I did succeed at making the puzzle challenging enough.
By four O'clock Mom was ready for a nap and Dad was happy to sit in his chair reading in the peace and quiet. Both parents were tickled with leaving the country for the afternoon in their own back yard. It was a very fun day!
Do you have ideas that you have used to make life meaningful for your elderly parents? We'd love to hear your ideas!
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