gina

Hi Katie! :-) Welcome to the site! We have a great group of people with vast backgrounds and experiences! I hope you will share and post topics and if you need anything, just ask.... Have fun! Gina

:hammer: Hi All, Happy Hanukkah to those of you that celebrate the holiday !! :-) Hanukkah, the Festival of Lights, is a joyous celebration about the miracle of the oil that burned for eight days when there was only enough oil left in the temple for one day! Hanukkah begins on the 25th day of the month of Kislev in the Jewish calendar (November/December). This year(5765 / 2004-2005) Hanukkah begins on December 8, and ends on December 15, 2004. Each night is celebrated with the lighting of candles followed by a family meal including many traditional Hanukkah foods such as latkes (potato, corn, zucchini , cheese) topped with applesauce or sour cream. Cupcake Menorah Recipe Rating: Prep Time: 10 min Total Time: 35 min Makes: 24 servings, 1 cupcake each 1 pkg. (2-layer size) chocolate cake mix, any flavor 1 pkg. (4-serving size) JELL-O Chocolate Flavor Instant Pudding & Pie Filling 1-3/4 cups milk 2 eggs 1 pkg. (12 oz.) BAKER'S Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chunks 1 container (16 oz.) ready-to-spread vanilla frosting PREHEAT oven to 350°F. Place cake mix, dry pudding mix, milk and eggs in large bowl. Beat with electric mixer on medium speed 2 minutes or until well blended. Stir in chocolate chunks. Spoon batter evenly into 24 paper- or foil-lined medium muffin cups, filling each cup about 2/3 full. BAKE 20 to 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted into centers comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans. Cool completely on wire racks. SPREAD tops of cupcakes with frosting. Insert blue candles into tops of 9 of the cupcakes. Arrange in the shape of a menorah, elevating the center cupcake for the shammus of the menorah. Have fun! Gina ;-)

Hi Cristine, I would ask the Director/Administrator for a written duties/policies for the Activity position, that way you know exactly what is going to be expected of you. As far as a pay raise, that should also be brought up as well, as you will be doing more and will have more responsiblity. :-) I wish I could help better but I dont really know much about the teenage/group home responsibilites of an Activity Director because I have always worked with seniors. Maybe others on the board might be able to help... Have fun.Gina ;-)

Hi Linda :-) , Have you tried the Indiana Dept. of Health website?( I think thats where your from, right?) I found a great document to download by going to the page: http://www.in.gov/isdh/links/health_care_links.htm then put "adult daycare" in the search box on that page and it will direct you to the page to download about adult daycare. I also found two other sites that might give you some info.: http://www.adultdaycaregroup.com/manual_2.html or http://www.totaladhc.com/ Maybe these will help...... Gina :-D

Hi Amy, I agree with the rest of the gang here, I say if you truly want the position, GO FOR IT :-P !!! I have known many people in this buss. that have been certified as Activity Directors, Social Service Directors,etc. with tons of experience and education that really didnt enjoy working with seniors and you can tell.It takes a very special type of person to fill this position and you sound like you would be great at it and as an added bonus, you already know the residents. :-D Make sure you mention to the boss that you are a member of the Activity Directors Network and you have plenty of resources to work with and to network with (just ask us & we will help ya at! ;-) ) GO FOR IT!! gina :-)

Hi Diana, I like the way you put it.Very well stated. Gina :-P

Hi Pennie, Thanks so much for sharing that poem from the 70's.I remember reading it in the mid 80's and I never made a copy of it and I really have been watching out for it to resurface again!! Thanks! :-D Gina ;-)

Hey Pennie, I love it! LOL!!

Hi All, I LOVE this month!! So many fun crafts to do..... Here are two that I just did with my residents. This is a great idea for the doors, and its fairly inexpensive and you can make an activity out of it. Make candy garland to put around the ladies name plates outside their doors. It is very easy and looks great. All you do is take red and white or green and white mints(like the kind you get a resturants after your meal)and tie one mint to the next with ribbon in between each mint and keep going until your desired length.So easy!! Or make cinnamon stick frames to put on the ladies doors. All you do is buy whole cinnamon sticks(usually in the spice section of most stores) a glue gun ,a picture or old christmas card front and ribbon. Get the sticks(four or eight for each frame)and make a square frame out of the sticks with the picture attached to the sticks from the back,then glue together and tie ribbon on the top to hang from the door.This craft is sooooo easy and it smells wonderful!! Have fun and Happy Holidays. Gina

Hi Sara ! Well, the better question is what don't we do!!!LOL! Now really, the answers will vary from director to director depending on what type of facility they work at. At a skilled nursing home/hospital(LTC),the director is responsible for all medial records pertaining to activities of each resident,MDS records,Careplanning,attendance records and a initial assesment and quarterly reviews(WOW, :-o ),then we must plan and implement a comprehensive recreational program for each and every resident on the census,this will include room visits,outings,religious,physical,mental,social and various other activities. Most of us are also responsible for attending weekly and monthly meetings,shopping for the facility(decorations,supplies,etc.),planning a monthly budget,hiring/firing staff(if you are lucky enough to have any help in you dept.!),training other staff,being a good listener to res.needs,keeping up on continuous education,decorating you facility each month,tranportation of residents to/from activities,creating a newsletter each month,creating a monthly calendar and printing it up and putting in each res.room, and numerous other things that pop up during the day!!! I am sure I've missed a few things so come on guys and gals and tell her what I missed!!LOL!! :-P All in all, it is truly the best job in the world! :-) Have fun! gina

Hi Stacey, I tried the site now and they are probably working on it now because I too, could not get on it. I tried all the links this morning( to make sure they were correct on the post) and I got on it. Try it again later or tomorrow, it is a great site. Have fun! Gina :-D

:hammer: Hi All, I found some great christmas websites,and wanted to share them with ya. Enjoy! Gina ;-) http://www.holidays.net/christmas/ http://merry-christmas.com http://www.theholidayspot.com/christmas http://www.elfwriters.com http://christysclipart.com/christmas_2.html http://www.ActivityVillage.co.uk

Hey Linda, GREAT IDEA! ;-) I'd love to trade spots with someone around July or August when it is HOT AS **** (HECK) in Arizona. LOL! I'm not used to the weather yet,as I am a native California girl. Great idea though! Have fun! Gina :-D

Hi Brandy :-D , Timeslips is a great program that involves Alzheimers residents and creative writing.Go to the official website at:http://www.timeslips.org/index.html. I have personally tried it on my Alzheimers/ Dementia residents and it really is fun and creative. Have fun! Gina

Sparkling Beaded Candleholder :hammer: What You Need: Colorful beads sparkle by candlelight. • Beading wire (available in crafts and discount stores) • Wire cutters • Glass or plastic beads as desired • Glass votive candleholder • Hot-glue gun and hot-glue sticks Instructions: 1. Cut a piece of wire approximately 36 inches long. 2. Place one bead on the end of the wire, threading the wire through the bead a second time to secure. String beads on wire as desired, securing last bead as for the first. 3. Wrap beaded wire around candleholder to determine the placement. If you desire more length, simply cut and bead an extra length of wire. 4. Secure one end of beaded wire with glue at the top edge of the candleholder. Wrap the beaded wire or wires around the candleholder, securing with glue about every inch. More Ideas: • To cover a larger candleholder with beaded wire, simply make several lengths and glue in the same manner as for the small votive candleholder. • Try this same idea threading miscellaneous jewelry findings, shells, and shank buttons onto the wire. • If desired, select beads in seasonal colors. Add them to the wire in 6-inch lengths of one color, or mix them up for a mottled effect.

Snowflake Coasters :hammer: A set of these no-sew, sparkly, soft snowflake coasters is a thoughtful gift. What You Need: Add holiday confetti to give these coasters extra beauty. • Scissors • Ruler • Felt in two contrasting colors • White mesh tulle • 1/2 yard of 3/8-inch-wide velvet ribbon to match base-color felt for each coaster • Various sequins, including snowflake shapes • Fabric glue Instructions: 1. Cut a 4-1/4-inch square from the base-color felt and from the mesh tulle. Cut four 4-1/4-inch lengths of velvet ribbon. 2. Enlarge a snowflake sequin on a photocopier until it is 3 inches in diameter. Use this as a pattern to cut a snowflake out of the contrasting felt. 3. Glue the felt snowflake to the center of the felt square. Sprinkle a few sequins over the felt snowflake, keeping them toward the center of the square. Lay the square of mesh tulle on top of the felt square and snowflake; line up the edges. 4. Put a bead of fabric glue 1/8 inch from the edge of the coaster on all four sides. Dab additional glue on the back of each piece of ribbon. 5. Lay the four pieces of velvet ribbon along the edges of the coaster and press them into the glue, overlapping corners. Let dry.

Dancing Snowmen Jars :hammer: What You Need: • Glass jars or candy jars • White air-dry clay, such as Crayola Model Magic clay • Metallic-colored crafting wire • Wire cutters • Ice pick • Metallic-colored beads • Clear adhesive • Acrylic enamel paints in black and white • Toothpicks • White glass paint • Pencil with round-tip eraser • Assorted ribbon Instructions: 1. Wash the jar. Let it dry. Avoid touching the areas to be decorated. 2. Shape two or three small balls from clay for each snowman. Press together. Lay jar on its side. Place snowman in position on jar and press gently against glass. 3. Cut and shape wire arms, nose, and hat, if desired. To make a small cone nose, wrap wire around the end of an ice pick. While the clay is still moist, push wire pieces in place. Turn slightly to secure. Push beads into place for buttons. Let clay dry on jars. 4. Remove clay shapes from jar and glue back in place. Let the glue dry. 5. Use a toothpick dipped in paint to add eyes and a mouth. 6. If desired, add polka dots to the candy-jar lids. Dip the eraser end of a pencil into white glass paint and dot onto the surface. Let the paint dry. 7. Tie ribbon bows around the jar tops. Trim the ribbon ends.

Hi Linda, I just checked out your hubbys site, ;-) Lovin' it!!!! He should do well with that site,beautiful work!!! Have fun!! gina :-)

:hammer: Hi All, Lets try to do a Chat Night tonite,Thursday at 6:00 pm (I'm in Arizona,Mountain time) To Chat: Go to the left side of the Home page and click on the AD CHAT ROOM Link,then click the box that says english(language) then click on the link that says lounge,and thats it,your in the chat room!!! Talk to ya later.... gina

Hi Princess, Have you contacted any local schools or daycare centers to see what they are doing for Christmas? Alot of them will come to your facility to sing around christmas time. Also, for arts and crafts: Make a ginger bread house,candy cane wreaths,small stockings,christmas cards and christmas card holders. Take your residents out to look at christmas lights in your van/bus. Go to the Target Store Senior Christmas Shopping Day(call in November to find out dates and times). Have a Holiday Boutique/Crafts Faire,have residents make small craft items to sell,or have a holiday bake sale and use the money to buy something for your act.dept. Practice singing Christmas Carols with your residents and take them out to Christmas Carol throughout your community. Make small baskets filled with toys with your residents to pass out to the childrens wards in a local hospital. Have residents hold a canned food drive for the homeless shelters in your community. ;-) I hope some of these will help. Have fun! Gina :-)

:hammer: Hi Linda ! Well, Febuary is a great month to try this one: Sell Singing Telegrams throughout your facility. Heres how it works.The Activity Department will offer a list of songs that they will sing to anyone in the building(or make singing telegrams on the phone,cell phones) for $1.00 or $2.00 each.We made costumes for our dept.(we all wore red pants and made big heart shirts out of cardboard,painted hearts on our faces,put red hair spray in our hair,etc.)We had a list of songs that we would sing-"Let me call you sweetheart",""Oh you beautiful doll","You are my Sunshine"etc. We started by posting signs all over the facility,then the families and staff gave us their requests(we had a form for them to fill out,name,person/dept. that will get the singing telegram,how much paid,song wanted,time to be delivered.) On the day of the program we were ready,we sang about 200 singing telegrams and made over $400.00.We even called the local newspaper before hand and they sent a reporter out and we got in the local paper the next day,A great Marketing tool. Well,Have fun! Gina :-)

Hi All, With Halloween fast approaching, here is some fun trivia to share with your residents.... ;-) ```````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````` The History of Chocolate - 1900's 1900 Milton S. Hershey introduces the Milk Chocolate Bar. He also begins the production of Sweethearts. These are vanilla sweet chocolate candy with a heart imprinted on the base. They will be discontinued in 1931. 1903 Milton Hershey builds a chocolate factory and a town for his workers near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. 1904 The Cadbury Company develops a dairy milk chocolate. 1906 The town of Derry Church, Pennsylvania changes its name to Hershey to honor Milton S. Hershey. 1907 On July 1, 1907 the first Hershey Kisses are made. 1908 Theodore Tobler develops the unique triangular nougat filled chocolate candy bar called Toblerone. 1908 `The Hershey Chocolate Company makes the first milk chocolate bar with almonds. 1909 The Hershey Chocolate Company states making Silvertops. This is a version of the Hershey's Kisses that are sold individually. They are discontinued in 1931. 1911 Frank and Ethel Mars build a candy company in Tacoma, Washington. Later it become the Mars, Inc. 1912 Jean Neuhaus, Jr. invents the first chocolate covered praline. He fills the empty chocolate shell with pralines invented by his father. 1912 The Whitman Company produces the boxed assortments called Whitman's Samplers. This is the first company to have a drawing of where the different chocolates are located in the box. 1914 L. S. Heath & Sons, Inc. makes the first Heath Bar in Robinson, Illinois. 1919 The Fry family merges with the Cadbury Brothers. 1921 The Hershey Food Corporation begins to wrap the Kisses by machine and add the flag to the wrapping. 1921 The Mounds candy bar is invented by Peter Paul Halijian. He sells it under the name Peter Paul Mounds. 1922 H. B. Reese makes the first Reese's peanut butter cup using Hershey's milk chocolate. 1923 Frank Mars creates the first Milky Way candy bar. This candy has a nougat center. 1923 Hershey Foods Corporation registers the name Hershey's Kisses as a trademark. 1925 The Hershey Chocolate Company makes the first Mr. Goodbar. 1927 Baker's Chocolate Company is bought by General Foods Corporation. They move the company to Delaware. 1927 The Hershey Chocolate Company is renamed Hershey Chocolate Corporation. 1928 L. S. Heath & Sons, Inc. develops the toffee candy bar called the Heath Bar. This candy bar can be bought on the home-delivered dairy order form. 1929 Frank Mars opens the Chicago candy plant. 1929 Peter, Cailler, and Kohler merge with Nestlé ending 30 years of rivalry between the two companies. 1930 Frank Mars makes the first Snickers candy bar. 1938 The Hershey Chocolate Corporation makes the Krackel bar. 1939 Bloomer Chocolate Company begins manufacturing in Chicago, Illinois. It will become the largest commercial chocolate manufacturer in the United States. 1939 Hershey makes the Hershey's Miniatures chocolate bars. 1941 Forrest Mars returns to the United States from England. He goes into business with Bruce Murrie, who is the one of the president of the Hershey Chocolate Company. They call their new company M & M Ltd. Together they make the first M & M's. 1947 Peter Paul makes the first Almond Joy. 1950 Sam Altshuler starts the Annabelle Candy Company, Inc. He names his company for his daughter and makes the first Rocky Road candy bar. 1962 Hershey's Kisses are wrapped in colors other than silver for the first time. 1963 Hershey Chocolate Company buy H. B. Reese Candy Company, Inc. for $23.5 million. 1966 The Campbell Soup Company buys the Godiva Chocolatier, Inc. of Belgium. 1969 The Cadbury chocolate business merges with the Schweppes soft drinks to form Cadbury Schweppes. 1970 The Tobler company merges with the Suchard to become the largest chocolate company. 1970 Because the Reese's Peanut Butter Cups are so popular the company has to double its size. 1973 The Cadbury Company opens Chocolate World theme park in Bournville, England. 1973 The Hershey Foods Corporation opens its theme park, Hershey's Chocolate World. 1973 Hershey Foods begins putting nutritional information on their labels. 1976 Hershey Chocolate Company adds chopped peanuts to the Reese's Peanut Butter Cups to make Reese's Crunchy. 1977 Hershey Foods makes the first Golden Almond chocolate bar. 1980 An employee of the Schare-Tobler tries to sell secret chocolate recipes to Saudi Arabia, China, and Russia. Luckily he was unsuccessful. 1988 Nestlé buys the British chocolate and candy manufactures Rowntree. This makes Nestlé the world's largest chocolate manufacturer. 1988 Hershey Chocolate Company is renamed Hershey Chocolate U.S.A. The company buys Peter Paul. 1989 Hershey Chocolate U.S.A. makes the Symphony milk chocolate bar with almonds and toffee chips. 1990 Hershey sends 144,000 of their heat-resistant candy bars to soldiers in the Gulf War, Desert Storm. 1991 The recipe for Reese's Peanut Butter Cup is changed to add three times the amount of peanuts. 1993 The first Hershey's Hugs and mini Hershey's Kisses wrapped in white chocolate are sold.

Hi Miguel !! :-D Are you near any apartment complexes? One year I had kids from local apartments come in and have a trick or treat party. I made flyers and went out walking in the complexes and invited them,we had over 50 kids come in and we had a costume contest too!!Everyone had a great time and it was a wonderful community builder( the local news came out too!) If not, how about having a Halloween Talent Contest with your residents and staff? Ask the staff to get one or two residents to work with and have them sing a song(The Monster Mash,One eyed one horned flying purple people eater,or other Halloween type songs) or have them do a small skit/play, etc. At last but not least,Maybe have a scavenger hunt...Make a list of weird items to find throughout the facility. Maybe these will help....Good luck and have fun! Gina

Candy Corn Votive Cup An easy votive cup to paint for Halloween or Fall. This project is rated AVERAGE to do. What You Need Small to Medium terracotta pot (that will fit your candle) Yellow craft paint Orange craft paint White craft paint Paintbrush Wax paper White "Painters" paint marker How To Make It Lay out a piece of wax paper to protect your work surface. Cover the entire pot with a base coat of white paint. Let dry. Painting one color at a time, paint on the yellow, orange, and white stripes so it looks like a candy corn. After the paint is dry, use the white paint marker to paint a face on the front of your votive cup. Put a candle in the bottom of the pot and enjoy!

Hi All, Today we had a Trick or treat party with children from my dtr.'s preschool come in and it was a blast !!! :-P We had them(the kids) in a parade and they went room to room to trick or treat and then the kids paraded again and the residents picked the three best costumes then they got prizes for the costume contest. We served halloween punch :pint: and cookies and then let the residents and kids mingle in the courtyard. We are also having a Halloween Costume Contest on the 31st with all our residents and res.families. We have been doing halloween crafts such as: Tootsie Pop ghosts, Pumpkin Pins, Trick or Treat Cups, and Halloween Mobiles and Wreaths. We have had a Candy Corn count going on all month and ghost bowling and a candy toss game too. We also are having a Pumpkin decorating contest next week.... Have Fun! gina :-)