When it comes to our busy family life, one thing that makes our lives even busier is multigenerational living! We have three generations living under one roof and it’s a great thing for all of us but can also be a little hectic sometimes. But one of the most valuable things about raising my kids living in the same house with my mother is their awareness of aging and how they are helping my mom through the aging process.
I’m excited to partner with Ready to Care for the next few months to share more about our family and why issues facing older adults are so important to us.
MULTIGENERATIONAL LIVING & AGING ADULTS
One of the main things that comes with multiple generations of our family living under one roof is the support. I love having the extra support with my mom around. She helps us in so many different ways, whether it’s transportation for the kids or diffusing a challenging situation. Sometimes all you need is a little bit of grandmotherly magic!
Sure, we have our challenges, but overall it’s a wonderful thing. I love seeing the bonds my children are forming with my mom. We’re also lucky to have Justin’s parents living very close so my kids see them a lot. I didn’t have my grandparents in my life on such a regular basis so I love that my kids have that!
Having grandparents so involved in our lives means that the issues that older adults face are very important to our family. We’re all living through them together and we’re here to support all of the seniors in our lives!
There are many things that older adults face as they age including:
- limited mobility
- chronic conditions
- feelings of isolation
These are all things we’re currently dealing with or have handled in the past. Having my mother living with us means some of these are part of our daily lives. Learning how to support her is something we work on a lot. We’re learning while she learns too! She’s on a mission to live to be 100 years old so we’re doing everything we can to help her age well!
I recently learned that in 2020, for the first time in history, the number of people aged 65 and older will outnumber children under the age of 5. This blew my mind. The older adult population is growing all over the world and that means there will be more and more aging loved ones to care for.
This blew my mind.
But we can all help. It goes back to the saying about it taking a village to raise a child. I believe that it takes a village to make it through all stages of life, including aging. That’s the way we’ve set up our family’s life and it’s something I know we can do in our community too.
READY TO CARE
Supporting aging adults in our lives is easy. It may feel like a monumental task, but when we check on our older neighbors, offer friendship and companionship, or even run an errand for them, we’re making a difference. Every act of kindness and understanding can make it a positive time of life for the seniors we know.
Ready to Care is an initiative by Home Instead Senior Care® to enhance the lives of aging adults and their families.
They believe the power of “we” is greater than “me.” This is something I believe in with all of my heart. Ready to Care shares the belief that through simple acts and understanding, we can expand the world’s capacity to care for older adults.
Supporting the seniors in our lives doesn’t have to be complicated. There are 5 simple ways you can support and show that you care!
- Join Ready to Care to get care missions, tips, and inspiration delivered right to your phone.
- Sign up to volunteer for an organization that helps and supports adults.
- Find a cause that supports seniors and make a donation.
- Get educated on issues that affect older adults.
- Encourage others to be more caring in their everyday actions!
One of the easiest ways to get involved is with Care Missions. I love getting texts with simple care missions we can complete. Then you can share with others and know that you’re making a difference.
Here are some of the examples of Ready to Care missions from this year:
- Say something nice to a senior
- Walk with a senior
- Say “hi” to 5 seniors
- Help a senior get tech-savvy
- Shovel snow for a senior
- One Day of Isolation challenge – Click here to learn more about this challenge. This activity had a huge impact on me and my perspective.
The care missions show that acts of kindness add up to big things! That’s a lesson my mom is always working to teach my kids. It’s a lesson we can all learn from!
Together we can make a difference! To learn more, visit Ready to Care and get started today!
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