What do i buy for my gran for her 80th Birthday?

Question

Bearing this in mind, 80 years old, she has most stuff already from previous b'days (photo frames of granchildren e.t.c) she does not go out anymore (hardly ever, struggles walking) Struggles to turn pages on a newspaper (arthritis in the hands) So no books either! She has 7 children, around 12 granchildren and 8 great granchildren all buying a present for her 80th, not a easy task.

Answer 1

There are already a lot of good ideas from people who have answered, but there are my suggestions.

Cross stitch a family tree with the names of her and her husband's parents, all the way down to the great-grandchildren. This is going to take a lot of time, so maybe something to think about for a Christmas present.

I really like the suggestion of music from her era, but rather than getting her a set of headphones, I would suggest one of those $20-25 CD players from Wal-Mart (assuming she doesn't already have a way to play CDs). They're very easy to use and, no, they don't have great sound, but neither did the radios when she was a girl.

Find out where she went to high school, and call the public library in that town to see if they have her high school yearbook (many towns DID have yearbooks back then, but not all). Ask how you could go about getting it photocopied. Then you could either have it nicely bound by a printer (Kinko's) or put each page into a plastic sleeve, the kind with the holes in them that go in a three ring binder. Or maybe if you're crafty you could do some scrapbooking.

If she was an avid reader previously, you might want to check into books on tape or CD from your public library for her. The gift would be the time involved by you to see what titles were available for her, and then follow up on it to see if she wants to check out any of them. Many libraries offer a service that will deliver or mail library materials to elderly people who cannot come to the library in person, so check into that as well. Also, there is a new recorded book format called Playaway. These are now being sold at places like Barnes & Noble, and I think Border's. They are about the size of an iPod, and you plug headphones into them and press a button to play it. They are very nifty. I listened to The Da Vinci Code that way.

Oh, and find out what movies were popular when she was growing up and buy her an assortment of titles she may enjoy.

Any old family 8 mm movies can (and should) be copied onto DVD (or at least VHS tape). Many camera shops offer this service, and you can definitely find them online if you trust mailing them. They can also intersperse photos and/or slides in there, and set the whole thing to music.

Once we bought my Grandma a really nice glass display cabinet that she had been wanting, so she could have a place to put some of the nice things she had accumulated over the years.

Some of these things might seem a little expensive or time consuming for one person, so consider doing what my family and I often did for presents -- everybody chip in and give her one nice big present.

Good luck to you!

Answer 2

They make a magnifying lamp that you position to light and magnify what you're reading. I think they also make "page turners" to help people with arthritic hands turn pages...not sure where you'd find one.

Get something practical. Pay her phone or power bill for a month or two. Here's some suggestions from Dear Abby column. It's meant for the holidays so there's some seasonal suggestions, but you can use some of it...
1. One way to literally make the holidays brighter is to help replace burned-out light bulbs inside and outside their homes. This can be extremely helpful for someone who has difficulty standing or turning bulbs in light sockets. (The same is also true for replacing batteries in smoke detectors.)
2. Help with holiday decorations. Because putting up decorations can be difficult for frail elderly people, a little assistance with lights and ornaments that usually remain in boxes could brighten their holidays.
3. Give a holiday gift of nonperishable food items. For elderly individuals on fixed incomes, a special gift of jam, instant hot cereals, fruit or a selection of teas or coffee could be a "luxury."
4. Check to see if the heat inside the home is adequate and that precautions have been taken to ensure that faucets are working during sub-zero temperatures.
5. A lap robe or quilt can be a welcomed gift for someone whose home is not well-insulated or heated when the temperature falls.


Edit: I certainly would NOT go with the 80 roses idea!! Just a waste of money on something that will die in a few days. If you want to give her roses, plant her a rose bush (or other pretty flower)! Then it will last the rest of her life. Then you can get a cutting off of it yourself and it can always be in the family.

Answer 3

Something to make her life easier -- say a collapsible walking cane --- they have some beautiful flowered ones that fold up to fit in your purse and easily unfold to use (if she uses a cane, that is), or a caddy to house her TV or VCR wand, or a shiatsu back massager (they really do feel like hands-- not the vibrating kind), or one of those "grabbers" or "reachers" or whatever they're called to help you reach things way up in the cabinet (so they don't have to climb up, which they shouldn't do at that age)., a full magnifying page to magnifying a full page of whatever you're reading (you can get them at office supplies), a cordless phone, which is really handy for anyone to use --- just put yourself in her shoes and think about what would make your life easier. Also, they always love to have lunch or dinner with the kids or grandkids -- you could give her a coupon for a future lunch or dinner of her choice - there's nothing as precious as time spent with your loved one. Or since she has arthritis, what really helps my Mom (she's 85) is the gym -- she goes 4-5 times/week swimming for a couple of hrs. a day and alternating with the spa - she finds the cold and hot does wonders for her arthritis and also a Thermophore heating pad -- it's moist heat and automatically turns off -- there's no way to burn yourself by leaving it on -- and that works wonders with arthritis also.

Answer 4

Does she have the technology for DVDs or something? Getting her some entertainment she'd enjoy would be one option. The POINT is something that she'd enjoy. A decorative item. A nice vase, filled with flowers, for instance (that obviously she can re-use). You haven't told us anything about her, so it's hard for US to know what she'd like. Does she cook? Garden? An "herb garden" is a gift that keeps on giving. Or a big frame into which you've put pictures of all her family, to hang on the wall. (My mom LOVES her "rogues' gallery" as she calls it.) Have you ever heard her express any wishes? Such as wishing she had a decent ...? [something]; or heard her admire something?

Answer 5

Usually something very simple means more than anything extravagant. Maybe a scrapbook of her life. A music box. If you are into writing poems..frame it and I'm sure it would be appreciated. You can go online and search for a site that you type in her birth date and it will tell current events, current prices, and other info pertaining to that year. I gave one of these to my dad a few years back and he got a big kick out of it. Also, she would appreciate a heartfelt letter telling her what she means to you. Most gifts from the heart mean far more that ones purchased.

Answer 6

Get her a cd player and head phones. then a collection of hits from about 1945-1955.. Any place that sells cd's will have a collection from that era.
Glen Miller Band, Andrews Sisters,Frank Sinatra, Patti Page, Debbie Ryenolds, Nat King Cole

Don't forget to put the batteries in for her.

Hope she enjoys this!!

Answer 7

Yea! A tough one no doubt. But the easiest way out is to do what I did for my Gran's 75TH birthday anniversary I gave her 75 roses, buy yours a bouquet of 80 roses.

Answer 8

If she likes to read, but can't hold books...audio books with a CD player?
Have a baker design a "family tree" cake, or a cake designed after one of her (former?) hobbies. (Gardening, crocheting, cooking, dancing...etc.)
Hire a singer to serenade her with songs from her earlier days.
In other words, something with a lot of meaning and thought behind it. It's hard to make suggestions without really knowing anything about her. Brainstorm with your family, and good luck.

Answer 9

She may have the photos - but make her an album with big captions that she can read - and then go through the album with her. You'll learn things, and she can remininesce. I always regreated not doing doing that with my granma.

Just. my .01

-dh

Answer 10

Not an easy task as you say.If she is not hard of hearing give her a walkman.