Hobbies for Grandma?

Question

My grandmother, who is in her 70's, but in perfect health is in need of some fun hobbies that she can do at home. We live in WA, so it will be cold here soon, so nothing outside. She volunteers at the hospital, has joined a bowling league and goes to lunch with friend every week, but since she lost my grandfather (in a horible accident), she is bored at home. Any suggestons are very welcome. Thank you for your hep.

Answer 1

Try coin collecting. It doesn't have to cost you a lot. You can go to the bank and pick of a box of coin (whichever denomination you like) for exactly face value. A box of pennies is $25, a box of nickels is $100, a box of dimes is $250 and boxes of quarters or half dollars are $500. You don't have to buy the whole box. The bank can pull out whatever amount you like.

Once you get a box, you can go through and pull out the better coins (there are books to help with this or websites). You can pick up a coin album and try to fill all the holes (get one for each year) or just search for interesting ones.

The coins that you don't want can be returned to the bank and put straight back into your account (though it's often better to return the coins to a different bank (not just a different branch but a different bank) so that you don't search the same coins over and over). Everything you find will have been obtained at face value. You'd be surprised what people have found. Check out these links to see:
http://www.coincommunity.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=1902&whichpage=1
http://www.coincommunity.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=11494&whichpage=1
http://www.foundinrolls.com/

Also check your change for interesting finds.

Some things to search for: wheat pennies, silver dimes, silver quarters, old coins, error coins, coins with the "S" mintmark - it could be a proof coin etc. There's always the chance that you could find a real treasure!

It's also helpful to buy a red book. It can help you price your coins and will answer many of the questions you may have.

OR IF THAT'S NOT FOR YOU...

http://www.spacefem.com/quizzes/hobby/

Answer 2

How about putting puzzles together? There sure are some pretty ones now. Another thing would be word search puzzles or crossword puzzles. Ask her to make a memory book for her grandkids. You can buy books called Grandma Remembers. Each page has a different topic and she is supposed to write her memories on each subject. That would be a great keepsake. I always think about all the family stories that got lost when my own grandparents passed away. I wish those memory books would have existed then.

Answer 3

As far as hobbies, how about genealogy? My dad does it on the computer and he enjoys it a lot. I gave him a subscription to Internet Genealogy magazine and he really likes it.
http://www.internet-genealogy.com/

Has your grandmother stated that she will not be going outside this winter? My grandmother is 85 and she walks a couple of miles every day unless it's freezing rain. I bet if you asked, she probably already knows that if she doesn't exercise, she will soon be in a lot of pain.

If she doesn't like the weather, she can join Curves. It's very cheap and the workout is not strenuous.

Geocaching is another popular activity, but yes, she will be going outside to do it. I have lots of friends in their 70's who do it. http://geocaching.com
.

Answer 4

Scrapbooking, Quilling, Crocheting, Knitting, Photography.

I noticed she already volunteers at a hospital, but what about at an elementary school reading to the little ones?

Maybe take an art class at a local community college?

Answer 5

How about crocheting? Since she volunteers at the hospital, she could make blankets, hats and booties for the babies. She could also make lap robes for a nursing home. Maybe she could post a notice at the hospital asking for donations of yarn, and explain what she is going to do. She could also make hats, mittens and scarfs to donate to a grammar school for kids who need them. Good luck to her.

Answer 6

She might want to scrapbook her old photos.

"You've got to preserve the memories, Man!" (from a Veggie Tales video).

That would be a good way to identify any photos in her collection that future generations might not be able to recognize. It would be a wonderful activity to do together.

Answer 7

Knitting, crocheting, and quilting are all good ideas -- and very traditional for winter-month activities btw!

I especially like the idea of quilting though because there are certain to be quilting groups *wherever* she lives, and many of the participants will be women and even older women. So she'd have an instant sense of community, and lots of support in learning to quilt (...there are a lot of types of "quilting" she could do if one type didn't appeal to her, as well as all kinds of *sizes* of projects too.). Quilts and anything that can be made from pieced or appliqued fabrics can also be great gifts to work on for grandchildren and other family members.

Many of those quilt groups, or other just ad hoc quilting groups, also make simple quilts to give away to hospitalized kids or others, which she might also enjoy... often those interested get together and make them (no experience usually necessary) every so often, or they may be made mostly at home and at quilt meetings then donated.
She might also just make new friends she could get together with at other times from those times too.

If she doesn't know how to find quilt groups in her area, she can ask around in places like quilt stores if you have any , fabric stores, churches, libraries, chambers of commerce, as well as just asking friends and acquaintances.

She can also do some searching online for groups specifically in her area, or ask in some of the many quilting message boards, etc. Here are some possibilities:

http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rls=GGLC,GGLC:1969-53,GGLC:en&q=quilting+Washington

http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rls=GGLC,GGLC:1969-53,GGLC:en&q=quilting+message+boards

If she's the relucatant type who'd hate to go alone, volunteer to go with her to a meeting/etc. or two... you might be surprised how much you'd like it too, then you guys would have something else in common! Also, if she doesn't like big groups in general, be aware that there are usually also small groups of people from a guild who meet together regularly too.


EDITED TO ADD:


Another idea is to learn to be a part of "message boards" in general (not just quilting ones, for example).

(If she doesn't have a computer, she should definiely get one, along with internet access... there are "Geek Squads" or people from computer stores who will come and set everything up for her if she needs it, though usually not free... all she'd need is a very simple computer and internet access to do a load of stuff).

All kinds of things about being online can eat up huge amounts of time (!!!) pleasantly and interestingly and can give a great sense of community and of being a part of the world.

As I mentioned, message boards are one way to start... she can just "shop" for the type of thing she's interested in through some of the larger operations like YahooGroups ( http://groups.yahoo.com ) or HGTV ( http://boards.hgtv.com/eve ), just to mention a few... whether that be a hobby like quilting, gardening, reading, politics, Bible study, nutrition, seniors, family, finances and the stock market, or just about *anything* (there will be multiple groups for any topic you can imagine, including groups for those who have lost children/husbands/wives/ etc.).
Some of the groups are also sponsored by big organizations like The American Heart Association, the websites of specialty magazines, etc.

Once she finds a few, she can join (all this is free, of course) as a trial to check them out... then stick with the ones she likes, or cancel.
She can also choose only to read groups like that, or to participate by offering comments or asking her own questions once she's comfortable.


HTH, and best to your Grandma... she has a lot of life ahead of her!

Diane B.