The weekend was over quicker than you could blink and Monday Movers began the new week of activities at the care center! Noel had a group of residents moving and grooving at the morning seated exercise group and once everyone’s muscles were properly loosened up, Karaoke Sing A Long was next on the agenda. Not many folks care to exercise right in the morning but a fun sing a long always draws the crowds into the dining room! We sang along to old-time favorites like “The Band Played On” and “Five Foot Two Eyes of Blue” until it was time for lunch. After the midday meal, Noel helped folks tap into their inner artists at Crafty Corner: We said “adios” to winter and “hello spring!” with our spring gnome craft. These little cuties sported long bushy beards and flowerpot hats along with flower and button decorations galore; residents just loved personalizing their own gnome and taking them home to adorn their windowsill! Once the glue gun had cooled down, Noel gathered residents for an afternoon game of Tic Tac Toss and the group of players this week was huge! Judy Thorn claimed the fourth-place spot, Goldie Helwig and Kevin Bauer tied for third and Larry Thompson was the second-place winner.  The first-place spot went to Shirley Klinski this week, thanks to her triple three-in-a-row in the second round! Supper ended the afternoon and then we played an evening game of Bingo, with Joyce and Marie Berger’s joyful assistance. Thanks ladies, we appreciate you!

Tuesday morning began with a reflective and peaceful Mass with Father Jojo. We are just a few weeks away from Easter and residents are so appreciative for the blessing of our faith leaders’ guidance through the Lenten season. Lunch soon arrived and then so did Aaliyah later in the afternoon for our Popcorn Social! Soon you could hear the cheerful popping of the kernels coming from the dining room, followed by the delectable aroma of buttery, salty popcorn just waiting to be gobbled up by eager residents. The slow-paced afternoon continued with valuable one-on-one visits with folks, until it was time for church. Without a pastor this week, Stacey and Aaliyah led the group of residents in a hymn sing and with voices raised in worship, they sang until suppertime! Aaliyah capped off Tuesday with an evening of playing fun games in the dining room.

Bowling kicked off Wednesday morning with Plum City Elementary students Emma and Savannah here to help with resetting bowling pins and scorekeeping! It was an exciting game with a three-way tie for fourth: Mary Matzek, Virgie Fritz and Bill Joyner, Milda Bautch in third place and Shirley Klinski taking second. Jeff Halverson and Kevin Bauer were the dynamic duo who tied for first place this week! But the real excitement was from the four ladies who managed to knock down all their pins in a spare after their first attempt resulted in a near-impossible split: Mary Matzek, Shirley Klinski, Virgie Fritz and Milda Bautch; way to go ladies! Later on, after lunch, folks came back together for Fruit Bingo in the afternoon.  We appreciated having the help of volunteers Harriet Rothe (calling numbers and clean up) and Irene Helmueller (set up, clean up and prize delivery); you ladies are wonderful! Frances White was our blackout bingo winner this week! Many folks hung around after bingo for the Mid-Week Social where we snacked on cheese and crackers. So yummy!

Thursday morning came and with it, Harriet Rothe, to read us the local papers and catch us up on all the community happenings at our News and Coffee group. She is always enjoyable to listen to and we talked and laughed together all morning! Lunch came and went and afterward, residents gathered for the monthly Resident Council meeting (led by Stacey) to discuss what was coming up in March, as well as re-cap what happened throughout February. They had the floor to share what they liked about the care center, as well as what can be improved upon at our facility; it’s wonderful for residents to have a safe space to gather and hear their input. After the meeting adjourned, Aaliyah arrived to give manicures to all the ladies lined up and we spent some time visiting while waiting for the polish to dry! Supper came soon after and then everyone assembled again for an evening game of Pokeno with Aaliyah.

Friday was the first day of March, so for Fitness Friday Stacey and Noel led a small group in the morning through several seated dancing routines! We boogied to tunes like “Baby Face” and “Me and My Shadow” and while it didn’t have us sweating like some other seated exercises we’ve done, it was a lot of fun. There was just enough time for three rounds of Dart Ball afterward and a few folks came out on top! Alice Brantner scored fourth place, Shirley Klinski won third and Nancy Bishop came in second. Bill Joyner was this week’s first-place winner! After lunch, there was a couple hours of downtime to chat and visit, but soon a friendly face walked through the door. Larry Radle dropped by with his guitar to entertain everyone for happy hour! We had quite a large gathering of guests and residents assembled to enjoy the music and snack on delicious mini donuts coated in cinnamon and sugar. All too soon, Happy Hour was over and supper arrived, but the entertainment continued into the evening. We dimmed the lights and got cozy for Movie Night, watching the beloved (yet sad) classic “Where the Red Fern Grows.”