Advent actually started Sunday November 29th. There is an Advent Wreath located in the card room with more information about Advent. Also in the card room you will find a small Christmas Tree with Chrismons on it. These were hand-made by residents John and Nancy Swift. You will also find information about what these symbols mean.
December 3rd at 2:00 there will be another free craft class. We will be making Christmas decorations for your door or to put in your apartment. All supplies are provided and there is no charge!
We are going to start the holidays out with a special reveal on Friday December 4th. The entire first floor will be decorated by then as well as some new lights and decorations outside. We want everyone to see all of the holiday decorations, listen to some festive music and get homemade cookies and cocoa to take back to their apartments. The festivities will be from 4:30-5:30 with the lights outside going on at 5:00. Hope you can join in this Holiday Kick-off!
Hanukkah begins on December 10th. There will be a Menorah in the card room with a new candle lit on each of the 8 days. There will be information about Hanukkah and the Menorah located there as well.
Remember making gingerbread men when you were young? Eating gingerbread cookies can bring back some wonderful memories, plus they just taste so good! On Friday December 11th from 12:00-1:00 we will be handing out gingerbread cookies in the main elevator lobby.
Friday December 18th is Ugly Christmas Sweater Day. Even if you don’t have an ugly sweater you can make one by adding garland or tinsel or even ornaments to a sweater you already have. This event is for staff and residents and we will have secret judges walking around picking out the “ugliest” and giving out rewards.
December 21st is the first day of winter. Of course we live in Florida, but we are going to have a Walk in a Winter Wonderland! It is a holiday scavenger hunt around the property. Pick up the worksheet in the main elevator lobby between 10:00-2:00. When you finish the walk, return to the resident services office to get a prize.
Most of us are ready for 2020 to be over. It has been quite a year. Unfortunately we cannot have a New Year’s Eve Party but we can give out Party Packs so you can still celebrate. We will have everything you need to celebrate (including champagne) in a bag that you can pick up in the main elevator lobby Thursday December 31 from 11:00-12:00.
Celebrating the Holidays During the Pandemic
We all know that the holidays are going to be different this year. Numerous Bay Village residents have cancelled trips to visit family due to the rapidly increasing number of COVID cases right now. It is easy to focus on the negative, but there are many things we still can do. The holidays do not have to be cancelled!
First of all we can be so very thankful that we live in Florida. We can still get outside and enjoy the beautiful grounds of Bay Village (have you spotted the eagle that often lands on our roof?). It is much safer to visit with friends and neighbors outdoors, so take advantage of that. We have the pool deck and 3rd floor terrace that are available for small gatherings. Where else can you have a picnic in the middle of December? We have two outdoor events scheduled during December: December 4th we will “Kick off the Holidays” with a special review of our decorations inside and out. There will even be cookies and hot chocolate. And December 20th there is a Walk in a Winter Wonderland holiday scavenger hunt.
We can also be thankful for technology. If you have a smart phone, tablet or computer you can not only visit with out of state friends and family, you can see them! Things such as FaceTime, Zoom, and Skype have brought people together in a new way. Many people also play games together using technology. You can play Bridge, Chess, and even Scrabble with people from all over the world. I’m sure there are some holiday games you can play also.
You can take this time to send cards or write letters to friends and family. Many of us still really enjoy opening the mailbox and finding a personal note from someone we haven’t seen in awhile. The Gift Shop has many lovely cards to choose from. You could also take it a step further and make some cards. We have lots of supplies in the craft room available to any resident who wants to try.
Take some time to learn about some of the special celebrations in December. In the Bay Village Card Room we will have a Menorah for the celebration of Hanukkah along with more information about this Jewish holiday. There will also be a Wreath and Chrismon Tree representing the Christian time of Advent that leads up to Christmas. Or maybe you want to look online or for some resources in our library to learn more about these or other celebrations such as Kwanzaa or Omisoka.
Unfortunately we can’t attend holiday concerts or plays like we have in the past. But we can show holiday concerts on Channel 195 and you don’t have to get dressed up or pay for tickets! There will also be some fun holiday shows on 195 such as Crazy Christmas Lights and Amazing Gingerbread Houses. And a plethora of holiday movies will be shown as well. You can check the cable listings for holiday programs on other channels.
Yes the holidays will be different, but that doesn’t have to be bad. Take this time to reflect on the past, connect with family and friends and learn something new!
Wellness Corner
By Petra Mueller
Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way, oh what fun it is to ride….
I hope you are ready for the season and will celebrate Christmas in a cheerful mood despite all the challenges and surprises the year 2020 held ready for all of us.
To help put you in the swing, I taped a Christmas workout which will be played on Touchtown three times a week at different times of the day. If you don’t feel like Christmas music you can still take all the other classes on Touchtown. Call your friend or a neighbor in the building before you exercise to make sure, they do too and then call after the class and let each other know, what you liked or disliked. Give me your feedback at ext. 4033, I am happy to listen to you and get your input.
Christmas is one of my favorite seasons and I would literally play Christmas songs in each class, so maybe this year is a blessing in disguise for you.
Keep your spirits up, this too shall pass and then we will all gather and have more fun than ever!
Wishing you a wonderful and magical season.
December Movies
Dec. 2 & 4 we are showing “Deck The Halls”. In this movie 2 neighbors have it out after one of them decorates his house for the holidays so brightly that it can be seen from space. It stars Danny DeVito, Matthew Broderick, and Kristin Chenoweth. It is rated PG.
Saturday Dec. 5th you can watch “The Shop Around the Corner” starring James Stewart and Margaret Sullavan. Two employees at a gift shop can barely stand each other, without realizing that they are falling in love through the mail as anonymous pen pals.
“The Lemon Drop Kid” stars Bob Hope and Marilyn Maxwell. Hope is a New York City swindler who has to come up with $10,000 that he owes a gangster. It will show Sunday Dec. 6th.
In the movie “Santa Who?”, Santa suffers a case of amnesia. It stars Leslie Nielsen and will show Wednesday Dec. 9th and Friday Dec. 11th.
Dec. 12th we will show the movie “Remember the Night”. It stars Barbara Stanwyck and Fred MacMurray. Love blooms between a sympathetic attorney and the shoplifter he has taken home for Christmas.
“Christmas in Connecticut” stars Barbara Stanwyck, Dennis Morgan, and Sydney Greenstreet. A woman lies about being the perfect housewife and has to cover her deception to her boss and a surprise guest. It will show Sunday Dec. 13th.
A farm girl nurses a wounded reindeer she believes is one of Santa’s in the movie “Prancer”. It stars Sam Elliott and Cloris Leachman and airs Dec. 16 & 18.
“It Happened on Fifth Avenue”starsDonDeForeandAnnHarding.It tells the story of a homeless New Yorker who gathers friends to move into a mansion with him. It will show Dec. 19th.
Sunday Dec. 20th we will show the movie “The Nativity Story”. It focuses on the period in Mary and Joseph’s life where they journeyed to Bethlehem for the birth of Jesus.
“The Polar Express” is the story of a boy who embarks on a magical adventure to the North Pole on the Polar Express, while learning about friendship, bravery, and the spirit of Christmas. It stars Tom Hanks and will show Dec. 23rd & 25th.
“Holiday Affair” stars Robert Mitchum and Janet Leigh. She plays a young widow who is romanced by a sales clerk whom she inadvertently got fired. This shows Saturday Dec. 26th.
“Holiday on Ice” has famous figure skaters performing to Christmas songs. This will show Sunday Dec. 27th.
We will close out the month by thinking about the earth and saving it for future generations. The movie “Plastic Ocean” is a documentary about the startling amount of plastic in our oceans. It will show Wednesday Dec. 30th and Friday January 1st.
