Activities at Plas-Y-Dderwen Care Home

The talented Carl Bryant came along to our home with his high energy and enthusiasm. The residents were treated to a lively and engaging session. What started as a quiet and rainy morning, soon became an energetic morning full of singing, dancing and percussion instruments. The playful pink pom-poms created a colourful atmosphere and the joy on the residents faces was clear to see. Carl’s musical magic brought smiles to everyone and family members were also keen to join in with the upbeat session. These memories will be cherished for a long time.

Music is a huge part of our activities programme and is great for mind, body and soul. Carl will be joining us on a monthly basis and we look forward to enjoying many more of these wonderful workshops.

We dedicated an afternoon of Namaste sessions, to our Memory Lane community. With meditation music playing through the community, the diffuser filling the air with the scent of lemongrass, some of our residents enjoyed relaxing hand massages. We then had an interactive learning session about crystals. The residents were drawn to the beauty of these wonderful gemstones, and they picked out which ones they liked the most. They also took their time in arranging them around the table in different patterns. The session enhanced the mood of each resident, and it was beneficial to their well-being.

It has always been important to us, at Plas y Dderwen, to establish and maintain connections with local churches and the community. Every month, within our home, we hold a church service, where residents can receive communion and join in prayer. These sessions nurture our spirits and bring us closer together. This month we held a Harvest service, delivered by Beti Wyn James. The service was delivered in both Welsh and English and residents really enjoyed learning about Harvest time and the symbolism of carving a pumpkin from a religious point of view. As a token of gratitude, one of our residents, June, provided a beautiful basket of flowers for the table, which came from her daughters garden. All residents enjoyed singing along to hymns, and the tea and cake afterwards was delicious! It was an uplifting and joyful afternoon!

Our Head of Towy Community, Andy Whitmarsh, recently took on the challenge to shave his head and beard and also allowed us to wax his legs! We not too sure he knew what he was letting himself in for and when the day came it was wonderful to see his eyes water as we pulled those wax strips across his legs! His family and the residents came to support Andy and were shocked at the transformation. Andy went through this challenge to raise money towards our Residents’ fund, which will eventually go towards work on our Dementia Garden. Andy raised £400 towards the fund and he absolutely smashed the challenge. Well done Andy!

On 10th September our beautiful Doreen celebrated her 90th birthday. A few days before, staff decorated the dining room with all things pink and her family gathered together to celebrate with Doreen. They enjoyed food, laughter and no party would be complete without a delicious cake! Doreen enjoyed the afternoon being around family and friends and shared the day with her husband John.

A handful of us hopped onto our Minibus and took a trip into Carmarthen. Wednesday is Market Day so plenty of stalls around town and we also had a browse around the indoor market, which triggered memories of how markets used to be ‘back in the day’. On our way through town, we met a gentleman, busking with his guitar, who had a wonderful voice, so we sat for a couple of songs to listen and of course, Lisa and Ann, our Activities Team couldn’t help themselves and were dancing along in the street to his music, which amused the residents even more.

After that fun we decided to go to a pub for lunch, so we wandered to the Rose and Crown Hotel. The staff there were so welcoming and the food was absolutely delicious! The residents enjoyed their meals and some enjoyed a cheeky pint too! Gillian said “It was so nice to just feel normal for a day and do normal things”.