Some of the pictures of the Rio Carnival, getting ready for the afternoon. Cocktails were served, Strawberry Daiquiri and Pimms, lemonade and fruit juices. Our carnival table preparations in the dining room and the conservatory ready for the fabulous buffet. Sandwiches, porkpies, sausage rolls, chips, quiche, taco's and Doritos etc. We also had a lovely fruit cocktail and fairy cakes for dessert. Followed also by the brilliant cake from Jo. 

Today we made salt dough and had great fun making shapes and kneading the dough. This is great for circulation and exercising the hands and fingers and can also be a cause for much laughter. 

Our activities theme for the month of May is 'All About Me' so we spent time during this Dementia Awareness Week reminiscing and listening to old familiar songs. We also painted forget-me-not flowers that represent remembrance and are long-associated with dementia. They are also a symbol of the Alzheimer's Society. 

At Hope Green we've really started to get creative and this week has been no exception. One of our residents has a particular flair for painting and even has her own work displayed in her room. As you can imagine, she doesn't need very much encouragement to pick up a brush and paint and this week chose to paint a gnome for our garden project. Other residents chose to make teapot crafts as we chatted about the benefits of chatting over a cup of tea with friends. A great time together. 

Smiles smiles smiles at Hope Green as our hairdresser has returned after many months! What a difference a day makes, and what a difference a hair cut makes too! Our hairdressing salon was extremely busy as many residents chose to visit and get themselves treated to a long awaited hair treatment. There was many smiles, conversations and compliments which was wonderful to be amongst. 

Continuing with our fundraising for the Stroke Association we held a purple day here at Bowerfield Court. Everyone wore a purple ribbon and enjoyed the variety of purple sweets and cupcakes that were on offer. We took part in the quiz made by the charity itself and especially joined in the 'Catchphrases' section. 

We love to keep active at Hope Green and Balloon Tennis is one of our favourite games to enjoy together. With music on in the background too we find ourselves singing whilst playing. Always with lots of laughter and smiles, it's a great way of keeping ourselves moving and building friendships. Fun and friendship is a great combination and very important to us. 

Residents have been busy making colourful shakers and masquerade masks for our Mardi Gras themed party scheduled for the 26th of May. The carnival shakers were made from loo roll, paper towel and Pringle tubes. These were then filled with dried rice, decorated with free wallpaper samples and embellished with feathers, flowers, coloured tape and gems. We had a donation of black masquerade masks which we painted with coloured glitter glue and decorated with bright feathers and coloured gems. 

Bowerfield House has enjoyed a beach day today while listening to the Cliff Richard song Summer Holidays. Carers Vicky and Joan waited at our new bus stop for the bus to take them to the beach. Our residents enjoyed touching the sand and feeling it between their toes and touching the shells. After the beach we enjoyed a toffee latte while watching the film Summer Holiday. Residents and staff had a fantastic morning and we chatted about the different holidays we have had over the years. We all had a great day. 

Parkview House promoted World Hand Hygiene Day recently with the people who live and work at the home. The "Save Lives: Clean Your Hands global campaign", launched in 2009 and is celebrated annually on 5th May (World Hand Hygiene Day), aims to maintain global promotion, visibility and sustainability of hand hygiene in health care and to 'bring people together' in support of hand hygiene.