Last week I was able to go spend some time with my mom. Anyone my age who has a parent alive understands that time spent with my mom is priceless and my one regret is the distance that I live from her now. The positive thing that I focus on is that when I go to visit her I am able to go spend a few days in a row with her so that we have a really nice visit and not just a couple hours here and there. Family time is precious to me no matter what kind it is.
My mom lives at Copeland Oaks which is a wonderful retirement community in Sebring, Ohio. She still is able to live in a small 2 bedroom house (or villa as they call it) on her own and has all of the things that she needs pretty much right on the campus there. It is a community and people look out for one another here. If someone needs a ride someplace there is always a way to get there either through another resident or through the valet and bus service that they provide.
It has been such a relief to me as the child to know that when I can’t be here physically she has good people who really care surrounding her who will step in when need be in my absence. It is the thing that helps me handle the distance between us much better.
My mom has always been very active and living in a community like this has afforded her a lot of opportunities to remain active. There is a group or a class for everything that you could possibly dream of. Volunteer opportunities are everywhere and she is a regular in their library which makes my heart happy.
Copeland Oak ladies crafting cards for residents.
This past week I was able to go to a card crafting class with her that is held once a month on a Friday. She has always loved making cards (I think the apple did not fall far from the tree) and I was thrilled to be invited to go along with her to make some fun cards. Two very talented women, Carol and Roselyn, led the ladies in completing 3 beautiful cards.
I made some new friends and found some Pinterest buddies and had a great time talking with the ladies and exercising my inner creativity. I just had to share some pictures with you today of some of the great fun we had. The ladies all agreed to be photographed and even though I am not labeling them with names I think you can get the idea. Of course my mom hates to be photographed but I might have sneaked a couple of her in my collages.
Deep concentration, laughter, conversation and then the end results—-beautiful and unique cards to send to loved ones and to the residents at the Crandall Medical Center which is a part of Copeland Oaks. I was thrilled to be able to be a part of this fun group for a couple of hours on a cold wintery Ohio day. Thanks, ladies! 
