As a family carer, the list of things you do for your parents is long. A typical day starts with help getting breakfast, assisting with personal care and grooming, and exercising. From there, household chores like dishes, vacuuming, dusting, and laundry are completed. 

If you’re a sandwich generation carer, you may have your children with you. You need to keep them busy while you help your mom with her daily tasks. There’s an easy way to perfect the balance of care and attention. Have your mom teach your children a game while you get the cleaning done. These games take time to learn and appeal to children. 

Backgammon 

Backgammon is an easy game to learn and builds counting skills. Roll the dice, move out the chips to get from one side of the board to the other. Along the way, any single, unprotected chips can be sent back to the beginning. 

If your mom has taken over the other side of the board and sends your child back to the start, getting the right roll to get off the bar can be challenging. As a result, Backgammon takes some luck and some skill at the same time. 

Cribbage 

Cribbage is a card game where counting to 15 is important. You move pegs around the cribbage board gaining points for cards that add to 15, form sequential runs, or have pairs of matching cards.  

Learning what cards to keep and which to put in the “kitty” takes a little skill. It also helps with addition and counting skills as your child masters the game. 

The Dictionary Game 

Have your mom teach your children the Dictionary Game. She’ll pick a word from the dictionary that she knows is new to them. They have to make up a definition. A judge decides which definition is best. The players take turns being the person that picks the word, so everyone gets a chance to enjoy both roles.  

Scrabble 

Build your children’s vocabulary by having your mom teach them how to play Scrabble. She may need to go easy on them by forming less challenging words at first. As they develop their spelling skills, she can start challenging them more and more. 

Don’t let your duties as a family carer wear you out. If you need to take a break, home care services help. You’ll have caregivers to help get daily chores done while you take breaks or focus on having fun with your mom and kids. Your mom has the help she needs to live independently. You’re able to focus on self-care. Call a home care agency and talk about the services that help your family. 

If you or an aging loved-one is considering home care in Tucson, AZ please contact the caring staff at Sunlife Home Care today at (877) 888-1311.