7 Senior Friendly Activities for 2017 New Years

By Anna Hazard

As both the year end winter holidays and the year itself come to a close, senior friendly celebratory activities need not drop by the wayside. Ring in the new year with old Father Time with these following activities that can be tweaked to your elderly loved ones health, mobility, and dexterity issues.

Ring in the New Year Early

• Since many seniors may have trouble staying up until midnight, consider celebrating the New Year during a different time zone instead (which will also be broadcasting their own celebrations on TV & online for their own countdowns) Some timezones to keep in mind would be Indochina Time in places like Bangkok (12 hours ahead of Eastern, so noon EST would be midnight ICT) and Greenwich Mean Time in places like London (5 hours ahead of Eastern, so 7PM EST would be midnight GMT)

Guess the Resolution Game

• Have your senior loves ones and other family members and friends write down their yearly resolutions on colored paper, balloons, or streamers. Shuffle them, and then play a game with New Years related prizes guessing who resolved to do what. Add in fake resolutions to make the game harder. The resolutions can then be hung up around the house as added decorations.
  

New Years Party Hat Craft

• Have your seniors make these easy do-it-yourself party hat crafts. Supplies range from ribbons, cardboard, tinsel garland, feathers, Paper Mache cones, crepe, and felt depending upon the style of hat. Remember to make plenty of extras if you intend to use the hats as part of the scavenger hunt game.
• Check out various New Years Hat Tutorial at Tip Junkie
  

New Years Party Hat Scavenger Hunt

• This scavenger hunt can be held indoors or outdoors (for those with mild weather and suitably mobile seniors) with certain New Years related items (such as the party hats crafted in the previous activity) hidden amongst the normal decor. Suitably seasonal prizes can be passed out to those who find the most items on the scavenger list within the allotted amount of time. A good group activity, especially for seniors & kids.
  

New Years Time Capsule

• Create a time capsule from a suitable waterproof container (such as jars, tupperware containers, small airtight bin) and fill it with yearly resolutions & memorably items from your seniors, including crafts, pictures, and letters to the future. Stash the capsule away (only burying it if you're certain the container is completely leak proof from the environment) to be opened up on New Years Day next year.
  

New Years Champagne Toss

• Similar to the popular carnival game, have your seniors toss pompom balls, marshmallows, balls of tinsel and other small & soft celebratory objects into plastic champagne glasses with New Years related prizes given out to those who are successful. Consider switching to a more wide mouthed form of plastic goblet if your senior loved ones have hand dexterity issues.
  

Early Dinner Party (Or Late Lunch) Celebration

• A heavier meal like this should be held somewhat earlier in the day for those seniors who won't be able to stay up late or who might otherwise have digestion issues with an evening meal before bed time. This celebratory meal should include favorite meals from your seniors past as well as the well known New Years treats that are known for bringing good luck. Suggestions include sparkling cider (in place of alcohol), marzipan pigs, pork or fish (animals that always move forward), round breads & ring shaped cakes (to symbolize a cyclical year), beans/peas/lentils to represent coins, dark leafy greens to stand in for money, and 12 grapes or pomegranate seeds to symbolize each coming month.