Meadowood Blog

What Is The Best Age To Move Into A Retirement Community? When you think of a senior living or retirement community, you may assume it’s a place strictly for the most mature ages or people with health problems that prevent them from living independently. Fortunately, these stereotypes are falling by the wayside as more dynamic and lively life plan communities arise — like Meadowood. Communities like Meadowood offer a completely different style of living than what you may think: Total independence Beautiful gardens Dining areas that feel more like restaurants […]

Our newest Fitness and Wellness team member is arguably the most adorable employee Meadowood has ever had. In just two weeks he has wagged, romped, and cuddled his way into the hearts of everyone he’s met. But don’t let the fact that he’s cute fool you. He’s here to do a job. Beacon, named in honor of the Beacon Award we received from the International Council of Active Aging last year, was bred to be a working dog. And although he will have to go through an entire year of […]

Confession time: I am a winter girl. Whenever I tell people I love the snow, they groan. When I tell them I thrive in the cold, they shake their heads in disbelief. When I tell them I could happily live in a yurt on the tundra somewhere, they tell me I’m crazy. I can’t help it. It’s in my DNA. I grew up in the mountains, where snow was celebrated. It meant ski season, snowmobiling, tobogganing, ice skating, and gallons of hot chocolate. My dad once built an igloo down […]

In June of 2021, Meadowood held a groundbreaking ceremony to expand their memory care home. The center was designed to incorporate input from both residents and staff, and is on schedule to open in August of 2022. According to The Alzheimer’s Association, 6.5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s disease. This number is projected to rise to nearly 13 million by 2050. The need for safe yet fulfilling living arrangements is growing each year, and Meadowood is committed to providing people living with dementia an experience that honors their need for […]

I’ve been working on this blog entry for a while because, of all the dimensions of wellness, the Intellectual Dimension is the most difficult to define. Our model’s definition says:“The intellectual dimension recognizes one’s creative, stimulating mental activities. A well person expands his or her knowledge and skills while discovering the potential for sharing his or her gifts with others.” What, then, are stimulating mental activities? The dictionary defines intellect as “the capacity for rational or intelligent thought especially when highly developed.” Okay, then. What is intelligent thought? You get […]

What was that famous line from Dirty Harry? “You’ve got to ask yourself a question: ‘do I feel lucky?’ Well, do ya, punk?” Turns out that if you do feel lucky, you probably are. This is because luck is mostly a matter of perspective. And, also, a self-fulfilling prophecy: Those who believe they have luck typically attract more good fortune. Is this the universe talking? Perhaps sometimes. It’s undeniable that some of us are born into better circumstances. But there is also a scientific basis to attracting luck. Finding a four-leaf […]

Part of my job here at Meadowood is to create employee fitness and wellness challenges. Because we are a community that believes in the health and well-being of everyone who lives and works here, these challenges are a great way to involve our workers and keep them physically fit and well. This month, the challenge is called “Plan to be Healthy.” The idea is to fill a calendar with healthy activities of the employee’s choice that address several of the six dimensions of wellness, and then try to complete the […]

It’s February, the month of romance, and people are out there falling in love. But this blog isn’t about the good kind of falling, because getting older isn’t always wine and roses. I’m going to throw some stats at you. • If you’re over 65, you’ve got a 1 in 4 chance of injuring yourself in a fall this year. • One out of every five falls causes a fracture or head injury. • More than 95% of hip fractures are caused by falling, usually sideways. • Women fall more […]

Introducing wellness initiatives can feel intimidating at any age, but for older adults who don’t feel as capable as they once did, integrating new habits can feel especially daunting. Add the toll of moving from familiar surroundings to an entirely new environment, and wellness programs can feel like a bridge too far. Meadowood’s Fitness and Wellness staff start with this in mind. They recognize new residents need time to adjust. Rather than overwhelming new residents with all the programs available to them, they prefer to use these transition periods to […]