I am looking after my grandmother for two nights... wish me luck!

My grandmother is over from Athens and she is meant to be staying at my cousins flat in West London. Well anyway, my cousin is away so after 1 week my gran can't stand to be on her own as she never sees anybody over there and there's no garden etc so I said that she can come and stay here tonight and Sunday night.... then Monday and Tuesday she is going to stay at my sisters. My mum can't have her - she's up to her neck as it is. My dad is going into hospital for two weeks on Monday having a knee replacement so my mum is going to be worried about him and also having to fit time in to visit him etc...

Thing is, I only have a 1 bedroom flat so this means I will be sleeping on the sofa. Not too bad in normal circumstances, but as I have not been sleeping very well for the past 3 weeks it's going to be difficult.... Any advice, vibes? What can I do to keep her occupied? She is deaf as well and refuses to wear a hearing aid. She also has arthiritis and can't get around too much so I have visions of me carrying her outside to the garden

I am looking forward to the company, but oh and I dreding it... I love my gran so much, but she is a very awkward lady

Good on you for offering to let her stay!!

How about the good old board games or card games? I used to love playing Rummy with my Nan, even though she usually beat me hands down!

Get a few old films on dvd? Things like Casablanca and Its a Wonderful Life, I'm sure they appeal to all age groups.

If all else fails, you can sit in the garden with a cuppa and talk about the good old days, when women were chaste and people could leave their doors unlocked!

i have the same probs when my mother-in-law comes to stay,shes deaf and as she wont wear her hearing aid u have to say everything twice LOUDLY but i bought her a puzzle book kept her happy for hours
good luck with your gran,its hard work but remember your be old one day,so be patient with her.have u got any videos of family stuff?? photo albums as well they love that

Thank you both for your advice!

Well we called my gran today and she told us that she is not feeling well so does not think that she will come and stay... thing is, she is always pulling stunts like this. She changes her mind about things so often. Yesterday she was feeling sorry for herself staying in my cousins flat all on her own and now today she wants to be on her own! My mum is going to see her later to see how ill she is.... but I am afraid this has been happening for years with my gran, like the boy who cried wolf etc. She has been to 3 doctors this week in London and they all say that she is pefectly healthy apart from a bit of arthiritis and being deaf.... oh well

Aw just as well, Gilly.

Cherish every moment!

I wish I had more time with mine before she passed away.

Could you go spend a day with her at your cousin's flat? Maybe if you spend a little time with her there, it will help keep her happy. Take her to the park so she can spend a little time outside if she is missing her garden.

And I learned in nursing school, that if someone is hard of hearing, you should talk in a deep voice so they can hear better. Seems odd, because men (with the deeper voices) often have less patience with the elderly! When I try to talk louder, my voice goes higher. So I have to really try to use a deep manly voice with the hard of hearing.