Tools For the Elderly To Keep Clean

For 4 years, I’ve been my mom's caregiver. She has old age dementia, a condition that takes many forms. However, unlike Alzheimer’s patients, she recognizes faces and remains mentally sharp in some areas. Lucky me, my mother can still walk using a walker indoors, and I can bring her to my apartment, so I can attend to my own affairs.

Yet, I notice she has declined mentally and physically with each year. When we began, she walked unassisted on her walker, but now I take her to the bathroom and tend to walk beside her if she rises from her chair because if she loses her balance, she cannot catch herself and sometimes falls. Four years ago, she got up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom alone, which is now too dangerous. She can drink hot coffee from a mug, but has more spills. She can feed herself, yet is messier and won’t always finish her meals without help.

This brings me to today’s blog. I find myself ordering more and more tools to make our lives run more smoothly. I’ll list some of the smaller objects that help us stay tidy:

1) Qancesed Adult Sippy Cup (↑top of blog image) - A 12 oz size for cold drinks. If dropped, nothing spills through the straw. The lid will come off if thrown across the room, but not if the cup falls off a chair onto the floor. Yes, she tossed her cup across the room once, but after a lecture about taking care of her special cup, she hasn’t since.

2) Aloufea 12 oz Stainless Steel Insulated Coffee Mug With Handle and Lid - For hot drinks, its lightweight and sturdy, and she likes handles. She can’t consistently remember to line her lips up with the lid hole (I don’t see that one coming!), which lets a bit of the coffee run out over the top and down onto her clothing, so we don’t use the lid.

3) Helishy Gel Cushion for Long Sitting - I selected an extra-thick cushion to support her back in her living room chair or in the seat of her transport wheelchair. Placing the cushion behind her back in her chair helps her not to slouch but to have good posture for a stronger back. Moreover, no one can do much properly when slouching.

Next, let’s discuss my mom's staying in bed during the night instead of getting up to go to the bathroom. Her legs are strong, but her balance is unsteady, and I can’t stay awake all night to walk her to the bathroom. So I put a safety rail + barrier on the side of the bed she’s accustomed to rising from, so she doesn’t get up groggy to fall and hurt herself. And over my 4 years of caregiving, I’ve added 4 incontinence products to our repertoire: washable bed pads, adult pull-ups, adult nylon plastic pants, and booster pads. The booster pads, I didn’t know existed one year ago. The nylon plastic-coated pants look just like pajama bottoms. They make no noise, and paired with a t-shirt, she looks cute!

The idea is to keep my mom safe, clean, healthy, and as independent as possible, which also makes my job easier!

Usually, I’ll help my mom eat her dinner, but I've come up with 2 breakfast bowls she can eat by herself --

1) An omelette, diced: 2 scrambled eggs, 2 - 4 slices of smoked ham or smoked turkey, cheese, and a slice of whole grain bread (whole wheat or rye). Usually, I add a little bit of milk to soak the bread to make it easier to eat. A dash of garlic, nutmeg and pepper.

2) Oatmeal - 1/4 cup oatmeal flakes, milk, a handful of walnuts, chopped fruit (alternate: apple, banana, strawberries, blueberries, a peach, a pear, etc.), a tablespoon of peanut butter, sometimes a sprinkle of brown sugar or a drizzle of honey. A dash of nutmeg and cinnamon. My mother taught me that spices had health benefits. Sometimes I toss in a handful of Chex cereal for a crunchy texture.

She has one or the other nearly every morning, and I can make the beds, take a shower, and get dressed while she eats her breakfast.

I got her an adult bib, but she doesn’t like it, so we simply use a tea towel.

Caregiving for an elderly parent is very similar to caring for young children. You can’t lift an adult like a toddler, yet you can leave them alone to grocery shop and run errands. Caring for the very young or very old each has its unique challenges and ease, and stepping up for family is sometimes by trial and error. We learn as we go along and do the best we can with what we know at the time. Friends say my mom is looking good, and I know she’s happier living with me than in a nursing home. But what if my mother had no family? After 75+ years of paying taxes, our country should provide some benefits to the elderly. Meals and visiting nurse practitioners could keep many seniors in their own homes.

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Sometimes All We Need To Spend is 29¢

Years ago, we had a great store in Manhattan called Odd-Job-Lot Trading with several locations throughout the city. It followed the model of dollar stores, but the merchandise was of higher quality. Once I bought a 2' by 3' kitchen rug for $4 that cost $17 elsewhere. I got nice pots and pans before T.J. Maxx came onto the scene. Durable kitchen tools sold for under $2, so when I was furnishing my apartment, I bought an apple corker and bread knife before I knew what they were, as my cooking skills were more limited back in the day. One afternoon, a neighbor came into my kitchen and unwittingly told me what the knife I bought was by referring to it as um, a bread knife. 🎆Ohhhh!🎆 Fantastic quality, and now all these years later, I use both repeatedly.

Such closeout stores are fun because the inventory is always changing, and you never know what bargains you’ll find on your next shopping trip.

A couple of decades in, I’m still using my 29¢ pencil sharpener from Odd-Job-Lot Trading. Still looks new, and it’s very sharp to sharpen a pencil in seconds. If I ever had 50 pencils to sharpen at once, I might've considered upgrading, but this simple manual one does everything I need it to do! I don’t need space, batteries, or a plug to use it.

Now my mother needs a pencil sharpener, and I’m considering buying her this 84¢ one from Walmart (↙on the left). Since my cheapee has worked for me, does she really need a more complicated or costly one? Like me, she doesn’t sharpen more than one pencil at a time every once in a while.

Honestly, I’m surprised by how much value I get from my 29¢ purchase. The lesson learned: Don't spend more if a 29¢ pencil sharpener is all we really need! We’ll then have an emergency fund to spend more on goods or services, where you should not go for the lowest price. 

You’ll have the money when it really counts to pay for reliability, proximity, or greater expertise to avoid hassles down the road. A mechanic who fixes your car should give you peace of mind when you call, because you get trusted, reliable service you won’t have to wait more than a day to receive, plus you won’t have to haul your car to the next town to be fixed.

Is it just me, or do you empty the shavings every time you sharpen a pencil?✐✎✏ 

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Happy Easter 2026

Another winter is over in the Western Hemisphere, and spring has arrived! We have persevered and overcome! Easter celebrates tenacity over trials with the hope of new beginnings! 

St. Paul the Apostle Church, a New York City Landmark, sits next to Lincoln Center. In early December, when Lincoln Center hosts its White Light Festival to celebrate the arts, the event turns into a big block party with live music, theater, and dance. St. Paul the Apostle Church participates by opening its doors with priests serving hot chocolate to the public. It’s a warm, welcoming chance to come inside out of the cold and walk around the church's majestic interior. Of course, Easter Sunday is a house of worship's biggest celebration. My friend, Carolyn, belongs to this church and sings in its choir, and her friend, Debbie, puts in a few appearances, usually for special events. The clergy is, without fail, welcoming and lovely to all who enter. They never ask you where you’ve been!😊

Talk about the Lamb of God, here’s an especially cute one!

Let's finish off with a joyful baby duckling who is wearing his Easter “bonnet" of rabbit ears.  

Happy Easter, Everyone!✝  

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Anonymity Is Priceless

I didn’t watch the John Kennedy and Carolyn Bessette docudrama. Certainly, I was aware of them in the 1990s and walked past their penthouse loft at 20 North Moore Street downtown in Tribeca a few times. When the Southern District of New York summoned me to serve as a grand juror on Centre Street, John was one of many assistant JAs who came into the courtroom to present evidence to us to secure an indictment. During the time of my jury duty, John stood directly in front of me, riding the elevator down to go out to lunch. BTW, I met or saw many celebrities in Manhattan, but I never met or saw John’s mother, sister, wife, or ex-girlfriend, Daryl Hannah, out and about.

This television series on John and Carolyn is making me think about anonymity. To be clear, anonymity is a state in which a person’s identity is unknown. I have heard the stories of the stress Carolyn felt when she lost her anonymity by marrying John Kennedy, Jr., and I can empathise with how trying and traumatizing it must have been for her.

To a degree, I can imagine the discomfort of being watched, judged, and critiqued everywhere she went, often in print. What a terrible state of feeling like you must be dressed impeccably, with every hair in place, even to dash out nearby in the mornings to grab a bagel or drop a letter in a mailbox. Sometimes I’ve thrown on a long coat before taking a shower or putting on makeup to pick up breakfast or deposit mail! But then to have strangers evaluate me or paparazzi jump out to take my picture would be horrifying! It’s been said that Carolyn began to crack under the strain and to feel like a caged animal. Quite understandable.

We should all be careful of what we wish for, as fame can seem ideal, like a best-case scenario. Singer Little Richard is credited as saying, Elvis Presley got what he wanted, but lost what he had.

Anonymity is priceless in New York City. One of my great pleasures is freely walking about, people watching, or going on window-shopping sprees. On an easy-breezy weekend of afternoon exploring often around the Upper East Side, Upper West Side, or in Midtown, sometimes people will smile at me when our eyes meet. At times, I might exchange little snippets of pleasant conversation or even a laugh with fellow New Yorkers who, just like me, are out and about, but we still maintain our anonymity. I also take for granted that such exchanges are genuine since I'm an unknown. I can be open and accessible, giving people the benefit of the doubt that they don’t have ulterior motives for interacting with me unless they prove me wrong, which, despite what outsiders think, usually doesn’t happen in Manhattan. New Yorkers are more benevolent and friendlier than many people imagine.

In absorbing the city and basking in its energy, anonymity is priceless as you walk the streets, enter shops, or stop to observe street entertainment. Some street entertainment is unintentional.😉 In New York City, you can be alone sans the isolation. You’re one of the crowd, with nobody bothering you or asking anything of you. Without a doubt, the freedom to be an observer has increased my wisdom. I’m smarter for having the space to process what I see. Being unencumbered enough to get lost in our thoughts in public is a gift!

How painful and restrictive it must have been for Carolyn Bessette, who was raised as an ordinary girl and married at age 30, to have lost her anonymity and with it the freedoms she enjoyed throughout her 20s. At times, the best things in life are free (like privacy, control over your own life, and peace of mind, to name a few), so be grateful if you still have your anonymity!

*By chance, John’s Aunt Jean Kennedy Smith sat a couple of pews in front of me during a Christmas midnight Mass at St. Ignatius Church on Park Avenue and East 84th Street with her adult children, including her son, William Kennedy Smith, the year he went on trial for rape. At the time, the press speculated whether or not Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis would let her beloved son, John, attend his cousin’s trial in support. A source claimed his family pressured him to attend. John made two appearances during the jury selection. The trial ended with an acquittal.

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Common Purslane Is A Perennial Superfood Plant

Wow, I learn something new every day! I’m a city girl, and don’t know much about botany. Outside of well-known plants, I’m clueless. I did not know the following existed until last week! Here’s what I learned ...

Common purslane (Portulaca oleracea) is exceptionally easy to grow and naturalized all over the world. It’s very adaptable in all climates, though it thrives in warm, sunny, and dry conditions. Somewhat invasive, it is a highly resilient, drought-tolerant succulent that grows as a weed in nearly all soils, preferring well-drained, sunny spots. It is a summer annual in cooler zones and a perennial in warm climates.

If you’re as ignorant as I am, you might be tempted to remove it from your backyard or cracks in your concrete and toss it into the garbage, but no, you shouldn’t! Here’s why:

Common purslane is a nutrient-dense superfood. It is packed with omega-3 fatty acids (the highest amount of any land-based plant), along with high levels of vitamins A, C, and E and minerals like magnesium, calcium, iron, and potassium.

Its high levels of Omega-3 fatty acids reduce inflammation in the body, the risk of strokes, and support a healthy heart. Its high content of antioxidants supports immunity and skin health. Its mineral richness supports bone health and regulates blood pressure. The plant also contains small amounts of vitamins B1, B2, B3, folate, copper, and phosphorus. This nutrient-dense powerhouse is low in calories at 16 calories per 100 grams. Studies indicate it also helps reduce insulin and blood sugar.

Purslane is a tasty weed that is categorized as a leafy green vegetable. It has a slightly salty and tart taste, and just like spinach or watercress, you can toss it in salads or on sandwiches. Mix it into grilled vegetables or add to stews.

Calorie for calorie, purslane is one of the most nutrient-dense foods on earth! It may look like a weed, but looks are deceiving! Now that I know what a common purslane is, I want to grow some in a flower pot. I’m curious to taste it. How about you?

One note of caution: If you find purslane in your neighborhood, be sure it hasn’t been sprayed with chemicals before eating it.

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The Story Hybrid: A Suitcase in a Backpack

Have you heard about The Story’s Suitcase-in-a-Backpack sold exclusively at Target? Wear it as a backpack, but open and pack it as a suitcase. It’s 35L in size and has a water-resistant polyester exterior with a zip-around closure. It has padded shoulder straps, an outside zipper pocket, and holds up to a 17-inch laptop inside. The hybrid travel backpack features interior mess compartments and pockets to separate and store all your items.

What gives this hybrid travel backpack its hot internet buzz and makes people want it is this: The combination backpack-suitcase is spacious yet small enough to qualify as your personal bag, to take along with your carry-on luggage unchecked aboard an airplane. In other words, you can board with 2 unchecked bags and no fees! It fits under an airline seat! As a bonus, when you’re pushing it to your gate to board your plane, it has an integrated trolley strap that slips over a wheeled suitcase.

Available in 5 colors, customers buy it to take an extra unchecked bag on an airplane, but the travel hybrid backpack also makes a great lightweight weekend suitcase that holds lots of stuff you can organize! So roomy that if you stuff it to the brim, it gets heavy.

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Oreck Elevate Command Vacuum

To borrow a term from financial journalism, a vacuum cleaner isn’t a sexy topic, but I bet all households need one!

I use an Oreck Elevate Command Vacuum. It is recommended for hard floors and low to high-pile carpet, both of which I vacuum. I’ll start by stating I prefer upright vacuums that contain bags. 

Uprights are more compact than canisters, and I’d rather push a handle than pull a canister to vacuum. I also wish to change and toss out dirt inside a bag over the less sanitary and greater mess of emptying and cleaning a bagless vacuum. So in selecting a vacuum, I start with these two preminators.

The Oreck Elevate Command Vacuum is super compact and lightweight to move around furniture or to carry up stairs. It has strong suction, nearly too strong on carpet on the carpet setting, as it ripped a corner lining of my 8.6 x 10-inch area rug! Nowadays, I only vacuum using the lower (hard floor) setting. However, I do like the ease of use and the excellent suction in achieving a good cleaning. Moverover it’s quieter compared to a commercial vacuum cleaner. Check the noise level when you are tempted to save a few bucks by ordering commercial instead of residential vacuums. Turned on, the Orack lights up, and it flattens to roll under a bed. I choose not to pay $100 more to buy the Oreck model with a swivel head. Would I have liked it? Sure. Is it worth another $100 bucks? You must decide for yourself.

Oreck upright vacuums lack attachments for anything beyond floor cleaning. So there is no hose on the side to clean couch crevices or blinds, and this lack of a hose gave me pause about whether or not to buy it. What sold me was Oreck's soft belly with a zipper over a hard plastic belly upright vacuum. A soft belly that you unzip to change the bag is lighter and more compact than a plastic belly when storing in a closet. No potential for plastic breaking off after years of opening and closing to change a vacuum bag, either.

Oreck has the reputation of being a durable vacuum cleaner with decent customer support, should anything go wrong. The Oreck Elevate Command Vacuum is a no-nonsense model. It does its single job of vacuuming the floor well, and I love how little space it takes to hide it away in a closet; therefore, I decided to pay the piper, expecting it to last for years to come.

I managed to buy it in 2025 during a promotion offering a $50 discount with 6 free hepa bags.

Still, I understand that vacuum cleaners have gotten expensive! So for consumers who have a small budget and really need to spend less, Housebrush offers a Cordless Vacuum Cleaner on a self-standing stick that many customers say cleans well and has a good battery life that is also rechargeable. There’s a small bagless compartment that collects the debris. It comes with convertible nozzles to clean 8 surfaces, not just floors. Customers also like the similar SVHT vacuum on a stick, costing even less. Perfect for dorms or tiny spaces. For a house, you’d likely need a more substantial vacuum cleaner, but I cannot speak from experience. Read all the customer reviews to know what type and size of vacuum cleaner is right for you!

Years ago, a co-worker bought a hot pink Oreck vacuum! A blast from the past. The black Oreck Elevate Command Vacuum is meeting all my needs, though I looked for the pink, a fun color to push around.:)

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A Fire Blanket For Your Home

A very inexpensive safety tool to consider for your kitchen, fireplace, or grill area is a fire-retardant blanket. In the event of an accidental fire, you toss the blanket over the flame to smother it out before it spreads to the rest of your home. It’s a safety precaution you could prepare every member of your family to know how to handle in such an emergency.

The fire-retardant blanket sells for as low as $5 on online retailer Temu, and it is available at Walmart and Amazon.

Made from 100% flame-resistant fiberglass, it forms an airtight seal to quickly cut off oxygen and suffocate the flames. It has a 6 year shelf life, so there’s no need to replace it often. I have no idea what elements go bad in the blanket, but time seems to spoil many material things.

It’s a very practical, low-cost tool to keep your home a little safer.

If you wish to invest more, you could also buy a fire extinguisher. You’d have to have a place for family members to easily grab it, and they must learn how to aim and spray it. The blanket requires less mechanical know-how, but the low cost means if you wish, you likely could buy both fire extinguishing tools for your home. 

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Axe Body Spray Cherry Spritz

Sometimes my local CVS drugstore has free samples for the taking, which introduces me to unfamiliar products I wouldn’t normally pick up like Axe Body Spray Cherry Spritz. The spray is marketed as a man’s “fine fragrance,” yet is widely considered unisex. 

The scent is cherry-amber with hints of red apple and eucalyptus. Many women like the sweet, non-traditionally masculine fragrance, and I am one of them! It has a clean, fresh -- minus a strong, or artificial perfumey scent.

Photo: Madisondecinq

Like the new deodorants on the market, the Cherry Spitz can be safely sprayed all over the body, but I wonder if some people are going overboard fearing they have body odors that they really don’t. A daily shower should stop most of us from stinking. 

Still we enjoy smelling extra good, and this pleasing, clean scent is a winner. 

It’s also considerably cheaper than many fine fragrances and lasts a reasonable length of time. Costing around $7 for a 4 ounce can, it’s a worthy expenditure to smell delightful!

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It’s The New Year 2026

New Year's Eve is a holiday I like very much. As a younger adult I went out to celebrate sometimes, but always to places which were easy to return home from and with good friends. In fact, my favorite way to celebrate New Year’s Eve is with family and/or friends at home, or nearby in the neighborhood. Without fail, we do stay up past midnight to ring in the New Year while munching on a few tasty treats. One way we never spend the night is traveling a distance from home that requires a long drive back on a highway. 

I suppose a reason I like New Year’s Eve is it closes out the Christmas season. It’s the cherry on top of our high spirits. Christmas and Easter are two major holidays, each stretching out over a week, with Easter the more solemn one. The yin and the yang of Western cultural holidays. I love the sparkle, glitter and gaiety of Christmas completed by New Year’s Eve, and the anticipation of Spring and the renewal of Easter. I’m also happy Easter hasn’t become commercial like Christmas.

I prefer eating to drinking, however this year I intend to open a bottle of Champagne. 

Allow me to thank all my readers and fellow bloggers for your support. On THE SAVVY SHOPPER, we are one global, multi-cultural community, and my life is richer because of you! It's meaningful to share and exchange ideas. I enjoy learning right along with you. Dear friends, much appreciation for your time and contributions! Let’s make next year even better!🌍🌎🌏

🍾🥳Happy New Year 2026!🥂🎉

Merry Christmas In New York City 2025

All around Manhattan the Christmas trees are up, and the brownstones are decorated. Below is a festive one on the Upper East Side.

In my kitchen, the cookies are baked. This year, I made Springerle (I do not have the molds!), Czechoslovakian cookies, Scottish Shortbread and Gingerbread cookies. We are ready to have Christmas teas with visitors!

Many of my friends are off to midnight Mass, but my senior Mother and I will watch the 1st American Pope say Mass on tv. Over the years, Mom and I have spent Christmases both together and apart.

By phone, I've had lovely catch-up chats with 4 friends today.

I hear many poor people are suffering with the flu. Mom and I got our flu, RSV, and the latest Covid vaccines in October, 2025. Thank heaven for shots! Get your up-to-date vaccines, dear readers, from your doctors or local pharmacies! No need to be sick unnecessarily.

Adoration of the Shepherds by Jacob van Oost (1603–1671), a Flemish Baroque painter

We wish everyone near and far a Merry Christmas!🐑🐪

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