What Do You Get an 89 Year Old Great Grandpa?

What does he like to eat? Buy him his favorite food.

Since he's into sports what about hats for the different teams, or jerseys? My friend's 109 year old father passed away earlier this week from pneumonia, His favorite items of clothing were his USC and UCLA (he graduated from both schools) t-shirts and hoodies, had been for years.

At 89 people don't needs things, they need something personal to them that someone put thought into and being spent time with.

a foot spa! My FIL was a dairy farmer so one year for Christmas my MIL bought him a foot spa. he loved it! He would come in from milking, sit in his chair and soak his feet. It was just a conair brand. I think she got it at walmart. It plugged in, bubbled and massages.

really good steaks for him to grill.

good Beer.

His favorite Ice cream

Funny new gimme hat

You can get him a subscription to the Crossword puzzle books. A new one will come each month. And some pencils

My grand father loved peanuts.
We gave him, peanuts in the shell, peanut brittle, peanut popcorn..peanut butter cookies

A person this age doe not need anything.. They enjoy experiences, your time and food.

My grandpa was a dairy farmer too. One of the things he enjoyed was a glass of milk at bedtime and a plate of cookies grandma made for him. When she died, I would send him cookies on a regular basis so he always had his favorites ones in the cookie jar at night. He was thrilled.

Does your grandpa like cookies? Maybe you could find some cookie cutters is farm shapes, or sports shapes and make him some cookies for his birthday. Then you could make a certificate on your computer to go with it promising him home baked cookies once a week or once a month (whatever you could manage). It would give him something to look forward to, without him having to store more "stuff", if youu know what I mean!

Good luck, and have fun!

My grandmother is in her late 80's now, and her favorite gift that she still thinks is the most thoughtful ever is the cotton Afghan blanket I bought her two years ago when she turned 85. She can't sleep in her bed any more so she uses it on the couch, the recliner, and anywhere else she needs it. If she manages a daytime nap on the bed she uses it there too. It's heavy enough to get rid of the chill but light enough to wear around her shoulders if she wants to.

At this age, many elderly appreciate help around the house.
He is doing outdoor things/his farm.
BUT, what about hiring a Window Cleaner?
Or you guys go over there to clean the interior for him?
Or, fix anything that needs fixing?
Or even just cleaning out his gutters? Elderly, can fall from high places/on a ladder and don't have good balance. For example.

I know someone, who is a part of a community group. And what they do, is simply help fix or clean, any Elderly person's home. Many of them are Widows as well. And they really cannot do EVERYTHING like they used to. They are older. Even if your Grandpa does things outdoors or for his farm, I am sure there are MANY things, per his home, that could be fixed or cleaned. My friend says, that the Elderly people they help, JUST LOVE that they do this. And they just do it for free as a community service. MANY elderly, simply cannot do nor keep up, with their home's upkeep. One elderly person they helped for example, had a broken front door. And it was not fixed because the woman could not do it nor hire anyone to do it. Not even her family, would help. It was just, sad. And she was afraid that an intruder would come in or rob her home.

At this age, they really would enjoy that kind of service or help... or even some good meals. Especially those that are Widows.
Or get him necessities. That he wouldn't necessarily buy, himself or due to budget. Many Elderly, have budget constraints.

But as for objects as a gift: what about a nice Lazy Boy recliner????

don't discount photos. the wedding was about the wedding, but how about a slideshow of Grandpa's life! I did this for my Dad, who died at age 94 and he LOVED it.
His parents and family
Childhood photos
War Year photos
getting married
kids being born
kids getting married
The fun part is adding music to the slideshow. Pick Era appropriate songs and have a blast. If you have a computer that can do this just scan the photos and go to town. If you don't I am sure you can take the photos somewhere or have them do something at shutterfly/snapfish type of place. There is a website called "scancafe" too.

-Your time. A nice leisurely visit....if you live nearby.
-a recorded card so he can hear your voice
-his favorite candy
-his favorite food for dinner (have it delivered, cook it & drop if off if you
live near him)
-magnifying glass
-his favorite drink (soda, juice, beer etc)
-a framed picture of you & your family
-get him a baseball hat of his favorite team
-a keychain that has the pull out whistle thing in case he's out on the
tractor & needs help
-list of your favorite memories of him/with him.

Tell him thank you for his hard work as a dairy farmer. I appreciate it and him!

I just got my dad a hiking stick (he wont use a cane) and he LOVES it. It was 18 bucks at Amazon. If your grandpa has thin hair he might get a kick out of one of those caps that are out that have fuzzy hair on them, my dad loves that silly thing too. It's called flair hair, they have a website.
I got my dad a super soft, light weight throw at Kohls for Christmas, it is so warm, he loves that too.
Usually older people like things that make them comfortable or make life easier. They also like hard candy because their mouths get dry a lot usually due to meds or dentures.

What about giving him a day with you certificate? Take him out to lunch and then to a sporting event. My grandmother is 89 and still active and she likes a day of shopping and out to eat. At her age she doesn't really "need" anything but nothing can replace the gift of time.

He sounds wonderful! Do you have any pictures of YOU with him when you were a kid? How about pictures of HIM as kid?

And there must be something crossword-ish you can get him...or does he have a favorite team?

Good luck! I miss my grandpa...

I like Grandma T's ideas - with the hard candy, make it candy canes - long sticks, instead of small, round candies. Long sticks he can suck on are less likely to cause him to choke.

Does he have enough stamps to mail out his mail? Stamps are nice for the elderly.

Dawn

My 94 yr old papaw enjoys a bag of boiled peanuts, a bag of treats for his dog or something handy like new, really soft and nice towels that he would NEVER buy for himself. My (now deceased) Grandmother loved getting VHS tapes of her great grandchildren participating in their activities (cheer, dance, singing in the choir). I think maybe even some sort've time spent video taping your grandfather tell stories from his history would be some great time spent together and would end up being a keepsake for generations.

Make a small photobook (on-line can be inexpensive) with photos of family over the years or favorite places, and the words to songs from his youth below the pictures. For songs, just google " songs 1930" or "song words 1940". It's possible this book will get everyone singing his favorite songs.

Think sentimental: A night out for ice cream with the great grandkids! That would play on the dairy farmer end!

Get the great grandkids/or grandkids input. What do they want to get grandpa. Even if they make a few cards with pics, I think he'd be over the moon.

I also believe the elderly appreciate family time more than anything else. Gatherings over gifts may be more effective. Maybe do a video!

Is there any old dairy farming gadgets you can get your hands on? My family, regardless of career, are carpenters. I had all my grandpa's old stuff that I gave to my husband. He drug them up when we visited so they both could go on about the good old days.

Don't get me wrong I love the old tools too but for whatever reason they are like nothing else to carpenters.

So perhaps you can pick up something he hasn't seen in forever. Heck even going through old barn and polishing something up. Not sure how your farm is set up but Troy's brother has the old barn with tons of cool stuff in it. :)

I think the best thing you can do is spend tie with him. Take him to a dinner or a show. I think it would mean more to him than anything.

Favorite pop, milk, drink, candy, treat, etc. etc.

When my friend's husband turned 80 everyone in the family contributed to a list of 80 reasons why they loved him. They put it into a small scrapbook/photo album for him. A couple of years later when he developed Alzheimer's that scrapbook was his lifeline.

Since you had pictures taken, get one printed and put in a frame.

Also, make some cookies (or whatever kind of treats he likes) and give them to him. That was what my grandma liked to get the most.