Ashby House residents and staff enjoyed some Fat Thursday treats today, 11th February, thanks to our General Manager, Wojciech. Fat Thursday is a Christian event marking the Thursday before Lent and is the last opportunity to feast on sweets, cakes and other treats. Poland observes this day instead of Shrove Tuesday and some of the most popular items to eat on Fat Thursday are pączki - doughnuts traditionally filled with rosehip jam. Wojciech delivered doughnuts to Ashby House residents and staff with the help of Łukasz, Head of Maintenance at Ashby House, who is also from Poland. Thank you both very much and Happy Fat Thursday!

Residents at Ashby House enjoy their regular Sunday church service which this week was recorded in a church in Suffolk and led by Rev Robinson. This week’s service marked Candlemas, the celebration of baby Jesus’ presentation in the temple aged 40 days old. Residents including Pam, David, Glennis, Jean, Chung, Rita and Rose always appreciate the opportunity to be focused and quiet while they take part in the virtual service shown using our projector and large screen.

Ashby House resident, Chung, led other residents in a Tai Chi class, demonstrating how to combine deep breathing with flowing movements. Chung used to teach Tai Chi when he was younger and we believe it is important to maintain and share the skills and interests that residents bring with them to Ashby House. He enjoyed showing us some of the moves. ‘You have to be very slow and patient to do it correctly’, he explained, and has agreed to provide another class as we all enjoyed it so much.

Wojciech Kuczkowski, General Manager at Ashby House, is very pleased to be part of the Covid vaccination programme for care homes. He says, "I am delighted our home has already taken part in the roll-out of vaccinations for staff and residents. We are minimising risks at Ashby House through Covid testing and infection control procedures but our support of the national vaccination programme will help the whole country return to normal. In the meantime we are pleased that families can see loved ones in our comfortable, Covid-secure visiting suite. We look forward to the day we can welcome families and friends for face-to-face visits again".

Ashby House residents have enjoyed another monthly Dining Experience evening. This month we enjoyed delicious Greek food and our dining room was decorated with blue and white Greek flags. Our Chefs created a lovely menu with Fassolatha, a white bean soup, as a starter. For our main dishes we had a choice of Beef Stifado with vegetables, or a Greek Vegetable Stew. Dessert offered the tempting options of Greek Honey Cake with cream, or Vanilla Mousse with fruit topping.  We listened to some lively Greek music and danced, too. Angie and other residents had been looking forward to their special meal. There were lots of empty plates at the end of the evening and plenty of compliments for Ashby House Chefs, Roslyn and Jay.

Ashby House residents brightened up our home on International Flower Day and filled it with gorgeous scents by making their own beautiful arrangements of roses, carnations, tulips and Chrysanthemums. Anne, Mary, David, Glennis, Angie and Jean chatted about their own gardens and favourite flowers. Jean said, “I used to love being in my garden with my Husband Walter - he was such a good gardener". Mary told us that she used to show flowers in local events. We all enjoyed a lovely creative, sensory and reminiscent afternoon with friends.