Doing Family History in 1 Minute: How to Get Started With Family History Indexing in 3 Steps

Posted on March 2, 2014February 25, 2015 by admin

Great news. FamilySearch has a new version of their indexing program.

Here are three simple steps to start indexing. Follow these three simple steps and in less than ten minutes, you will officially be ready to index.

Step 1: Know what indexing is.

Here is a quick video that explains what it is. It is less than two minutes.

Step 2: Register to be an indexer on FamilySearch.

Step 3. Download the software. You need a Windows or Apple based computer to do this. (If you have an iPad, you can download an app as well, but that is another post)

This super short video takes you through steps 2 and 3.

Finished the three steps?

Fantastic! Now you are all ready!

Stay tuned next week to learn how to start indexing. Make sure to subscribe to the blog and like us on facebook to get updates on family history tips. You can do both of those on the upper right of this web page.

1 Assist Care of the Valley Senior Care: Assisted Living At Home is a home care company located in Rexburg, Idaho. We provide assisted living services in the home to seniors in Idaho Falls, Rexburg, Driggs, Ashton, and everywhere in between. For some of our elderly clients, that includes doing family history with them.

We also provide weekly family history tips on our blog to help others with their family history work.

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When Exercise Isn’t Enough – The One Thing That Will Increase Elderly Health By 50%

Posted on March 1, 2014February 25, 2015 by admin

<a href=”http://www.valleyhelpathome.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Sitting-Senior.jpg”><img class=”alignleft wp-image-480″ alt=”Helping Seniors To Walk In East Idaho” src=”http://www.valleyhelpathome.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Sitting-Senior.jpg” width=”379″ height=”216″ /></a>So it turns out that exercise is just not enough. Not that the solution is terribly difficult, but in this case, knowing is way more than half of the battle.

<a href=”http://www.news-medical.net/news/20140220/Sedentary-behavior-may-be-a-risk-factor-for-disability-once-we-reach-our-60s.aspx” target=”_blank”>A recent study</a> published in Journal of Physical Activity and Health found that the more time a senior spent sitting, even if they spent time exercising, the more likely the senior’s health would lead to disability.

The likelihood is pretty dramatic – to the tune of 50% more per extra hour sitting.

Take this example. If two 70 year old men had similar health and exercise profiles, but one sat for 12 hours a day while the other sat for 13, the second man is 50% more likely to be disabled.

Does that mean sitting is dangerous? What it means is that it is important to get up and move around. If you want to watch TV, work on the computer, or play games, try to doing so while spending more time standing. It might seem silly, but it is the difference between health and disability.

Looking for someone to help get you moving in one of Idaho Falls parks? Wanting to find someone to go walking with your mother around the block in Rexburg? Hoping you could just get someone to walk with your father in his house in Driggs? Worried your loved one might be sitting too much at their cabin in Island Park? Wanting to give your wife a little extra walking time in the Ashton Living Center? 1 Assist Care of the Valley: Assisted Living in the Home’s care team members are more than happy to walk with our elderly clients. Focusing on the emotional, social, and physical well-being of our clients, 1 Assist Care of the Valley’s team members follow care plans generated to help with that well-being while receiving assisted living care in their home. That could mean a few hours a day or a few hours a week.

Give us a call at 208-557-4215 or fill out the information below to learn more or to schedule a free home visit. We will then work with you to create a care plan to get moving and to help with your other objectives for your well being, or the well being of your loved one.

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How To Talk To A Parent About Assisted Living

Posted on February 25, 2014February 25, 2015 by admin

Life is full of stages. From birth to college to marriage to children to empty nesting.

Often these are the stages we look forward to.

There comes a time in most of our lives when we are going to enter another stage of life – that of needing long term care. There is nothing to be ashamed of – 70% of people will need long term care in their life. That would be most of us. But for some, the discussion can be a difficult one. Whether it is difficult as a child of an elderly parent to bring up the topic, or it is difficult as a parent to hear your children or others ask the question.

However, if you simply postpone having the discussion until an emergency occurs, then your choices are often far less as you have less time to make them. The best time to have these discussions is today, no matter the health of your loved one or the age.

Here are a list of items to consider when planning the discussion.

The facts
Your parent is not alone in receiving assisted living care in their home. And receiving care can be a great boost to their health. Consider the following:

Seniors who receive home visits are twice as healthy after two years as those who do not
According to research by a Brown University professor, elders who receive care services such as meals are less likely to later be admitted to a nursing home
Over 1.5 million seniors receive assisted living care in the home
70% of people will need long term care in their life
Over 90% of seniors want to live in their home for the rest of their lives. And they can.
Elderly care has changed dramatically over the past two decades – There are many more technologies than “Help, I’ve fallen and I can’t get up” and there are many more choices than simply being put into a nursing home.
As long as they are able, they will have a significant say in the care that they receive in their home

Multiple conversations are often better than one
This does not have to be “The Talk.” If you can make it a series of conversations, it can be less traumatic. And some of those conversations can be brief. Questions like “Dad, how is it living at home since Mom died?” allow him to explain how he feels about his surroundings and living alone. Other questions include:

I hear Mrs. Smith is getting help with her housework. How does she like that?
When you told me you fell last moth, I was really scared for a week. Is there anything we can do to help when I live so far away?

The more you talk with your loved one, the more you will understand their desires and will be able to craft the best “assisted living in the home” plan for them.

Make no assumptions
Your loved one just might agree with you but was unsure how to ask for help. Or they might not see a problem in the way that seems so obvious to others – this is not necessarily denial.

Focus on their quality of life and independence
You all want her independence. It is a great place to remember you have common ground.

Go somewhere that they are comfortable – with as many family members as possible
When coming to a point when final decisions are being made and final discussions are being had, be somewhere that your loved one feels at home. In their home is best. If there are family members cannot be there in person, schedule a conference call. Skype and Google Hangouts allow for video conferences for free.

Go in with a listening ear rather than a knowledgeable mouth
Often Seniors have insight that we may not have. And most of us struggle when we feel that someone thinks they know more about our situation than we do. Listening changes hearts. When they express their feelings or thoughts, do not be afraid to follow up with, “I want to make sure I understand” and then restate what they said. Then affirm it.

Put yourself in their shoes
Talk to them in the same loving, respectful manner that you would want your children to talk to you. Understand that this might be hard for them.

Own your feelings rather than your loved one’s “problems”
Use phrases like, “I get so worried” or “I am so concerned when I see….” Those types of phrases tend to be much more effective than “You need to” or “We have decided that it best that….”

Give them information and options
The more they feel that they are part of finding the solution, the more likely they are to welcome it.

Do not express to your loved one that what you are doing compares to what they did for you when you were a child
Your loved one does not want to be viewed in that manner. And it does not indicate independence, your common ground. As an adult who has lived a full life, they would hope to be respected and honored.

Keep calm – even if they do not
If you fail to remain calm, the conversation could have very negative effects on relationships – and potentially the health of the one you are trying to help – for a long time.

A Defensive Loved One
Sometimes no matter how hard we try, the conversation goes in the wrong direction. It is important at that point to bring the conversation back to your feelings, both your own feelings and the feelings you have for your loved one.

A fantastic question to ask is, “Mom, if you knew I needed help, but refused to take it, how would that make you feel?” Then follow up with “How would you feel if I let you send someone to take care of me?” Using this kind of a question shifts the conversation from a battle of the wills to one focused more on the care and tender feelings that you have for one another. Generally, she will say something along the lines of

She just might say “I would be supportive.” Affirm that by saying “Oh Mom, you are wonderful. You have been so supportive in our life.” Then clarify further with two questions:

“That is what you would do, is to be supportive, but how would you feel deep inside?”
“As you think about our lives, what has brought you the greatest joy? When you have supported us in decisions that have made our lives easier or those that made life more difficult?”

A Defensive Loved One – Part 2
If the conversation still continues down a different direction than you would like, invite them to join other seniors from Idaho Falls to Driggs at a monthly meeting hosted by 1 Assist Care of the Valley where seniors have the chance to discuss ways they have been able to age with grace and dignity.

When you are ready to take the next step of finding the right person to come into your loved one’s life, give us a call at 208-557-4215 and we will work with you to create an atmosphere where your loved one will be able to enjoy the independence you all desire with the assisted living care services in the home that you all love.

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Two Simple Secrets Seniors Can Do To Be Twice As Healthy

Posted on February 24, 2014February 25, 2015 by admin

Want to be twice as healthy as others your age?

Sweden has your answer*.

A study out from the Scandinavian country found that people aged 80 and older that did one of two things were twice as healthy as those their age in two years.

That is a lot of twos.

But what are those two things? They were:

Receive home visits from care workers
Attend senior group meetings

The other positive outcome of those who participated in the group meetings was that after a year they were less likely to rate their health as having deteriorated.

The results “amazed” Gerontologist Gwen Yeo, a former director of the Stanford School of Medicine Geriatric Education Center.

As seniors attended group meetings, they learned from their peers, which boosted their self esteem – as did seeing how others were able to age gracefully.

While Yeo said she did not see American health system providing these types of meetings, starting in April, 2014, 1 Assist Care of the Valley Senior Care: Assisted Living At Home In East Idaho will partner with Phoenix Media Enterprises of Rexburg and others to provide monthly group sessions for seniors and their families to gather together. The meetings will be two fold. First, to learn from other seniors and their support network on how to age gracefully. The second will be to learn from experts on how to prepare for and to know the options available to them when aging.

Essentially, these will be the types of meetings that the Swedish study has shown to help the health of the elderly.

Seniors that are less comfortable or unable to attend group meetings also have the option of using 1 Assist Care of the Valley to receive home visits and receive the same kind of care in their home as they would in an assisted living facility. 1 Assist Care of the Valley Senior Care of Rexburg sends caregivers into the homes of seniors living in Idaho Falls, Rexburg, Ashton, Driggs and between.

Yeo pointed out that home visits are becoming more commonplace in the U.S. as hospitals are working more closely with families to reduce trips to the emergency room and to reduce readmission rates, which hospitals can be penalized for.

Swedes live on average two years longer than those living in the United States. When it comes to life expectancy, the U.S. ranks 35th in the world while Sweden ranks tenth. Sweden’s elderly also have access to meals on wheels, help cleaning and shopping, personal-care assistance, transportation and home healthcare.

To find out more about assisted living care you can receive at home or about the monthly meetings starting in April, fill out your information below. Or you can call us at 557-4215.

* This information was originally reported by the Chicago Tribune.

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Google Wants To Do Your Family History For You

Posted on February 23, 2014February 25, 2015 by admin

The following is from a series of family history instructional blog posts by 1 Assist Care of the Valley in Rexburg, Idaho. 1 Assist Care of the Valley updates family history posts each weekend.

Google wants to do some family history work for you.

No really, it does.

And it wants to keep you updated you on a thousand different family history searches as it does.

At this year’s RootsTech conference, Deborah Gamble, Technology Solutions Manager at American Express gave a list of tools that will perform customized family history searches for you automatically. Google was the first one Ms. Gamble mentioned. 1 Assist Care of the Valley: Assisted Living At Home in East Idaho will address some of the others in future posts.

Google has a feature called “Alerts” that allows users to stay informed about new material on the web relating to any topic that the user is interested in. If they want to stay updated on Teton Valley hiking spots or powersports in Rexburg or Idaho Falls, you can use this tool to do just that. What Ms. Gamble pointed out was that this exact same tool is a powerful one for doing family history research.

Here are step-by-step instructions with screenshots.

Let’s say you are looking for search for the death of an ancestor who I think was buried in Loudoun County.

Step One: First you go to www.google.com/alerts

It will bring up a page that should have something like this. If you click on the image, you can make the image larger:

Step 1: Go to www.google.com/alerts

Step 2: Next, you will enter the search term you are looking for. In this example, I am looking for Loudoun County graves. I enter that term into my Search query. You can make this more specific or less specific.

The more general you make it, the more information you will receive, but you might miss something as the Google search “spiders” might not pick it up.. The more specific you make it, the less information you will receive, but you are likely to find very specific information as it becomes available.

You will see below what Google brings up. Again, you can click on the image to make it larger. But you will see it brings up examples on the right of what it will send you.

Using Google Alerts to Perform Family History

Step 2: Enter what you are looking for into the search query

Step 3: Choose the result type, how often, and how many you want.

Result Type – Choose what source you want the information from. You can choose from the following. Remember, the less option you choose, the less information.

Do you want only news articles?
Do you want only blog posts?
Do you only want results from books that Google has scanned into their database?
Do you only want videos uploaded on sites like YouTube?
Do you want everything that appears on the Internet (All of the above)

How often – Choose how often you want to be emailed about the information on the Internet.

Do you want an email once a day?
Do you want an email once a week?
Do you want an email right as it comes?

My suggestion – once a week is fine, otherwise you start filling up your email box.

How many – What do you want Google to send to you?

All results – Google will send you everything on the Internet.
Only the best results – Google will determine what it thinks you want and will only send you that information.

Step 4: Enter your email address that you want the information sent to. It does not have to be a gmail address. You can enter any email you want. If you are logged into Gmail, it will automatically enter that address. You can add a news feed, but to keep things simple, we will not address that here.

Step 5: Press Create Alert.

A new window that will open that looks like this:

Step 5: Create Your Alert

Step 6: Live your life as normal. Google will automaticall send you the alerts to your email.

And you are all done.

You can add more searches if you want. You can do this for up to a thousand different searches.

To continue to learn and share ways to explore your genealogy and family history, be sure to like us on Facebook.

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