New Year’s Eve
She’s practically glued to the TV but doesn’t think she will make it to midnight.
December 31, 2012 It has snowed all day so we’ve stayed in except for my occasional “walks in the snow” I still get pretty excited about the snow and mom really doesn’t understand why I want to go out in it.
New Year’s Eve Snow – Little Video
Mom just cruised around the house all day looking like a little toy. I like seeing her in this animated state because it lets me know how she gets along when she is spending days inside with no one around. She has good days and she has bad days. This was an exceptionally good one and a fun way to end the year. It’s about 9pm and she is finishing the day sitting in the living room watching the Dick Clark New Years Eve count down from Times Square – I don’t understand her excitement watching this but I’m grateful she is enjoying it. I try not to feel selfish because I have no desire to go in and join her.
Life is like a box of Chocolate
She has made an amazing recovery but it’s still not clear enough to her that a big part of the reason she landed in the hospital for six days is because she needs some extra help. She can do a lot but she just can’t do everything on her own day after day. Mom of course thinks she can still climb tall mountains! The new exercises and the virtual Par Course we have set up in the house is keeping her dedicated to building up her strength. I’m happy she understands the importance of doing these little routines and can see for herself how effective they are. She already notices a difference – especially in her circulation.
My biggest concern is her getting enough to eat and drinking enough water. She still maintains that she is a big eater but I watch her daily and she is not. I think the arrival of her first Meals on Wheels entry will bring extreme resistance and most likely initiate our first fight.
I am not looking forward to the next step when I will need to put on a new hat and start telling her what to do. I’ve enjoyed spoiling her up to this point but my song is going to have to change to the “You must do this for your own good” part.
The Night Before the Night Before
The new Ho Ho Ho pajamas have turned into a much bigger hit than I ever expected. They’re a perfect fit and Winter-Warm but now I’m finding there are times I may need to monitor where mom can wear them. Now she’s telling me that when you are her age you can do what ever you want.
Mom modeling her Ho Ho Ho pajama bottoms.
Last night was the first time we’ve gone out for a meal since I’ve been here and it was a real treat. Mom decided it would be fine if she wore her Ho Ho Ho pajama bottoms to the restaurant and because she looks so cute in them I couldn’t begin to disagree with her… and in her words “No one will even notice” So we both thought it was funny when a man sitting at the booth across from ours smiled at her and told her how much he like her “pajamas”
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Work Out
The first meeting. Getting started with the personal trainer.
Another upgrade is ankle weights for leg lifts and the Stair-Master
The Gym is Open ✩✩✩✩ I’m happy to say it only took one session with each of the therapists to get the juices going and mom already looks and feels more fit. Today she was advanced from a yellow belt to an orange belt – her trainers are impressed. There are a series of exercises for her upper body and another for the lower. Now we have a designated “track course” through the house starting from her “couch” in the family room through the kitchen and into the living room then looping back through her bedroom. She does 3 rounds with her walker and is working up to her using her cane. My fingers are crossed for her to keep up the momentum.
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Recovering at Home
Sunday December 16 – Mom has been home for 2 weeks and I have been with her for 3 weeks. She won’t be seeing her doctors for at least 3 weeks but her home nurse, Viola, will continue to visit her 2 to 3 times a week. The home nurse, the physical therapist and the occupational therapist are all provided from Blessed Trinity Home Health through Medicare and they are the biggest and most unexpected treasure for me. Tomorrow a new routine begins for mom. For years I have wanted her to get involved in some kind of physical activity and now she has no choice! They will each work with her twice a week for one month providing movement, strengthening and balancing exercises. They will also assess her overall living situation for her safety and observe how she preforms daily activities around the house. This should help us determine if she will be able to continue living in her home. My hope is that she will enjoy the idea of having people come into her home and help her and want it to be an ongoing part of her life. The two therapists are sweethearts and it’s feels like mom will have a personal trainer for a month.
Thursday December 13 ♡ Cat Naps Mom keeps wondering why she is so tired and constantly feels a need to explain or figure out why she keeps falling asleep on the couch. I tell her she is just like a cat and remind her of how much they sleep. This afternoon after sleeping for a few hours this morning she finished her lunch and expressed how good she felt. Yes mom, just like a cat – they sleep and eat and are content. The afternoon project is to clean the celery and possibly make celery soup later. Now I need to look up the Betty Crocker recipe she keeps referring to. ☛ I just went back to the kitchen to check on mom and she has finished cleaning all of the celery and now she’s making applesauce. She’s clearly on a roll!
Back in the kitchen again ♥
This is what they looed like after she had been thawing them for 5 minutes.
Cold Hands – Warm Heart When we returned from the doctor yesterday mom said her hands were freezing and she had them bundled in her favorite heating pad. Her hands are always cold when she’s been outside but this was different and I was pretty shocked when she showed me her hands. Then in her unassuming brilliance she asked me if this new extreme reaction could be because she is now taking a blood thinner. I think she’s right but now I need to find a solution because yesterday was no where near as cold as it will be.
12-12-12. The doctor appointment went very well but there will be no immediate reduction in any of her medication. He is satisfied with her progress and wants to see her again in one month. She weighed in at 78 pounds and that’s up 4 pounds from her last visit. I took it to be good news but will continue with the Fatten Mom Mission. The best news is she is feeling and acting more like her old self!
Hats Off Day About a week after my arrival I woke up one morning and realized I could pause and take a deep breath of relief. Mom was home, the sun was out and I decided to just take off all the hats, both new and old, I’d been wearing. Just pause and declare it a Hats Off Day! Today is going to be another hats off day – well, most of the day. Mom is up and about and doing the laundry which is a perfect familiar activity for her and I get the benefit of having my wash done for me.
Tomorrow she has an appointment with her primary doctor and fortunately she really likes him. This will be her first hospital follow up and I hope he will be able to give us an idea of when she might be able to cut back on some of her medication. Every morning I “cheerfully” announce The Pharmacy is now open at which point she rolls her eyes in disappointment and begins to consume piles of pills with her breakfast. I don’t dare tell her that I can’t imagine how she can do it.
Mom sItting on the couch finishing her orange juice.
Monday December 10 – I’ve been here for 2 weeks. Mom is up and around with good energy this morning with a smile on her face. ☀ That’s a great way to start the week. The visiting nurse, Viola, came and checked her blood levels to make sure the medication is all on target. Everything checked out GREAT. This gives me such peace of mind because I really want to make sure I’m handling the prescriptions efficiently and that mom will respond to all of the “pill-taking” as quickly as possible so we can begin to cut back some of them.
I’m grateful for Viola coming here because it is 18 degrees and it would be a big deal to get her doctor to draw the blood.
Today she is making phone calls and wants to make applesauce this afternoon. I hope she is feeling ready to get back into her regular routine.
Resting in the kitchen after her friend Louis called from Texas. They have been friends since 1939.
Today is Saturday and mom has been home for one week now. I didn’t realize it was going to be so slow but I now see she is going to need a lot of time to get her strength back. She really doesn’t do too much but I am grateful she gets up and can get around on her own with the help of her walker. It’s easy to bring a smile to her face with light conversation and she is very determined. My motto to her is:
Eat – Drink and be Merry!
Which means I hover over her making her eat more than she wants, asking her to please drink more water and trying to always have something Merry to say.
Mom had the best day yet on Thursday. Friday was a little slow but still so much better than a few days ago. A Physical Therapist came for an analysis and she will have therapy for the next 2 next weeks to build some strength and work on her balance. I’m hoping this will give her some good energy. Also, next week an Occupational Therapist is scheduled to visit. Mom has some resistance to this but I know it is good for her recovery and will help her adjust to seeing people coming in and out of the house to do things for her. This is a must and the easier I can make it the better her future care will be.
When I woke up this morning I decided to take a walk and kind of get my ducks in a row. Mom seemed to feel more energetic and I wanted to sort out the events of the past few days. So, to my delight I came across a group of ducks! The perfect visual aid before my very eyes.
Out of the Hospital – Home
We’ve been home for 5 days now and each day has had surprises, progress and concern. It feels like we’re on the right track even though some of the time I’m not sure where we are going. Mom spends most of her time resting and processing all of the medicine she is taking. There’s not much activity. A lot of her usual around the house routines are different now but I think some of them will kick back in after a few weeks. I have set up a little lab in the kitchen for her pills and she is getting a little more use to taking them but it continues to be one of the most upsetting things for her to “have” do. She still gets up and fixes her breakfast every morning which is oatmeal with bananas and yogurt. The rest of the day she sort of sits around while I quietly watch her recovery before my very eyes. She has an in-home nurse who comes 2 times a week. She is not here long but this is a huge relief for me because she takes all of her vital information and assures me that I haven’t blow something in her care. We’ve only gone out once and that was to the doctor but maybe by next week she will have gained some strength and have some extra energy.
“Can’t see the forest from the Trees” just kept echoing in my head while I was in the hospital with mom. It doesn’t look so much like an obstacle course to me now that we are home.