CRAFTS for HOLIDAY

We are so thankful for the care that my MIL gets.  She is in a home that the staff are so caring and just love her.  The environment is very personal with a small number of residents in each unit so she has a living space outside of her room with a TV.  There is another area furnished with couches and chairs that has windows all the way around it so they can see outside or if you aren't fighting COVID you could walk outside into a courtyard.

My favorite thing to see that they offer is the ongoing number of crafts they provide for the residents.  My MIL loves to do "crafts" and back in the day was quite the seamstress.  She would decorate for Christmas by making a lot of her own decorations before we had Pinterest and Etsy!

Here is a picture of her around Thanksgiving doing one of her crafts.  She is on the right:

COVID Crazy

The COVID19 pandemic still has a hold on us!  It has been like no other world event any of our generation has ever witnessed.  Since March it has been a roller-coaster of lock-downs and "cant's".

The saddest thing this pandemic has done is to isolate already isolated people.  My MIL is at a memory care home that has done a fantastic job of keeping their residents safe and healthy from this virus.  The sad part of that is they haven't allowed visitors unless you get tested (more recent strategy) or can demonstrate you have had the vaccine.

But from March up until November 2020 you were not allowed to visit or bring anything from the outside.  My MIL had a birthday in July and we couldn't take her present to her.  She got it in December.  We have been able to talk to her through a window while we are on a cell phone and she is on the home's phone.  In two separate visits we had out daughters and grandchildren go with us to see her.  We sat outside and tried to communicate with her through the glass window.  (not opened)  My MIL did not understand and could not connect the phone conversation with the people standing outside her window.

For the first time when we visited her in December she did not know our names.  She just could not recall them as she normally does.  She called my husband her son and referred to me as his wife.  It was very hard to hear and see that.

Our daughters went with us in December so we could take her presents and sat with us on the proverbial bench to talk to her.  My MIL can be quite funny and of course the confusion she was having caused her to say some of her classic lines.  This would get her granddaughters to laughing and the laughs would turn into tears.  That pretty much sums it up---you have to laugh to keep from crying when you see how her mind is slipping further and further away.

When we left our daughters told us that was cruel to do that kind of a visit with someone suffering from Alzheimer's and urged that we think that through before doing it again. We are hopeful that in 2021 we will turn the corner on the virus and return to face to face visits.  They need that human interaction---we all do!

Tell Those Sick People to Go Home

March 2020 who would have ever thought we would have a pandemic that literally shut down the country!  I can't say it's anything any of us could have ever predicted.

I remember it was around March 8th when we got a phone call from the facility telling us that we could not visit my MIL as they were "locking down" the home due to COVID-19.  They told us we could face time her or call her but they were not allowing visitors.  The difficulty for us is that my MIL doesn't understand the technology.  It's difficult to keep her attention long enough for a call or to even sit still long enough for the call.

Mother's day we went to see her and asked if the nurses would allow her to come outside in the courtyard.  We stood on the other side of the fence which we could see through and talked to her.  She tried to climb the fence to come on our side and did not understand that we had to maintain proper social distance of six feet.  She kept asking us if we were going to come in to visit and when we told her we couldn't she kept asking why.  We would explain that we didn't want to get anyone sick due to the Corona virus and she said "well, all those sick people can just go home."

The nursing home tested all the residents and thank goodness no one tested positive.  Alzheimer's and a pandemic are a recipe for disaster.

How Old Am I?

Birthdays are my favorite!  I think you should have birthday weeks rather than birth "days".  My MIL turned 80 in 2019 and at this point in her disease the nursing home said its too hard for her to leave.  In the past we would take her out to eat and maybe do some shopping but the return back had gotten to be difficult.  

Christmas 2018 was the hardest.  My husband had picked her up and brought her to our house.  As emptynesters we moved from our home of 20 years to downsize in the Fall of 2018.  When we brought her for Christmas day, it totally threw her for a loop.  She did not understand where she was (Houston, Sugar Land, Frankston, Abilene, etc.) and she kept looking for her room.  It was the saddest thing to witness and of course, as soon as she ate lunch she was ready to go.

So, back to the Birthdays!  She turned 80 in July and we decided we would take her lunch, a cake and some balloons to celebrate her big birthday.  My parents who are the same age, but thankfully are in good health, were kind enough to join us.  My sister and her twins came as well.  My MIL kept asking whose birthday is it, how old am I, and making the comment that "oh, that is old" when we told her she was turning 80.  She was thrilled to have all the attention!

What's Been Going On

It's been three years since I have posted to the blog and I am truly shocked by that!  We've lived a lot of life since my last post so I will try to catch up.

In October 2018 my MIL took a fall and ended up breaking her wrist.  It was pretty bad.  We still aren't quite sure how it happened but got a call to meet her at the hospital.  At first they said it was a sprain so we spent several hours in the ER for them to wrap it up and send us on our way.  It wasn't long.....the next day.....that she re-injured it and this time we found out it was broken.

This is where it gets tricky.  It was a Friday afternoon that we met her in the ER again and the doctor said they were going to have to schedule her for surgery Saturday morning due to the severity of the break.  We sat in the ER with her for several hours while arrangements were being made and tried our best to answer her repeated questions about where was she, she wasn't sick, why can't she go home, etc.  It is the hardest thing to explain to a person who can't remember in the short term and truly does not know what is going on.

Saturday morning we got to the hospital very early for the surgery that lasted about an hour.  Thankfully she did fine with the anesthesia and the doctor said the surgery went well.  We were instructed to meet her in her room as they escorted her down a patient elevator.  We barely got off the elevator before we met her coming out of the patient elevator asking all kinds of questions and using her fingernail to try to pry the staples out of her arm.  She had unwrapped her bandage that was keeping her from bleeding and didn't understand why her arm was hurting.  This became a long journey of healing and explaining what was going on.

When we got her to her room and the nurses, thankfully one male who could handle her, were able to get her arm bandaged back up.  They gave her pain medicine which allowed her to fall asleep.  The nurses were beside themselves, as were we, about how difficult she was being ----she told one nurse "it was her arm and they couldn't tell her what to do".  It was at that point they communicated with the doctor that she was going to need to have someone sit with her 24/7 so that she would not hurt herself trying to figure out what was going on with the pain in her arm.

My husband and I stayed with her over the weekend and were able to get breaks with the sitters which was helpful.  I have always believed that something good can come of something bad.  We were disappointed because we had to cancel a weekend getaway with another couple when the MIL took the fall and was hospitalized.  For the first time, I had some real feelings of frustration and at one point had a little pity party.  It ended soon enough but it was still feelings that I didn't expect and I had to have a "little talk with myself" to put things in perspective.

So, you ask, what was the good that came of something bad.  In the midst of this hospital stay, the hospital staff saw quickly the current state that my MIL was in and communicated that message to the doctor.  We raised concerns with the medical team treating her about how she would return to the nursing home given her tendency to unwrap her bandages and pick at the staples.  The doctor said he was going to write orders for her to go to a rehabilitation facility and given her Alzheimer's would recommend another facility that could do both---the facility we had originally wanted her to go to but couldn't get her in.  We were quickly visited by a social worker from the facility who assured us she would be admitted and that she could transition from a "rehab patient" to a "resident" after 30 days.  I literally broke down and cried----this is the good that came of something bad!  Praise the Lord!

My Cup Runneth Over

This weekend we took the MIL to shop for some new spring clothes and to take her for lunch.  I usually just pick up some clothes for her but since she has been in the home and not as active I wanted to make sure she tried on any kind of pants we'd buy.
 
We began the day by going to a couple of places that I have had luck in finding clothes that I know will fit.  We were going up and down the aisles and I would look around and she had wandered off.  Luckily it was early so there weren't many people in the store.  She would get so easily distracted which I had forgotten.  Anyway, at one point I asked a lady for some help and she looked at my MIL and said, "I know you, don't you remember me?  I used to work at the home and you would go out to smoke with me!" OH MY GOSH!!  Are you kidding me!  Even in a small town like where we live she runs into someone she knows...not me!  Never ceases to amaze me.....we don't provide her with cigarettes because of her health related issues.....

We went to a couple of different places looking for clothes and every time she would ask about her purse.  We got into the car and she asked if she brought her purse; we got to the store and she asked if she left her purse in the car; we went to the restaurant and she asked if she left her purse in the car, did I leave my purse at your house; etc.  This went on each and every time we entered and left a building or the car.

Okay, let me get to the coffee cups.  When we picked her up I wanted to look at her clothes again just to see what she might need.  I knew we wanted to get new tops and capri pants but wasn't sure about undergarments or night gowns.  She has a four drawer dresser and a two drawer night stand that she ends up keeping her things in.  We have tried hanging things in her closet but she just can't seem to "sort" the clothes to find what she can wear.  I assume that is because of the decision making skills needed to do that and she just can't do it anymore. 

I opened the drawers and the first drawer was half full with coffee cups stuffed with various items.  The second drawer was full of coffee cups stuffed with various items like sweet and low, sugar, etc.  The third and fourth drawer were full of coffee cups stuffed with various items!  What the heck!  She did this at our house when she lived with us.  She would take cups and fill them with sugar and stick in her night stand.  We never did figure out why. But the number of cups we counted exceeded 20.

We were gone for maybe 3-4 hours and I think the sadness thing was when we were taking her back.  We drove in front of the home and made the turn back into the parking lot.  As we are driving in front, she says I think I've stayed there.  My husband says yes, that is where you stay.  She says, I don't stay there now, I don't have a room there....do I?  He says yes, she says well I don't know where it is.  How can in three hours this disease remove your memory of a place you stay at 24 hours a day?  And three hours ago you left from there?  I don't understand what is happening in the mind.

When got her back to her room we told her we would take her new clothes home, wash them, and return them the next day. 

Sunday, we went back to the home with her freshly washed clothes and found her in her room.  Yesterday she was very happy and excited to see us.  She did not remember that we had gone shopping the day before or that we had even been there.

Today she was happy to see us but when we started moving cups out of the drawers to make room for the clothes she got very agitated.  My husband, in his ever sensitive way, asked her why she needed all those cups.  She said, very childlike, because I do.  I told her we were just moving them around so we could organize her clothes so she could find them and she relaxed a bit. But, as I began to return the cups to the drawers I made a discovery that I wasn't expecting.  In several of the cups she had placed her underwear.  I won't go into whether they were clean or not.  I had to laugh because in some ways she was organizing herself.


This week we have her care plan meeting and these are the items to talk about.  I'm afraid she is going to need more help with the daily living things like bathing, personal hygiene, and dressing herself.  She can convince you that she is doing these things but it's apparent she isn't or isn't doing it well. I will continue to say....this disease is so cruel!

7 Cups from one drawer!

Life Over the Hill Lately

Wow, where does the time go!  I realize that I have not posted to this blog since 2014!  A lot of life can happen in three years!  So it's time to play catch-up:

My MIL has been living in the a home since September 2011 and I can't believe it has been almost five years.  I am happy to tell you that she is doing great! I realize that seems odd to say but she is able to function as her own person without feeling like someone is telling her what to do.  For her, that is huge---independence is a very important core value for her.

Her social worker will contact us to check in from time to time or to schedule care plans and more times than not to introduce themselves to us because they are new.  (Downside is there is so much turnover in these facilities!)  Every time we ask how their interaction is with the MIL, they always say "we love her....she is so nice.....friendly, etc."!  When we visit, the nurses will pop in and ask if she is going to come have coffee, etc!  It's the funniest thing----you would think she worked there.

When the facility recently sold to a new company, they asked my husband if they could move her to a new wing with more "highly functioning" people and after visiting further agreed it might be okay to try.  She really didn't fit in with the patients on the Alzheimer's floor who had limited functionality and some were confined to their bed.  Shortly after moving her, we went to visit and realized they had moved her by a door (unlocked) and we said that wasn't a good idea.  They told us they had placed a Wandergard on her ankle and would know if she tried to exit the building. Well, they obviously didn't know who they were dealing with.  She would march right up to the nurses desk, ask for scissors, and cut that bracelet off her ankle on about three different occasions.  After they complained to us about it and we promptly reminded them we were not in agreeance with her placement, they moved her!  She kept telling us she didn't know who kept putting that bracelet on her but it wasn't hers so she cut it off!

On another occasion, we found her in the dining hall with three other ladies and went in.  She jumps up and begins to introduce us......"Suzie, this is my son and his wife....."; response from Suzie, "my names not Suzie!".....this goes on through three introductions.  Her response, she grins, chuckles, and walks off.

It's hard to watch her when she seems so "normal" and you just want to move her back home until you are reminded how cruel the disease is.  This Christmas was another one of those occasions when you are reminded that she is not how she used to be.

My husband went to pick her up so she could spend the day with us while I continued to get lunch ready.  We learned over the years that its easier for us to open presents with her by herself because she gets so confused by a holiday that she loved so much.  I could tell this year was going to be a little different.  Before everyone arrived for Christmas lunch my husband returned with his mom and I could tell the drive over must have been a little tricky.  She came in the kitchen asking if she could help and I responded with the usual, "no we are good...just have a seat", etc.  She walked into the living room, saw the tree, and came rushing into the kitchen in a panic----"I can't believe I walked out of my house and left your presents under the tree....I guess I'll have to mail them"; next version after going back into the living room, "I guess I walked out without ya'lls presents and left them on my bed....I can't believe I did that".  This went on for about six to ten different versions of how she forget to bring presents.  It was the saddest thing.  Nothing we could say could get her mind off of it.

But the saddest thing she said to me was her response to a question.  My husband had told me when they came in that she was way off today but couldn't really explain why he said that.  I asked her how she had been doing and if she had heard from anyone (meaning Christmas card in the mail, etc.) and she said, "well I guess this is going to be the first Christmas Mother & Daddy are going to be by themselves" and of course I just nodded and went on.  Her parents have both been deceased for many years.

She had lunch with us but immediately began to get antsy.  She started walking upstairs and when asked where she was going she said to her room.  When my husband took her back to the home she went through the whole, who lives here? where are we going?  I don't live here, etc. She doesn't know where her room is, etc.  Why does this disease do this to someone?  It just doesn't seem fair.

Where have you been?

Oh my, today is November 11th of 2014!  It's been 2 years and 234 days since I last entered a post to this blog! Wow!  I didn't realize it had been that long!  I won't try to use this post to bore you with all the details but here is a laundry list of significant events that might explain where I have been:

Summer 2011:  The neurologist that diagnosed my MIL told us that it was probably time to consider different living options for my MIL.  It became apparent that she needed more care and supervision than we could give her in our home so the time had come to make that difficult decision......

September 2011:  We moved my MIL to a home with a specific floor for Alzheimer's patients.  It wasn't our first choice but the upside was she had her own living arrangement with only 16 other women residents; there is a common living area, kitchen, and outside sitting area.

January 2012:  We got the news we were going to be grandparents!!  Woohoo!
 
April 2012:  Our oldest daughter & her husband moved back to Texas from Pittsburgh, PA!

October 2012:  Our first granddaughter was born!

September 2013:  My 96 year old grandmother passed away---she influenced our family in such a profound way!  I was truly blessed to enjoy her fully for 40 plus years of my life!

October 2013:  My husband's biological father died from a long battle with cancer.  My husband was able to reconnect with him, a step-mom, & two siblings before he passed---this too was such a blessing.  He got to hear firsthand from so many people at his father's funeral how much he loved him and how much he talked about him!  Wow, it was very overwhelming but again another blessing from God! 

May 2014: Our youngest daughter graduated from college!

August 2014:  Our youngest daughter got her first teaching job!


As I contemplate this laundry list, I realize there been several significant events in our life over the last two years.  The cycle of life continues........life is good! 

I'm back.....

Postcards from the Past

Yesterday, my MIL got mail from an old high school friend.  She stood in the kitchen and read it.  It was like watching a school girl get a love note from her boyfriend.  It was from a high school sweetheart who sent her a picture of them at prom.  I'll have to admit it was kind of random since this person is married and not someone she talks to on a regular basis even before she got Alzheimer's.  (that is that we know of....!)  Anyway, she went in and out of the kitchen carrying that card/picture saying she just couldn't believe he sent that saying....."oh, I should have married him"....."he was very handsome"......"I'm not calling him (he gave her two numbers for her to contact him)"......"he's married"......"he was such a nice boy from such a nice family".....and it went on and on like this for quite sometime that evening.  She held onto that note like it was her most treasured possession!

It dawned on me that she would get more enjoyment from this piece of mail than out of all the contact she has had with family & friends in the last 4 or 5 years.  Because she could look at the picture and remember that happy time and place from her past!

Life is Good!

The Wheels on the Bus

Independence has been a big issue with my MIL since she came to live with us.  The doctor told her she could not drive several years ago and then she was told she could not live alone.  Being a woman who was used to coming and going as she pleased when she pleased hasn't always sat well with her now that she has been "immobilized".

Post Options

The opportunity to "ride the bus" to the Senior Citizen Center every day has allowed her to feel as if she is in control of her coming and going!  This week while I was off for Spring Break I had another look at the bus ride.  Now, mind you they used to pull up out front and honk and she would come a runnin'.  But now she sits in the kitchen watching for them out the window, they pull up in the driveway, and she runs out.  Everybody on the bus greets her (I can only imagine what they are saying!) and they roll off!

Life is good!

Going Green

Just the other day we got our electric bill and were so excited to see that it had gone way down in price and overall usage!  Now that our girls are not at home I am amazed at how much water and electricity they were using!  Reliant Energy just installed the smart meters in our neighborhood so we are getting into "reading the meter" and studying the "KWH usage".

Now, I have not always been a "go green kind of gal" but my husband and I are starting to get on that band wagon.  I call it getting old more than I call it going green.  I remember being somewhat offended when my paternal grandmother, God love her, would recycle things like tin foil and the vegetable bags you got at the grocery store.  My maternal grandmother, who is 94 years of young, had a drawer designated to saving plastic butter dishes, twist ties, plastic bread bags, paper bags, and jars!  Oh, my gosh, she saved jars! I remember thinking, I don't think you have to save all of those----because how could you ever use them all!  Instead she would fill them with leftovers after our Sunday dinners at her house and send them with us to take home.

My MIL, however, was definitely not from the generation of recycle.  I don't know if she was ever frugal, thrifty, or saved anything! When she lived by herself she had a TV in every room, left lights on in every room, and kept the A/C on about 60.  When you stayed with her you froze!

Okay, so let me return for a minute back to our Reliant electric bill.  As we were analyzing usage and trying to figure out how to set the smart meter, my husband looked at the daily usage.  Guess when our peak usage was?  It was from 1pm (my MIL gets home at 1 from the Senior Center) to 5pm (we get off work at 5).  Not from 5-10pm when we are home but when my MIL is home alone!  Cracked me up!  How can one little 74 year old use the bulk of electricity in four hours a day?  She just has one lamp, a closet light, a room light, a TV she doesn't watch, our TV downstairs, and several lights in between........!

Maybe we need to teach her about "going green"!  It is what it is...... but Life is good.....over the hill!

Sunrise or Sunset

You know I have always been told that Alzheimer's patients have difficulty with short term memory but not their long term memory.  We have seen that in my MIL----she can recall details from her past to some degree but can not remember what she ate 20 minutes ago.

Yesterday my husband turned 50!  A landmark birthday!  My MIL did not remember that it was his birthday.  I noticed that she had it written on the calendar we gave her to keep in her room.  But yesterday came and went and she did not acknowledge her son's special day.  We understand and don't say anything to make her feel bad but it's still hard to know that your parent can't remember the day they brought you into the world. 

A calender is filled with twelve months that have thirty or thirty one days in each month but to an Alzheimer's patient there are no months or days just sunrises and sunsets. Alzheimer's is a cruel disease.

But, it is what it is.......life is good!

365 Days

It was a year ago today that my MIL moved into our home.  She had been living at Royal Estates, an independent living center up until that time.  Here are some highlights from her year:

1. Received her official diagnosis of Alzheimer's in May 2010.
2. Began taking Namenda in May 2010, works to delay the advancement of Alzheimer's symptoms by preventing abnormalities in glutamate, a chemical found in the brain that has been associated with a variety of physiological functions including memory and learning.
3. Diet has significantly improved- had to visit the doctor once in 8 months for sinus infection.
4. Improved Socialization- began interacting with other seniors at the Senior Citizen Center daily.
5. Marked improvement in her personality and overall outlook on life.  Does not seem as anxious about being around other people like before.
6. Attended her granddaughter's track meets, state track meet, university graduation, high school graduation, and a wedding all in one year!  She never missed a beat even if she didn't remember it later.
7. Attending church.  This is a big one for me.  She had stopped attending church for many of the same reasons she quit interacting with people.  We invite her to go with us and sometimes she does and sometimes she doesn't.  But some is better than none!

As I look back on her year, it is amazing what a difference 365 days can make.  She is a different person than the person we moved to Abilene three years ago.  She is healthy, positive, seems to be enjoying her life, and has re-engaged with her family and other people. 

Life is good.......over the hill!





 

Day Tripper

Saturday we took a day trip to see our daughter in college.  I made arrangements with my sister to check on my MIL and made arrangements for her supper.  In typical fashion, I left my MIL a note to remind her that we would be out most of the day and that my sister would be bringing her supper.

On our way back home, I called my sister to check in to see how things were going.  She said, "did you leave Jean our phone number?"  She went on to say, "she called our house and said not to worry about  bringing her supper because she would just eat a sandwich or something."  My sister was at the grocery store when she called so her husband called to tell her about the message Jean left on their answering machine.

Now, we have no idea how she got her phone number!  Because I am sure she could not remember her last name!   When my sister took her supper she asked her about the number and she said, "oh, I looked it up."

I've said it before and I will say it again, she never ceases to amaze me!


Life is good!

Birthday Wishes

Today was my birthday! It has been a great day---lots of birthday wishes from good friends, family, and co-workers---great dinner at my favorite restaurant, saw "The Kings Speech", and even had birthday cake at work! It doesn't get any better than that.

When I got home, even my MIL remembered my special day. She left me a note on the island again. I have to point out that I have been married to her son for 25 years and she misspelled my name a lot over the years----but today she got it right! She never ceases to amaze me.

Life is Good......Over the Hill!

Sticky Notes of Independence

In May of 1995, we lost my father-in-law to pancreatic cancer. It was a short 3 month battle from the time they diagnosed it until the day he passed. In April as he lay in a hospital bed in Houston, Texas he told me and my husband that we would have to take care of my MIL. At the time we thought he meant take care of her after he passed away but I have come to feel like he meant take care of her because of the disease. Even 16 years ago, she was showing signs of early onset.

I reflect back to the conversation we had with the neurologist during her testing when she said her goal was to live by herself and take care of herself. So, every day that she is with us we strive to accomplish that goal. The promise made to my FIL to take care of my MIL was more of a challenge than we could have ever imagined.

In our house we have found, sticky notes equal independence for a person with Alzheimer's. We can leave sticky notes or notes on the counter to remind her of things she needs to do. For example, every day she rides the bus to the Senior Citizen Center but they come after my husband and I have to leave for work. We have a system where we place sticky notes on the doors telling her which door to leave from and to lock it when she returns. This way she can feel some what independent in coming and going. We tried taking and picking her up but could tell it made her feel like she was being a burden.

Another example, is leaving her notes on the counter telling her to wear a coat because of the weather. It sounds silly to us but to her she does not know what month it is, what the temperature is, or how to make the decisions about what to wear. I felt uncomfortable at first having to tell her, gently, that she might want to wear something warmer or more appropriate for the event. I quickly found that she would just go back upstairs and change or add a layer. I think she would rather us tell her than be embarrassed by not being dressed appropriately.

Just another day in the life of........life is good.

You Are My Valentine

Yesterday was Valentine's Day filled with card giving, flower sending, and reaching out to tell those you love how much you care! We left my MIL a Valentine's Day card by her coffee cup so she would see it when she came down to eat breakfast.

My husband and I came home to a sweet valentine's card laying in the kitchen. Inside it said, "thanks for all you do for me". It was the sweetest thing she could have done for us. I guess she was able to get the card at the Senior Citizen Center.

I have said in earlier posts that God is at work and he has a plan for why she is staying with us. Yesterday I saw Him at work! God is Good.

Life is good.........over the hill!

Word Find

The neurologist told us almost a year ago in May that socialization is so important for someone with Alzheimer's. Through social interaction you almost force the person with Alzheimer's to try to remember the little things you encounter in daily living. As the old saying goes, practice makes perfect but in this case repetition is one way to keep the mind from losing ground too fast when it comes to dementia.

Having difficulty recalling the word to identify an object is something my MIL has had trouble with for a while now. Last night was the first time we noticed that she could not cover it up. She tried to tell a waitress at a restaurant that she wanted more chips. There were four other people at the table with us so there were several conversations going on. It took a few minutes for me to notice the waitress looking for help. My MIL finally pointed to the basket of chips and the girl understood what she was asking for. Luckily, my MIL did not get flustered or seem embarrassed which is a side effect of "forced socialization". She knows now that people understand and will help her with her memory hiccups because for many this is a natural part of life when they have dementia.

At least she got to eat some good mexican food! Life is good......

Carmel

We were told when my MIL was first diagnosed with Alzheimer's that we should get her a baby doll. I was a little puzzled by that for several reasons. One she wasn't that advanced in the disease but secondly it just sounded so mental home'ish!

For the past 11 months that she has lived with us, Carmel has become her new best friend. I now get the baby doll comment. She sits and holds Carmel all day, talks to her, lets her sleep with her, and feeds her constantly. We had to hide the dog food so she won't feed her too much.

On Super Bowl Sunday, we came home from friends to see our little Wienie dog's body weight had doubled. Her abdomen had expanded to the point that it looked like she had swallowed a watermelon. We accidentally left the dog food container in the pantry and my MIL must have fed her again.

Carmel is the happiest little wienie dog in the world! As my girls got into high school they didn't play with Carmel as much as they used to so she really enjoys all the attention my MIL gives her. Every morning when Carmel gets up she runs up the stairs to see my MIL! They both have found a new best friend!

Life is good.......over the hill!

Snow Day

Last week our campus was closed for four days which is highly unusual even for West Texas! This time off gave me another opportunity to spend time with my MIL for a longer period of time.

After the second Snow Day I could see that the disease is invading her mind more rapidly. Little things she would do throughout the day made it clear that her mind is deterioating at faster pace than before.

These are some of my observations:
1. She loves our little wienie dog,Carmel, who makes a great companion for her. She would take the dog out to go to the bathroom through the garage door and try to return through the locked back door within seconds (because it was very cold outside!).

2. Washing her hands repeatedly and almost back to back because she had held the dog. I counted 10 times in less than 30-40 minutes.

3. Within a 5-10 minute period, she would ask the same thing she just asked when she left the room earlier---at least 3-4 times in a row.

4. She wanted to help me clean so I asked her to dust and lemon oil a piece of furniture in her room. I was close enough that I could see what she was doing and she could not remember what she was supposed to do with the rag and can of polish.

5. She is becoming very childlike in her reactions to my husband, her son. I guess that is because he has had to become the parent.

6. It is becoming more and more difficult for her to carry on a conversation with people when they call because she senses that she is repeating her questions and this frustrates her.

7. Eating is another big change! When we went to the doctor in January she had lost several pounds but nothing to be concerned about according to her doctor. So I started watching to make sure she was eating. Over the four snow days, I noticed her eating three peanut butter & jelly sandwiches after she had eaten breakfast and she still ate lunch with me. So, she definitely has an appetite. But she can not make decisions or process how to look into the refrigerator to make choices about what she can eat. She knows how to fix a pb&j sandwich or cereal so that is what she will eat if we aren't there to get the food out for her.

Physically, she appears to be healthier than she has ever been. The doctor made a comment in January that he was surprised he hadn't seen her in a while----he said it had been about 8 months since she had been in. That was definitely good news--no back complaints, no headaches, no sinus infections, no coughing---amazing!

Life is Good.........