Monday, December 28, 2015

Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year!

                                                              


 Christmas is over for another year. We always look forward to family time, food and fellowship. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas. If you didn't then seeking out the Christ of Christmas will ease your pain, help you find peace and a joy that is beyond your understanding. I find it is way too easy to get busy with preparations of family coming and making food to the point of missing the real meaning of why we celebrate.

 My Dad and Angie and I took Mom to the school program at their church at LightHouse Chapel on the 20th We took her in a wheelchair so that if she had any "accidents" we could just wheel her out and take care of her. But she did very well. She seemed to enjoy it. I noticed that most people could walk past her without too much problem but when Galen or Donna walked by she grabbed for them and didn't want to let go.

  On Christmas Day we, along with Lucas and Anna and their two little boys took Brunch over to Dad's house so that they could have some fun and fellowship too. We made stuffed French Toast and an Egg Quiche of sorts. It is a little hard to get Mom into our house anymore with our steps. She told me years ago that we need a ramp. We used to haul Grandma in on a wheelchair. Bump, bump, bump up the stairs. But it was easier to take the food to Mom this time.

  Matt and Kaitlyn had the flu on Christmas Day so they didn't make it for our gift exchange. They came the next day then. We had planned a surprise for our kids this year and so the anticipation of that was fun. We wanted to take them on a sleigh ride but because there was no snow we went on a horse drawn wagon ride instead. It was chili but fun. The kids say they get to plan the surprise next year. So we are in a little trepidation of what they could come up with. You never know what your kids might do when you are at their mercy. Lol!


                                                                        Kaiden

                                                                          Blake

                                                                          Our Ride

                                                             Blake and his Mama  (Anna)

                                                     Hannah ( Marc's new Bride )

                                         

                                                   Kaiden


Saturday, December 19, 2015

Today is Mom's Birthday!

 Mom turned 84 years old today. She is 30 years and 3 days older than Steve. That's how I remember how old they are. I can usually pinpoint one or the other. Whenever I want to know how old Mom is I think of Steve and figure it out, or the other way around.

  We had a good day. It was my turn to stay with Mom. Angie had called me weeks ago and we made plans to have lunch with Mom. Angie said she would buy chicken from KFC. Because Mom always loved their chicken. She asked me to do the Potato Salad. I think I got the best end of the deal. Because she had to spend a fortune. I invited the rest of the family to come at 2:00 for ice cream and cake because even though Angie would have bought Chicken for everyone. I didn't have the heart to let her.

  We did Mom's shower today and I cleaned the mess between Mom and Pop's chairs. It looks much better now. Mom got a lot of cards for her birthday. I put some on the wall beside her chair at eye level where she can see them. I found that she had chucked a few in the trash can when I emptied it. Don't worry, she would never do that if her mind was working right. But that is just how she does now.

  She got a cute little scrapbook in the mail from her nieces, Linda and Cheryl, don't ask me what their last names are. It's been too long. I know their maiden names though. Linda Hostetler and Cheryl Garretson. After inspecting the little book we discovered it was made from those little white lunch bags folded in half with a spiral binding added. They did an excellent job. I didn't think to take pictures today. But I am going back tomorrow and again on Tues. well actually everyday next week because Kristin will be on vacation and Phebe will be doing her job over there. So I will take the camera and get some pictures to post so you can see this cute little book.

  It was fun to be at the folks again with other ones from the family. It's been a long time since we were all there like that. Reminded me of the days when we used to do that more. Darwin's were there. Our two married sons were there. Luc and Anna and their two sons, Kaiden & Blake, also Marc and Hannah. Actually we have three married sons but Matt lives too far away and is planning to be here for Christmas. So he couldn't make it for today. OK lets be honest. I didn't even invite him cause I knew he wouldn't come two weekends in a row.

 
                                                                Singing Happy Birthday


                                                                     Pop and Mom


                                             Darwin and Mom with Merry and Dawson


                                          Birthday cake and Mom's favorite food.....ice cream!

Saturday, December 12, 2015

Comments

  I recently got a Christmas card from Uncle Les & Aunt Sue. They put a note in there saying they can't comment on my blog posts because they were being required to have a Google account. I think I fixed that now. So if you want to leave a comment it should work now :)
  Have a great weekend!

Thursday, December 10, 2015

Brain Food

  Mom has been doing some better this past week. She seems to comprehend better, She appears to recognize us better, and I notice she's more concerned about modesty when she gets her shower. My Dad says he is giving her Brain Food and Zeolite. I usually am the worst skeptic you can find when it comes to taking a lot of Health Products. Probably because I have seen too many come and go. But I have to admit that I did see a change in her before I knew he was giving her anything.

  This morning when Angie and I got to the house to shower Mom she was drinking her morning shake, loaded with her Brain improvement products. She was overjoyed to see that I had Merry with me. It didn't take her long to start blowing into her straw and making a whistling noise. My Dad said that was one of her most recent activities. I stood there watching her when I got the inspiration to give her a Harmonica.

  We gave her the shower first but then after she was all dressed and combed I gave her a Harmonica to blow on. She loved it. I don't think she played any particular tune but she was making merry melodies when I left. I'm thinking my Dad will probably put it out of reach soon.



Thursday, December 3, 2015

It Doesn't All End Here

 Sometimes perspective is all we need. Our care for Mom continues week after week. She stays pretty much the same. Her worsening progression is so minute it can hardly be noticed. Like the hour hand of the clock, it moves slowly and unheeded by us all until the end of the day we realize, it really has moved on and the day is gone.

  Today Mom had a window of clarity where I think she really remembered me. How precious to feel the pressure as she squeezed my hand hard and smiled. It felt so good to be acknowledged again. I had become so resigned to her not knowing who I am that I think I have been pretty downhearted about it without really admitting it to myself.

   It didn't last long. By the time she walked to the bathroom for her shower the moment had passed. She frowned and shook her head "no" very vigorously when we started her bath. Then she violently kicked the water again.

  I thought about it regretfully as we got her dressed then. The sadness and sorrow of Mom no longer being herself. As I pondered the thing I had a light bulb moment... IT DOESN"T END HERE! There's no reason to get too down about this. This is only a moment compared to all of eternity when Mom and I will know each other like we always did. IT ISN"T OVER! I will have a mother/daughter relationship again with her soon....

  Some day soon, she will be her neat self again. She won't have an unheeded drippy nose, she won't get food everywhere all over herself and not care that she has crumbs sticking to her chin. Her bathroom inabilities will no longer exist.

 It doesn't end here. It's all a matter of perspective!

   Just for fun today I asked her where her cookbooks are. She pointed out the general direction but I insisted she get up and show me. She did. Not very eagerly, but she marched right over and showed me where they are kept. Wow! She remembers.

Tuesday, December 1, 2015

Mom's Got a Birthday Coming

  Happy Thanksgiving to all my readers! I hope you all had wonderful times with your families!  We had a rare treat at our house. Steve's Brother, Sister and their families were here along with his Mother. So our house was full and overflowing with people fun and food.

  The guys and some of the girls had a Bow Shoot Competition. They had a lot of fun and prizes as well. The younger division were shooting an Air Rifle and the prize was won by one of the girls. She defeated 3 of her Boy Cousins. I suppose some of that will end up being posted on their FB page Schrock Outdoors

  Since we had visitors we didn't make it for Thanksgiving Dinner with Mom and Dad. Angie cooked Thanksgiving dinner at her house and Roger's came up and were at Jay and Angie's along with The folks.

  Mom's Birthday is on Dec 19th, I was thinking that some of you might be interested in sending her some gifts that she would enjoy with the limited mind that she has now. I found a link that has all kinds of things for people with Alzheimers and Dementia Best Products for Dementia and Alzheimers  I didn't look at everything they have to offer.

 I remember how she used to say she loved to visit Aunt Eileen and how they would listen to the comedies on the Radio. I'm too young to know what those programs were but maybe some of you remember and can bring some of those back into her life. I think visuals are better than audios though.

  Please understand that you are under no obligation to send anything. But if you don't have her address please contact me.