Too funny!

Okay, - I just couldn't help but post Ms. Chrissy's latest comment. Seems like I am always mentioning the walker or I am bringing it out from its assigned place in mother's dining room corner. Yesterday after church I stopped to pick her up and take her next door to our house for the afternoon. In driving her back to her home and after finally getting her inside the front door, where she just stops moving, as gently as I can muster, I told her all three of her doctors have explained the importance of and told her to use the walker. Still standing firmly in the doorway and with a most perplexed expression, Chrissy looked at me and said, "why - Judy Denise, I don't have three doctors!" And then, she just stood there and started laughing! Can you guess what she focused on for the remainder of the evening?

So the thought does cross my mind that after six full years with Chrissy's Alzheimer's, having advanced degrees, most weeks researching dementia, numerous interactions with other caregivers, consultations with professionals, and $$ spent on therapy, why would I continue to try and rationalize with my mother??! Who knows why at times I continue to try and make sense of things.

I do know that this intrinsic and powerful relationship with her, such a gentle woman who journeys daily without the love of her life, without cognitive or physical stability, is indeed a priority in my life. And while there are times of aggravation and frustration, there are also days when I am grateful to live next door and honored to be her daughter and caregiver.

Birthday Card

A couple weeks ago Chrissy wanted a funny birthday card to send my sister in KY. I brought in four cards and she chose the one she liked best. I agreed to address the envelope and mail it once she had written a note or signed the card. Chrissy most always includes a check for birthdays and visits. Long story short, the card ended up missing and for days, off and on, we looked everywhere we could think off. Finally we pulled out the other cards and she decided on the next best card but was "too tired" to sign her name or write anything down. The following day my sister called to thank mother for her birthday money! Chrissy had forgotten that she had given the card to her youngest daughter to mail!

Looking for things in and around that house occurs so frequently that it is unbelievably comfortable. Either Chrissy has misplaced the item, someone while cleaning has put it up somewhere, company is in and rearranges to help out, and of course there is always my contribution to this dance. We know to start opening drawers, cabinets, and closets and we just find all kinds of new things!

Neurologist apt.

Chrissy's annual neurologist appointment is Wednesday. Friday evening she was going on and on about why it is she has to go. After a while of being quite my little mother ask me if I would help her study for those questions the doctor always asks! I told her absolutely.

Today while we were eating lunch Chrissy said the tree in her yard was much prettier than any of ours. She wanted her picture taken with the beautiful tree. She's holding a little pumpkin that sits on her front porch.