Visitors
I've been letting people know that now is a good time to see Mama. She still looks good. The morphine clouds her mind some, but she's still able to carry on basic conversations. She has a couple of small pieces of medical equipment attached to her, but they're not obtrusive. She mostly just sits in her soft brown recliner and tries not to doze while you talk to her.
Xoomie's grandparents (my aunt and uncle) are in town for a few days. I'm not sure how long they're staying, but it's nice that they are here and able to help look after Mama. My uncle caulked the upstairs shower yesterday, something I didn't realized that needed to be done even though I've used that shower a few times recently. My aunt has been doing laundry, cooking dinner and keeping my parents company. My father is never quite as happy as when he's entertaining company - showing off his home and his life.
My father's current obsession is with his bird feeder. He has it strung on fairly light test fishing line between two wide set trees. He's gone to great lengths to ensure that squirrels and chipmunks can't climb out to the bird feeder. But they still find a way. Daddy loves to watch the actual birds that show up to be fed. But he gets even more joy out of watching the creative problem solving the squirrels employ to get their share of the free food. Inevitably, one of them will get to the feeder and knock the food to the ground so all of them can eat it. Chipmunks reap the benefits and dart in and out of the squirrels to grab tiny morsels. Just last weekend, we found out that an even smarter rodent was eating the spilled food - a big ol' rat. Eww. Daddy's new mission is to catch and kill the rat with as little collateral damage to the cute and fuzzy rodent population as possible. My uncle has become just as involved in this game of survival as my father, although I think he is more of a [dang! I can't think of the fancy word for bird watcher] than my father. He actually enjoys identifying all the bird species that show up.
Anyway, Infectious Laughter is coming up to stay with me* and see Mama this weekend. Her mother is coming with her. I don't know if she's staying with me, too. I assume that she will because it just doesn't make sense for her to stay 45 minutes away and drive back and forth two days in a row (even though that's the drive I make to work every day).
I think Nickel and Wintertown are coming up on Sunday to see Mama (and maybe T, too). I made an unscheduled visit to their house last weekend - so unlike me even though I know I have an open invitation. I talked over the whole situation with them and they expressed their desire to come up on Sunday. There's never a lack of visitors on the weekend, so even if they can't make it, Mama will be entertained.
In all of this, I guess I want people to know that I don't expect anything out of them. I know it is a difficult situation. I just want to give people who know and love my mother (but really who knows my mother without loving her?) the knowledge that *if* they want to visit, now is a good time. Well, this weekend may be a little busy, but "now" in the general sense of now.
*Oy! I gotta clean my house. What was I thinking, asking her to stay with me?
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Xoomie's grandparents (my aunt and uncle) are in town for a few days. I'm not sure how long they're staying, but it's nice that they are here and able to help look after Mama. My uncle caulked the upstairs shower yesterday, something I didn't realized that needed to be done even though I've used that shower a few times recently. My aunt has been doing laundry, cooking dinner and keeping my parents company. My father is never quite as happy as when he's entertaining company - showing off his home and his life.
My father's current obsession is with his bird feeder. He has it strung on fairly light test fishing line between two wide set trees. He's gone to great lengths to ensure that squirrels and chipmunks can't climb out to the bird feeder. But they still find a way. Daddy loves to watch the actual birds that show up to be fed. But he gets even more joy out of watching the creative problem solving the squirrels employ to get their share of the free food. Inevitably, one of them will get to the feeder and knock the food to the ground so all of them can eat it. Chipmunks reap the benefits and dart in and out of the squirrels to grab tiny morsels. Just last weekend, we found out that an even smarter rodent was eating the spilled food - a big ol' rat. Eww. Daddy's new mission is to catch and kill the rat with as little collateral damage to the cute and fuzzy rodent population as possible. My uncle has become just as involved in this game of survival as my father, although I think he is more of a [dang! I can't think of the fancy word for bird watcher] than my father. He actually enjoys identifying all the bird species that show up.
Anyway, Infectious Laughter is coming up to stay with me* and see Mama this weekend. Her mother is coming with her. I don't know if she's staying with me, too. I assume that she will because it just doesn't make sense for her to stay 45 minutes away and drive back and forth two days in a row (even though that's the drive I make to work every day).
I think Nickel and Wintertown are coming up on Sunday to see Mama (and maybe T, too). I made an unscheduled visit to their house last weekend - so unlike me even though I know I have an open invitation. I talked over the whole situation with them and they expressed their desire to come up on Sunday. There's never a lack of visitors on the weekend, so even if they can't make it, Mama will be entertained.
In all of this, I guess I want people to know that I don't expect anything out of them. I know it is a difficult situation. I just want to give people who know and love my mother (but really who knows my mother without loving her?) the knowledge that *if* they want to visit, now is a good time. Well, this weekend may be a little busy, but "now" in the general sense of now.
*Oy! I gotta clean my house. What was I thinking, asking her to stay with me?
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1 Comments:
I am coming
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