no news is good news?!?

Can we seriously go a whole day without a post. First we stop the board meetings and now we don't even have witty banter. What am I to look forward to each day?!?

A happy little note...

Emma received a package in the mail from Uncle Larry. It was right along the lines of something Dad would do. It was a note telling Emma that he remembered her saying she could sew. He saw a craft in a magazine (which he cut out for her) that he thought she might like to try. He added his own drawing to help her visualize the craft. He even sent a few bits of fabric to get her started. Wasn't that cute and very Dad-like?!?

Have a nice day!

Love, Levelle

Today's good news...

Barb Daily was telling me that her mother (who is of sound mind) who moved into St. Elizabeth's last month is having the same emotions as Mom. There are days that she likes it, but more than not, she's telling Barb that she doesn't like it - she doesn't know anybody, she doesn't know where things are, she doesn't want to do activities. So at least we're not alone and neither is Mom. It's going to take time, but eventually she's going to get used to it, right?

More good news...

She didn't move out today either. Another day under her belt - getting used to BGT ;-) .

I do know Uncle Jim visited today and although she had been worked up about someone stealing her money (why would she even have any money at BGT other than a few dollars for bingo?) she was calmed down by the time he arrived because she had found it.

Just another day!

Love, Levelle

I just got back from visiting Mom...the good news is...

Her bags weren't packed....yet. It was just another typical day. She was sad. She just wants to go home. There's nothing for her to do at BGT. She doesn't want to make friends. If she has to go around being all smiley all day, she'll hate herself. (I thought that was a funny one :-) ) So I tried to be reasonable and talk up the place, but since she wasn't having anything to do with that, I left. (Even the kids were not entertaining for her)

It really seems that the days we're not there, she gets out and does at least some activity. Anyone think we should pull an all out moratorium on visits/calls for a few weeks? Isn't that what the ALZ groups were saying? If she can't cry on our shoulders and beg us to take her home, at least she may have to talk to someone at BGT to let it all out. We know that this is the best place for her to be - safe and secure (BTW I overheard the receptionist on the phone talking to someone about that very issue, so I think the unlocked door is being addressed). We just need for her to get used to it and maybe even begin to like it.

Never fun, always interesting - just another day with Mom!

Love, Levelle

John's Off to College!

We dropped John off at Bradford (University of Pittsburgh) on Friday. Yipee!! His contact info is:
John Gilmour
Campus Box 424
300 Campus Dr
Bradford PA 16701
cell: 215-872-1212
jfg10@pitt.edu

I'm sure he'd love to hear from everyone/anyone. Since he hasn't accepted my friend request on facebeook, you all will have to let me know what's going on :(

I'll continue to monitor IM (which he never signs on to) My next step us to clean his room and then enjoy the cleanliness til he gets back. A pathetic life, you might say, but surprisingly satifying.

Picture posted in the picture column. How's all our other college offsprinkles doing? I'd love to have contact info.

Take care, Lel

Mea culpa- please blog again,Megan!

We (and by we I especially mean me!) owe Megan a big thanks. She has had a very long day with Mom. It started with her arriving to pick Mom up for Mr.Green's birthday party only to find Mom's bags packed again and Mom saying she wanted to go home. The fun continued when Mom almost fainted in the CVS parking lot, 911 was called and Mom was taken to St.Jos by ambulance with a low BP of 60/40. The last I talked to Megan and the doctor they had re-hydrated Mom and were waiting for some last test results. The doctor anticipated sending Mom home (by home I mean BG). I sure Megan can fill in more details of her fun-filled 12+hours =) !
Thanks again, Megan

Another week, another call

Okay, I just had a lovely 30 minute talk with Mom. We chatted about Michael Phelps, LUM, mass at the Mother House, Uncle Jim, bingo, volunteering, walks, melatonin, Alex, John & Andy, and some other stuff. Wonderful!

She also sounded entirely oriented throughout the whole 35 minute call too.

Please, good blogs only!

After hearing of Megan's visit yesterday where Mom had her bags packed to move to the 2nd floor and her disturbing report on Sunday from Linda that Mom was on the edge of being moved to Reminiscence, I decided to call Cathy, mom's nurse. She said Mom is adjusting nicely and that she is getting out to socialize. She went to a Happy Hour one night - boys, what have you started!? and she went to the Town Hall meeting last night. She said Mom is a very sweet lady and there have not been any recent issues. She said Mom is not even on her "radar" for Reminiscence and she didn't know where Linda got that information. She assured me that we would be made aware if anything were to change.
Megan, I love you but you either have to stop visiting or stop blogging. I need a break from worrying and Mom seems to be doing great ;-D

Speaking of Mum, dear LUMnuts and others

First of all, congratulations to all of folks at LUM (both past and present) who are pleased with this recent development. But I think I stand with the crowd who would say this takes away the charming small school, community feeling that was an attractive draw to perspective students. But what do I know? My diploma from TSU (yes, say it fast and it's 'tissue') is now worthless, as the school dropped the 'State' from its name. For a modest fee (ha), they offered to send me a new diploma with the name updated.

But speaking of Mum, I went to BG to drop off some things today (pb&j and bread, so she can miss BG lunch to go to the mother house mass). She was as pleasant as could be, in the middle of a round of bingo (she'd just won $3). So I was surprised to find, when we went back to her room, that her suitcase and cardboard box were packed and ready to go. It turned out that Mom got it in her head that she would soon be moving to a new room on the second floor, where the residents were less monitored. It was cute how she had her 'children' (the gnomes) all nestled snuggly in the box.

When y'all go visit in the future, maybe you could remind Mom to check her mail. She not in the habit of remembering that yet.

Congratualtions Dad, Mike, Levelle, Shannon; Anyone else?

This article says Loyola College will now be Loyola University Maryland. Not sure if Dad gets the Sunpapers up there but I'm sure he reads our blog.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/education/college/bal-loyola0820,0,6052549.story

test

Dum spiro, spero

Uncle Jim called to report a very nice visit with Mom today. When he arrived at BG mom wasn't there. She had walked over to the Mother House for 12 noon mass. She had decided to take a pass on lunch with IND girls, but was delighted to have lunch with Uncle Jim at BG. BTW, I guess that lunch will be on the bill ;-D . He said she was very cheerful and coherent. She even told him she likes her room and thinks she wants to stay where she is!
I will be doing my calls to BG and priests on Weds., let me know if you have any specific questions or concerns.

An 'AH-HA!' moment and a disturbing tidbit

I stopped in for a Sunday visit to my favorite living 'rent. Thankfully, Mom was in a lovely mood this afternoon, and we had a great visit. Quod, Haden, and Dylan were there when I arrived, and we sat in the garden snacking on popcorn and ice cream. Yum!

I hope Levelle has a way of reading the blog while she's downy oshun. She'll get a kick out of this. On Friday, there was a 7 p.m. Mass at St. Mary's cemetery. We thought this was the dedication of the columbarium, but this might not be the case. But that's another topic. Levelle had arranged with Mom to pick her up at 6:30 to take her to the cemetery. She and her family arrived at 6:15 and found Mom waiting at the door. Mom was P.O.ed, got in Levelle's van and said, "Don't even speak to me!" Poor Levelle was clueless but took it in stride.

Today, I figured out the problem based on what Mom told me and what I learned from Alex, the concierge at BG. This coming Saturday evening, the 23rd, Mom is invited to a birthday party for Mr. Green (from Rosebank). Paula Green must have had someone (one of her boys?) call Mom and offer to pick her up at 5:00 on the 23rd to take her to the party. Mom apparently thought the party and the Mass were the same evening. By 5 p.m. she was waiting at the door of BG to be picked up for the party. The longer she waited, the more she got annoyed (really annoyed) because she now wouldn't be able to go to the party before the Mass, and she was NOT going to miss the Mass. So she had an hour and 15 minutes to stew before Levelle arrived. The concierge (Alex) at BG didn't know what was going on and couldn't convince Mom that she might not be going anywhere, because she didn't imagine there was a Friday night Mass anywhere.

And the moral of the story is... hare today, and goon tomorrow. No, that's a different story.

From now on, Alex and Linda at BG said that it would be extremely helpful (where Mom's concerned) if we gave them a heads-up when we were picking Mom up for some event. Just call the consierge-on-duty early in the day, and they'll be ready to explain to Mom if she happens to be waiting in vain. Keep in mind, there is a shift change at 4 or 4:30 pm, so call the desk after that, if you're picking Mom up in the evening.

The disturbing tidbit I referred to is this... When I first popped my head into the BG office, I asked Linda if she was aware of how things might be going for Mom and her adjustment period. Linda pointed out she wasn't the best person to talk to, as it is her job to get residents in to BG, not follow up with them. (This, of course I knew, but I was just asking, as no one else was available.) Linda did, however, say something about Mom being right on the edge between 'Assisted Living' and 'Reminiscence.' This isn't good news, and I think we need to have whatever care planning meeting we need to have with the BG folks. (And by 'we' I mean at least Quinn.) Mom still thinks she could be living at home. I don't know how, but we've got to do something to help Mom that would keep her in a regular room for as long as possible.

Got any ideas?

Off topic: one more race

Slightly better than a 50/50 chance. Winner has the right to swim the relay.

My visit to the Alzheimer's Association

I met some incredibly nice, understanding, helpful people at the AlzAssoc today. I went in there for a referral for a geriatric psychologist. After I gave them some background info, they pointed out a few things that we may have heard, but they bear repeating:

• Count on at least 90 days for adjustment, probably more considering mom is also dealing with dad's death.
• Her internist has been a lame source of medical care over recent years. She should be seen by specialists- at least a geriatrician who could lead us to a geriatric psychiatrist and/or neurologist who may be helpful.
• We are paying BG big bucks and it is their job to address mom's adjustment to her new living arrangements. (Is Quinn or anyone in touch with them about mom's care plan and its efficacy? Should we be, or are we, in touch with them on a near daily basis about her progress? (Separate phone calls from each of us probably wouldn't be appreciated.) Or if one of you is already receiving frequent updates, maybe I'm just not hearing about it... ?)
• We really should be limiting our contact with mom until she's had more time to adjust. (I hate this. ) This includes phone calls from Singapore. (I told them about Michael's most recent bummer of a call.)

I can't remember if BG has a psychologist/counselor/bartender available as a resource. Or, if we want to go down this road, should we make our own arrangements? Maybe we could discuss this at a board meeting soon, though I think this weekend is inconvenient for a few of us, at least.

Some of the available resources include: Johns Hopkins Bayview Cognitive Disorder Clinic (Bayview), Johns Hopkins Memory Center, Comprehensive Geriatric Services Memory Clinic (Dulaney Valley Rd, Towson), GBMC Senior Services, Neuropsychiatry Program at Sheppard Pratt, as well as several geriatric psychiatrists.

In case you're interested, the Alzheimer's Association has a national 24/7 helpline - 800.272.3900. The Maryland office can be reached at 410.561.9099 or 800.443.2273. I'm not sure of the hours of operation for the local phone numbers, but the women I talked to were eager to listen and offer support.

Recommended Reading:
Learning to Speak Alzheimer's - Joanne Koenig Coste
The 36-Hour Day - Nancy L. Mace
The Validation Breakthrough - Naomi Feil

On another topic, do any of you plan on going to the dedication of the columbaria tomorrow? It's at 7 pm at the cemetery, unless it rains. Then it will just be a mass at St. Mary's.

Bummer of a Call II: Return of the Jet Eye

Just refer to my post about my last call for a summary of the current one. At least she didn't swear this time. In fact late in the call, I tried to say that she sounded much better, stronger and more lucid compared to last week but she cut me off before I could put my foot in my mouth. She asked, "Why is that? Because I haven't cursed at you this time?" She cracks me up. She also said her vocal cords are in better shape because she practices by yelling at her children who put her there.

My strategy was to talk about Michael Phelps right away so she didn't have a chance to think about anything else. It worked for about 5 minutes but all the sudden she started crying and said she wanted to go home. Man, this is tough. I changed to conversation to talk about Jim O'Conor and the funeral for a while but in 10 more minutes she started again. 10 minutes about Dad's future condo and the dedication ceremony and more pleading.

Mom also talked about the house and her vote is that if one of you tries to sell it, don't be shocked if she buys it. We chatted about subletting the "apartment" too although she still doesn't use that word. I also understand that the Mother House doesn't have mass every day. Mom said that if she remembers who conned her on that one, they are out of the will.

Dad, if you are reading this blog, please pray for Mom. She needs you. So do we. ilyaimyvm

My turn again?

Since no one else has posted anything:

* I spoke with St. Mary's about the Legacy of Love. The 'rents pledged $2,500 and have paid $500. St. Mary's would love to have the remaining $2,000 if we/they can handle it.

* I meant to see what niche Mom and Dad can buy in the columbarium but I forgot to get specifics from you who would know. Was it the one on the left or right as you face the altar? Top row, first box? It might be nice to get that resolved before the dedication on Friday. If someone could provide Mrs. Fitzpatrick's phone number it might be good for me to work with her at the same time as with the rectory on this.

* The Baltimore Equitable insures the house. they do not allow non-owner-occupied houses to be covered. I said that we have Mom in ALF at least temporarily and that we are "house-sitting." The rep seemed OK with that but said it could not go on for long. If we keep the house for a while, or choose the rental option, we will have to switch to traditional insurance premiums. Not sure how much that would be.

Tomorrow: health insurance

Random stuff

* You can stop praying for good performance of stocks in the tel-com sector. Dad is now properly diversified with a mixture of cash, short-term, safe securities/funds and longer-term & tax-deferred funds that have more potential to grow.

* Comcast cable is scheduled to be cut off at Yarmouth on August 21, 2008.

* Cavalier will provide service for phone and (very-fast 15 mbps) internet. They will send a modem to Yarmouth with installation instructions, likely the first of next week. the phone number will probably be 443-901-1264.

* The forms are complete for transferring the car to Paul; I'll forward to him when he returns my call.

Finally, my thoughts from the weekend, with apologies in advance that this is only based on 30 hours of observation. (I'm sure every day brings a new challenge.):
^ Mom was angry that I was there, but I threw her off by asking a bunch of questions and the next thing I knew she was in charge, showing me around;
^ Mom wouldn't play bingo, but when I said I wanted to go down to watch anyway she went with me, took the cards ($1 each) and she laughed and played the whole hour, even after I left;
^ Mom wasn't too impressed with all of the old people there, but I struck up conversations with everyone that we passed and now she knows something about many of them (if only for a brief time) and they know about her;
^ Mom wouldn't identify anywhere that she wanted/needed/would like to go, but when I suggested we visit Paul at the Village Inn she got up and headed to the truck.

At the end of the Saturday she slept through to 7:00 am Sunday, and after Mass she unpacked the rest of her suitcase and gave me the silver pieces to take back to Yarmouth.

I am sure she could have regressed by the end of the day yesterday, or by this morning, but maybe the weekend inched her forward. Of course the last thing she asked me is whether I could sign her release form.

Final thing: the dedication of the columbaria is at a Mass this Friday at the cemetery at 7:00 pm. I am sure she will call Emily every day, but could someone make sure that she gets there. She might also appreciate family company. (Did M&D purchase a niche in the columbarium already, or is that something we need to take care of?)

MInutes from the Bored Meeting...

Members in attendance:
Daniel C. Smith
J. Stuart Smith
Megan Smith Strott
Levelle G. Blanchard

Meeting called to order:
3:40pm (because Danny was late and we gave up thinking that Paul might show up ;-) )

• Financial Business - We have a five step plan in place to tidy up financial transactions

1. We have a Financial Advisor - Michael Havlick - blah, blah, blah I zoned out during most of this conversation, but I trust the experts. Seems we will be selling the stock and converting it to money market funds. We will be closing down the Point Breeze Credit Union account and moving most of the assets from the Midstate Federal account to the Bank of America account. The Midstate account will stay open if they promise to help Stuart finish out the quarter collection that Dad has started for all of the grandchildren.

• House Business - It's still too early to make any major decisions about the house, but start thinking about our options. We don't need to sell right away because M&D have cash available to pay her bills for now and we don't need to wait out the housing market because houses are still selling in the development right now.

1. Keep the house as is and put lights on times to scare off thieves.
2. Rent - but nothing long term.
3. Wait for Mom to tell Paul that he should just go and move in.
4. Put on a 2nd story and potentially make more money on the sale. (The house had a rough estimate of selling for around $300K. If we put say $200K in to raise the roof, we could possibly sell the house for about $700K and potentially make an extra $200K on the transaction.

• Random business

1. Stuart is going to add Cavalier Cable and Phone to the house for $50/month for visitors.
2. Levelle gave an update on the doctor appt.
3. Anyone looking for Mom's purse - it is now located in the cabinet about the refrigerator in Mom's apartment. (Stuart's doing - not Mom's Alzheimer's ;-) )
4. Megan was paid $125 to cover locks, keys and newspaper service for Mom.
5. Megan will be taking mom to Mr. Green's birthday party on the 23rd.
6. Levelle has all of the mass cards and guest books at her house now.

• Future Business

1. Vote on whether to begin removal of items from the house as stated in Mom's official give-away book
2. Vote on whether or not to cut the check to the St. Mary's Legacy campaign which Dad had pledged ($2,500)
3. Find out why Paul wouldn't show up at a meeting where he was going to be receiving the title to his new car.

• Random Funny Statements heard throughout the meeting....

1. Stuart offered that he would like to see Mom get to the point that she would enjoy coming back to a party at Yarmouth and then say that she would like to go back home to BGT at the end of the party. For this reason (and others like not increasing Mom's depression) he would like to keep the house as is for now - not sell, rent or take any objects out.
2. Megan is allowed to take the tools if she promises to leave some cut off fingers behind (or something like that, I zoned out on that conversation too)
3. Mom's new friend Frank has very large feet and you know what they say...

I left the meeting around 5:00 because we weren't really accomplishing anything and I wanted to get to a crab feast. So that's it for now.

Love - Levelle

So, ummmm....

When and where for the board meeting?

Board Meeting

I suggested this to a couple of sprinkles... Can we hold the board meeting at mom's and maybe spend an hour, or so, weeding? It will all go quickly if we do it together. Wouldn't it be fun? We could bring bagels and eat cherry tomatoes.

BTW- the husband of one of 'those girls' has tampered with the locks again. All locks are now keyed the same. Now we can move mom back in again. :-O Kidding!

I stopped by BG to drop off mail and the shampoo mom wanted. She was in a terrible state of depression-- couldn't find her pocket book, to begin with. She is so worried/depressed about the prospect of living for 20 more years like this, etc.

And now I just realized I forgot to call the Sunpaper to start delivery tomorrow. Shit. Sorry.

bumper of a call

Nothing to report. I just wanted to get top post again. :p

BTW, no one got upset by "Dad's room" photo did they? Hope not.

Simple Remote on the Way

I ordered a simple remote control (only has Vol, Channel, and on/off buttons). It's on the way to your house, Danny. Maybe that will help.

Really I just wanted to bump the "bummer of a call" entry:)

Have a great day, folks.
-Lel

bummer of a call....

I just spoke to Mom for about an hour. She tried to rush me off but I wasn't having any of that and I think she needed to talk. She was quite lucid for most of the conversation but pissed off throughout. I even got to hear her say "pissed" and "damn" so it was worth the call if for no other reason. She cried a lot too which wasn't near as much fun.

She is definitively unhappy and pissed that y'all moved her in there without so much as consulting her or telling her she was getting moved. I reminded her that she might have that story wrong. I'm still trying to get the hang of not trying to reason with her but she was pissed before she said hello so don't blame everything on me. She is definitely lonely but I am not sure pushing BGT to get a buddy system going is the right way to deal with that anymore. I don't want people avoiding her because she is the "needs hand holding" lady. She thinks people are already avoiding her but I tried to point out that old people like those other people get into fixed patterns that are hard to break. I suggested she make it a point to be the one to step up when the next new person arrives and she should be the person who says "please sit here" or "let me show you around". She will eventually and slowly fit in there, I think, but every few days I think someone should take her out to lunch or dinner or for a drive or to walk around a mall, etc.

Don't always do the cemetery though. That got her worked up and confused. She was back having trouble distinguishing Dad from Granddad. She did let slip that she was a spoiled brat when she was young and needed to apologize for that.

I tried to ask what would make living at BGT more palatable and she said the phone helped but she had no one to call. The only person she could think of to speak with was Mr. Green as she could only "unburden herself" to me and him. I hope he is still alive because I don't think Verizon covers heaven. She was pretty sure the rest of her children (who are now out of the will) are conspiring to keep her in the ..... she could not think of the word and she would not call it an apartment so we settled on "the prison". She actually laughed. That brought up the next problem though as she just found out that someone had re-named BGT. They did it sneakily after she was moved in although it was not clear to if it used to be or is now called an "assisted living facility". If she had known that before she moved in, she never would have chosen it.

Back to the “what would help her settle in” question and she thought a TV that she could operate would help. She doesn’t know where her old TV went to or who bought this new one but she could not operate either one. I suggested asking an attendant but she was not keen to do that. She had enough trouble getting help to unlock her door. She has decided not to lock it any more as it can’t be opened with a key. Maaaaaatt!

We talked about how I had lived in some pretty difficult situations / places in my life and I had two choices, be miserable or make the best of it. I always chose the later as I had her determination. She assured me that she had no idea how I could ever live overseas (which isn’t what I was really talking about) and that she could not do that. She doubted she could live the rest of her life in BGT no matter what she tried. That reminds me, she is conviced that only the first floor houses the "normal people". She knows everyone on the 2nd and 3rd floor have dementia and she doesn't like getting lumped with them. I hope the one-bedroom is on the first floor but it will be fun moving her for sure anyway.

We talked some more about Aunt Melmarie, her friends that she could call, walking around the grounds, Notch Cliff, how sneaky the Gentry family is (????), Uncle Alfred’s Alzheimer’s, eating well and some other stuff that I can’t remember. I did put in a good word for y’all even though I was in the dark about your plans myself. :D Because I love you all, I’ll try to get you back in the will too.

Go gentle and wisely (even if that’s not enough), Michael MCF

First, an overdue special thank you... Lisa, thanks from the bottom of my heart for your continued love and support as I travel down these new and bumpy roads. It has been a great comfort for me to know that you're by my side through these times.

Next, tonight's visit with Mom... It was heart rendering with lots of hand holding and tears. Mom was grasping the realities of Dr. Lavin's talk with her today and was shaken to be facing her illness and mortality. I reassured her that we will love her dearly no matter what the future holds. She said she regrets "being a burden" and sometimes feels that our support is given out of a sense of obligation. Again, I reassured her that this was not the case and that we will be there to support her until God calls her home. Mom expressed a longing for how she mentally was 10 years ago and doesn't want to remembered for how she is now or will be down the road. Once again, I let her know that we will always remember her as a selfless, caring wife and mother and that we'll stick by her side throughout her journey. I had planned on leaving before dinner but just couldn't. When I walked her down to the dining room, either tables were full or completely empty. So...we had a nice table for two by the window ;-}. BTW, dinner is free and they have wine or beer available! Though I abstained, we both parted with higher spirits just after dinner.

While there, I plugged in the phone (which was "lost" but now is found...Amazing grace!) and Mom is now reconnected to the outside world. I meant to ask her to refrain from using it after Jeopardy but forgot... Sorry Quinn!

I stopped by to see Paul on the way home. He has a new cell phone (same #) with texting service now and possibly e-mail service shortly. He'll move his old car into Yarmouth Rd driveway tomorrow morning. He'll get his insurance transferred to his new wheels as we get the vehicle titled to him. I'll get that done a.s.a.p. this week or early the next. I gave him a 'heads up' about the current status of lock changes at Yarmouth Rd. I also invited him to the next Board Meeting if he can work it into his schedule. He asked if 6:00 a.m. would be convenient for us ;-)

Speaking of that, are we gathering for a meeting this weekend? My schedule currently looks pretty flexible and I'm open to time & place suggestions. Stuart, as a minimum, I'd like to meet you at Yarmouth Rd sometime when you're up to go over a few things.

Lastly... We have passed from the role of being familial care givers to that of being guardian angels. Let's continue to work closely with BGT as they have a whole lot more experience in this area than we do.

Love, Danny

Mom's P.S.: "Grandchildren are welcome to visit if they WANT to come but please don't FORCE them to do so."

Sorry to bump the "Oh Crap" entry...

but with the move of 825-0402 to BG we have other considerations:


1) The phone transfer means internet/wireless will not be available at Yarmouth either. Take your cell phone when you go there.
2) We have no TV at Yarmouth currently, but we have not cancelled the cable service yet. One alternative is to get a TV and change the cable service to include internet at about $110/month with a one-year contact. Another alternative is cancel it all and put the money towards BG.

Any opinions? Paul, if you read this blog, this would be a good time to speak up if you were counting on using any of these amenities.

It Takes More Than 3 Days to get Acclimated

Quinn arrived at Mom's this morning to take her to the doctor and Mom was sitting there with all her bags packed. I'm going home, she said.

I will keep you posted with anything I hear. I only know this much because Quinn had a minute while Mom was in the exam room. She called Levelle's house and talked to Joanne Blanchard. I just happened to call right after that. She said to Joanne, I guess I'll have to be the bad guy and take her back.

Keep her in your prayers. And by her, I mean Quinn.

Linda & Tanya

So has anyone signed Linda and/or Tanya up with a google account and directed them to this blog? How are we supposed to know how Mom is doing unless we get updates? Maybe we should get broadband to Mom's room so she can update us directly. Enquiring minds what to know!

Housekeeping

I am going to make it a point to go by the house when I go in to the office. That means definitely every Tuesday and Thursday. On MWF when I have a good chunk of time, I plan on going there to work in the basement anyway. I'll call the Baltimore Sun on Monday and cancel delivery to 627. I know BG gets a stack of the Baltimore Examiner everyday, Mom could help herself to that. I'll have the Sunpaper delivered there too, unless you tell me otherwise. What should I use as the billing address?

I'll keep the grass cut, too, unless Alex is dying to do it before he goes back to school. I just cut it Wednesday, I think, so it won't be needed for a few more days.

I harvested a few grape tomatoes, 14 in fact. Who wants them? Michael, should I send your share to your office or home address? There are also peppers ready to harvest, but someone else will have to get them. I don't do peppers.

FYI

A few things I told some of you, but maybe not all...

• Jim found the funeral home sign-in books. They were in the red dresser outside of Dad's workshop. Now they are on the dining room table. Could someone take care of getting them to Uncle Larry?
• The garage circuit breaker is turned off. It's in the basement laundry room.
• Right now, there are only 2 keys to the new lock on the front door - Megan and Levelle have them
• We found a cool 1865 diary that belonged to Mom's great-grandfather Gentry. Quinn has it now to show to Tod. There was an entry on April 14 that said, "Abraham Lincoln murdered at Ford's Theater in Washington, DC." Chilling.
• We found a letter that Mom and Dad received in early May 2008 from St Mary's. They have pledged $2,500 to St Mary's Legacy of Love. I have a scan copy of the letter which I will e-mail to Stuart and Danny. We should honor that request and see how much they still owe.
• Jim also scanned all the pages of the Distribution Book where Mom lists what sge wants everyone to have. The original is in the desk. If you want me to e-mail you the scanned copy, let me know. It's just for your reading enjoyment, of course. We don't want to be taking things out of the house til Mom says OK.

Take care, folks. I'm with Quinn in that I think we should visit lightly until Mom gets more settled. She didn't go to church with us this morning because she wasn't feeling well (wish I could spell diarea ) But she was happy and in a good mood.

Talk to you all soon, Lel

Day one

Jim and I stopped to see Mom around 1:30 today. She was sitting in her room watching an infomercial because she didn't know how to change the channel. She was glad to see us and in good spirits. The only bad thing she said while we were there was "I'm on the edge about staying here. I'm lonley."

All three of us went for a long walk around the beautiful grounds at the Mother House. On the second lap, we decided to go in and see Melmarie. She was excited to learn that Mom had moved in next door.

A few things will make a difference: newspaper delivery and phone. As Mom gets more used to it, she'll be more apt to participate in activities, or just sit in the common areas where there were lots of people. Every time we ran into someone, Mom would have a conversation with them - on the elevator and at the front desk. She'll make friends quickly.

Jim and I are taking her to St Mary's in the morning. Hopefully she'll go to breakfast with us. Levelle is planning on going over tomorrow with the love seat, so the room will be complete.

A good start to a long haul!

Go gently folks, Love, Lel

You can sleep easy tonight, sprinkles!

Well, she's moved in. It was actually a very peaceful, easy transition. Mom was dressed and ready when I arrived for 6:30 mass. We came home and packed a few more things. Mom participated fully in the process. When we sat down for a break, Mom said, "You're looking at a new woman. I had been having nightmares about how awful the room was going to be. But now I know it won't be bad." She slept easier last night.

We arrived at BG in time to unpack a few things and have lunch. By mid-afternoon, Mom's energy and mind were fading. There were a couple of instances of forgetting Dad had died, and even worse, telling several people that I wasn't her daughter and that I should stop telling people that. -- :( The third time she denied me (I feel a Jesus complex coming on), I knew it was time to leave her to rest.

Mom met with the nurse, too. The nurse took away Mom's meds because Mom couldn't remember what it was called and why she was taking it. Since BG will now supervise her medication, they will be charging her an extra $13/day. It was bound to happen sooner or later. I'm just sorry this meeting with the nurse took place during this afternoon brain-lull instead of earlier in the morning.

Quinn arrived in time to have dinner with mom. The met several other residents, including one woman, Carol Jean, who was a neighbor of Mom's in Ednor Gardens- she recognized Mom from 60 years ago!?

I've been keeping Mrs. Leonard abreast of everything. She's notified the LunchBunch to call of the LunchBrigade. The folks at BG want to keep visitors to a minimum for the first couple of weeks while Mom gets used to the routine. Leland might be down tomorrow, though if you want to postone, I'm sure that would be okay too, Lel. I'm going to stop on my way to work tomorrow and hang a few pictures.

All in all Mom (and Quinn) had a good day. Quinn was told how young she looks (Oh, stop! giggle giggle); I, on the other hand, was most often introduced by mom as her older sister. (Oh, stop! barf barf).

So for tonight, at least, sleep easy sprinkles, tomorrow is another day. Michael, I hear that Michael Phelps is in Singapore. Maybe you could find out where he's training and go cheer him on.

Peace, y'all.