Welcome!

This is a journal of our lives with my mom, affectionately known as Little Mama. In her 90's, she is a sweet, spunky, spirited, sometimes exasperating, tiny little lady that now lives with moderate dementia and macular degeneration. These journal entries show the good times and the not-so-good times.

Little Mama's type of dementia is age-related and is not hereditary. Sometimes, she appears to be perfectly normal. Other times, it is obvious that something is amiss. It is her desire to remain in our home rather than live out her days in an assisted living facility. It is my prayer that we will be able to honor her in this way. We feel blessed...and challenged...that she lives in our home. This is not easy, and important things rarely are easy. It takes an emotional and physical toll on the caregivers. I've been through the 7 stages of grief at least once if not more! If you are in a similar situation, you understand what I mean! Fortunately, our family helps a lot both physically and emotionally. It takes a team.

The fourth commandment tells us to honor our parents. That is done in many different ways. If you are struggling with a decision, please pray and ask for guidance and wisdom. Our Lord will let you know how He wants you to honor them. Regardless of the way you honor your loved ones, you will need support. So build your team, whether it is from members of your family or a support group.

I am finally learning that: I can't fix it. I can't change it. All I can do is accept it, trust God, and roll with it. (My condensed version of the Serenity Prayer.) We are learning to relax, laugh, and savor every moment we have with my mom on this side of Heaven.

So, scroll down.... read the entries...laugh and cry with us.

Blessings!
Lisa

















Monday, April 29, 2013

Root canals

What a day it was!  Little Mama had a root canal today at 9:30.  This is how it unfolded....

10:30 a.m.  Little Mama did great with the root canal. When I reached down to grab her hand to escort her out of the office, she held out her hand as if to greet me. She didn't recognize me. When we got in the car, she asked, "And how has your day been?". I asked her about her day and she said, "Fine...I've been at the doctor's." She's doing fine. 

 3:00 p.m.  So Little Mama just said, "I am going to have to have an aspirin.... I think I'm trying to take a toothache. I am going to need to go see the dentist." NO memory of the root canal this morning. Zip. Nada. Zero. Wow....

 3:30 p.m.  It's been about 30 minutes since I gave Little Mama two Tylenol.  In that short span of time, she has asked for an aspirin many times.  I told her to go outside and walk around...it might help with the anxiety.  She doesn't remember that I gave her something for pain.  She just knows that she is uncomfortable and I need to make it get better....NOW!  

 8:45 p.m.  She is ready for bed.... dispensed her meds....helped her change into her pj's...helped her brush her teeth.  As she is drying her face from brushing her teeth, she said, "Won't you be glad when you don't have an old woman to take care of."  I ignored that.  I walked behind her into her bedroom.  She thanked me for staying here to help her get ready for bed.  She was surprised to hear that she lives here with Kim and me.  
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