The plan is to have mom with us for 3 months. If you count the first week at her house, I have survived the first two weeks living with my mother. Two things have imprinted so far; aging isn’t for the faint of heart and if you don’t move it you lose it. From my own experience, it seems maintaining mobility as we age is a huge challenge for all of us with or without other physical challenges. After securing several pieces of medical equipment, we have slayed the basics for her to comfortably get around in our senior friendly house here in Flagstaff. The single bed in the guest room is a challenge but she hasn’t fallen out of bed, yet!
I am not a natural caretaker but am learning quickly and providing assistance with minor personal care. After a year being mostly home alone, she is thoroughly enjoying companionship and being “taken care of” which Paul and I feel honored to do for her. Paul takes care of her morning coffee and breakfast after which she settles into reading, prayer and solitaire. I take over preparing lunch and/or snacks along with mid-day socializing after which a nap is in order. Late afternoon is filled with puzzles and cards; then it’s time for supper, prepared by Chez Paul, and on to watching Jeopardy after which she retires to her bedroom to read before lights out. A small space heater has solved our house temperature comfort differences in the evening.
I check on her a few times throughout the evening/night and she seems to be sleeping well. Better nutrition and a little nighttime ibuprofen, to take the edge off her aches and pains and which I think promotes sleep, is serving her well. We have gotten her headphones so she can listen to Mass and jeopardy without the TV blaring; guess it’s time for a hearing test. I’m taking her to the dentist this week to get a second opinion on an aggressive tooth extraction recommendation from her dentist in CA.
We bought her an Iphone several years ago which she has been reticent to use so I am sending her texts and emails several times a day forcing her to become more comfortable with her phone. This has come back to haunt me as she wears it around her neck as a lifeline and called me from her bed one night to assist her. I guess I am now officially “on call.” She loves to wander around the house looking at and commenting on everything she sees which can become a bit tiresome but I’m getting used to it. We are making sure she keeps in touch with others and all in all, I think things are going great. It has helped that I am not in project and craft mode right now and I still have most of the evening to myself. Let’s see how the next 10 weeks go!