Saturday, January 28, 2023

Saturday, January 28, 2023

Tonight's picture was taken in February of 2004. Mattie was almost two years old and that weekend we took him to the Washington, DC aquarium. Though this is in our Nation's capital, I would say that this was the most pathetic aquarium I have ever seen. However, its small size worked well for Mattie and as you can see, he was very engaged. 

Quote of the day: Stressors are everywhere. Each and every day, we run into situations that constantly test us, rob us of our patience, strip us of our sanity, impact our focus, and cause us to lose control of our days. ~ Colleen Archer

It was another 5:30am rising today! The two women that come every two weeks to help me clean the house were coming today at 8:30am. That meant that Sunny needed to be fed, administered chemo, I had to get myself showered and dressed, breakfast made, and my dad up, washed, and downstairs before 8:30am. Some days I feel like I am on a bad game show of.... to beat the clock!

The trouble with the house getting cleaned on Saturdays is my dad is home. He wants to sit in his chair and you never know when he needs to use the bathroom. Nonetheless, I did his brain games with him and his exercise routine. After which he went to the bathroom. After I put him in his chair, I went to the farmer's market with my mom for an hour. I knew my dad would be sleeping and he wasn't home alone. 

The farmer's market is a diversion from being couped up inside and the monotony of the everyday routine and tasks. I have gotten to know several of the farmers as well as the musician who plays the guitar and sings. So though I do not have the opportunity to see my friends like I once did, I do have a circle of people I do see weekly. Whether it be servers at Clyde's or the farmers. I can't tell you how much I appreciate these outside conversations. 

Check out who visited our porch at 3am! Can you see the fox? I am surprised Sunny wasn't barking his head off. 

After doing chores this morning, I did not want to get under foot with the cleaning ladies, so I went into my bedroom for about thirty minutes and sat on my bed. Look who joined me!?

Miss indie and me! 

Yesterday I mentioned how my dad got himself worried about his medications. He wanted me to type up a list of what medications he takes in the morning and evening. I have no idea where this came from all of a sudden as we all have been managing his meds since 2020!

I did type up the list yesterday, showed it to him, and put it in the drawer that I keep all his pills. But today, he went back at it. He wanted his own copy of the med list and insisted on making notes on it. Now he is carrying this list around with him. Sometimes it takes a great deal of patience to manage the care with someone who has moderate stage, and moving to late stage, dementia. 

All I know is tonight, I overdid it. I took on other projects today, like cleaning the oven and other things. It is 7pm, and I feel nauseous and exhausted. So I am stopping for a while until I have to put my dad to bed.