A butterfly net and a beautiful day

Jen's over at the house with her daughter Haven. The grandaughters are running around outside enjoying the cool temperatures. Mom did the same, sitting outside for 30 minutes this morning in the sun while Dad watered their potted strawberries. "They're looking good," Dad proclaimed proudly. "Pretty soon, Mom can have some fresh, juicy strawberries in her oatmeal." Mom smiles at that declaration. She's proud of the time she spent outside. She even played the piano for 20 mintues. Her left hand was a struggle but her right did well. "I have to work on the left hand," she says, rubbing it gently with her right hand. 

Sydney just came into the house asking for bread to feed the ducks. "A bun will work, grandpa," she instructs. "We'll use small pieces." 

Mom and Jen are done with the shower. Jen's going to do mom's hair now. Sydney just ran by the house in a full sprint with a butterfly net, smiling from ear to ear. I wonder whether I should be outside supervising. Dad's watching over them from the top deck. He seems to be enjoying helping them measure their fun without getting into trouble doing something they shouldn't. 

Mom's talking with Jen about a new hair brush that doesn't pull her hair. Jen has all the fancy hair hardware like flat irons. She and Mom have good conversations during the bathing process. Dad and I are glad Jen and Julie are able to handle that component. We also have aides that can come during the week when we're working. 

Room 139 (I think)

My memory isn't very good right now but I think Mom's new room is 139. She's got her quilts hanging and a new refrigerator that Jen bought her, stocked full of her favorite foods. She's feeling good. She ate white fish last night with Dad to celebrate their anniversary. She asked for oatmeal this morning and says she's getting her appetite back. "I'm craving food again," mom says.

Medically speaking, Mom looked great. She was able to talk without wheezing or stopping to catch her breath. Her voice is strong and she has good color. She's still in a hospital gown but she's getting closer to wanting to wear clothes again. She explained that the radiologist said the clothes might change their setup and that the gown was preferred. So it looks like Mom will continue to wear the hospital gown a little while longer.

The nurses weren't able to get a blood pressure reading because they can't figure out how to read it off the calf. "The hospital has the automatic system but they don't here," Mom explains.

As we suspected, she's on a first name basis with several of the staff members. She was explaining that the night nurse drives from Fredericktown each day to come to work. "An hour and a half," Mom says. "Once you understand the nurses and all they go through, you have a new understanding of how hard they have it," she adds. I think about how hard my chair is that I'm sitting in and suddenly feel better.

Mom had a shower today. She said it felt great. She's looking forward to the menu this week and eating small doses of meat, until her body gets used to the food again. She's been on the Budwig diet for the last 8 months.

On the agenda for tonight? "I'll be watching So You Think You Can Dance and talking with grandaughter Emilie about it," Mom says happily. Emilie is a bigtime dancer and loves to chat with Grandma about the contestants.