being off meds

It has been a busy week full of appointments with doctors, visits with clients, children of all ages crossing my threshold, birthdays, and non stop action.  Some of the neighborhood teens have taken refuge to visiting me and spending time with the children.  We threw two birthday parties for some of them and had a remarkable time witnessing and listening.  My brother has continued to impress me in ways that I cannot explain.  If my mother was herself, she would be beaming with pride at the heart he has.  Without complaint, my brother has been at my mother's house Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and I am sure will visit her this weekend.  She enjoys the company and he make her laugh.  Not only that, but when he is there, my dad is able to get work done and I am able to run around or just play with my children!!!! Thank you Kevin from the bottom of my heart.  I am amazed at the growth and changes in all of our personalities since Alzheimer's as entered our lives.  Despite all the heart ache and misery that the disease brings, I must admit that I have a relationship with my brother and my father that many may envy.  What other person can say that they talk to their family on an average of five times a day or sees their brother daily with coffee and shared stories.  I know that both my father and brother are along side me on this journey and there is no greater feeling.  My dad and I are starting to roller blade together next week and I am overjoyed.  I get two nights with mom, a day with dad, and time with Kevin.  I would think all this family bonding would get annoying and unpleasant but it has the  opposite effect.   I find myself longing to talk to all of them throughout the day.

My mother is forgetting more and more now.  She asked me to visit her on Wednesday and do movie night.  On Wednesday, she got very confused about why I was coming.  She does not remember phone conversations that we had five minutes ago and she is having difficulty comprehending what I am saying.  Her newest obsession is with the air.  She is hot until the air kicks on then she is freezing cold.  She does not like it blowing out of the ceiling and wants to block them all up.  When the air turns off, she gets hot and hates the Florida weather.  We have all tried to explain it to her, but to no avail.  At least she has forgotten about her teeth hurting, her personality changes, her neuropathy, and her hatred of the washing machine.  The uncomfortable bed of the past is completed surrendered and is now a thing of wonderful rest.  She hates all her clothing and has me sew them up as she cuts them to make them fit better.  She does not like them around her neck and wants all her night gowns to hang past her chest.  She wears dainties that are extra large even though she weighs 94 pounds. 

Since being off her meds, she is much more cranky and aggressive, moistly to my father.  He is definitely the Antichrist all over again or in her favorite saying of the week "that F****ing bast***.  Such desirable words that any man would love to hear first thing in the morning and the last thing at night.  She was quite angry with him for the first half of the week, but forgot about it by Wednesday. 

I cooked mom chicken with Spanish rice and she gobbled it up (new recipe to remember for her).  Tonight I visited with just Connor-Kenzie was playing with uncle tau (Kevin) and I had some one on one time with Connor.  We went up to my mothers and brought dinner-olive garden crouton encrusted chicken stuffed with spinach, Romano, and mushrooms served over rice with steamed broccoli.  She liked it!! Recipe number two to remember.  Tomorrow I am making a beef roast and hopefully she will eat some.  I am sure her body is craving some red meat.  After visiting, my son and I went to the YMCA to get some exercise.  I am so grateful for the scholarship to the YMCA and love the fact that they will watch my son while I work out.  Boot camp starts again next week as well as kick boxing so I will be pretty sore but happy and relaxed.  Tomorrow is movie night and I plan to go up in the morning with the children and return tomorrow night.  Please check out the new web design for our nonprofit and let me know what you think.  We also have a blog if anyone cares to follow it.  There are links to it on our site and you can keep updated on what we do.  

Tip from my husband:  As I am writing this, he starts to chuckle and says I just realized something you can do with the mouse.  I look over and he is moving it up over people's faces.  He says-you can pick people's noses with it.  I look at him with disbelief-my serious, devoted, did I mention Serious husband continues to say you should try it it will make you laugh.  You know as juvenile as it sounds I say to you-try it, it really does make you chuckle.