Mema moved into her new place on Wednesday.
Mom and Dad packed her up,
the movers moved her in,
I went for dinner with the three of them in the cafeteria.
We had spaghetti, garlic bread, beans, milk
and mema and daddy had chicken soup.
Mom and Dad left right after dinner and Mema and I went up to her room.
We had decided that I would stay with her for a few nights,
making sure that she got used to the new place.
First we(I) moved her furniture around.
Now her bedroom is up just like it was at Mom and Dad's.
After that, we took a walk around the property.
Mema had already walked once with Ruby,
so she sorta knew the way.
It was a beautiful evening for a walk.
Not too long of a hike either...just right.
When we got back up to the room we unpacked boxes and put away
tons of snacks in her kitchen.
This lady will NOT go hungry!
We lounged in the living room until about 11pm
talking about old pictures etc.
Then we went to bed, neither of us sleepy but very tired.
As soon as I had fallen asleep, a loud knock at the door!
The night nurse came in and explained
that for the first three nights whe was to check Mema's vitals.
Mema said "It's the middle of the night?!"
That would have been nice to know!
It was hard getting back to sleep after that,
because we both were afraid someone else would come.
Sometime during the night,
Mema decided to move her hearing aids to a different location
than she first put them when she went ot bed.
She kept thinking about it, and I woke to her flashlight searching for them,
as if a thief in the night.
We hunted all over the small room,
and finally found them in the desk!
The alarm went off at 7am as, breakfast was from 8-9.
Mema got dressed, put make up on and looked lovely, as she always does.
My hair was standing on end,
and I put on the same clothes I had worn the previous day!
Down to breakfast we went, Mema leading the way.
She missed the turn to the elevators, but we made it finally.
Pancake, bacon, and Mema had raison bran too!
She had coffee, milk, juice and water!
Thought she was going to float away.
Her table mates are Gloria, who will get her teeth hopefully later next week.
She ate fruit loops without milk "like candy."
Clemy, who moved in just before Mema, and thinks her daughter's son
has stolen all her furniture and left her with crappy items.
Even tried to call the police.
And Verna who doesn't talk much, eats a bite or two,
then goes to the main room and goes to sleep.
I left Mema in the care of Cathy, who is her buddy until she gets settled,
and called V to help me arrange the living room, as I just couldn't see it.
Later that night, I heard this story from her:
V doesn't do people well, let alone old people.
She is a true Yankee, afraid of hospitals and germs!
But she was determined to make it nice for Mema!
She amped herself up in the parking lot,
all ready for big hellos and excitement from the residents,
as she walked through the door, there were six people in the lobby...
all sound asleep!
She giggle to herself but entered the elevator to Mema's floor.
As the doors opened to the second floor lobby,
all she saw was the big screen tv, tuned to nothing, but on,
and two men fast asleep as well!
WOW!
Hearing her tell it was much more funny!
We left the furniture as it was, said goodbye for now to Mema,
who was coloring, and I went home and slept for an hour and a half myself!
Must be catching.
The girls and I went to dinner,
which was a treat in itself for reasons I don't hink I should share.
Let me just say that large amounts of alcohol were consumed by my daughters.
After dinner, the girls came with me to unload more of the van for Mema.
I had bought a few more items that I discovered she needed after my nap.
Hilary informed her that this is what I do.
WHenever one of the girls moved, or went to college,
I would stock them with everything I felt they needed.
Toilet paper, cleaning supplies, message and cork boards,
picture hanging kits etc.
What can I say.....
I have the gift of hospitality!
I don't apologise any more!
When we got to her room, she opened the door
and there was not one light on, she had turned the ac off and it was sweltering in there
and she told us that she had not gone down to dinner.
Hilary's eyes grew to dinner plate size.
After V used the restroom, she discovered that there was no water....
she was mortified that she could not flush!
She went to the office and was told that no one had water.
They were fixing a leak and it should be back on within the hour.
We unloaded all my crap, and the four of us walked around the block
before the girls continued their evening plans.
Mema and I put together a towel rack,
which was difficult because both of us have large fingers,
and the tiny screws were not cooperating!
We hung pictures: a collage frame of family pics that she had
outside of her bathroom in Strasberg (remember looking at those every year family?),
her kitchen clock, three flower paintings Grandpa painted,
and a modern thing the administrater gave Mema when she moved in.
She was commenting that it really was beginning to feel like home now
with all her familiar things around.
I also felt better when I asked a roaming nurse to help us make sure
two pictures were straight as Mema and I held them up,
and she told me that she had seen Mema at dinner and that she ate heartily.
Of course she did!
A snack of graham crackers and lemonade were brought in at eight,
and Mema and I talked for an hour about her childhood,
on the farm brining in the cows, growing and selling popcorn,
how they never had much but they were always so happy.
Goes to show you that you don't need much to have a good life,
and that she feels that she has had a wonderful life!
A nurse knocked at 10:30 to take her vitals for the second of three nights.
This was nice, as Mema and I got a wonderful night's sleep
after giving four hugs from and to each other!
I set my alarm for 7am again, but wanted to see how long Mema would sleep.
She woke up about 7:30 on her own.
I was wondering how we were going to work this early breakfast thing!
She woke a bit disoriented and thinking that she was a t my house.
She kept asking if this is where she was going to stay from now on,
these two rooms.
She got dressed in new clothes, but same undies I noticed,
put her shoes on and I led her out to breakfast.
She had forgotten how to get to the cafetieria,
I was noisy there when we sat down and her table mate Clemy
was very uncomfortable in her chair.
Gloria kept running back and forth to the nurses' station
and to her room to get pillows for poor uncomfortable Clemy, but nothing worked.
We had cold scrambled eggs, toast and yummy sausage links.
No coffee though, as the machine was broken.
OOOOOOOOO you should have heard the complaints.
It was like what I would imagine a group of addicts would sound like without their meth!
(No offense intended!)
The activity director was running around like a mad woman
making coffee in multiple pots and serving eveyone half cups of coffee!
It was really quite funny!
Eveyone got their coffee, but Mema decided that she would make hers in her room
and bring a cup down in case this ever happened again!
Mema was very quiet at breakfast, and everything seemed a bit off.
I was slowly getting depressed and having a pity party for me myself.
I left her in the activity room, with the intention of coming back
before they took a trip to Meijer, to make sure that she went with them.
I had gotten her $10 form the "bank" at the front desk so she woul dhave some spending money.
When I got home, I called Terry and was very sad.
If only she had moved in with me from Whispering Pines
then she would be used to her surroundings and not have to go through all this.
Now, I am afraid that she would be adjusting just as badly if she were to move in with me,
as she is at Wood Bridge.
And I honestly don't think that I could take her on now.
It really is a 48 hour a day job!
My life sems to have moved in a solitary dierction for now.
I dragged myself back to the community after lunch.
Mema was just finishing up, and Cathy told me that she was thinking she was not going to go.
I took Mema up to her room, and she had been rearranging her snack drawer and her jewelry.
Everything was everywhere!
She started to tear up and say that she just didn't think that seh was going to like it here.
She never thought she would wind up in a place like this.
She was just going to sit in her room and die.
Well, I told her that she was a s trong lady, and has been through more horrible things than this nice apartment.,
We were going to pull our britches up, both of us, and make her have a good time.
And if she didn't like it, she could just tell me off.
She laughed a bit at that.
Agreed that she was a strong women and let me get her ready for her trip.
She sounted and recounted and recounted her $13.
We found her walker, where we had put it from the beginning, in the first closet.,
we made out a list of items she wanted to get: nuts for she and Hilary,
who was staying tonight with her,
and we made out way back downstairs where we would meet the other residents who were going to Meijer.
We stood over by the finch house,
and looked around at the nine people who were also there in the lobby.
I tried hard to chat about how cute the birds were,
ready to cry at any moment...with my britches not as high as I wanted them.
One woman cam wheeling up to us, with her oxygen mask, bib and bag of peaches.
She said hello and asked if Mema was enjoying herself.
Mema answered "kind of."
Mystery woman wheeled off to the mail boxes and Mema asked her name.
I told her she didn't say, but we could just call her Honey.
For that matter, we didn't know anyone and we could call them all Honey.
Mema giggled at that.
Two ladies over heard our conversation and said I'll be honey #1 and I'll be honey #2!
More giggles.
Honey #1, 2 began gossiping and I called them out on it!\
Apparently this lo bby was the place to be for all the juicy gossip and know all to end all.
As Cathy and Mema went to the dest to sign up for Snite Museum trips,
Potowanami picnics and Essenhaus brunches,
I became aquinted with the Honeys.. Ida and Janice #1 and #2, and Sarah,
who was told not to go to sleep.
I found out some juicy gossip....I was sworn to secrecy....
Was told not to let Mema wave money around...
I suppose they saw her counting her $13.00
Mema thought that was unlucky, so she gave me a dollar back to put in her room,
along with her walker, because she was going to use a shopping cart.
I made a trip to her room and back,
and they were all sitting outside waiting on the bus.
I told Mema that Hilary was going to stay the night tonight.
I didn't know what time, but that she might take her out for Margaritas!
Everyone wants to go, so Hil better bring the mini van!
Everyone go on the bus, Mema and Gloria in the front seat, waving goodbye to me.
I left feeling better than I had in a few days!
My new routine may just be going over at 7:30 am, making sure Mema is up,
Making some coffee in her pot and walking her to breakfast before I head to the gym.
God is so good!
I just need to put all my worries onto Him!
And Mema is a sassy ornery lady, who will conquer this obstacle too!
