So the wild Italians have all returned to New Hampshire. I finally got a well-deserved two hour nap this afternoon, in quiet - no TV and after some quality sister time, am back on track.
Mary and I talked of the long winter, lack of sunshine and the new moon. She was delayed coming in due to nine more inches of snow Thursday into Friday, Saturday and Sunday sunny and warm - 50 degrees. Hoping Spring has arrived in New England. Its been a long month. We were on such a nice roll in getting the
I am a simple person. Well, on some things I am a simple person.
My Comcast telephone just disconnected any time it wanted - two minutes, one hour; didn't matter. I knew it was in their lines, but three visits for Service and no improvement, I just accepted it. We were just home from the Stroke and I had the Cell phone and much more important things to deal with. When they added HD two years later, more equipment and doubled our price. AT&T was soliciting on the street. They offered same
Yesterday, I was able to get an appointment for Bruce with the Dentist. Like all of you, scheduling this stuff around work and caregivers is daunting and as I said to the Dentist today, there is not a lot of wiggle room.
Bruce first complained of the mouth pain the night of the blizzard. As soon as the driveway was cleared three days later, I ran out and got Orajel, which helped. I called his Dentist. They are in a business condo complex, way in the back and it took another week before they
Tired and cranky tonight. Maybe that is why Bruce went to bed early - LOL!
No matter how much I do in any time span, fifteen things get added on. We lost a good week from the Blizzard. Bruce has to get to the Dentist and Kira to the Vet. That takes some planning. Plus Bruce has his Botox next week. In the meantime, another storm due this weekend.
I work with a Naysayer: has all the answers and is always right. We have been together in various positions for over 10 years so I am used to i
I had had some renewed energy after my family visit for my birthday. Bruce and I had been working on some lesser importance list items. It is hard to get to that part of the list as just getting through the essentials and working can wear me out. But we had reached a comfortable routine and had time to fit in some other chores. We have a walk-in closet in the old master bedroom that was just a catchall. We did some great clean out, two boxes to donation and room finally for my uniforms.
Then
Do a you remember the TV ads "This is your brain, this is your brain on drugs?" Very effective. Well, I want a new one "This is your Winter, this is your Winter on drugs" LOL. I have lived in Connecticut my whole life and the last four years so many things seem to have changed. I know a lot of this is now being solely responsible for everything, so I have to learn everything. But really, Mother Nature seems to have found some new designer drugs that she is really loving!
City plow came throu
I know tonight that there are 7 families - 14 adults and 10 children who will all sleep very well tonight. But right now, they are setting off some firecrackers, with good reason.
The western end of the street, there are four homes. Three of us are caregivers and then our dear Gloria - a widow who cooks for all of us, sits with family in the SNF or hospital to give the rest of us time off, sits with Bruce if I need a quick jaunt out.
The eastern end is 7 homes with young parents and chil
I won't sleep much tonight. It is 8:45 pm and the winds have started really kicking up. It has been snowing since 7:45 am - steady all day and we have about 9 inches on the ground. Peak storm time is now until about 2 am. And I just pray for no power loss. I am thinking of Colleen - Stingray67 - on Long Island. They are getting pounded. Long Island is part of New York, but sits right off the Connecticut shoreline, so they are kind of a storm breaker for most of the Connecticut shoreline.
Rig
We got some really difficult news tonight. Our dear friend whose husband fell ill one week before our wedding, is now with Hospice and another dear family is having major medical issues with their 20 year old son. I have been brooding for a week, but in light of all of this news, am a bit ashamed. There are just so many with issues so much bigger than ours. I am lucky in that I am visited by my parents in my dreams. Daddy does not appear all that often, but Mom arrives alot. I am always at peace
Funny story I want to share.Like most of us, we have set back thermometers. The main house is oil heated, the addition gas heated. In the early days, post stroke, dear niece Melissa got all the "manuals" filed and organized for me. Heat regulation was always Bruce's responsibility. We kept things cool - as most do. In the early years we heated with wood. Can't be warmer than that! But then to 60 hour work weeks and a chimney fire, we were back to oil and gas.
With the help of the manuals, I
Been an odd couple of weeks since the Birthday celebration.
Bruce has met with his new PCP. They know each other socially - she is on staff at my SNF. But in Bruce's words "this is a good match" - gotta luv him. She is unwilling at this time to stop his antidepressant and wants to relive the body scan four years ago that showed something on his Pancreaus. Also she wants to add a Statin. This is apparently common stroke protocol now. But I wanted a blood test first.
Friday, poor Bruce fas
So what a week we are all having. Mike, Bob and Ray. Must be something in the air! We are having our January thaw.
I sat down tonight wanting to let you all know of the birthday weekend, but have been so absorbed with all the positive and wonderful news.
Mary Beth came this weekend to celebrate my birthday. She has some issues at work and this was the best weekend for her to come. Plus the weather to be warm. It was gray and drizzly, but no ice. Friday night we had our usual pizza.
I
I haven't blogged much since the wedding, but we are in a transition here and I have been trying to get back to basics.
I came home a few too many afternoons with Bruce still in moccasins and not washed up. I have a premier caregiver team here, so I know the issue is Bruce. We discuss, review but it is obvious that Bruce is regaining control and while that is a great thing, he still is having trouble sorting out priorities. So now it is right into the BR when I get up; wash up, clothing chan
When I first starting working as a Nurse, it was known that I would be working holidays. Healthcare is 24/7. Our family holiday was always Thanksgiving. We would all go up to Mary's - "over the river and through the woods"- truly. The year Mom was failing, we did it here in North Haven, but resumed the next year up in New Hampshire.
Brittany always went to her Dad's on Christmas. John Michael would have it no other way. Those were tough years. Poor kids didn't know if they were cousins, brot
It has been an interesting two weeks, post wedding. Mary called Friday night, just for a chat and mentioned that just two weeks earlier, we were all on cloud nine!
We lost my Mom on December 17 and Bruce's December 24, so this is always a bittersweet time of year. We talked in Chat about downsizing the holiday work: decorations, cards, cooking, baking. Most have families that balk at changing the traditions. But with some discussion, families either adjust or jump in to help out.
We here
Yahoo! What a perfect day and such great fun. I think since a lot of the preparation was started so long ago and then, doing it so quickly and simply, helped. Really that is the way most of us here, now would have to do it since our lives and time are so re-organized.
The day was perfect and with Julie's help, I managed to get some pix in the gallery.
Bruce was a trooper. That is a long day, with a lot of confusion, conversation changes - but he hung in there to the end - LOL. I had walk
Wow, what fun, huh? Thank you all so much for the virtual Bachelorette party! So many laughs and just a really good night. Host Sue kept the drinks and hors d'ouevres coming!
Kira, who usually enjoys Chat night, left early to hunker down with Bruce. She is used to the cat sounds, but the other sounds really had her on edge - LOL.
Entering final count down. Today was my double at work, so now it is a couple of hours and then party time. Tomorrow is hair dresser for both of us. The girls h
So the countdown begins.
Tuesday night is my cyber Bachelorette party on Caregiver Chat. I had Ermalinda wash my Leopard print silk PJs just for the event. The beauty of the internet. Good thing we aren't Skyping - LOL.
Three weeks ago on a Tuesday, I brought the truck in for its oil change. Saturday morning, it will not start. I call our dear Carl to come see. I don't want to call a tow truck for something stupid. Carl goes over the whole engine, opens the air filter box - and this was
Only my Stroke Net family can get this, I am sure. So am going to throw it out there. And I work with plenty of medical people who have dealt with stroke, but not as intimately as all of us have.
You all know Bruce will probably never be continent - mostly when he sleeps. Bruce knows this is the biggest issue between us. We finally have the medications sorted out. Most days the difficulties are just overnight. He is doing at least 80% good with naps. And most of that I know is because I am h
Back in 2009, I told my seven friends from grammar school, they insisted they were to be bridesmaids. Now, mind you we have all been in each other's weddings over the years, of course. They called Bruce immediately - we were all together for a monthly dinner - insisting. Then Bruce stroked. We had picked up our wedding rings that morning. So we have laughed, all of us, over the years. Was it the seven bridesmaids or the wedding rings?
Now wedding is back on and the seven are looking for dres
Most of you know Bruce and I were planning to be married on June 22, 2009. We picked up our wedding rings on March 22 at 11 am and Bruce stroked that night. Sometime during the next three weeks my dress arrived. I remember Mary Beth calling me to ask me what to do. She hung it in my closet. Yesterday, I opened it for the first time in almost 3 1/2 years.
Bruce and I are to be married on December 8th, 2012. It is time. Cognitively, Bruce is back 99%. He still has trouble finding his words and
I am so tired of being in charge of everything - and you all know I am just venting here, but really!
I take the truck in for its oil change last Tuesday. In order to wait for it, I have to be there at 8am and leave Bruce alone. Leaving Bruce alone is OK for now. Saturday morning the truck will not start. We go out in the Honda to get some errands done, but Carl is coming, so don't finish everything on the list.
I don't mind calling RoadNTow, but just want to be sure it isn't something s
Last Monday, at just about this time, I was blogging to you all that Hurricane Sandy was starting to wind down. The winds were so high and I could not go to bed. Memories from last winter, hearing limbs come down, seeing the damage. But apparently the work done in the yard and by the Utilities paid off. Still one worries but we fared well.
North Haven postponed Halloween until tonight. Power outtages, trees down and streets blocked. Now we have a Nor'easter. Welcome to weather in New England
We have just been running crazy last month or so. Hurricane Sandy certainly did not help and this new computer system at work has exhausted me. I had been putting in extra hours. I am not under any pressure from Administration, mind you, but there is certain paperwork required in a timely manner. Learning a brand new system, customizing a library and still trying to keep up with the paperwork is taking its toll.
Thursday, because of the storm, I did my eight hours. During my break here at ho
Well, it is just about 10:45pm EDT and Sandy is winding down. Wind gusts still about 60 mph but not constant. Just pray we keep power overnight. Over 500,000 in the state now out of it. Utilities can not do much until winds are below 40 mph.
Most of the Eastern Seaboard is affected - 1000 miles. She is quite a storm. Snow now in West Virginia. It will be interesting to talk tomorrow night in Chat to Mike. And of course HostSally and Bob in Massachusetts. Nancy and Colleen are in Long Island.
