Georgia Dream

These pictures were to come at the end of my story, but they didn't cooperate.

Sawyer is starting to want to do whatever Isaiah does. They all decided to follow suit.

( a scene great grandma Barbara doesn't get tired of watching-great exercise as well)

I'm sorry but I just can't help but tell on Grandma Barbara this morning.

This morning when I got up Mom at 8:10, she said she was dreaming about Georgia and she didn't get to finish her dream. It sounded like she really enjoyed that dream. She talked about going to Jimmy Carter's Sunday School class and about other people that I didn't know. Whatever the dream, I knew she was in a good mood.

As I set her down at the table for breakfast, the sun was shining through the window and as usual, she informed me that the window was dirty and needed cleaning. I went through my routine answer, that the window is old like her and the dirty look is inside the window and that I can't get to. She said that she has NEVER liked dirty windows and it's something she notices every place she goes and we need to do something about that.

In my prayer before our breakfast, I thanked God for the sunshine, even if it shines through our dirty old window. I thought she was going to loose it. She burst out into a laughter that I haven't heard from her in a long time! Through out breakfast she was telling stories about the Nursing Home, her Georgia dream, and her home life from years ago. The funny thing was, the stories were all mixed into each other.

Yesterday while sitting on the porch, she wondered if we couldn't do something about making things a bit greener and could we cut the bushes lower and when is Wil going to put that post in for horses, that would make it look nicer. In the next breath, it's just so nice out here, I wish I could come out here every day. We do go out there every day but I'm learning not to make a deal about remarks like that.

She simply loves to have the great grandchildren come. She likes to watch them run on the ramp and doesn't even mind their fussy times. Almost every morning at breakfast she talks about them and hopes they come over again.

We are all on a journey

People keep asking how I am doing and how it’s going. It’s so hard to answer because it just depends on when you ask me. I find that I’m probably not much different than a mother with little ones these days. It depends a lot on if I just had to get up twice or 4 & 5 times during the night. I had forgotten how helpful a full nights sleep is. Even 4-5 hours at a time! I’m not getting as much done as I thought I would, which is why I should be working now(while she is napping) rather than blogging. In spite of all the frustrations, there are rewards and so far it feels like we made the right choice.

I have my moments when I ask the Lord, “Are you serious, all in one year? First you choose to take Olive home, then Isaiah’s Great Grandpop Yoder, then my Father-in-law, then my Father goes to the hospital, we bring home my mother-in-law, my daughter looses her job, a church that is struggling and now it appears there is a good chance that I may loose my father yet this year”! If I stay there, I can get depressed, but I choose not to. There is still so much to be grateful for. I have my health, a wonderful husband, great kids and all 4 of my grandchildren in my backyard. Beside all that, we have wonderful extended family and friends. We are all on a journey and we all have a story.

Here are some pictures of our recent additions that we all real happy about.

This is a view of the new addition from our upstairs bedroom window.

Dave Miller and Jon Swartz did a great job building a long wheelchair ramp and a step down deck for us. They worked in some crazy hot temperatures.

The 1st evening the boards were in place, the grandkids discovered a new playground. David, Sue and their son Angelo and wife Anna were with us part of the week. The boys got Anna to race with them.

And now it was time for a test drive. I’m no longer a slave to my house.

The great grandsons can cheer Mom up pretty quickly. Brennan loves to help give great-grandma her pills.

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Mom-adjustments

This blanket was from our church, the picture from Melissa and the wreath from Mt. Joy. Mother often says that Daudy is laughing at her.

We often have her chair pulled forward so she can look out the window. Every morning and evening, she talks about how tall our tree's are.

Her bedroom

I'm trying to find words to describe my new daily schedule and I can't really. I've had some good days and some not so good days. It's a very different schedule from what I was used to and it's also different for mother. I'm understanding why the Nurses tended to give Mom a quick fix pill when she got all emotional at the Nursing Home. There are times in the afternoon when I feel like I should be a social worker or a counselor. Lunch time bites of food are often in between tears. That is the time of day that Daudy would come visit Mom. So if you are someone that wants to visit Mom sometime, she really needs distractions in the afternoon.

I have a monitor in my room and when she needs to go the restroom at night or in the morning, she just says my name. AT 3:30 in the morning, I'm not quite as happy to hear my name as some other times. Monday morning I had to chuckle at 4:30 in the morning. I heard that she was moving around and soon I heard, "ah, ah, Sue! Sue! ah, Mary! Mary! ah, ah." I'm here mom, did you forget my name? "Oh ya! What is wrong with me?!

Another funny that I hear a lot. She tells me what to do, then says, "you can do whatever you want, I'm not going to tell you what to do." On Saturday she was sitting on the porch while I was pulling weeds. After I was pulling for about 5 minutes, she thought that was probably about long enough. She suggested that Mary could pull the rest when she came out. I informed her that those were my weeds, not Mary's.