Addie Visits GreatGrandma, Ice Cream - Ice Cream - We All Scream For Ice Cream

 

Who do you think Mom is looking at?

Her Grandson and Great Granddaughter of course!  Her room has a door to the outside, and it was a pleasant day, so we kept the door open during their visit.  Of course, Addie wanted to be outside most of the time.  She was collecting rocks from the rock garden just outside the door, bringing them and putting them into a pile.  At one time she had a dozen rocks.  One time when she was 'gone', Mom said, "Where are you?"   She comes back to the open door, her upper body bent over to the open door side to look through the door with this look (and smile) that said "Here I am!", and then starts laughing.  She is saying a few words here and there.  One time a small dog that lives there barked and she said, "Bow Wow".  Some other words we heard were mom, bye, oops, and she even used sign language to tell Michael that she was thirsty.

I texted Michael later to thank him for coming.  They are headed to Italy with Ann's mother at the end of the week for ten days, so it was a busy time for them.  His reply was that Grandma was doing much better than last time he saw her about five weeks ago...just another sign that the infusion was working...so far, no signs of any UTI's.

When I arrived for the visit, getting there about 30 minutes before Michael and Addie arrived, Ben (one of the 'chiefs' of the Assisted Living Home) was giving mom a quick manicure.  Two of the staff were watching training videos, which when I asked Ben said that they are required by the State of California to keep their training up-to-date.  Good to see that.

A week earlier when I was there to visit, I surprised mom with a Hot Fudge Sundae from Leatherby's.  (click the link to see what Leatherby's is)  Before her infusions she had an appointment with her Primary Care Doctor, and after she told Sandy that she wanted Ice Cream, real Ice Cream, not that stuff that McDonald's sells.  That meant a trip to Leatherby's and she had a big Hot Fudge Sundae that day.  Well, she was suppose to see her Primary Doctor again, but both Sandy and Patti were not able to take her.  I don't mind taking her to other appointments, but not the Primary where the doctor might suddenly say, "Let's remove your shirt so I can hear your heart and lungs better."  So they rescheduled, and on that day I took over the Hot Fudge Sundae so she did not miss out on that treat!

 

The previous week I took her to see her Dermatologist, and like last time, we went by Sonic.  This time she wanted a Burger...and a Shake.  Can you believe she finished them both!  (Although she saved just a little of the shake to take back to the "Home" so the others can see that she had a wonderful treat, and they didn't!  And I am NOT kidding...)

Besides the visit at Mom's place, I went down to see my Granddaughter, Son and Daughter-in-law a few times.  The house across the street from them has this lady living there.  Her longtime partner had passed a few years ago, and she LOVED Halloween, so the survivor still loads the front yard each year with decorations in memory of her deceased partner.  

Note:  It is interesting to watch the developing of my little 1 year old granddaughter...learning to walk, learning to talk, letting her personality shine through....while at the same time watching my mother, 93 years old, as she heads in the other direction...losing her short term memory, seeing things are not there, being disturbed because she can't do what she wants to do (I don't want to get up out of bed, I don't want to go to bed this early, I want to eat in my room, I want to go home).  Circle of life...

September - Mom's Infusion Therapy Month

 

Of course, before the medical stuff...she has to enjoy a Sonic Hot Fudge Sundae!  Actually this was after a visit to her dermatologist.  She had a small skin cancer removed in latge August, and in mid-September I took her back to get her stitches taken out.  

It just happened to be very close to the only Sonic Drive-in in our area, which is weird since Jefferson County Arkansas, population 65,000 has three, and use to have four Sonics!   This Sonic serves a population of nearly 400,000 people!  The Hot Fudge Sundae was a good treat for mom, and I had a large Diet Coke, of course, my normal daily drink for 23 years while living in Arkansas.  

So over the past six to eight months, mom has had UTI after UTI.  It put her into the hospital a few months ago.  So they recommended that she see a specialist dealing with body infections.  This specialist decided that an Infusion (Infusion therapy — also known as IV therapy — involves administering medications intravenously) of an Antibiotic, twice a day over 20 days might rid her body of the underlying infection that constantly attacks her urinary tract.  This treatment needed to be done in a medical facility -OR- the family could be taught how to administer it.  With younger people, the person needing the infusion could be taught how to do it.  So on Saturday, September 8th, Patti, Sandy and I, along with Mom, went to be taught (while mom had the needle inserted and got her first, initial treatment.)  That evening they (Infusion's Pharmacy) dropped off all we needed to get started the next day.  Sandy pretty much did the mornings, I did the evenings, and Patti, who still has a job, filled in as needed (Sandy and Arny went up to Reno for the Air Races one weekend.)  They provided a link to a online training video which I used the first few nights just to be sure I was doing it all correctly.  After the third time I no longer used the video and left my Kindle Fire at home.

Since I had my Kindle Fire with me, I showed mom the latest video of Addie walking.  In mid-July she wasn't taking any steps.  Michael said that during August she would take a step or two, then sit or grab onto to something.  In late August they put her into a daycare, and by Labor Day she was walking all over the place.  In the video I showed mom she took over 30 steps before she purposely sat down to play with a toy.  LOOK at that smile on Mom's face...it really perked up her mood.

Marcia and I got back to Citrus Heights from Cromberg on the 7th.  On the 21st we went down to Michael and Anna's for a visit.  Above you can see Addie waving at Marcia (who is just out of the picture.)  She was not only walking, but climbing up on the some furniture, bouncing a basketball (a REAL basketball!), and saying a few words.  She is so precious.  Hoping to get back for a visit this weekend!

Tomorrow is the 20th day of the Infusion, and mom can't wait to get the needle and stuff out of and off her arm.  Although her mild dementia is still there, the UTI's are gone and the delirium that is associated with the UTI's have diminished.  Unfortunately, some of the things she saw in a delirious state remain with her.  For instance, a tree fell on the house across the street (no, it did not, but she still believes it did).  Sandy was her sister Mary...I was Dad.  (Mom, I am David...look at my beard...dad never had a beard...realization hit, but she still called me Al from time to time, but not anymore...for now.)  Only time will tell if this process truly rids her of the constant, recurring UTI situations.