Headed Home to Florida - Thanksgiving Update - Mom has Another UTI

We left Florida in late March, arrived at my sister's house in Citrus Heights around April 10th.  After 7+ months, all but 6 weeks camping up in Cromberg to get away from the heat, it is time to head home to beat the cold weather.  Our motorhome is not set up for colder weather...living in the Tampa area means we don't have to weatherize it...but it also means we need to limit temps below 32...we faced that back in 2017 when we stayed for Christmas, drove home in late December and early January and faced frozen water and sewer lines crossing Western Texas.  

We were off just before 8 on Saturday morning.  Drove to Lodi where there was a Flying J because we were in need of a RV Wash (Blue Beacon next door), Propane (we were nearly out) and gasoline.  Very small line at Blue Beacon, no lines at Flying J, so we were back on the road. Above is cell phone picture of the Propane being put in.  

In Stockton we moved from I-5 over to US-99 in light traffic.  Made it through Merced, where my Blog Friend Nancy had told me to expect very bad construction issues...but we got through without even a slowdown.  However, just south of Tulare we hit a car wall...and for the next 90 minutes we moved maybe a few miles.  In Tipton I got off the freeway, headed east, south, then west getting back onto US-99 near Pixley passing all the stalled highway traffic.  We got into the Orange Grove RV Park around 4:15, and barely got things settled before darkness hit.

We again were up and on the road by 8 am, and saw a lot of Desert (pardon the cell phone photo...to tired to get the few pictures out of the camera.)  We arrived in Needles before 2 pm and we are staying at Fender's RV Park and Resort, Passport America park for around $20.  Indy was happy to find this Oasis of Grass that they have near were we always stay (been here I think six times now, maybe as much as eight, and all but once we have stayed in the same spot.)

Tomorrow we meet our friend Laurie at a Cracker Barrel in Phoenix, we will stay overnight at the Cracker Barrel, and off again.  If our luck holds up, we should be past Houston Thursday night...at which point the cold weather chances vanish for this time of the year.

For Thanksgiving Arny deep-fried the Turkey (one of his best fryings in our opinion) and we had Mom, Ed (a neighbor), Patti (sister), Sandy (sister), Arny (brother-in-law) and Marcia and I in attendance.  Since it was someone's B-Day, we decided to not follow our diet and eat some of everything, but keep it to the one meal with dessert.  It was all delicious, and everyone took home some leftovers except mom, she does not have her own refrigerator. 

Knowing that I would be busy Friday preparing to leave, I went by to visit mom at the Assisted Living Home on Wednesday before Thanksgiving.  For the most part she was happy, talking good with just a little bit of the dementia showing through like when she asked how my Thanksgiving Dinner went (without her).  Unfortunately, by the time she arrived for the real Thanksgiving Dinner the next day, she was entering a Delirium stage.  By Friday she was back in the hospital, which is not the easiest condition to leave...but I had already said my goodbyes, and we both (mom and us) know when we say goodbye, it could be the last goodbye.  Today Sandy said she is going to be in the hospital until at least Tuesday to finish up antibiotic treatment...and when they send her home she will have a antibiotic pill to take for who knows how long.  Overall the Delirium is fading fast, but it always takes its toll on her.

May not post every day of the trip...and we have taken this trip so many times we are running out of pictures to take. 

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...