Update on Mom

This is a photo of Mom when she was about 16 years old. In September, she will turn 83. Where do all the years go? I can remember when she was in her 30s and now I'm a 60 year old grandmother.

As my regular readers will know from my previous post, Mom had a stroke yesterday and they sent her home from the hospital around 6pm. I was horrified. They didn't do a swallowing evaluation nor did they check her out completely. Last night her speech was very slurred and she had a terrible headache from the new meds they put her on, which was a blood thinner.

This morning I called her and she was still slurring her words. She said she was feeling good but I was still concerned. As the day progressed, it seemed her speech regressed. My niece came from out of town and we decided to take her there for another assessment. We went in about 3:30 and she finally saw a doctor, who ordered a urine test, blood tests and more.

The results were not good. Stroke...and four previous ones...we knew only about two and urinary tract infection. Mom was in hospital for 3 weeks this spring for urinary problems and we thought they had them all cleared up. However, we found out differently. So, they are keeping her for at least a couple of days and she's not happy. She was very emotional and angry at us for taking her, but she is where she will be taken care of.

Please keep Mom in your thoughts and prayers. She is going through a difficult time right now. This has been quite a year for the entire family.

And So It Continues...

This has been quite a year for us. My regular readers will know that it's been tough ever since March. For those unfamiliar with these events here is a quick run-down...

March - My nephew, Josh, was in a car accident and suffered brain damage. He is still in the hospital's rehab unit. He was able to spend a night last weekend with his father and tonight he's staying with his mother. They're hoping to get him in a group home by September and are thinking about allowing him to spend the Labour Day weekend at his Dad's.

April - I had a heart attack and within a week was in hospital for quadruple bypass surgery.
A week after I came home, Mom went into the hospital and was in there 3 weeks. Since then she has been getting stronger and finally getting back into her daily routine, with a lot of coaxing and reassurance from us that she CAN do it.

June - My friend of 36 years found out that the cancer in her jaw that was surgically removed in December '09, had spread to her lungs.

July - On the 14th of July, my friend passed away from the fast growing squamous lung cancer.

August 26th - Remembering Dad who died 29 years ago.

August 27th - Mom had a stroke this morning and was taken to hospital. They released her at 6pm but they shouldn't have. She still can't talk properly and may never do so again. All of her speech is slurred, as if her tongue was swollen. The ride side of her face droops. She should have been in hospital under observation for 48 hours, but told us we had to take her home. She can't be left alone until Monday.

And so it continues. It seems the entire year has been one thing after another. And life goes on...

What's Happening

Not much has been happening around here and I'm finding it very difficult to find something to blog about. There has been a little news of Josh. He has been allowed to leave the hospital on a day pass to spend time with his Dad (my brother.) He is still having a lot of issues and will continue to spend time in the brain rehabilitation unit at the hospital. They are working with him daily and are hoping that, if he adjusts to being with his father, that he will be able to get a pass for the Labor Day weekend. That is good news.

They are also talking about transferring him to a group home in mid-September. There he will learn to live on his own, possibly. They are not sure how long it will take him to master that, but here's hoping he will be able to eventually.

The boys are doing great and Brandon is looking forward to returning to high school. He will be in grade 10 and will be taking more academic subjects first term. That doesn't excite him but we've explained if he does it, then it will be over for this year. He understands that but really likes the hands-on experience of the shops much better. He aced out on his advanced math with a grade of B. He got 79 and B+ is 80. He was a bit disappointed but we told him B is a decent grade.

Jordan on the other hand is going into his last year of elementary school. He isn't at all excited. I told him just do his work to the best of his ability and then next year he will be in high school and he will like it much better.

Mom is doing great. I've actually coaxed her into sewing a few things. She told me she didn't think she could do it and I assured her she could if she took it a little at a time. Now she has made herself two new pheasant cushions for her living room for the fall season. Yay! for Mom. She will be 83 in September. We thought she had given up, but she's getting her independence back and is driving again, taking herself wherever she wants to go.

The weather was hot & humid last week, but has been nice this week. We had rain over the weekend & Monday but the last three days have been beautiful with no humidity and a cool breeze.

Hope everyone is doing great. I'm gearing up for Christmas shopping season on Etsy. It will be an interesting fall.