Month: July 2024

share a smile

CAREGIVER NOTE:

He was all smiles as family members from around the state arrived for the family reunion at one of our local parks. He enjoyed spending time with them for several hours. We brought him home a little early as he was getting a bit anxious and using the restroom facilities at the park weren’t comfortable for him to use. It took a couple of hours for him to settle in back at home… he did a lot of pacing between the bathroom, his room and the living room, but he did settle in and went to bed just before 8.

We didn’t take any family group pictures yesterday, but one of the grandchildren caught some candids of everyone who dropped in and spent some time. It was a delightful day and we’re very thankful for all the help and support in making it happen.

windows

CAREGIVER NOTE:

He had a fun phone call with a long time friend yesterday and they reminisced for nearly 30 minutes without too much repetition on Dad’s part. That was the first highlight of his day yesterday.

He’s very excited about the impending visit of a son and grandson for a week. He’s been up and down a couple of times and is stirring a couple of hours earlier than his norm. I hope it’s a great day all around – but ready for a few bumps if rush hour traffic impedes their arrival.

moments

CAREGIVER NOTE:

Quiet day overall. He enjoyed opening cards and his big gift is still not quite ready to hang on the wall, but it should be today. He’s looked it over several times and gave it his approval.

He got pretty confused about a couple of things yesterday. He seemed to sort things out by the end of the evening, however, so that was a “gift.”

MOMENTS:
He remembered how to make a part of his birthday card move so he could show it off to another family member at the end of the day.
He was thrilled to have his all time 2nd favorite meal served while watching one of his favorite shows.
His smile and the twinkle in his eye were a delight to see and we even heard him laugh a couple of times while on the phone with a member of the family.

you are …!

CAREGIVER NOTE:

It’s celebration day, another trip around the sun has been accomplished!

— we were up late last evening. He just wanted to talk. He’s anxious about visitors coming — we’ll have to talk to the visitor about spilling the beans too early and causing some worry because he doesn’t arrive as soon as anticipated. The “where is he?” has been swirling around for hours!

LIVE

CAREGIVER NOTES:

He noticed the calendar date on his clock yesterday — he realized his birthday is close. He asked how old he would be and kind of shut down. He as been a little more depressed the last few days — but I was linking that to his reminiscing and wanting to talk to family members who had already passed on. I invite him to share a story or memory with me and that often cheers him up. We’ve talked about his Mom’s garden quite a bit lately — he has lots of fond memories of seeing her work in the garden and helping there. That’s probably where he gained his “green” thumb and started building his own skills for his 1/4 acre garden we remember. Our kids remember shelling peas and snapping beans on the living room floor; helping to dig potatoes and pulling weeds.

We’re hoping that his upcoming birthday bash will bring him some joy.

cherish!

CAREGIVER NOTES:

He was certain that his cousin Ernie had visited us just the other day – but he was terribly disappointed that he hadn’t been able to talk to him and “catch up” on things. He hoped Ernie would come around again soon. He wondered what his folks were doing and if they were staying cool like he was with the AC keeping things at a pleasant temperature in the house. I caught him wiping his eyes several times as the tears fell while he talked and shared a story or two. I felt so sad for him. He reminisced about a few things — including his mom’s garden, Ernie’s service in the Navy and more, so we talked about those things a little longer and after the tears stopped a while later, he was smiling for most of the rest of the afternoon and evening.