Saturday, 11/1 - Lots of Family Love

It's amazing how much more comfortable Mom is when there are plenty of us to go around. Many thanks to Aunt Martha who showed up first thing this morning and stayed while Phil and I went to Molly's soccer game. She gave Mom a great shoulder and neck massage that helped Mom to actually doze off in her chair. Chair has been great, Mom spent most of the day in it today, it totally enabled her to be out in the middle of the family rather than stuck in her room. A little more comfort today than yesterday. Annie arrived with the doggies around mid-day and much of the day has been trying to sort out the animals! Mom's two chows, Cubby and Blackie, got all shaved and groomed for the trip... but even in all of their groomed splendor, I think they probably won't get along with my Daisy. We're trying it out with some gates in an attempt to keep them away from each other but it's still a bit logistically challenging right now. My two kitties are a whole different story. I think they're better off just moving out lest they risk becoming somebody's lunch! Mom is definitely happy to have her dogs around her and that's what's important, her face totally lit up when she saw them. If we can help her have that wonderful comfort of home at this time, the rest can certainly be worked out. (Probably won't see much of Phil, however, without a vacuum in his hand!) Adam and Chris arrived shortly after Annie and Mom has been very well tended all day by her three kids. I find it much easier to have laughter and keep the mood light when Adam and Annie and I are working together. We're able to kind of have fun conversation around Mom... conversation that isn't so easy when it's just the two of us. That seems to help her feel lighter and maybe concentrate a little less on her discomfort. Many many mucho thanks to my good friend, Irm... whose mother I cared for in her final hours... who brought over MANY home-cooked casseroles and dishes to serve many people, along with a beautiful larger TV for Mom to have in her room. It has a VCR built in to the bottom and Irm and her husband put together a huge tub of VHS videos for Mom to choose from. That's a great comfort because the TV that I had put in there previously I think was too small for her to see very well. All little steps toward creating a comfortable environment. Annie had a good talk with Mom about some serious stuff during which Mom expressed to Annie that she would rather Annie and her fiance move in to Mom and Dave's house rather than put it on the market. Annie's going to sell her townhouse and live in Mom's house for the time being until the market is more favorable for the sale of it. Annie's doing an absolute beautiful and totally grown-up job of sorting through all of the financial affairs and making wonderful decisions about how to best manage everything. She's surrounding herself with all the right people to help her and, despite her own time of grief, is showing tremendous courage as she pushes on with all of the responsibilities that have landed on her shoulders. I feel very blessed today to have the love and support of my brother and sister, and feel honored to be caring together for our mother.