A Day

It's winter...not yet, officially. It's cold, it's dark, snow is on the way.
Christmas tree has been up for 9 days...an artificial one this year. sad, but nice. It's not decorated....yet, except for balls on the bottom 1/3 front..done by 3 grandchildren last Saturday. a delight...Z said, "This is SO much fun." mind keeps going back to Mom...today. a little, old lady slumped over with head leaning on side of wheelchair. drinks some hot chocolate that I put ensure in...then too cool. eats bites of a kind of turkey loaf with gravy...like a baby bird...fed to her by me. UTI...again. antibiotic...again. antibiotic makes sooo tired, I'm told. 10 days of it. Less than 100 pounds. Increase 4 oz. nutrition drink to 3x a day. she will bounce back....she always does...the cycle....but the bounce is getting shorter & shorter....she is tired...so very tired.... I want her to smile.... Tomorrow is another day.....

I am Emily!

Stopped to see Mom at noon. She looked at me and said:
Who are you?
I wrote on the board...I am Laraine.
She read it and said...No, I'm Emily.
I pointed at myself.
She said....How long have you been Laraine?
I wrote.....56 years - your daughter
She said....Well, you can be my daughter....but....I don't think so...
LOL!

Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus....

Yep...that's what I need to do.....this song came to mind & I found it on YouTube! I posted it on facebook....guess someone else needed it too...but they posted the same song...only different singer(s).

Yep...Mom has another UTI (although the culture hasn't come back yet). I went today at supper....BUT I was invisible. I know I had to be...no one could see me, I'm sure of it.... and Mom yelled at me and closed her eyes....I left.

But tomorrow is another day...........a so uncertain day!

Not Eating.....Today

She doesn't eat much .... but today she refused to eat anything. I went at noon today. Sara was trying to get her to eat. She wouldn't eat or drink anything. She covered her mouth with her sweater & closed her eyes. She looked like she wanted to cry. She didn't eat breakfast. She did drink a cup of hot chocolate in the morning. Sara pulled the skin on her arm & showed how it stayed like that...meaning she was dehydrated. Sara says she's sleeping more. BUT....yesterday she was smiling at me when I stopped there at noon during lunch. She only ate a couple of bites. I brought her a small Snickers (her favorite). She ate it and thanked me. Sara said that after I left, she asked where Laraine went. Can it be true....did she really know me.... YaY! I got a video clip of her the other day....she smiled.

Today, it she looked like she wanted to cry....and I've seen that before...but for these 10 years that she's had dementia, I have not seen her cry. She's my mom....I don't want her to be this way... I want her to hug me. I want her to stand up & hug me.... I miss her hugs. I will cry for her.

Seriously...

How many UTI's can her body endure. Yep, test result shows another UTI...maybe she just never gets rid of them completely. It's always the same cycle. She wheels herself around like crazy for a couple of days....won't stay put, tries to transfer. Actually....yesterday she did transfer. I got a call yesterday that they were going to send a sample in to check for a UTI. They found her in the nurses' room....sitting in the office chair. She had transferred herself from her wheelchair to the office chair. Whew....glad she didn't get hurt! But....that is funny. Wish I had a pic of that! Last night she was all raring to go...wanted to be taken outside, so I took her around the sidewalk circle 3 times. There was a little wooden lady bug they'd made with her name on it. I showed her & she told me to give it to Laraine, her daughter. Tonight, she was at the dinner table but she didn't want to open her eyes...frail little body. Got her to drink some hot cocoa (with her pills on top....but those little pcs wanted to stay in the cup). She wouldn't even eat peanut butter on crackers....her favorite. She is sick. She is tired. Her body is tired. I sat there and looked around at all of the helpless people. Harriet can't talk but she sure wanted to tell me a thing or two. She kept looking at me and making noises...so I talked to her. and then I left a frail...little... old....lady sitting at the dinner room table...

I think....

....that I cannot take it anymore. I have no other choice....I must. No one knows the pain....the hurt. God knows & He will give me strength to endure to the end. She took my hand today and held it. (Yesterday, she slapped me....not hard..just a get away from me) Today, she looked into my eyes. It was a pleading look. Her back hurt (tonight they change her pain patch)...the nurse looked to see if she could have Tylenol....no, the dr. discontinued it. I now have to request it be reinstated. She ate...a few bites. A little distraction from wanting to lie down. They took her to lie down and change her patch. Tonight is bath night...not a good thing. I think I cannot take it anymore....I must.

Good Days

I just read my last post.. I said that I wanted some good days for her. Thank you, God! Thank you, thank you, thank you! This past week has been AMAZING! She still doesn't know me...BUT she has been content. I love her smiles! I want every day to continue be good for her. I don't want her to get any more UTI's, have any more falls, any more aggressive behavior. It's great to hear..."She's in a good mood." We had her 3 month care conference this week. She weighs 106 lbs.!!! She eats...a little. And....when she's hungry, she wants to eat NOW!

A lady died at the home this past Monday. It took 3 weeks w/o food & water. She was at the Kingsley House when Mom was there....9+ years ago. I just want Mom to not wake up one day....not go through that.

Seriously.....

It's not been a very good last couple of weeks for mom. I was on vacation "upnorth" for a whole week. I didn't have cell phone service...not really...calls could come in & then I'd only hear half of what was said. Sara called that Monday...Mom had bitten a CNA and drew blood. Then...no more communication the rest of the week. I was thinking...oh no..what if they won't keep her there & send her far away to a different facility!!! whew....she didn't, but I did have to sign to have her blood tested. She had a UTI & always has behavior issues with one. They put her on antibiotic but only for 5 days. Three of the late afternoons this week, she has been sleeping in bed when I visited. I've gone a few days at noon...the last couple, she has been unsettled. She fell earlier in the week...the side of her face & down her neck are all black & blue. She has a bump on her head that she says hurts. She won't take her partial out....says she doesn't have one. well, I'm not sticking my fingers in her mouth to get it out!! Sara doesn't know if her behaviors are due to a UTI or the bump to the head. I want some "good" days for her......

It's Been Awhile

I think it's official....Mom doesn't know me! It used to be that one day she didn't but then the next she did. It's been days....no...weeks. I just keep thinking...maybe today she'll know me. I thought she knew me on her birthday last week, because I gave her some bracelets and the next day she said that she got them from Laraine. She just doesn't know that I'm Laraine. How sad. A couple of weeks ago, I wrote that my name was Laraine. She lit all up, smiled and said, "Two Laraines; That's my daughter's name too." I just smiled...and cried inside. When I write on the board, "What is my name?"...she'll make up a name. Most days, she refuses to look at me. Maybe if she could hear, I could talk to her....and explain who I am. Maybe then she'd know me. I wrote on the board today...You are my mother. She didn't understand...she said something that she didn't have two mothers. Well, I'm going to keep telling her who I am. This really stinks. I know that she's in God's hands..in God's plan....I rest in that. I just didn't want it to be like this!

Another Day.....

Another of Mom's grandson's passed away...on Friday. Keith Miller...Delores' middle son...45 yrs old. Two grandsons died....one week apart...funerals one week apart. She doesn't know. It would be very hard for her if she knew...if she could understand. So another death...and I'm silent as far as telling her.

Yesterday....I met my cousin, Marsha, at mom's. Marsha lives in Colorado and visits Mom when she comes to see her parents (Mom's brother, Emil). Mom knew her and her husband! That is HUGE! Marsha said that she gave her testimony at her church recently, and Mom and I were in it. She said that there were tears. She also told me when she found out that Mom accepted Jesus Christ as her Lord and Savior at the age of 80...and was saved. Mom told Marsha in person. Mom told Marsha that she didn't want to write it in a letter but wanted to tell her in person. I never knew that. Marsha's daughter came to Mom's baptism...they lived in Owatonna at the time. I am so glad that Mom had a good 2 years before she got dementia.

The End of a Day....

Today was my mother's grandson's funeral....she didn't know. You see, I couldn't tell her. If she could hear, maybe I could have told her. Maybe not. How could I write on the whiteboard....Your grandson, Jeff, died. I think she'd remember if I wrote Gene. But she thinks Gene is still alive. She used to remember that he died. She used to remember that he was stabbed and died. Would she remember that Gene had a son, Jeff? When Mom used to talk about her dad, Roger and I would tell her that he died. I used to ask her, "How much older was he than you?" She knew...25 years. Then I said that he'd be 115 years old. Then she said...oh yeah, he's dead. Until...one day Roger told her that her dad had died and she got all upset. When I got there, she asked me if I knew that her dad had died. See, she thought he had died that day. From then on, we never told her that her dad died, her husband died, her son died, etc. So...I couldn't tell her that her grandson died. How sad is that... If she could understand, she'd be so sad. If I did tell her, she may have asked about a funeral and would want to go to it. I don't know what she would have said. They told me to take a bouquet of flowers for mom. So I took the flowers, but I didn't show them to her. What would I say...These are from your grandson's funeral. It's hard....my mom's grandson died and I didn't tell her. She also didn't know that he asked about her... a lot. Jeff called me quite often over the last two years. He called me to ask how Grandma was. He had called her a few times when she could hear. I know he would have liked to have seen her....but I think he was scared. When I mentioned that I'd go with him to see her, he said..."that's the problem, she wouldn't know me anyway."

Maybe people think it's a waste of time to go see her. Sure there are days when she's sleeping and doesn't wake up, but oh there are some good days. There are days when she has a big smile and will visit pleasantly. It seems those days are getting fewer & far between lately. So many days, she begs me to take her to bed. I was able to give her my gift today. She said, "For me?" After she opened it, she asked me if it was her birthday. Today I left w/o saying good-bye. She'd been begging me to take her to bed. I put some things in her room and when I came back she had her eyes closed, so I left. Ugh...I left w/o saying good-bye!

Today was a long day. Today was a hard day. I knew what was going to be said at the funeral. It was at a Lutheran church. The minister was a lady. I grew up Lutheran, but I learned the truth when I was 43 years old. Giving all of those people a false sense of security....I wanted to stand up and say....NO!!!!! That's not right....that's NOT what the Bible teaches. Instead, I sit quietly in the pew....knowing that God is sovereign. The Holy Spirit convicts people. I prayed about saying something to my brother, Roger, as we rode together. Maybe I could say something to him....like, you know that's not right - Baptism doesn't save anyone. You know when she said that God has made us his people through our Baptism into Christ....NO. No words came out of my mouth....instead, out of his mouth came swear words. I don't even remember what it was about. Saying my Lord & Savior's name as a swear word...at least twice. And what do I say....nothing. He usually doesn't talk that way around me. Must have been that false teaching!!! He is angry that our brother, Marvin, talks to me but not him. On the way to the funeral, he said that Marvin talks to me...The holy one...what??? So this day has come to an end.

A Big Smile

Mom was dozing at the dining room table when I visited today. She opened her eyes and smiled at me. She asked questions: "Did I get the ironing done?" "Do you think I should sweep the floor?" "Are the men sleeping?" To which I answered...yes, no, yes. She ate really well. She wanted me to make cinnamon rolls....cause she said that I make really good ones. HA!...I've never made homemade cinnamon rolls in my life! I wrote on the board: See you tomorrow. She said, "Unless the baby comes." WoW! Yesterday, I wrote on the board all about Tracy having a baby and that I'd be there today unless she had the baby. AND she remembered that!! She wanted to know where I was going. I said that I was going home. She said, "Are you going to go help milk cows?" To which I answered....yes.

The Kind of Day that's Welcomed

after so many difficult days... Mom was sleepy, BUT she ate 3 chicken legs & a little fruit...after I touched her (to wake her)! Then she dozed at the table. I touched her to leave and she shook her head. She shook her head to mean....please leave me alone. While she was eating her chicken legs, I wrote, "I love you." She said very softly, "Me too." Then I wrote, "Jesus loves you." She nodded her head. Yesterday, she was anxious..... Today, she was mellow.

Today I read some disturbing info on statins (for cholesterol reduction). I just Googled: Statins & Memory Loss.....WoW - I didn't know! So what if it's a small percentage......who wants to be in that small number? Reminds me of something I heard years ago. What if there was one seat on the airplane that was going to fall out during the flight? Would you still fly on that airplane, even though the percentage was very low of getting assigned to that one seat? Now there are two things that Mom has been on for years that have been known to cause memory loss. Tell that to medical doctors & you'll get shot down quickly! I verified with the nurse working today at the nursing home that Mom is off the cholesterol meds cause a few months ago the dr. asked my permission to discontinue them. The nurse today said that statins can be very bad and advised not to go on them.

Not a Good Day

Sometimes I don't know if I can take it any more...Today was one of those days. When I came to Mom's, the door was almost shut....Someone was taking her to the bathroom. I could hear her protesting when I went by. I waited in the dining room for awhile, wondering how one person could handle taking her to the bathroom. I decided to go check. Oh my...the gal was having a time. I helped...Mom hit me, twisted my fingers...I KNOW she could have broken them! She is STRONG for such a skinny little woman. She was bound & determined that she was going to walk. She is agitated today.... I thought maybe she didn't know who I was. But then she started to say Laraine after I took her to the dining room. I took her pic with my cell phone....motioning for her to smile. She did. I showed it to her. "Is that ME?" "Laraine, don't tease me."

I hate that Mom has to be in a nursing home. I hate that she has memory problems. I hate that she can't hear. I hate that she can't walk. I hate that she is stuck there till she dies cause I can't take her out of there. I hate that she'll never be able to come to my house again. Okay...that's pretty bad. I better think about what's good. If she has to be in a nursing home, it's good that she can't remember. It's great that she's in Austin and close to where I live....those 9 months in Blooming Prairie, now that was bad. It's wonderful that she accepted Jesus Christ as her Lord & Savior before all of this. I need to write about that another day.

It's hard........it's hard.....it's so very hard......BUT...God will help me.

A Hiatus

I've been on vacation. Yes...AGAIN! I spent 4 days/3 nights with my very pregnant daughter, Tracy, and 2 1/2 year old Granddaughter, Emma, in St. Paul, MN. Then I went on a ladies retreat Friday/Saturday. Right when I got back into town today, I got a call from the nursing home. Mom had been coughing up yellow stuff, and the nurse wanted to know if I wanted her to be treated in-house or have her taken to the hospital for a chest xray. I returned the call to find that the cough started this morning. She didn't have a fever and was hungry/eating. So the decision fell on me....her advocate. After getting all of the information, I decided that we'd wait to see how she does. She wouldn't let the nurse listen to her lungs, so I knew it would be a traumatic experience for her to be taken to the hospital. I went to see her at 5:30 this afternoon. She was napping at the table and when she woke up, she said that she was cold. She did wake up to eat some onion rings and mandarin oranges, then wanted to go to bed. She didn't know that I hadn't been there for almost a week. She didn't cough.....until right when I left. Did I make the right decision.... the nurse said that she thought that was the best thing to do...to wait and see.

I walked into the nursing home with the lady who bought the farm where I grew up. She used to work at the office, and I've seen her around. I knew her husband has Alzheimers and had been at the other Our House Assisted Living for a bit a couple of years ago, but then she decided to continue to care for him at home. Her husband now lives in the same wing as my mom. He moved in last Wednesday. It's a very, very tough situation.

A Day - A Visit

Today, I spent some time with Zachariah & Kate. I picked them up after work and took them to my house. They headed straight for the swings in the backyard. I pushed them for awhile & then Papa came out. They were so excited for Papa to push them! Neither of them wanted to go with me to see Great-Grandma Emily. Zachariah wanted to stay with Papa. Kate didn't want to go cause "she's in bed." On Saturday, Kristy, Kate and I went to see Mom at lunchtime. She was out of it...sleeping in bed...and I'm sure looked kinda scary to a two year old. Sooo...I told them that we could stay here for 15 minutes, then we'd go see Great-Grandma Emily, then I'd take them home. It ended up to be longer than 15 minutes. After we got there, they both took their coats off on their own (to stay awhile). Zachariah started writing on the whiteboard and didn't want to leave.

More on Texas

I am home after a week in Texas!

Some notes about my trip:
...Got used to the warmer temps & want it here.
...Embassy Suites holds out the soft sheets & white/fluffy towels (vs gray/thin towels) till the end of your stay.
...I miss last week's routine: Got up, threw on my exercise clothes, went downstairs & ate brkfst w/Lyle, took Lyle to school, came back to hotel & exercised for an hour, got some fruit & tea and went up to room to check fb, got around to showering and getting ready for the day....no hurry (except to catch two movies at the theater).
...Beware of rusty cut off pipes sticking up in parking lots...OUCH - cut my big toe on way in to pizza place, which meant a trip to Wal-Mart for bandaids & cream.
...All in all, I had a mighty fine time.
I had planned to write about more things, but don't really feel like it now!

Texas

Here I am....in Texas (Irving - between Dallas & Fort Worth). We arrived here early Saturday afternoon. We visited the Stockyards in Fort Worth Saturday afternoon. We saw 15 long-horn steers (cows anyway, with big horns) being driven down the street by cowboys on horses. We took a 1 1/2 hour walking tour of the Stockyards. It was very interesting. We ate at a "Texas" steakhouse for supper. Yesterday was Easter--- He is Risen. He is Risen Indeed! We went to Prestonwood Baptist Church in the morn. It's a HUGE church about 1/2 hour from our hotel. We went downtown Dallas in the afternoon to see the Kennedy Memorial and went to the 6th Floor Museum. Our GPS is our friend...even though we had our moments (like all friendships). For example... we were in the very right lane of five lanes of heavy traffic. She told us to take the ramp on the left in .8 miles (not sure of the miles, but it wasn't many). I finally got way over to the left lane. (I have been doing all of the driving. Lyle wanted me to get used to driving for when he's in school.) When I got way over to the left, she said, "Take Exit 1A on your right." WHAT? Exit 1A was right there...only 5 lanes to our right. So then she said, "Recalculating." I actually heard her say that many times over the weekend. Traffic usually doesn't bother me, BUT I don't like driving around here. There is a maze of freeways going every which way, with lotza traffic. I don't plan to go to Fort Worth or Dallas again this trip. I asked at the desk and there is a big mall about 15 minutes from here. Maybe we'll find it tonight, so I can go there tomorrow by myself. I need to name my GPS friend! She and I will go to the mall tomorrow.

Last Monday we stayed at a year old Embassy Suites in the cities. I got spoiled. This too is an Embassy Suites but many years old. The hotel itself is nicer...the rooms are bigger but not as nice. The rooms could use some updating, especially the bathroom with peeling/stained wallpaper. We have a balcony off the bedroom...the length of the sliding glass doors...it's one foot wide with cement walls. Can walk out and "stand" to check the weather.
BUT:
1. FREE internet (cause Lyle is taking FlightSafety)
2. 10 floors of room around an atrium with a water falls, ponds with fish.
3. FREE to order breakfast in the atrium.
4. Glass on back of elevators....so see the atrium all the way up...also see other people in the elevators opposite!
5. A suite is sweet....two rooms, three sinks.

Well...that's a little info about my Texas experience so far. Today, I went to the "theater" for $1.25 and saw Dear John and had popcorn & candy for lunch!

Who are you?

Spent an hour with mom today. She wanted to know if I was Tracy....Kristy.... I think she knew who I was after awhile... She kept wanting to go to bed, and I kept writing "after supper." She wouldn't stay put and kept wheeling herself to find her room.....to go to bed. She did eat some supper and wanted to share it with me. She was fine with me leaving and wanted to know when I would be there tomorrow.....cause I put "see you tomorrow" on her board.

It doesn't get any easier to leave her when I visit.

A Saturday

Got to Mom's right when they were starting to serve supper. Mom was at the table, with blanket in her mouth......just wanting to sleep. I cut up Art's brat patty for him & left. Mom's hair is WAY too short!!

Haircut

Mom got a haircut today. Oh my....it's really short. BUT...She kept telling people that she really likes it, so guess that's all that matters. Her haircut is the first thing she mentioned. She said that she told her, "that's enough, don't cut any more!" She said that a lady from Albert Lea cut her hair.

Mom and Me on March 21, 2010

Emily Hansen on March 21, 2010

My Mother's Childhood

Yesterday, all the way up to the cities and some of the way home, I listened to a tape that my cousin recorded on April 21, 2000, of my mom and her brother, Emil, talking about their childhood. That was right before Mom got “Dementia.” It was nice to hear Mom talking and remembering. Some of the things below came from that conversation.

Emma Bessie Prantner was born July 26, 1917, at her Great Uncle’s place near Seaforth, Minnesota. She was the third child of seven born to Emil and Emma Prantner. Her twin brothers had been born just the year before. Milo went to live with their maternal grandparents. The other twin, Jerome, died at the age of nine from Angina. Three more brothers came after Emma. Emma started school at the age of seven. Although Emil & mother Emma could speak both English & Czech, they only taught their children to speak Czech. When they started school, they couldn’t speak English. Emma was very sad because the kids at school called her Fat Emma (after a candy bar). Emma was a skinny little girl! When Emma was 11 years old, her mother died after giving birth to Elsie. Emma remembers that her mother was very sick when she was pregnant with Elsie. She remembers her coughing up blood. Mother Emma gave birth at home (on a farm they were renting), with her mother (Grandma Smetak) delivering the baby. Baby Elsie died one day after her mother died. In those days, they would put the dead in a casket right in their living rooms. I remember Mom telling me that her mother and sister were in the same casket in the living room. So by the age of 11, my mother had lost her older brother, mother and only sister.

Emma’s dad put ads in the Farm paper for housekeepers (when they lived by Seaforth and Glenville). By the sounds of it, they went through A LOT. They may have had one good one, Anna.

When Emma was 14 years old, her dad bought a farm near Glenville, MN. Somewhere around that time, her grandmother (must have been her paternal step-grandmother) told her that Emma and Emily were the same. Well, she liked Emily better so when they moved, she told everyone that her name was Emily. Turns out that her birth certificate said, “Baby Girl Prantner,” so when she needed a copy of her birth certificate (after she was married), she could put whatever name she wanted on it. She put Emily Bessie Prantner. Personally, I think that Fat Emma candy bar had something to do with it!

Dementia OR Alzheimer's (a form of Dementia) OR Multi-Infarct Dementia, MID (a form of Vascular Dementia)

I really don't know what my mother has! She started having memory problems in the summer of 2000 at the age of 83. Her doctor called it dementia. MRI's have revealed that she has had TIA's (mini strokes). That seems to indicate MID. Alzheimer's is one form of dementia. I have heard that the only way to accurately diagnose Alzheimer's disease is to dissect the brain. I just read things on all of the above....but I don't know what she has! I say that she has dementia, because I think it sounds better than Alzheimer's. I thought that with Alzheimer's, the person got progressively worse. Mentally, I can't see that she has gotten worse. The broken bones and loss of hearing caused her to get physically worse. Mom took hormone pills for years. I've read that in studies, they found them to cause dementia. I don't know what she has, but God knows. Emily gave her life to Him at the age of 81....before she got whatever she has, so that's what is important. As a friend reminded me, God has not forgotten about Emily. Praise the LORD!

Few & Far Between

My day brightened when I remembered that today Sara would be working in The Lake (where Mom lives). I would go there earlier than right before supper...cause even if Mom was sleeping, I could talk to Sara. You see, Sara transferred to The Lodge a couple of weeks ago...what a sad day when I found out. But this is the second day this week that she's filled in at The Lake (cause they haven't hired anyone to replace her yet). Pam Riley was still there from the day shift (filling in). She said that Mom had been pleasantly talking ALL day. Well, when Mom talks non-stop, it usually means she has a UTI. When I arrived, Sara and Pam were in the break room; and Sara bought Mom some chili flavored Fritos out of the machine. She said that she always shares them with her. I found Mom in the dining room, sitting quietly. When she saw me, she started talking. I gave her some Fritos, and Art asked if he could have some....."sure." Mom talked and talked the whole time I was there (over an hour and a half). She said that she had picked corn, told how someone had stolen a pretty sweatshirt that Roger had found on the road and gave to her (told me that the day before too, so pretty good that she remembered), how she and dad had to find a different place to live, talked about an old neighbor lady, said that they were a nice family (in the nursing home), and on and on. She wasn't anxious. She was all smiles and joking around. I think that she thinks Sara is her daughter too. When Sara works days, she spends her breaks with Mom. She shared a McDonald's meal with her last Saturday. So, today was one of those "few and far between" days. Mom wouldn't take her pills the whole time she had a UTI a couple of weeks ago. They had to crush her pills in peanut butter and hot chocolate. So she may not have gotten rid of the infection. I hope that's not the case. She was so pleasant today. It was so fun to see her like that. Yesterday, she told me that she thought she had sleeping sickness. AND...she was hungry today and ate half of her hot dog, some potato salad, couple onion rings and a few bites of cantaloupe...AND she thought it was all good! I took a pic of her on my cell phone. I'll see if I can get it posted here. I checked at Alltelpics and it's not there!

A Sleepy Day

I arrived at mom's about 5:35 PM. She was at the dining room table...sleeping. This was a day that she wanted to be left alone. She opened her eyes, shook her head at me and closed her eyes again. The food came....sloppy joe or fish sandwich. I chose a sloppy joe & potato salad for her. When I gently shook her awake, she opened her eyes for a second & then bit her napkin. That's right...napkin. A couple of weeks ago, some new person decided to do away with the "bibs" and use colored cloth napkins instead. They are pretty...but not very practical. Today's visit was...short.