Monday June 10th 2024

Good morning.

Joe, hope the car repairs go smoothly.

I went for a AAA screening this morning.  They said to arrive at 6:30 AM and which I knew was over kill at got there at 6:45 and the person to check people in was just getting there.  Glad I didn't get there at 6:30.  There were other people there as well when I got there.  Anyway at 7AM sharp I had my ultrasound by 8:00 I got a ding on my app that I had a message and it was from my doctor who said "good news, no sign of AAA on your ultrasound".  My copay was $365 after a "prepay discount" of $91.39 which I guess is because I paid in full the day of service.  Anyway........

The last couple of days were grueling but that's med-surg.  Off for three days and don't have much on the agenda.  I'm hankering to spend some of that overtime money on furniture like a bedroom set which I planned to do when I painted over a year ago.  We'll see.

I do miss having the opportunity to make some extra dollars by working overtime. 

Stars, I agree with your brother's points, although I understand you must maintain your interest in the house. 

Last week a few people said that Hubs and I are "saints" for keeping Gma. I would then say that he was the saint; I resent the whole thing (I didn't put it quite that way). Funny, the day after he was so ugly to me about being more of an impediment than a help, he was saying "you know, you're married to a saint" ? -- suffice it to say that I have many moments when I am not feeling gracious about this at all. And I don't care who dies, I am not doing that trip with her again!

Catching up at work; it's not piled as deep as I was afraid it might be, but there is more than enough to do.

I weeded my tiny little garden last night and gave it some water. It looked like it might rain but so far has not so I'm glad I went ahead with the watering. Hubs and I both liked my homemade spaghetti sauce. The boys ate the (store-bought) alfredo sauce instead. I don't know how I birthed people who don't like tomatoes. Stepson doesn't like them much, either. Stepdaughter is normal and loves them. The boys tell me it is the texture that they object to. And my sauce was more tomato-ey than store-bought sauces. I think Twin B did mix some of it with some of the alfredo sauce. Now I need to make plans for meals for the week. Ugh.

People that reject certain foods because of the texture baffle me.  I'm like "but how does it taste?".  Them:  it tastes okay but I don't want it because of the texture.  What does that even mean?  LOL. 

There are millions of people caring for elderly family right now and it's an ever growing number.  But I have to say it does take a certainly saintly quality to care for a dementia parent at home day after day.  

I was good and went to the gym, but I was bad and haven't eaten well today or done much else.

Ow, I am sore and likely to get sorer. I slipped and fell down the steps from our deck. Scraped my back, and hit my elbow and left flank. But no bleeding, nothing broken. I had just finished frosting a cake for youngest grandson. We are having a little get-together with our kids and grands at eldest ds's house. I did get some cleanup done in the backyard and repotted a couple of plants. My roses are finally starting to bloom, about a week late. 
I am so glad that my dad was able to afford assisted living and memory care when the need arose. I most definitely will never pressure my kids into taking me in. Maybe there is an upside into having short lifespans run in ones family. 

Momo's vet appt was 9:30 AM, and I only slept about 3 1/2 hours if that. Momo gained a pound; I thought she had lost a pound. Then I had to go across town to pick up my refills. The new charge-card is "in the mail", they tell me. Then I figured I'd do the groceries shopping at Food Lion, using the old MasterCard, but I decided I had to use it,  the one I want to pay down. But, I had to because I had no cash! Instead I added something like $152 bucks, as is.  SiL came by at noon and showered Nannie and got her dressed. She will come by tomorrow and get her up and take her for the day...fingernail salon and whatever. They will bring her back after supper.

SiL and Bil have a new puppy-- another Shih-tzu. I've only seen a cute photo of her (named "Izzy" by their grand dgt.) Glad I don't have to house train a puppy! 

Nannie has been EXCEPTIONALLY irritating today; I know she can't help her memory problems, but for me, answering the same questions over and over and OVER AGAIN, for a full hour, just irritated the cold hell out of me. Her attention span and short-term memories Iast about 2 minutes. I also had to dig two huge humpback-whale-sized BM's out of her, when just yesterday she had several HUGE stools with me urging hr to push during it, But it took FOUR trips to the commode and back to the recliner, because she couldn't tell if she had to go or had gone. I was soo irritated and in such a foul mood that my IBS-D kicked in five times; The last time I had to change her, I really had to go up to my bathroom right THEN, but she was so slow and confused, Thank goodness I had put on a pad in my undies, which held it within bounds of the pad so I didn't have to clean or change things as much as I finally did for her. I finally gave up and took a Xanax because I felt like my brain was going to erupt out my ears and my eyeballs could not stop rolling. She also has now forgotten some more of our routines....like, up to the walker, to the bathroom, and then she asked, "where am I supposed to go now?". I so wanted to shout "IN TO THE BEDROOM!" I had to empty all the wastebaskets a second time because Nannie and Momo each use about more+ than 1/2 dozen underpads, each this afternoon. I don't have to pay for them anymore but it is so  disheartening to see wet, used pads every time I thought  I had just changed them to dry ones,

I really Really REALLY need at LEAST a week be far, far away from Nannie, to do a decompressing-decompression from this daily slog and not have to speak with or do anything for her, or even think of her, for a good stretch of time. If she was a patient of mine when I worked for the agency, I would bail out so fast it would make everyone's heads spin. But.....IT IS WHAT IT IS, unfortunately.  I wish it already WAS what it WAS, and was seen disappearing through the rear view mirror!

ARGH! 

I WAS going to do nothing tomorrow but putter around the house and relax, but alas I have to go get my car inspected and get the new tag from the NC DMV. Also have to take the urine spec to the doc's office. It's probably already contaminated because I could not get her to wipe herself down, or let me clean her off, before collecting the spec. She can't or WON'T spread those thighs so you can properly cleansed for a clean catch. Too bad; maybe they should send her over to the hosp to get an in and out Cathy.

Excuse me, TMI, but I have to trot into the bathroom and take another loperidol to halt the nervous squirts.

I hope the rest of the week goes easy on me....and for y'all as well!