Took me about 20 minutes to play catch-up. Quite a life you all have been having. Joanne, good luck with the surgery. Tammy, congratulations on the weightloss. Looks like every body is busy as usual.
My MIL got a lot sicker with the pneumonia. The meds they had her on made her nuts! She was completely out of her mind ... didn't know who she was or who anyone else was. Called the nurses fat, ugly, the devil ... everything you can think of came out of her mouth (except cussing). She is usually a very nice, quiet, reserved woman who doesn't talk much but the meds made her just the opposite as they sometimes do when someone has an adverse reaction to them. We had a time with her for nearly a week. One of us had to stay with her day and night. She is home now but very weak so we're having to go over and take them their meals, wash their clothes and keep up the house & yard work, etc. We fix their meds, their food and do the dishes every day. They can't do much of anything. It's a full time job and there's just the 2 sons. So if I'm gone for several days at a time don't think I'm dead, just dead tired. My arthritis/fibro is progressing so much faster now, too. I'm hurting big time. It may be work/stress related. Not only am I having to carry much more of the work load at home, I'm having to help out a lot with them. But it's a situation where there is no solution. They will not have a stranger come in as long as they are able to get up and walk around and we are afraid if they try to do any of this stuff they will injure themselves. He was 91 in April and she just turned 88 last Friday. All we need is for one of them to break a hip or something. It's a no win situation.
So much for summer, vacations and 'life' for awhile.
It's hard to deal with the older generation-they don't want others to help them. But it falls on the family. hard to get tough.
It's musty and wet in the garage because it rains EVERY day. Tomorrow we can let it dry out. The boxes are from moving-some stuff just got put in boxes to be sorted out later and now it is later!!
My rheumo had left the office when i got there so I had to take a pill instead of a shot. But my skin appt was good-they are watching a brown spot on my face. They took a pic of it.
I saw my FL electric bill online and it had tripled. the man acrooss the street check the ac and it hadn't iced up which would have meant thet it was running all the time. Mike is going to read the meter today to see if it was incorrect and we will go from there. $103 this month and 35 last month.
The man next door to us in FL is in hospice because of skin cancer that he didn't treat aggressively when he first got it. he won't hear anything about the Lord,. You would think he would be scared.
Sure hope your shoulder is ok-Kate. sometimes they do PT.
I would imagine VA is cold in the winter-GA is better.
Mima
Meme, thanks for the congrats! so sorry to hear what all has been happening with your MIL. Dealing with that has to be so hard on all of you, and especially you with the fibro and arthritis. I would imagine the stress is what has made it worse. That happens to me too so much. Take care of yourself!!
Mima, wow to the electric bill in Florida. That's quite a jump in one month.
Tammy, it's not just the stress ... it's physical, too. It is a lot worse than what I told before. Was late last night and I was tired. For example: one day when I was with her (hubby's brother had taken FIL to Dr.) she turned the recliner over on herself ... just slid down in it and out she went. I thought I would never get her out of the floor. Same day she had company and sat too long. When they left she had to go to the BR. Got her up and she didn't make it. Peed all over herself and the livingroom hardwood floor ... all the way across the livingroom, down the hall and all over the BR. I had all that to clean up. It's something all the time, a rash, pills she can't remember how to take, ants in the kitchen, a mouse in the stairway ... just something. I cooked yesterday, a lady from their church cooked Monday, daughter is cooking tomorrow but I have to make sure they have food for every day and go to the store for them. Thank goodness hubby has a brother, he is over there a lot, and my daughter is willing to cook some, too. My SIL is not much help ... she has cooked once! I will have to go over and wash her hair either tomorrow or Friday. Plus, I still have this business I'm trying to run and I have Ross this week. Daughter and hubby are both working and he has been home alone ... I don't like that. He has a bad sunburn so I told him he can just hang with me this week. He's Meme's bud.
Just pray I don't wear out! This junk I have in my body just won't give up and go away & I won't give up and quit ... I don't know whose going to win the war.
Good morning everyone. I am hoping the real estate agent I have used in the past will surprise me with her "comparable market analysis" for our home but I think we are in for a rude awakening! The valuations of homes in our area has gone down dramatically in the past 2 years and I fear we will take a huge loss if we try to sell now. That pretty much says it all about relocating to another state....at least for the next few years. We did get a generous offer from Hubby's niece, who lives in Chesapeake VA, for a place to stay and a car anytime we decide to head up that way. That will sure help expenses if we decide to investigate any further. Now I have to find a live-in "babysitter" for Queenie for a few days....
Doctor gave me a sample of "Voltaren Gel" for my shoulder and said that if it didn't start to feel better in a week, he's going to send me to an orthopedic. The range of motion is okay forwards and backwards but lifting my arm up and to the side is very painful....definitely a rotator cuff issue. Hopefully it is just a strain and not a full tear. I guess time will tell, yes?
Weather cooled down a lot last evening with a t-storm and some heavy rain but it only lasted a short time. It is hot and humid again today but not quite as bad.
Tammy, I looked up that Zumba dancing and we have a health club here that offers it several times and days a week. I asked the doctor about it and he said it can be a very difficult 45 minutes of constant moving but to go for it. I just might sign up for a couple of classes and see how it goes. You are such an inspiration......keep at it, okay? I need all the help I can get!
Meme, you have such a difficult task caring for your inlaws. It's not easy caring for elderly parents and sometimes they just don't realize how much work it is to deal with two households. Do be careful and take time for yourself....it won't benefit anyone if you wear yourself out. Perhaps your MIL's doctor can make arrangements for a home health aide to come in a few days a week to help with shopping, laundry and meal preparations? If she is unable to perform "activities of daily living" right now, medicare might allow for some help in that area. Just doing the shopping and laundry would take some of the stress off you. Good luck in any case....
Mima, it has been unbelievably hot here this past few weeks so that electric bill might just be reflecting that. What do you leave the temp set at while you are gone? I'll be getting our bill very soon and you'll probably hear me hitting the floor all the way up north!!
Enjoy the day, ladies. Off to run some errands. Need to figure something out for dinner....bored with the same old, same old!
Meme - I feel for you, as you are in a no win situation. You can't be picking people up off the floor however. Your body isn't going to take that kindly. I can't imagine how you are even coping. Thankfully, my Mom and I had talked about this problem of care when she was well, and HER wish was to go into a nursing home when the time came. That will be mine as well. I will tell my kids to do it no matter what - even if I try to fight them on it. It just makes sense to have the kind of care they require. You inlaws may not WANT help from outsiders, but I think you need to bring in somebody to be there with them. Take care of yourself.
Kate - Prices are falling and they did Florida took a HUGE hit. Hopefully it won't be as bad as you think. When would you want to be moving? How many years until your hubby retires. My hubby retires this next year, but he will never stop working as long as he is able. However, he will drop down to a part-time job - just something to keep him active. Will massage therapy help you?
Tammy - you are an inspiration to all of us. You are focused and moving forward with your life and you deserve a lot of credit. You could have just as easly said to heck with the whole thing. You go girl!
Mima - that is quite a jump. During the summer I pay about $85.00 a month for electricity and in the winter about $65.00. The AC takes a bit more power. We use natural gas to heat the house. Hope it stops raining so you can get stuff dried out.
Hi Candice and Joanne. Hope you gals are having a good day.,
I went to the chiro yesterday so feel better today. Had a headache yesterday, as he worked on my sinuses as well. Today is it more like a shadow headache - just playing over the brow area.
I know it sounds really easy when someone not dealing with it just says, "get someone else to look after them." But we know if we do that, with his mom just barely hanging on to her sanity as she is now, it would most likely push her over the edge if a stranger came into her home and started taking over things. She gets so confused about people in the family, medicines and even little things like meal times and clothes that if someone unfamiliar was there I'm almost positive she would completely lose her mind again and we just aren't willing to take that chance with her. It was so sad to see her that way in the hospital. It is just a very delicate situation right now ... we're holding steady for the moment, but thanks for all the advise and I appreciate your concern but I'm good for a little while longer. Maybe (probably) a little while down the road when she gets worse, we'll have to either have help or place her in a facility where she can get help ... we just want to keep her 'with us' as long as we can.
Oh ... BTW Kate, I use that Voltaren on my ankle almost every night and it is wonderful! I ordered it from a place in Canada (I think). For anyone who has foot and ankle pain, another thing that is good is the foot pain creme put out by Gold Bond. I use it right after I get out of the shower in the morning and it works. I think it is like 20% menthol ... that's a lot.
Kate..hope the gel works on your shoulder...helped my foot.
Meme...my mom would let people help her at home if we introduced them to her. My FIL would fire the help cause they wouldn't do what he wanted! So hard on family.. the kids did alot for him....everything....you take care. Can their church not help out more?
Tammy....LOL on the shower and ER
Happy....glad you are getting some headache relief.
Mima...wet boxes..yuck... Wow...on the bill!
So hot..watering like crazy...still waiting ofr the window and carpet people to call back. Pie is a yummy cut into 12 pieces and froze some. Had to go by coated wire to keep the geese off the berm where DH fishes...the string is not working.
Mike went and checked the ac and it worked fine-couldn't reread the meter because there were a bunch of them in one place. He also told me how hot it's been. I was hoping I could get them to go back and reread but I don't know. I would like to talk to someone else who got their bill. Ours tripled,
My son Bob was trying to refinance his 2 houses and they wouldn't do it , even after he put some money into one of them. Very low evaluation for what he has. And it's worse in FL.
Going to campground after I get some food and get my new glasses. Spaghetti supper tonight. I will bring my own pasta. Hope to stay there but we are only 10 miles away.
It's not raining right now but lots of thunderstorms forecasted for next few days.
Talked to my son -he seems more resigned to work in VA and he's getting a lot of overtime. He can come home July 1 for a few days. He's having a big cookout on the 4th.
I like your bills, Anne,
Hope that works with your shoulder, Kate. I would try massage.
I haven't had one since I came home. Bye for now-Mima
