March 16, 2019

Maggie the Dog/Ratdog

Been missing me?  I have been in the Dallas area since Sunday evening helping my oldest sister following her knee replacement on 3-6.  She lives with Nephew/Her Son.  He has a son (Great Nephew) and a Dog named Maggie.  I did not do anything for the son.  I played catch the pig with Maggie the dog a lot during the six day stay.  Maggie is, also, called Ratdog because she caught a rat.

This is Oldest's second knee replacement since the first of the year.  That first replacement was a tremendous success.  The second has developed an infection.  The infection was diagnosed on Monday.  Sis was on pain meds so a bit, well more than a bit, out of reality.  Add on the infection and you can have a challenge on you hands. 

Sister is 82 and is fighting admitting she is an elderly person with every fiber.  The battle means she is certain she is completely capable to be in charge of her medications and doctor schedules.  That is fine except when one is on multiple pain medications, recovering from a second surgery and sleeping about 18 - 20 hours a day.  Things will become easily confused for anyone.  An example is when a new medication was introduced Monday night.   Within the next 10 minutes after the first dose of antibiotics she insists she needs to take that new antibiotic .. three more times.  No, sister, you have already had it.  Nephew answers after second request, "Mom you have taken it."  Meds removed from her reach.  She insists one more time.  Nope, you took it and choked on the water.  She never remembered taking it.

Monday afternoon the home health person had sent photos of the operated knee to the physician's office.  The decision was made to begin the antibiotics.  Oldest was told to call for an appointment.  The call was made and the office appoint was announced by Oldest/Mom to be Thursday at 5 PM.  That seemed strange but then she was being worked into the schedule.  Bottom line was that when the home health returned on Thursday morning the knee was not much better, if at all.  Ranzi left instructions for us to call after going to the 5 PM appointment.

Younger sister came to help get Oldest sister to the doctor appointment and just to visit for a bit.  Oldest said she could guide us to the doctors office.  Youngest, who had dealt with both of our parents in their final years, called to get the address to make certain.  She called at 3:45.  The appointment time had been 3:00.  Can you manage a work in?  Yes, if you can leave right now.  Sis uses Siri for guidance to the hospital.  Oldest sister says "This door is where we go."  Oldest gets out with my assistance while Youngest gets the walker for her.  Oldest starts to try to step up on the sidewalk.  She grudgingly steps back at our insistence so we can close the car door and she has a nice ramp to use.  Youngest parks the car.  She meets Oldest and I as we are coming back out of the building.  The attendant inside says this is not the entrance with the elevators we will need to get to the office.  So it is back into the car and around to the other end of the block long building to the office entrance. 

The office had no one in the waiting room.  We were barely seated before we head to the exam room.  Questions, vitals taken and recorded, and the PA arrives.  Questions, more questions about how does this feel?, etc.  The PA thinks she may send us straight back to the hospital for antibiotic IV's.  One more consult and nope, we want you to see the infectious disease doctor tomorrow.  It is too late to see any one or make the appointment for you cause it is now pushing 6 PM.

Once home, we ate the dinner provided by the church.  My nephew is the senior pastor of the church.  meals were provided earlier in the week, also.  Oldest sister is exhausted and falls asleep quickly in her recliner.  She was too tired to eat.  Once it was a bit calmer I suggested that in view of today's mess up Nephew take care of scheduling appoints until Oldest/His Mom was off pain killers.  He agreed and on Friday began what turned into an all day task to get an appointment.  An appointment that was considered urgent the night before.  An appoint was given for Wednesday of the next week.  Urgency did not seem to be in the mix.

Calls back to the surgeon's office resulted in a trip to the hospital.  Oldest had managed to pack a bag.  Refused to put her purse in the main bag.  R E F U S E D.  I had already packed all my stuff except my computer bag into my car as I was returning home with Niece took the weekend duty.  Nephew was working to get Oldest/His Mom into the taller vehicle.  She could not get either leg to lift her up because still recovering.  Guess we should have let her try the 8 inch step on Thursday.

Anywho, I go get my car and bring it to the garage area, Sister gets in without a problem.  We have the bag with the clothing.  BTW the first thing she had put in the bag was her charger and phone.  She is addicted.  We are off to the hospital with Nephew to follow.  He catches up to us and signals me where to turn.  All is going okay.  I pull into the loading/ unloading area.  Oldest has by now noted the black purse is not with her.  You know the one she refused to put in the bag.  I see a man with a wheelchair and ask her to yell for him.  Nope, not her plan so off he goes.  Now Nephew arrives and goes in to get the wheelchair.  Oldest refuses to stay in the car so I can move out of other driver's way.  Once she and Nephew head into the hospital I move so others can now leave the area, too.  Did I mention as we were pulling in Oldest was yelling at the parked cars as they were loading their patients to hurry up?  That she cursed that they were not moving?  Have I mentioned we four sisters are an impatient bunch?  Yep, we are all of that an more.

Once parked I go to the back of my car to get the computer.  F bomb leaves my mouth as I realize the computer is on the cabinet at Nephew's.  In the excitement of having to switch autos to transport Sister I failed to get that one last thing, the computer bag.  Cursing myself all the way into the hospital I arrive to find Nephew leaving to retrieve the black purse.  Yep That Black Purse.  The one with all the medical info needed to be admitted to the hospital.  He said he would be glad to pick up my computer bag at the same time.

Oldest is admitted to the same hospital she has been in twice before in two months.  On the same floor so the folks are remembering her.  The staff has not received orders from the doctor.  He is still in surgery.  It seems as we sit and wait the only ones feeling the emergency are we three.   Niece arrives.  Now 4 are waiting.  The staff comes to do paperwork, bed cloths and still no orders.  Nephew leaves to get an MRI for a shoulder problem he is having.  Tick Toc Tick Toc.  More paperwork.  Orders only answer question about liquid and food intake.  Food ordered and eaten.  Blood drawn.  No orders.  I tell Niece I will leave at 6:45 orders or no.  I have a 200 mile drive ahead of me.  It was closer to 7:00 PM when I left.

Called back to Niece to see if she would like a burger or something.  No, she would prefer a snack out of the vending machine.  Ok.  I stopped at a McDonalds drive thru.  25 minutes later the food was handed to me.  25 minutes at a fast food chain.  It was 7:30 by that time.  I made one pit stop and one Starbuck's drive thru on the road home.  Sent a text letting sisters and son know I was home at 11:30 PM.  Took a deep breath, gathered the bags, walked down the hall, opened the door.  Home surely felt good.  And that Hubby hug was wonderful.

Here in photos is what Hubby did while I was gone:

Took DJ squirrel hunting

Main shelf given top coat and one of two floating shelves built and stained.

Main shelf just curing the top coat before installation

Pieces parts waiting assembly of second floating shelf

I sit here wondering what this next week will hold for our families.  Who will be next to have excitement happen?  Grandson #1 and Bonus Grandson are doing much better after the broken jaw and ruptured appendix.  According to Youngest sister, Oldest seemed much more lucid today but very emotional.  Please, all you folks stay safe out there.

Weathering This Year

This has for sure been a year of hospitals, rehab and repairs for the residents of 3871.  Last mid-November Edna entered the hospital with pneumonia.  After 10 days, Edna was moved to skilled nursing for pulmonary rehab with a slight chance she could return to assisted living.  But it was not to be so we began the year with Gene's mom moving permanently into skilled nursing.  Then in late February, two days before my knee surgery, Edna was back in the hospital with pneumonia in both lungs, again about a 9 or 10 day stay.

I spent 8 weeks following surgery with in home and out-patient rehab for my knee.  All is going well with my knee now, thank the Lord and blessed health professionals.  The next challenge was Gene's knee and hip problem that began to really act up in late April.  Knee surgery in July followed by in home and out-patient rehab for 6 weeks for him.  He reached flex and extension goals more quickly than I cause he is tough.

In the middle of the mix of all the surgeries and rehab was the fireplace from hell repair.  Of course that started simply as replacing the carpet in a bedroom and living room.  By the last week of August we thought we had hospitals, rehab and the chimney all behind us.  But that was not to be.  Gene spent the last day of August and the next 4 days in the hospital with a clot.  He is doing good enough now that on Wednesday afternoon he mowed the front yard!

Then yesterday morning as we were trying to decide if we would work in the yard or do a project in the house another phone call.  Edna was unresponsive to the staff at the skilled nursing home.  So the decision was made for us.  We would spend the day in the emergency room.  Edna was a cognitive as she can be at this point in her almost 98 year old life.  Her mind could not figure out where she was and why she was there.  We would give her the information only to have her ask the same questions in just a few minutes.  The good news was she was responsive, knew us, our names and where Kenneth lives.  Bad news?  She has pneumonia yet again.

Today the weather was rainy and chilly.  I removed the remaining hose connections, rolled up all hoses and added support to the netting over the pond.  I did it in shorts and a tee shirt just because I was being a stubborn, old fart.  The temperature was in the mid 40's while I was doing the chores in a gentle mist.  I came in, put on a sweatshirt and have stayed in the shorts all day.

Gene changed the filters in the heating system and fired up the furnace.  There was the less than pleasant smell of heated dust in the furnace.  Supper, that is what a person that grew up in Texas on a cotton farm calls an evening meal, was simple, baked potato soup with grilled cheese sandwiches.  So here at 3871 we on the first of many cold days to come made it through the day relatively unscathed.  Pretty good for two senior citizens that have just been weathering this year.