Busy, busy the last couple days. Chuck worked just Tuesday and Wednesday this week as we had a bunch of errands to do and places we wanted to go.
First up Thursday was renewing our passports. This meant getting a passport photo. Oh joy!
Luckily our local grocery store as a photo lab where you can get this done for a reasonable price. We then ended up sitting in the passport office for only an hour or so as we were there very early. We spent the rest of the morning running errands and I MAY have found a beautiful dress at Old Navy!
Friday morning we FINALLY made the trip to see my Mum. Three times we have made plans to go but twice she was sick and once the weather was terrible. Gorgeous sunny day but a tad cold.
I had a large bag full of books I had picked up over the last couple months for Mum. Of course I forgot it! Luckily there is a great thrift store halfway to Mum's so we nipped in there and I picked her up another bag full.
My brother and his wife (who Mum lives with) are away this week. Mum no longer wants to leave her little apartment and go to my sister's or come to our house while my brother is away. So she has a Personal Support Worker (PSW) come in twice a day to make sure she is alright and to have some company. We arrived just as one of the PSW's named Alice was leaving.
Very loving, caring ladies my Mum is blessed to have. Alice is only about 10 years younger than my Mum but still loves her work.
As I walked towards my Mum I could see she had a large mark on her forehead that extended around her eye. WHAT!!!!
She fell as she was getting out of bed last week (when my brother and SIL were still home) and bonked her head on her night-table.
"Why didn't you tell me???" I shrieked at the poor woman. " I didn't want you to worry" was her answer. Why do parent's do that?
She had her regular twice a week PSW look at it when she came that day and everything was o.k. It looks like she was in a heck of a fight.
My Mum has a cane and walker she uses in her apartment and my brother has moved stuff around so my Mum can get around easy. I am just very thankful it was nothing worse. I am also thankful my brother has a job that he can do from home so Mum has someone there most days.
We spent a few hours with Mum and had a lovely visit. Mentally she is pretty crisp, it is physically she is failing.
She loves to chat about politics and books, she likes to hear what renovations we are doing on the house and she likes to know what is up with all of our extended family via Facebook.
We plan to visit next month again as it is her birthday. This time I will remember the bag of books!
Hope you are enjoying your weekend. It is sunny and very mild here.
Take care!
Robin
Lovely variety of photos, Robin, and I did spy 4 horses by the dilapidated barn in one of the pics. :-)
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry your mum fell and injured herself. I'm sure you're concerned about a broken hip or other broken bones. It's good your brother is able to work from home, and that there are PSWs coming in to help.
Love the sunset (presume sunset?) photo, btw. Gorgeous sky.
Sweet Pea is so handsome. So muscular now too, all grown up.
Enjoy the long weekend and the mild temps! My back space is starting to thaw around the edges and is turning into muck and mire. LOL.
Hi Kim, we saw quite a few horses out yesterday but I only had my little point and shoot along and I couldn't zoom in enough to see all the horses.
DeleteIt is very concerning that Mum fell again. This is the third or fourth time, luckily no broken bones this time.
Yes that is a sunset photo. The sky was on fire that night but only briefly.
Sweet Pea is big and handsome but he is rather skittish now. Before he would walk up to everyone human or not. Now if he sees another cat he is off like a shot. I am happy he still does come to visit us.
Have a wonderful weekend too Kim!
Growing old is the pits but at least your mother has a good arrangement at your brother's. Good thing your mom escaped with minor injuries. I gather she has fallen and actually broken bones in the past.
ReplyDeleteIt all worked out for the best. A year after my Dad died my Mum no longer wanted to live alone. My sister's house was too small for my Mum to have a separate apartment, we were due to be posted to Nova Scotia and my Mum didn't want to move that far so my brother offered to have Mum live with them. They were looking to move to a bigger house anyway so they found one that has an apartment set up in the basement.
DeleteShe has fallen a few times over the last 20 years. The first time she broke her collar bone and then the next time a rib. We were very lucky this time.
Hope you are getting out and enjoying your milder temperatures!
Hope your Mum is healing after her fall. Love your robin and cedar waxwing photos. It was a gorgeous day with more to come. Enjoy the rest of the weekend.
ReplyDeleteHi Linda, hasn't the weather this weekend been fabulous?? We certainly are enjoying it.
DeleteI think I took 20 photos of the cedar waxwings. They are beautiful!
Take care!
Thankful that you were able to visit your Mum. I'm sorry about her fall. I was caregiver for both my parents and now my husband. Falls happen so quickly despite our best efforts.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed your lovely photos and I wish you a good evening.
Hi Mildred, My Dad was diagnosed with Parkinson's about 10 years before he died. We helped my Mum care for him and it was heartbreaking. You are right, falls happen so quickly. The last time Mum fell she just was turning to pick up something that she dropped and she went right over.
DeleteI am glad you enjoyed my photos. Take care Mildred.
That sounds like my late great grandmother - smart as a whip until the day she died. Her body just couldn't keep up any more. But she had a great life and lived well into her 90s.
ReplyDeleteHi Valerie, I am so glad to read that your great grandmother loved a wonderful life. My Mum's quality of life isn't the greatest. She was a lady who loved to get out and about and walk or ride her bike. That hasn't happened in 7 years or so.
DeleteHope you are enjoying the fantastic weather!
Great photos...
ReplyDeleteYou mother is a very lucky woman. To be able to have what sounds like her own little apartment, which is still with your brother. Lucky lady. I wish her well.
Yes, eventually, our body does fail us, in this way and that. But it is wonderful, that she is still so interested in things. Super wonderful. For all concerned.
Enjoy the rest of your weekend...
Hi Luna, we are very blessed to have Mum living with my brother. He treats her so well and they get along so well too. Her mind is very sharp and she reads the Toronto Star from cover to cover everyday. She is better informed than I am!
DeleteBe well!
Sounds like a nice visit with your mother. Falling scares me! My mother fell twice the short time she lived at the assisted living complex. I love your pictures of houses in the snow. Take care.
ReplyDeleteHi Henny, it was a lovely visit with Mum once we got over the shock of her Fall. It is odd to look at your Mum with a black eye.
DeleteFalls happen so quickly. I tripped over the vacuum 10 days or so ago and my knee finally now is feeling better.
Glad you enjoyed the photos. The little yellow house is for sale. I keep meaning to check how much it is!
Talk later!
Your mum sounds like a wonderful woman. So lucky to have your brother and sister-in-law available for her, too. Glad you got to visit. My mother LIKED to worry me!
ReplyDeleteHi Mitchell, she is a great lady. We have always gotten along so well. We are both a little different and wacky! My Dad thought we were nuts sometimes. Your Mom was a lovely lady too.
DeleteEnjoy your week!
The bird pictures are wondrous.
ReplyDeleteWe got our passports renewed last year and I was stunned when I was told not to smile. My pictures look bad enough without throwing in that little caveat:)
It looks like your mom has her own little house is that right? Aging is so difficult but it sounds like she has the perfect situation and a family that loves her.
YOU have a great day, Robin.
Hi Sandra, Thanks for your kind words about my photos. Easier to take good photos when the subject is so beautiful!
DeleteI was so surprised too that you can't smile in a passport photo. And I had to take my glasses off. Chuck said the photo didn't even look like me! My photo was pretty bad. ;)
Mum has a small apartment in my brother's basement. They can come and go between the two areas which they do all the time.
Have a wonderful Sunday!
So sorry to read that your mom fell and hit the night-table. We all worry about our aging moms, don't we. The aging process takes quite a toll. It's wonderful that your mom can live with your brother and have good caregivers. That's really the best scenario. Sure is beautiful where she is living. The photos are lovely.
ReplyDeleteHi Robin, you are going through a heart wrenching time too with your Mom. I hope she has settled well into her new living situation.
DeleteMy brother and I don't always see eye to eye but it is getting better. I will say he treats Mum like a queen and I love him for that.
The photos were taken along a back road we take to Mum's instead of using the busy highway. It is small towns and many farms. In the summer it is so beautiful!
Hope your rain stops soon!
All your pictures are outstanding. Can't even pick out a favorite.
ReplyDeleteSo sorry about your mother's fall. Thank goodness she didn't break anything.
My mom is about the same. So hard to see our moms age.
Hi Karen, thanks for your kind words. It was just a mish mash of photos today!
DeleteI know you understand what I am feeling. You and your Mom are in my thoughts and prayers.
Take care.
Wow, I can imagine how you felt seeing your mom...so glad you finally got to go. I enjoyed your photos, too. Love hearing about what you are doing.
ReplyDeleteHi Rose, I was so shocked to see her horrible bruises. Not a pleasant thing to see your Mum hurting.
DeleteIt hasn't been a good winter for visiting my Mum. Every weekend we seemed to have a storm.
I'm glad you enjoy reading about my daily life. I enjoy your blog too!
I'm so glad your Mum has caring people to help her and look after her. So glad you got to go visit! The pictures are pretty! Love your bird pictures! I was out photographing big birds this weekend at the Wildlife Expo, saw some really neat ones!
ReplyDeleteThanks for your kind words! It was wonderful to finally be able to visit. Her birthday is next month so we will be heading back.
DeleteI will pop over and check your blog. I saw some photos from the Wildlife Expo on another bloggers post. Looks like a wonderful event.
Take care.
That sounds like a nice set up for your mama.
ReplyDeleteMeow! What a pretty kitty!
Hi Pom Pom, It is a perfect arrangement for all concerned. My Mum has company but still some privacy. My brother enjoys my Mum's company and was able to buy a larger home with my Mum's contribution.
DeleteSweet Pea is a handsome kitty. He just popped in for another visit.
Have a good day!
awesome barn photos and sunset .... !!!!!
ReplyDeleteN whitefish wavez two ewe sweet pea ...yur lookin grate two day dood...hope all iz well
with ewe ☺☺☺♥♥♥♥♥
Thanks! So many barns along the way to take photos of.
DeleteSweet Pea was just visiting again. He got lots of treats and a snuggle too.
You all have a good day too!