Photo courtesy of Morguefile
Box of bunnies for Grandma to watch In case you're wondering, I didn't get assigned the letter "B" in an alphabet writing challenge.
I've started to write a couple of posts lately, but I ended up feeling like my feeble attempts at humor sounded like whining. Probably because it was whining. Though I'm usually pretty good at ignoring whining (ask the kids), I'm having a hard time ignoring myself. So, the best cure for getting away from the whineyard, is to cork it up for a while. Counting blessings is one way of doing that. Helping others in need is another way. The little things in our lives are many times the most important things in our lives.
I've mentioned before that my MIL lives with us and has Alzheimer's. It's not severe at this point - she has favorite TV shows, recognizes everyone, and still gets around the house and, occasionally, the yard. She doesn't remember, however, that she's asked the same questions repeatedly, or can't explain why she wraps up utensils in toilet tissue, ferreting them away. She's also begun to sleep more, though she's always slept a lot. She goes to bed around midnight and doesn't begin to start moving around until after 2:30 in the afternoon. Even then, she may fall asleep in her chair.
She never had any type of hobbies besides reading and watching TV. She used to enjoy going to the mall or just getting out of the house. Now she doesn't care to, and if she does, she feels completely out of her routine and the symptoms of Alzheimer's suddenly exhibit in a very noticeable way. We don't push her and let her keep her little daily routine. Sometimes, I think she might feel kind of bored or that we are busy doing things without her and she seems lonely on occasion.
A couple of times lately, I've seen her really perk up when we did something a bit unusual. I raise rabbits and this time of year there are usually baby rabbits. So I put a couple of 3 week olds in a box with some food and water and brought them in the house, placing them next to Grandma's chair. She talked to and patted those bunnies all day long! What a difference in her day!
She also had a fun time yesterday. Kiera, my youngest, had gone into Grandma's room and the two of them were blowing bubbles in there. It was a sweet thing to watch. I'm not sure how long it has been since Grandma last blew bubbles, but I'm going to be keeping a big bottle of bubble soap on hand.
As long as it gives her something to look forward to, I think we'll stick with our new "therapy" - bunnies and bubbles!
I've started to write a couple of posts lately, but I ended up feeling like my feeble attempts at humor sounded like whining. Probably because it was whining. Though I'm usually pretty good at ignoring whining (ask the kids), I'm having a hard time ignoring myself. So, the best cure for getting away from the whineyard, is to cork it up for a while. Counting blessings is one way of doing that. Helping others in need is another way. The little things in our lives are many times the most important things in our lives.
I've mentioned before that my MIL lives with us and has Alzheimer's. It's not severe at this point - she has favorite TV shows, recognizes everyone, and still gets around the house and, occasionally, the yard. She doesn't remember, however, that she's asked the same questions repeatedly, or can't explain why she wraps up utensils in toilet tissue, ferreting them away. She's also begun to sleep more, though she's always slept a lot. She goes to bed around midnight and doesn't begin to start moving around until after 2:30 in the afternoon. Even then, she may fall asleep in her chair.
She never had any type of hobbies besides reading and watching TV. She used to enjoy going to the mall or just getting out of the house. Now she doesn't care to, and if she does, she feels completely out of her routine and the symptoms of Alzheimer's suddenly exhibit in a very noticeable way. We don't push her and let her keep her little daily routine. Sometimes, I think she might feel kind of bored or that we are busy doing things without her and she seems lonely on occasion.
A couple of times lately, I've seen her really perk up when we did something a bit unusual. I raise rabbits and this time of year there are usually baby rabbits. So I put a couple of 3 week olds in a box with some food and water and brought them in the house, placing them next to Grandma's chair. She talked to and patted those bunnies all day long! What a difference in her day!
She also had a fun time yesterday. Kiera, my youngest, had gone into Grandma's room and the two of them were blowing bubbles in there. It was a sweet thing to watch. I'm not sure how long it has been since Grandma last blew bubbles, but I'm going to be keeping a big bottle of bubble soap on hand.
As long as it gives her something to look forward to, I think we'll stick with our new "therapy" - bunnies and bubbles!
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