Long time no speak...
Lots of things going on lately.
Today's my dad's birthday, 68 years old. It's pretty sad that he has to spend it alone at home while mom is in the hospital. Well, he can go visit her, but he has to come home without her. I sent him an e-card, I hope he'll be able to figure it out.
Mom is still in the hospital, but she was able to come home on a day pass on both Saturday and Sunday. We were pretty mad at her though, she figured that since she was home, she might as well do laundry and dishes and ironing, etc. when Dad is quite able to do it himself. She completely wore herself out on both days. I got her a book called "So you're having an angioplasty", which I gave to her yesterday. She seems to really like it, which is good. It shows little diagrams of what an artery looks like before and after an angioplasty, as well as what it looks like to have the little balloon go in and inflate and smoosh all the plaque out of the way. It's also got lots of post-angio stuff like "How do I know if it worked?" and "What do I do now?" and stuff, so I'm hoping she'll benefit from it. I also got her an American Heart Association cook book too, which both she and Dad seem excited about. I really think that with a little help Mom is going to make some changes with her lifestyle. For dinner on Sunday she chose chicken instead of steak, didn't dump margarine and salt all over her baked potato, she didn't force herself to finish every last bite (although I think that's because when she said "Whew, I'm getting so full!" we all went "So stop eating!!"), she skipped the birthday cake for Dad (well, she had one bite)...so I think she's doing well, at least so far. She also had a nutrition session with a nutritionist at the hospital and learned quite a bit. When we visited with her yesterday, she told us all about it - J thinks I should have let her teach me more than I did, a lot of the time I was agreeing with her and adding my own info on top of that. The more she teaches other people about what she's learned, the more she'll absorb. Definitely true, but I'm also trying to show her that I agree and understand what she's saying and stuff like that. Not that J was saying I was doing something wrong, or anything. Just that letting her teach us would be good for her. Next time I will.
This weekend is hopefully lots of wedding stuff. We want to see some flower shops, and go to my sister's travel agent ask them what Hawaii will cost. If it's too much, perhaps we'll do the Mexican Riviera or a Carribean cruise. I'm undecided about cruises for a honeymoon, but we'll see.
Today's my dad's birthday, 68 years old. It's pretty sad that he has to spend it alone at home while mom is in the hospital. Well, he can go visit her, but he has to come home without her. I sent him an e-card, I hope he'll be able to figure it out.
Mom is still in the hospital, but she was able to come home on a day pass on both Saturday and Sunday. We were pretty mad at her though, she figured that since she was home, she might as well do laundry and dishes and ironing, etc. when Dad is quite able to do it himself. She completely wore herself out on both days. I got her a book called "So you're having an angioplasty", which I gave to her yesterday. She seems to really like it, which is good. It shows little diagrams of what an artery looks like before and after an angioplasty, as well as what it looks like to have the little balloon go in and inflate and smoosh all the plaque out of the way. It's also got lots of post-angio stuff like "How do I know if it worked?" and "What do I do now?" and stuff, so I'm hoping she'll benefit from it. I also got her an American Heart Association cook book too, which both she and Dad seem excited about. I really think that with a little help Mom is going to make some changes with her lifestyle. For dinner on Sunday she chose chicken instead of steak, didn't dump margarine and salt all over her baked potato, she didn't force herself to finish every last bite (although I think that's because when she said "Whew, I'm getting so full!" we all went "So stop eating!!"), she skipped the birthday cake for Dad (well, she had one bite)...so I think she's doing well, at least so far. She also had a nutrition session with a nutritionist at the hospital and learned quite a bit. When we visited with her yesterday, she told us all about it - J thinks I should have let her teach me more than I did, a lot of the time I was agreeing with her and adding my own info on top of that. The more she teaches other people about what she's learned, the more she'll absorb. Definitely true, but I'm also trying to show her that I agree and understand what she's saying and stuff like that. Not that J was saying I was doing something wrong, or anything. Just that letting her teach us would be good for her. Next time I will.
This weekend is hopefully lots of wedding stuff. We want to see some flower shops, and go to my sister's travel agent ask them what Hawaii will cost. If it's too much, perhaps we'll do the Mexican Riviera or a Carribean cruise. I'm undecided about cruises for a honeymoon, but we'll see.