Forget Something?

Poor Bella. We locked her out on the top deck tonight and she was screaming for her momma when we arrived back home. Such is the life of a princess, at least she thinks she is.

We all spent time with mom today. She was happy to see us. Before the hub and kid arrived, we took a spin around the place, around and around. I'm trying to get her to find her strength again. Today, the swelling in her ankles and feet looked so much better. They were going to put her on lasix to rid her of the extra fluid, so I'm hoping that's what happened. I didn't bother the nurse today but will check with her tomorrow. Mom seemed much more agile. Perhaps that had a lot to do with her having such difficulty moving. Let's hope. After I wore her out and the hub and kid stayed for a bit, she wanted to lay down and take a nap. You know, it feels nice to tuck her into bed and know that she is safe and being cared for. No matter how much I tried to keep an eye on her while she was living here, I still had to sleep at night and that's when she would normally have her "incidents." So it's a slight relief knowing that I don't have to worry about her at night any more.

It's Ukrainian Easter today, З Великодніми святами, Happy Easter! Of course, I waited too long to order our delicacies online so we went to our local Russian restaurant. We had never been before because it just opened not too long ago. It was sooooo good! Not quite Ukrainian, but close enough for us transplanted Nashvillians. When we walked in and sat down, I said Happy Easter to them. They then brought us three huge slices of Paska, a brioche-like Easter bread. How nice! (Warning: the pics only get worse from here!)

We ordered draniki, potato pancakes (deruny). Oh yummy. Chebureki (no photo, just way too bad to even share), lamb dumplings.

Vareniki, or as we would say pyrohy. They were sooo good and the hub said they reminded him of his grandmother Anna's who made her dough from scratch. I remember the family always saying how delicate the dough was. Just like these.

The hub's dinner was Zrazi, sliced beef rolled with potatoes in the center with a light tomato sauce on top. He ordered kasha as his side; and let me tell you, it was the best kasha I have ever had. It tasted just like hominy (yep, I'm a Southerner!).

The kid got the chicken with mustard sauce. We all liked it too! (Of course, we all tasted one another's foods!)

I ordered the chicken Kiev. It was good but I liked the other items so much better. I mean, chicken Kiev, what was I thinking? Dull.

When we left, the sky was gorgeous. We had a rainy day but tonight the skies cleared.

Is this Pooh Bear or what? Frankie is liking living upstairs with us. I'm still training him to not eat the cats. He's getting a little better. He still jumps and starts to lunge and barks until I scream and he stops in his tracks. Tonight, he was out on the back deck and Dave was inside. The door was closed and Frankie saw Dave through the door. He started going crazy and Dave, the man of the house, walks straight to the door and looks at Frankie through the glass as if he were saying "You wanna piece of me?" tehe. Frankie then stopped barking. We'll get it all worked out, I'm sure.

Well, that's my day in a nutshell. Nappy time now.

xo
ro

Springtime Walkabout

Spring is still springing here in Middle Tennessee. I had to take a walkabout since I haven't been home in what seems like ages or, rather, no time when I am at home. This morning, after our coffee, the hub and I went to have a leisurely breakfast while the kid slept. Always nice to get away for a bit with my man and catch up on stuff.

Sherrie went and visited mom today in my place. I feel guilty as hell and am dying to see her, but I needed a little time with the family. I'm not quite sure that mom knows the difference between us, so I think it's all good. But still, I have that pang in my heart, of course. This photo is from yesterday. See the sweet bunny that Pea had sent me. Tomorrow is Ukrainian Easter so I'll keep the Easter stuff up until Monday, at least. We watched the Beverly Hillbillies together. Ooooooh doggie! That show still cracks us up. Look at how someone made the sweetest little smiley heart on mom's bulletin board. Cute! And yes, lilacs are just about spent.

Oh, I was so excited to find my favorite little lilly of the valleys this morning. My favorite little flower by far. These always remind me of my Aunt Mary, mom's sister. She had an abundance of LVs around her home in Carrollton, GA. She gave me a bunch of little bulbs to plant, which I did way back in Falls Church, VA. I wish I had dug some up before moving, but I didn't. So, now when they bloom, I look up and say hi to Aunt Mary. I'll probably make a little mini-bouquet for mom tomorrow and take to her.

The clematis is just beginning to bloom. The vine is just full of buds. Scrumptious.

The azaleas have about two buds ready to pop. C'mon babies, let's do this thing!

The magnolia is full of buds also. Fuzzy little buggers.

Lol. On the way towards the back of the house, I found remnants of the boys' terror in the neighborhood last weekend. They were blowing things up left and right. This poor guy looks like he was in one of the explosions. I found him on the driveway, a good ten feet away from the safely-positioned explosion site in the yard. Oooof.

The hub tore open a gypsy moth nest. Oh, they wreak havoc on my wild cherry. I hope we get some frost tonight and kill the little nasties. I hate using chemicals, so I (one of the boys) just tear open the nests once they form. Still, kinda sad. Move on Rosa.

The newly planted forsythia looks to be doing well this time around. Finger's crossed.

Pretty view of my already overgrown corner of the yard. Doesn't take long, does it?

Proof. Dandelions. I am so allergic to these little weeds. No dandelion wine for me, the doc once told me. A'ight with me.

Aw, look what was close to the lilac bush. Poor little robin egg, all by its lonesome in the grass. I didn't know quite what to do with it, so I just left it there. :-(

Lilacs still blooming and smelling dandy.

Even a few narcissus still in bloom.

Lilies growing for summertime bloomin' in mom's yard.

A sweet angel sniffing the weeds growing around her.

Mom's hostas.

This doesn't look like my balloon flowers, but it is where they are planted???? We'll see if they come up balloons!

Aw, springtime. How are your flowers coming along in your little worlds?

xo
ro

Just Your Normal Day

Today, after uploading a picture of myself at Beth's with friends making goodies out of paper, it really put me in the mood to make something. But, do you think I will? I seriously doubt it. I have this paper flower wreath I've had since we were in DC like last year, I think, that has been sitting around calling my name. Now, I think after Ukrainian Easter this Sunday, I should probably replace mom's Easter egg wreath with something springy. What a perfect wreath to cheer up the place. Not that it really needs cheering. Both of us are really settling in and falling in love with everyone there, well, almost everyone.

Today (and in fact yesterday also), she had this horrible hand tremor in her hands. She could barely get food to her mouth. I don't know what that's all about. But I told all the nurses, the physical therapists and anyone else who would listen to me. One of her aids also told me her feet have been swollen. I had noticed this also yesterday when I brought her new pair of Merrel's that she has been wearing for years. (I had took advantage of her hospital visit to throw her old stinky ones out!) I thought they would make her feel comfy. But, she complained that her feet were hurting. And so, I added that to her list of ailments today also. Oh, and she was complaining about a sore in her mouth. The aid called the visiting dentist to make an appointment. Poor thing. Guess we all have our good days and bad days. Other than that though, she is still in remarkable spirits. Her roommate is a real sweety and I think going through the first stages of dementia or Alzheimer's. So sad. But she is cheerful for the most part and always asks how mom is doing since mom can't communicate very well. Her standing and walking is still bad and I'm told she probably only has a few weeks left in rehab. I am praying, hoping, sending good thoughts into the atmosphere in hopes that a long-term bed becomes available here for her. Perhaps tomorrow, I will go out and look for backups. I just hardly have the energy when I get home from visiting her, but it is a must do on my list. I am confident she will end up where she absolutely belongs. She is a precious soul and I know she is being looked after from above.

Din din tonight is chicken and Spanish rice. Smells awfully good while I wait for the hub to return from a long walk with Frankie (mom's dog).

And lots of greeny beanies for me! My fav.

Bella thought it was time for her dinner also. She's a couple of hours early. Perhaps she thought since all the other kitties are MIA, I would sneak in a snack for her. No such luck girly. We're all watching our girly figures these days!

ox
ro

Purple Haze

Scratch -n- Sniff here.

Oh, don't you love lilacs? I sure do. I know I have told you all so many times before, but I used lilacs in my bridal bouquet because I love the smell sooooo much and we were married in March, so they were in bloom then. The only problem was that the white ones don't have a smell. Ya think the florist would have told me this before hand. Either way, they were still pretty.

As I've also mentioned umpteen times, these were all rooted from saplings taken from mom's back yard in Arlington, VA, when we first moved here way back when.

They are absolutely precious.

And they smell absolutely divine as you can well imagine.

These little violas are from mom's new place.

Also precious!

But, hey Mother Nature! It's cold outside! Whattup??

xo
ro

Pretty in Sepia

Easter Monday 2009

Who doesn't love daffodils? They are still blooming here and I made mom an Easter bouquet yesterday along with some lovely grape hyacinths thrown in for some contrast. Her room smells soooo good!

You'll notice a little Easter wreath that Connie made for me several years back that I have surrounding the little jar. I have the hardest time getting to her site, but I know she can feel the good thoughts I send her way at times. Such a sweet person. And speaking of sweet, while I don't' have a picture of it, Pea's sweet bunny she sent me a while ago sits on mom's bed. We giggle at it each time we look her way. Such lovely folks out there in blogland, it does the heart good.

Mom was in good spirits today as normal. I arrived a tad late and she had already started her lunch. She's eating well these past days which makes me so very happy. There were several days there in the beginning where she snubbed her nose at anything brought to her. She truly is settling in nicely. The nurses and therapists, aids and just everyone is as sweet as can be and even more helpful, if you can fathom that. A new-to-me RN came in this afternoon and told me how mom was doing (good) and explained a lot of stuff to me. Then it came time for her PT. We rolled down to the PT room and I even had the therapist put weights around my ankles too so I could do the exercises with mom. Hey, whatever works. And Lord knows I need it too! Always had those chunkum legs. She did really well watching me and mimicking my moves.

After leaving her to rest, I ran over to the kid's school to pick him up as storms were rolling in. Of course the rain held out until the bell rang. So all the kids got totally drenched including mine. Appropriate for Easter Monday.

Then the real storm hit. We weren't home ten minutes when a phone call came in from the nursing facility made by the social worker. I would call her more of an anti-social worker. She told me that mom's rehab was at a standstill and medicare would stop paying pretty soon. There were no long-term beds available so I better start looking elsewhere. Wha??? That is totally the OPPOSITE of what I was told by two nurses and her therapist today. I was taken aback and thrown into an absolute tailspin. Everyone has been so nice there, and for me to receive this call after having so much positive info given me earlier in the day from everyone else was a total shock to my system.

Of course, I ran over to another nursing facility in the area, terrified they were throwing mom out onto the streets. It looked like total junk as they are in the midst of a renovation. But the director was so very helpful and set my mind straight again. She gave me a lot of much-needed information which gave me enough energy to head right back to where my mom was and meet with this so-called "social" worker. She was about the age of my great niece and didn't know a whole lot about much except the fact that mom would be released soon. After speaking with her and telling her about what the nurses and therapist had told me today, I marched right on over to the admissions lady, who is just as nice as can be. She went over her records and it said that mom was making progress which means she is not being released. Geesh. At this point, I am completely beside myself. It's absolutely gut wrenching when one tells you one thing and the other something totally opposite--especially when, at this stage in mom's progression, there is no where to take her where she will get the care she still needs so badly. This is my mom. I just want to scream and cry and call President Obama and say "Please, get rid of this health care bureaucracy, especially when it comes to the much-needed care for our elderly!" OMG.

Sorry. This post started out so positive and ends on such a sour note. But I just need the release, it seems. I'm sure tomorrow will be better. How's that for putting the p back in positive? I'm trying, at least.

xo
ro