Overnight at the hospital

We got Grandma safely to Legacy House. She was settling in - and enjoying meeting friends and cousins. However, she just couldn't shake a bad case of diarrhea. Evidently, stool softener had been prescribed weeks ago, and they were still giving it to her twice a day - knowing she had diarrhea. ARGGG!!!

Yesterday morning, Legacy House did the test for C Diff (see below). She has it. They took her to the ER and put her on an IV and oral antibiotics. I'm not sure why Sunshine Terrace never did the test for it. JaNae said they mentioned tested for it a few times, but never did it. That seems very odd.

Clostridium difficile, or C. diff, is a bacterium that can cause symptoms ranging from diarrhea to life-threatening inflammation of the colon.

Illness from C. difficile most commonly affects older adults in hospitals or in long-term care facilities and typically occurs after use of antibiotic medications. However, studies show increasing rates of C. difficile infection among people traditionally not considered high risk, such as younger and healthy individuals without a history of antibiotic use or exposure to health care facilities.

Letter to Grandma

When I went to visit Grandma on Friday, Trisha had me read her a letter. What a sweet idea!

Grandma,

I’ve been thinking a lot about you lately and hope you are doing well. When we make it up to Logan, I’d like to visit you in person but this will have to do for now.

I am currently working on Ari’s Christmas stocking – the felt kind that asks you to embroider, sequin, and applique pieces to each other until a beautiful stocking emerges. It’s the same kind that you made for all your grandkids. I think of you as I sew the stocking. It sure is a labor a love - 90 or so pieces that are each hand sewn. You must have loved your grandchildren a lot to make them each one. I am lucky to have finished three.

Zach is loving first grade. He loves recess the most, followed closely by lunch. Each day, we have a conversation about lunch – what he ate, who he sat by, what was said. It makes me laugh that lunch is such a highpoint for him. He is playing soccer this season and seems to enjoy it. Each game, he does better and better. Zach really likes to play defender and keep the ball away from his team’s goal. He also has his first loose tooth! Zach is a great kid and growing up so fast.

Halle is in preschool and loves it. I enjoy hearing all the things that she learns each day. Yesterday, she went to the dentist on a field trip. I can’t believe what she retained. She now wants to brush her teeth three times a day and even told me that Sprite was bad for her. When I told her you could drink Sprite sometimes, she said, “No! The dentist told me I couldn’t!” Grandpa Allan would be so proud! Halle is playing soccer as well. She is a fast, little runner and loves to score goals.

Ari is growing like a weed and babbling left and right. The other day she was on my shoulders and kept peeking her head down to talk to me. Brandon thinks she sounds like she is gobbling. I love that she participates in the family conversation, even if it is only to gobble. She will also read books to herself. She turns the pages and while looking at the pictures, she’ll gobble gobble gobble. When she’s not gobbling, she can say a few real words like dada, mama, bubble, cheese, ball, bite, teeth, bye bye, and Halle. Ari adores her daddy. I think she likes me fine, but Daddy is her true love. They have a sweet, little relationship.

I love you so much and keep you in my prayers.

Love,

Trisha

New Digs

Grandma enjoyed having breakfast later. They woke her up at 8, instead of 6:30. She had to dress first, so breakfast wasn't over until 9. Lunch is at 11 - so she said she wasn't very hungry for lunch. Still, she was happier with that new breakfast schedule. She told JaNae that they woke her up at midnight to get a urine sample via a catheter. Why a catheter and why at midnight? I hope she was mistaken. That is crazy.

Now she is being dismissed from rehab (as of November 2nd), so they are working out the details to get her at Legacy House.

If Grandma can move to Legacy House, I’m thinking she will be so much happier. Every time I visit, she tells me that is where she wants to go. I went visiting teaching last night (to my friends with a mother in Legacy House). They were saying that meals are anytime within a two and a half hour range. If their mom is sleeping in, the staff lets her sleep and brings her breakfast later on. No one has to suggest that. They figure it out on their own. Mark said that the food is great and he often eats there with his mom.

I think we would be so much happier if we moved her sooner (early next week) rather than later. We can move her any time we want; it isn’t like a hospital where you have to wait to be dismissed. Moving furniture is going to be easier before the snow flies.

JaNae arrives on Saturday. Moving Grandma out soon would make JaNae’s visit so much more productive as we would know what Grandma needs from the house and what she needs to buy. I think she will have a fridge at Legacy House. She may want some of her dishes and possibly her microwave. I think we also need to winterize the house and terminate services such as TV and phone. I just called her home number and never got a message that the phone is disconnected.

Having JaNae there during the move is perfect – as she can help Grandma adjust to her new setting, meet people, come up with a reasonable schedule.

I just got a phone call from Charles Jennings (764-1111) at Allen-Hall Mortuary. Months ago I had inquired about a pre-planned burial. My thinking was that if you get the money out of Grandma's bank account then you know the burial costs are covered. Otherwise, if assisted living takes all her money, Medicare takes all but $2000 for burial. (Typical costs are $8000). However, when we mentioned a pre-planned burial to Norm, he said he thought it was a waste of money. I'm not sure what that means. Is he planning on cremation? Anyway, I didn't say anything more as my "interest" is not appreciated.

This Charles said that in addition to taking money out for a pre-planned burial, Medicare allows you to take out money for burial costs of all your children and their spouses. Surprising, huh? If Grandma paid for all of that out of her funds, that would strip her funds quickly. That seems a bit over the top to me.

New Schedule

I decided to stop by this morning and help Grandma have a voice in her schedule. She was asleep in her chair when I got their at 8:45. She said she hadn't slept well - as her legs kept bothering her.

I brought the nurses into her room and explained that getting up at 6:30 is Grandma's worst nightmare. I wanted Grandma to be able to decide what she wants to do. She has been telling them she does NOT want to get up early, but they have been ignoring her. As we visited, it came out that as much as she hates getting up so early, she still did NOT want to give up a hot breakfast. We decided to have them wake her up at 9, warm up breakfast in the microwave, and eat in her room. We'll see how that goes. Hopefully, she'll be allowed to get a few more hours rest.

She must be feeling better

Grandma must be feeling better. She is getting more and more vocal about the indignities of being awakened at 6:30 a.m. - to sit in the hallway and wait for breakfast. I can't say that I blame her. Kim was up for the weekend. We dropped by on Saturday to take Grandma for a walk around the neighborhood. She loved seeing Kim, but made it clear that she was incensed that she could not talk the aids out of getting her up at 6:30.

Today, Kim and Steve went back to take her flowers and visit. She was STILL so mad about her schedule. It does seem absolutely ridiculous to me. Breakfast is so not worth getting up for.

Doing Well

Steve and I stopped by to visit Grandma on the way to dinner. She was in the dining room. The dining room is always mostly empty, with few extra chairs. With two of us visiting, I had to scrounge chairs from quite a distance. I asked the aid if Sunshine Terrace was filled, indicating the dining room was always so empty. She said the various wings have their own dining rooms. She said that they only had one empty room in their wing, but that the reason the dining room is so vacant is because the majority of people in Wing 2 choose to eat in their rooms. It sure makes for boring company. When we ate at Pioneer Valley, every table was alive with discussions. People were laughing. Stories were being shared. It was a happy time. At Sunshine Terrace, there is none of that in the Wing 2 dining room. She eats with the same three other people for every meal, but I don't sense any camaraderie at all. They don't even acknowledge each others' presence at the table. They are there to eat, period.

We had heard she had been sick with a urinary tract infection, but she seemed much better. Bob came as we were visiting, so it was fun to see him.

Grandma said she was still doing physical therapy. She said Debbie, Sally and the kids came by today, as they are on fall break. Aside from talking to visitors, I don't get the impression that Grandma does anything besides eat, watch TV, and go to therapy.

Famous Nephew

I dropped by the nursing home on my way to work this morning, as I wanted to see Grandma's face when I told her Lars received a Nobel prize. It was front page news this morning, so I grabbed a newspaper so she could see the headlines. She was very pleased.

Grandma was just finishing breakfast when I arrived. It almost looked like she was asleep at the table. I wheeled her back to her room and transferred her to her recliner. I wasn't very good at it, but she could support herself well enough to make the shift.

She was able to tell me about her visitors and her therapy. She was having a little bit of trouble hearing me. I wish she would wear hearing aids. I think it would make a WORLD of difference.