Last day of September

 Last day of September and I am stretched out on the back deck sofa :-) It is impossible to believe that tomorrow will be October - we've had a super nice fall - almost a bonus summer. Some of my outside potted plants are doing incredibly well (yes, you: coleus and ferns), while the herbs have shed most of their leaves - the Thai basil plants are basically stems with the odd leaf. I brought in the rest of the swiss chard but am not sure if I'll just bin it… feeling especially lazy and slightly out of sorts today.

I harvested one spindly herb plant down by the barn but the rest are still not ripe, luckily the forecast for the next week is sunny and warm! And I can't find my dill anywhere! It will have to be replanted next spring in perhaps a better spot.

Today I did a quick treatment for earwigs on the pots that will be coming inside for the winter - we'll bring them in next week before I start wrestling with the giant turkey we bought for Thanksgiving festivities.

The days melded into a blur this past week. We came home from the villetta on Sunday after having enjoyed a fantastic weekend (shall I mention the weather again?). Monday I popped into town to see Mom & Dad and then Trudie & Leo came over for supper; Tuesday was soup making day; Wednesday back in to see Mom & Dad; Thursday our first breakfast at Country Kitchen since before the pandemic - we used to be semi-regulars! Plus we stocked up on dog food and then had supper at Trudie & Leo's. Yesterday I mooched around in a semi discombobulated way. Fill in the blanks with lots of lazy time and a bit of cooking (although I have not been motivated that way for quite some time). But Carm! His lazy time has been dominated with chainsaws and shovels!

Awesome!

“June in September”

“the colour of the trees along the highway”

“blue sky dotted with fluffy white clouds”

"Supper outside!"

peaceful easy feeling

 I'm at one of my happy places this weekend :-) Yes, the villetta is getting filled with sand and gravel from our many walks down Kirsten's road on these beautiful fall days! It was another glorious day with sunshine (a bit of cloud cover) and temps in the 20s.

Yesterday I took Mom to her appointment to get her interim obturator- it went well and Mom came out of there in better shape than when she went in - we had no idea what to expect and I wondered if I would be rushing home to get my overnight stuff again, but it wasn't as awful (easy for me to say!) as we imagined. Her speech has improved tremendously and some of the issues that she had with the temporary one have resolved. First appointment with the radiologist is on Oct 5th, at which point she will hopefully have a treatment plan.

After I dropped Mom back to her place, I rushed home, threw a few things into a cooler and we drove to Kirsten's with the sun in our eyes. I don't have words for the feeling of peace and happiness that I felt being here and being with Kirsten and Shawn. We ate supper in the trailer and chatted for ages before crashing into bed. This morning they came for coffee and we visited for hours before splitting up for a few minutes - then we joined them in their house where Kirsten made us some fantastic sandwiches. 

Kirsten and I enjoyed (well almost enjoyed - the dogs were going every which way!) a walk down the road this afternoon - the grand maple trees that line the road are starting to don their fall colours and looked resplendent in deep green tinged with orange and red. 

Cause I got a peaceful easy feelin'

And I know you won't let me down

'Cause I'm already standin'

On the ground

-The Eagles

On Tuesday night, Pat came for supper for the first time in ages. We ordered 2 shawarma platters to share - well, they were so packed with food that one platter had the three of us groaning in our chairs! I packaged up the other one, and with just a bit of rice added, it fed the four of us last night until we were bursting. We did have room for a slice of the cheesecake that Kirsten brought, but gosh! No need for a bedtime snack last night :-)

Back to Pat's visit: for the last few months I've been crating Lupa before guests arrive and then bring her out on leash, advancing closer to company as she calms. Tuesday night I didn't crate her - of course the dogs rushed Pat when she came in the door (no barking though!), and then I was able to direct them out of the hall, to wait at the doorway. They did need some reminders, but waited until I released them for a hello. Lupa is finally growing up! She's less than a month away from her second birthday and maybe age is mellowing her a bit. Ha ha - on the scale of craziness though,  she's still pretty crazy!

Awesome!

“emerging unscathed from the parking garage for the third time”

“being at the villetta”

“my beautiful sister and her husband”

“Lupa not going as crazy when people come over”

at the car wash yah

 Mom and I had a pretty big laugh today as she treated me to a car wash - 61 years old and it was my first time taking the car into a carwash! I've had lots of firsts this summer in the car, or if not first's, first time since my teens. 🤪 Today Mom's appointment was at the dreaded Civic hospital with the ancient parking garage that is under extensive renovation… I breathed a sigh of relief when we emerged into the light of day!

Awesome!

“emerging unscathed from the parking garage”

“a beautiful day”

“ripening herbs”

three away from when I'm sixty four

 It's my birthday and I'll cry if I want too… that's how the lyrics go but today there are no tears - I just feel happy and blessed in so many ways. 

The last few days I've been going to Mom's for just a few hours a day - she is getting more independent by the day and in fact, this morning drove herself to the grocery store to pick up stuff for lunch, including a delicious birthday cake for Olaf and I. Tonight I'll go in for the night as she has an early appointment on Monday, but otherwise, I think she's good to manage on her own with Dad's help :-)

Yesterday was gorgeous! I took Mom to Costco after lunch, grabbed a Frosty at Wendy's and then as soon as I was finished eating, I abandoned Mom to her afternoon nap and came home for a bit of cooking and an afternoon on the deck. Olaf & Stephanie arrived around 4:30 for our brother/sister birthday celebration - luckily the weather was still perfect so we were able to spend at least an hour or two enjoying the out-of-doors before we retired to the warmth of the house where we nestled up against the kitchen island and filled ourselves with food! How lucky!

Awesome!

“another birthday”

“drinks on the patio with Olaf & Stephanie”

“Mom going grocery shopping on her own”

“two beautiful fall days”

edge of darkness

The days are noticeably shorter… I didn't really notice when I was with Mom, but now that I'm home it's obvious. By 7:30 it was almost dark. In another month the time will change and it will be time to deploy scads of fairy lights. Winter is coming.

Last night was Mom's first night without Kirsten or I since her surgery - she did great! I was reluctant to leave her, but I think she's ready for more independence. I got back to theirs just past 8 this morning. Dad was already out on his walk so I helped Mom get her breakfast and puttered around the kitchen making soup while she enjoyed her not so gourmet baby pablum with fruit puree!

Soup today has: pumpkin, red pepper, cabbage, lentils, and a bit of cream cheese to make a creamy broth. After it was cooked I blended the crap out of it in the blender - 9 more cups of soup for Mom to enjoy! Mom got a new blender with a smoothie cup yesterday so she's branched out into green smoothies for another kick of nutrition. A nutritionist comes by Thursday morning so it will be interesting to see what else we can add.

Last night I headed home for a night with my honey. He had started supper (note to self: teach him how to make rice in the instant pot), so I just had to add some red peppers and rice for the ultimate comfort food (in my book anyway).

Carm put more cherry tomatoes away - there's lots in the freezer to make confit to brighten up a cold winter day :-) The cherry tomatoes were prolific this year! I still have some zucchini to grate and freeze, and I have a bunch of herbs that need something done with them. Kirsten is coming to Mom's tomorrow so I'll have a day to get some work done (and I'm not so exhausted that all I can do is recline on the sofa being waited upon!).

Carm also got all the laundry done, the house vacuumed, the grass cut, and a myriad of other small chores. He's keeping busy doing both our jobs :-)  As Kirsten says, she and I are lucky to have husbands who have picked up the slack while we've been busy!

It's been a rough 2 weeks but I am so grateful that I've had this time to spend with Mom. I have enjoyed our time together - it feels like a bit of a gift. Hanging out with her, joking and laughing, has been wonderful. I am blessed :-) Once she starts radiation I imagine that we'll get more time together (bad for her though).

Carm is still swimming (68F) today! My last swim was probably Friday…

Awesome!

“getting better at driving”

“Mom doing a whole night by herself”

“apple crisp with apples from our trees”

sweltering september

 Thursday (yesterday) Brutal summer temps are still with us! Yesterday was hot and humid - no time in the pool for me though - I'm back taking care of Mom for a few more days. She is starting to improve by leaps and bounds - I suspect that she will be somewhat independent within another week - at least until the radiation starts.

Mom had her first followup appointment with the surgeon who did the work - he was pleased with her progress and thought she looked great so I guess our hard work is paying off! Mom's weight has been stable the last few days which is almost a miracle :-)  Dr. Odell has made a change to Mom's med lineup and schedule - 6 hours between doses will make the periods of sleep longer at night but she's getting less so is in more pain. He said that it will start to improve in the next month (what the actual heck - a month!)...

We started watching 'Lincoln Lawyer' and 'the Diplomat' on Netflix in the last 2 days - they are both really good shows and totally addictive! It's a good distraction and makes the day flash by for both of us. And why is 'Lincoln' pronounced without the second 'L'?

Last night, (Thur),  Kirsten came to spell me for two nights - I got home in time for supper (no cooking A&W for the win!) I was asleep on the couch by 7:30 so at 8:30 finally tottered off to bed for a long, refreshing sleep. The change to Mom's med schedule was giving us a bit more time to sleep so I wasn't as dead tired as I was previously but I still needed a catch-up :-)

Carm has been holding down the fort like a pro - he even gave Lupa a bath and has been keeping the house in order and the pets well cared for. 

Today was a cooler and rainy day - second summer is over :-(

Awesome!

“Mom having breakfast and lunch in the kitchen”

“my dogs cuddled up against me”

“a quick swim”

“12 jars of potato zucchini soup”

a last hurrah for summer

 I'm outside on the deck enjoying the sweltering weather for another day. The high today is 33C with a humidex of 40C - a lazy and languid day.

Kirsten took over for me on Sunday night - I got home just after 6pm, Carm made an easy supper, I sat in a stupor on the sofa for a while then was into bed at 8:30! I slept until 7 the next morning… Yesterday I mooched around all day accomplishing nothing and was in bed early again for a long sleep. I was exhausted after only one full night sleep at home in a week. My bipolar is holding up under this test!

This morning I made a hearty, but smooth, broccoli soup for Mom - lentils, broccoli, and cream cheese for 200 calories per cup. Then we dashed out to the grocery store for a few more things to feed her. We are trying to get max calories into her and I think we are doing well - she had 1300 calories yesterday!

I spent an hour this morning putting Mom's statistics into a google doc and entering her food into a calorie counter so I know we are on track with her nutrition. Carm printed the last few days for me so we have something to show her doctor tomorrow. We can set up an appointment with a nutritionist but I think we'll wait another week by which time we will have worked out some more healthy foods for her so we can get input then, as I think we are doing pretty well so far.

Carm has been chopping up tomatoes for the freezer while I was gone, but now there are some zucchini that need to be taken care of - hopefully they can wait until I'm home again. I should have harvested some herbs as well!

… much later in the day! I'm back at Mom & Dad's for a few nights, leaving Carm with peace and quiet! Mom has improved over the 2 days I was away from her and it seems that we are keeping on top of the pain so it seems to be reducing.

Awesome!

“sultry weather”

“sweating on the deck”

“sleeping!”

“1300 calories!”

home again home again jiggidy jig

 Sunday… It’s second summer! We are under a heat warning with a humidex of 39C in the forecast for today! Kirsten is coming to stay with Mom for a few nights so I’ll go home and chill out on the deck for a few days before I come back to spell Kirsten.

Things are going well here and Mom is continuing to improve although she’s still in a lot of pain… it’s most likely the cancer that they weren’t able to remove… radiation can’t come soon enough. 

Mom was scared to leave the hospital but it turned out to be the best thing. It’s easier to keep on top of pain meds and just as importantly, water and food consumption. I’m getting her to eat each time she gets her meds, even in the middle of the night which I think is keeping her strength up better. It’s also much easier for me as everything is at hand. I do run up and down the stairs countless times in a day (great exercise for me!), and I have the counter in Mom’s bathroom littered with glasses, spoons, meds, and non-refrigerated foods to make my life a little easier. It takes about an hour every 4 hours to get her medicated, fed, and watered so it’s nice to have a proper resting place handy :-)

Yesterday Carm came by for a visit, bearing ingredients for a healthy lentil soup that I made for Mom to get some more calories and fibre into her. For having no onion, garlic, herbs, or spices, it didn’t taste too bad. I’ve slowly been increasing her food and liquid intake but it’s a hard slog. I probably haven’t mentioned that the cancer is in her mouth in her palate and jaw :-(  which is why eating and drinking are so difficult. Mom is an outstanding patient and takes my bullying well. 

Carm visited with Mom for a bit and then he and I deeked out to Tim Hortons for a bit of lunch - I scarfed down a breakfast sandwich, half an order of fries and a refreshing sparkling juice drink, and brought home Wendy’s Frostys for everyone (Mom ate a whole one!). I guess I was starving. Thankfully Dad is taking care of making our meals otherwise I might not eat at all!

Dad is doing okay but is very worried and it shows on his face. I feel bad that he is getting neglected while I’m here, but Mom is the main priority at the moment and I feel that I don’t want to leave her for too long. I’m sleeping in the spare room which is right across the hall from her so I can hear her if she needs something - she also has a bell, which she has only used once - so either she’s not demanding or I’m close enough that she doesn’t need it.

We watched ‘the Book Club’ last night which was pretty funny at times but it was a bit weird watching a movie about the ‘50 Shades of Grey’ book with my mother 😱

I feel so fortunate that I’ve been able to be here for her. Even though she’s not 100%, we are still enjoying our time together. 🥰  (or at least I’m enjoying the time with her! Maybe she’s sick of my nagging: ‘Mangia, mangia’, ‘eat, eat’ as my Italian mother-in-law would have said.) I think I’m a better nurse than I ever thought I would be.

I guess that’s enough babbling about our trials! Have a great day!

Awesome!

“Mom continuing to improve"

“second summer!”

“chowing down at Tim’s”

“seeing my honey”