Running on half-full

After 48 hours of 24/7 Nancy nursing, I got some sleep last night. I'm not sure Lou has a handle on controlling the pain-he basically slept all day yesterday and then was up most of the night, is now sleeping again-but he didn't need my help and I actually slept a lot of the night. What a difference a few winks can make!!

I decided the best thing was to do the "mindless' chores yesterday, so I vacuumed, oiled the wood, organized the baby blankets to send out this week, and started laundry. I have one load left to dry and fold, then that task gets checked off, too.

Today I am going to sew my online bee block so I can honestly say I did it in October!! I have learned so much this past year and I'm looking forward to the next one. And the community of friends I've made has been fantastic. I don't think I could have gotten through the cancer adventure or Lou's stroke/vascular problems/amputation adventure without them and my family.

So, to fill y'all in on eldercaring: for their 35th anniversary, we sent a super-sized Tower of Treats from Harry and David, and my sister-in-law made a photo album for them. Not only were the gifts a HUGE success, but greatly appreciated for their fun factor. Peg loves having all the little boxes to open, and Si loves all the treats. She may not recognize a lot of the photos, but it's giving him a lot of joy to look at and explain to her. So-we done good!! We are a little more at ease for the present because Si has arranged for respite night care, at least on the nights before he teaches, and has a whole team in place now. Of course, he's complaining about keeping track of all the comings and goings, but in all honesty, what else is he doing with his time?

One thing I really need to acknowledge here is family. My cousin has been on stand-by because he lives about 10 minutes from the house and we have repeated told Si to call if he's in a jam. Well, that happened this week when he needed to pickup a prescription for Peg. He finally called the cell, but Alan didn't answer right away and Si didn't leave a message. When Alan called back, he found that Si had tried the house, and Alan's wife, Marcia, was already on her way over to help out. What can I say? Technically, these folks aren't related, and these adventures are definitely not on their radar, but they stepped up to the plate and hit a grand slam. They also made my sister-in-law almost cry when I told her about it--me too--love you both, lots!