Mother

I just got home from seeing Mother. It seems she had a "mini-stroke" (they called it something with initials...can't remember what they are) during the night. She is having a terrible time finding words, bad hand to mouth coordination and her vision has been impacted in an odd way, it's almost like certain random spots of vision are blotted out. Her right foot is bothering her. When I got there today she was dressed and in her wheelchair sitting outside her room door. She was very quiet and still, almost lethargic, very unlike the agitated state she's often in. I think they had her there so they could keep an eye on her. Both her aide and another one were within 2' of her, even while I was in her room with her.

Before leaving town this morning I stopped at Tupelo's and got two huge slices of their wonderful quiche and went next door to Miladies and got her a pink t-shirt that has a picture of a queen on it and says something like "you who think you know everything really bother those of us who do know everything".

Got to the nursing home a little before noon and found Mother in the hall. Took her into her room and said we were having a quiche picnic. Had to open her gift for her...(Barbara had wrapped the t-shirt in paper with a magnolia print and beautiful sagey green ribbon), she liked it. She ate most of her quiche, but unless I put in on her fork and put the fork in her hand she wanted to use her fingers. It was too big to pick up so it finally dawned on me to break it into chunks that she could pick up. DUH, I feel so dumb when the obvious is slow to dawn! I stayed about 2 hrs., left her watching Mr. Roger's Neighborhood and she loved it and was okay.

You know, this feels like losing her pieces at a time.

Tomorrow RM will be 43. Impossible!!!!!

The damn puppies are determined to dig up the shrubbery I've planted out back. The 1 poor Knock Out rose is really looking poorly! And they are undermining one of the Loropetalums. Sooo, last night in pure desperation I liberally sprinkles about 2 cups of red pepper flakes around all of the new plantings in the back and in the mud mire they've made of my herb garden and let the puppies out. They immediately ran to the line of bushes and started licking the pepper flakes. Licked them pretty good, then all of a sudden started running around with their tongues out and then drank a lot of water! Then the i-dots went and did it again! The 3rd time they headed that way it was with great caution and they stopped short of the bed, stretched their necks out, sniffed and ran to the herb garden. Their encounter there was similar, but shorter and only once. Who says you can't teach idiot puppies!