A break from the usual

 My sister and her husband are on holiday at the moment, so I am "housesitting", but really here to pop round to Mum's every day, and do some jobs for her, like my sister does.  Basically, to make sure she's eating. 

It's a tough time, as Mum wants to stay in her house, but she's got two types of dementia, and has deteriorated quite a bit since I last saw her.  I expect that the inevitable will come, but she's also started throwing, "if I'm still here" into conversation, why she's having lucid times.  

Mum isn't the easiest person to help. 

Spinal stenosis.....do one!

This is not easy.
Today I went to see Mum, to deliver her presents, and my sister's.
On the way down there, I trapped a nerve, and was in pain by the time I got there.
I'm getting really frustrated by this thing that is taking over my body in an invasive way. I feel so helpless.
All I can do is wait for my next pain management injection.
And being 200% honest, it can't come too soon.

A little research

I have just been looking through the last 200 of my posts.  There were two that came out top
The top one was referring to a previous post, which hadn't had as many "reads".
However, the second one was about me buying a birthday card for Mum last year.
I'll be honest, I don't know if this year will be any easier, (Mum's birthday is late October,) but I will try my best to be sensitive.
Mum and I are sort of in the "same boat"....Mum lost Dad when he died early on the 17th February 2012.  I lost my "partner" on the 26th August 2010.  OK, he didn't die, but apart from very short phone messages, I have not seen him since then
The difference is...I am still relatively "young", and could possibly find someone else...but how do you replace a man who treated you like a princess?  Especially when all you feel like is some sort of frog?

2012!

Started pretty innocuously.
Nothing much doing.
Then February came around...Aunty Sylvia, Mum's twin came over to UK, from France, as it was cousin David's 50th.  She had heart problems and was admitted to Blackpool Vic .
My Dad died, the day before Oliver's 23rd birthday.
Baby, Amelia May Hooson was born....on time..a first for a Hooson, on 2nd March 2012.  Just a few minutes before Dad's funeral.
April, Ann was 50.
May, not much.
June, Samantha was 25.
July..again nothing much here, but Olympics started.
August, same as July.
September, Edwin left for Carlisle to study/read illustration.  First time properly, I was left alone or more than 24 hours.
October, Mum's first birthday without Dad around, plus Ofsted in at work.
November...just flew by.
December...at least I saw Oliver and Edwin over the festive season.

Hunting! or things about me [part 7]

A couple of days ago I was talking to Mum on the phone. I don't know how the subject came up, but we got around to books. We both read a lot, so not really surprising. Anyway, Mum mentioned that she wanted to find some books for her twin sister, that Aunty keeps talking about. Apparently my Aunty S had lent them to grandma and when grandma died they found out she had lent them on to someone else. My Aunty S particularly likes the series of books in question, and Mum wanted to know if they were still available. Mum and Dad don't have a PC, or want one, but she knew I'd be able to find out for her.
That was Friday evening, early. Within the hour I rang back to tell her the books are out of print, so charity shops and amazon are the best bet. Mum wasn't sure of the title, but when Mum said the author I was fairly sure which trilogy Aunty meant....I looked for these and found that the author had published around 15 books. I did find all three titles, that I thought were wanted on Amazon....and the next day found one on the market secondhand book stall. Yesterday Mum confirmed that the books were the ones I thought, as Aunty's daughters had been to see her. Apparently Uncle M, her husband, was looking for them as well. The elder daughter S called in again yesterday and Mum mentioned she'd asked me to look for them, and could she let her know if Uncle M found them. Mum told cousin S that they were out of print, and my cousin said, "well Dad won't find them then, cos he won't look that hard!"
Today I walked the dogs down to a huge secondhand book shop on the prom. He didn't have them in, but he knew what I was looking for and said he gets them in quite often. On the way back I called in at the market to see if they had any of the three titles. They had one volume, and three copies of it, so I picked the best one. One down, two to go. I know I'll track them down before Mum and Aunty S's birthdays in late October.
The books are Maisie Mosco's Almond and Raisin trilogy,and I have the third book now, so just the other two to track down, and as Morecambe has lots of charity shops and the huge second hand bookshop I'm sure I'll find them in time. Mum knew that I'd enjoy hunting them down, that is why she asked me, and she lives near a small town that doesn't really have any charity shops.

Things about me [3]

I make the bed as soon as I get out of it.
I don't know why? It is just something I always do in a morning, usually the minute my feet have touched the floor.
I go into my kids rooms, and since we have lived here, I resist the temptation to straighten their bed.
I have my own reason for making mine when I get out of it, I dare say they have their own reasons for leaving them unmade. Although it could just be plain laziness.
I suppose it goes back to when I was young and Mum was working, so she didn't always have time to make our beds in the morning. Saying that, my sister always tended to leave her bed unmade, and still does now, and she's been married 29 years!
Ah, well, each to their own, but I like to get into a made bed at night, and not have to start straightening out a sleep tousled one.