Reports from Christie and Bob on Dad

Hi, Everybody,

I've received reports from Christie and from Bob on Dad, so I'll include them here.

Christie visited in early February. Here's her report on her visits with Dad:

"I saw Dad almost every day while I was in Utah. He seemed very pleased that I was there. I think he knew who I was at least most of the time. Some of our visits were pretty short because he was tired and did not want to talk, but we had one visit where he asked about the kids and seemed interested in hearing about them. One visit was at dinner time. Dad was in the diningroom, and one of the staff members was helping him eat. She let me take over the task and Dad ate all of his dinner, with me feeding him. He then ate his dessert--pumpkin pie, all by himself.

"I was impressed with the staff members that I met. They were all very kind and not condescending to the patients."

Here's Bob's information on Dad from March 1:

"Papa is always happy to see me. He still calls me by name and is warm and loving to me every time I visit. In addition, he is always full of appreciation for my visits. I feel he is some what lonely, bored, and trapped in a time in life that I am not looking forward to myself.

"He often struggles to complete his thoughts and as always he appreciates my patience and willingness to wait for him to complete his thoughts the best he can. He enjoys seeing photos of family and listening to stories about what they are doing. Although I feel he is frustrated when he is put in a situation where he has to sort out who belongs to who and where everyone fits together. I wonder if that is why he is not as interested in trying to talk to family on the phone -
I feel like it is just so hard for him to put it all together.

"One thing that always helps me be reconciled with having Papa Daddy live at the care center is the obvious love that everyone there has for him. I can tell they do love him because they have picked up on the little personality traits of Dad from their conversation with him - they can mimic back to you the way he laughs and the way he says things - the gestures. I am comforted by knowing they have taken the time to enjoy him.

"I try to visit with Dad at least twice a week - I truly wish I could do more - I feel like I should try to do more. Last week I went over to visit with Dad for Lucy one evening but Papa was sleeping so soundly that he did not wake-up while I was there even though I was there for over a half hour. That is the only visit with him that I have had that he did not awaken when I touched his arm and hands. I decided he needed the sleep more than the conversation.

"The family needs to know that the staff at the care center are so impressed with us as a family. They said that we are the most dedicated family they know - it is so impressive to them that we have family who live so far away who spend the time and expense to travel and visit as consistently as we do as a family. I too am impressed and I am so thankful for all of the family and feel lucky to be a part of this wonderful family."

Now just a little postscript from Alison: Dad's wonderful nurse, Barbara, had Dad checked after he finished his antibiotic for his urinary tract infection--he still had an infection, so he's now on another antibiotic. I'm so grateful for her care and attention to detail!

Thanks to all who care about Dad and read this blog. And I love to hear from you, so I know you're out there! I'll be posting again in two weeks.