Oh-oh

Oh dear, I hear clothes being hung in the closet of Gramma's room......

Monday when our guests left, she brought down the sheets from one of the upstairs bedrooms and put the sheets in the washer, I didn't hear the washer run, so meant to go in and start it......
However-I soon heard the dryer running, and checked and - sure enough, the sheets went from the washer (unwashed) to the dryer. I quickly took them out and washed them.

Today, wouldn't you know.....I  put Gramma's dark's in the washer and hurried out to grab a few more.
When I came back the dryer was going with the unwashed clothing.......Stopping the dryer-I ran to tend to dinner-Lesson learned - Nothing goes into the washer unless the washer is promptly started

Now......I hear the sound of clothing (unwashed I know) being hung back in the closet.

Wash day  Plan B....During 4:00 Tea time, I'll clean the closet and start the washer with the clothes that were slated to be washed this morning.....uff da

Mystery

I was able to be with Elizabeth as she looked for a town home close to where she works. We had so much fun looking at neighborhoods, walking in different areas of town, and joining the realtor for walk through s of several homes marked for sale. Yes, Elizabeth made an offer on one of the homes, we are anxious to hear if the offer was accepted  :)

However, I got a call from Will, who was at home holding down the fort. He had Jason this week, as Jason had laser removal of facial fibroma. He also was the chief cook and  medicine assistant for both Gramma and Jason.

Will called to ask if I had purchased several packages of candy and put them in Gramma's dresser drawer. I hadn't, and actually didn't know she had a dresser full of candy.........He couldn't figure out where it came from and neither Gramma nor Jason seemed to know. What was evident, was that both Gramma and Jason were enjoying the chocolate.

When I got home, I went into Gramma's room to investigate. Sure enough, behind and to the side of the dresser  was a big box addressed to Gramma, with a return address from Washington. Soooo, the mail lady had brought the box to the house and must have set it inside the door-we think, Will may have been in the garage or office and didn't realize someone was at the door. Gramma-on her way to the kitchen, apparently noticed the box, read her name on it and opened it, putting all of the candy in safe hiding in her dresser drawer.

It is soon Easter and Gramma has all of the Easter candy she can possibly consume in the next couple of weeks.

Fixing Hair

Sunday evening after supper, Elizabeth asked Gramma 'Do you remember braiding my hair'?

'Oh yes' Gramma said, 'I braided your hair, and I also cut the neighbors hair for many years'.

I remember Gramma going over to cut Louise's, Mrs. Boelter's, and Sophie's hair, these Kruegers lived to the South of Gramma and Grampa. To the West-lived the other Kruegers, Ida and Hulda, and their sister Gussie.  Gramma would cut their hair, and give permanents as requested.

I mentioned to her, she should have gone back to school to be a hair dresser-but she didn't really like that type of work she said....

she was just willing to help out the neighbors.

I also can remember Gramma going over to Kruegers and helping put in their earrings. They couldn't see where the opening was in their ear lobes, so she helped them with this, too.

Gramma could do anything......Plow, milk cows, fix hair, grow a garden, knit, sew, and clean.

Company

We are very fortunate to live in a fun neighborhood. This past week we invited one of our neighbors over for dinner. They are also providing elder care in their home for an aging parent.

It was fun to see our 'gramma's visit, repeat, visit, laugh, and visit about the same topics again and again.

They laughted and seemed to enjoy the couple of hours together.

conversation about Hair

Thursday each week, I insist that Gramma have her "head warshed". So far she has had a permanent that seemed to last several months, with a permanent her hair becomes easier to care for and looks nice. We'll need to make an appointment for another permanent soon- this is simply one more thing she doesn't want to do but will thoroughly enjoy.

In the meantime we have this hair conversation every week.....

Me- Well, it's time to wash your hair, Gramma-

Gramma Defiantly-  " No it can't be, we just warshed it a little while ago!  Besides that-after it's warshed it becomes -  fly away and hard to handle !!! "

She always puts up a fuss when it's time to wash her hair....

Me- I'll get the shampoo and conditioner, you can get ready, you know you will always enjoy having someone fix your hair.......

I  get the supplies and set them by the sink, I know I might have to wait a long time until she is gets ready.  (usually during this wait I read a magazine, or start cooking)

As I wash her hair, she will say- Oh, look at that, my hair is getting gray...why don't you put some color in it??

Me-Well what color would you like, maybe red would be fun

Gramma- Oh No, we haven't had any relatives who have had RED hair...

Me-  Maybe brown, what do you think of having brown hair??

Gramma- Oh, my Dad had brown hair, but Mom had blonde

Me-  Maybe you would rather be blonde?  Would that be OK....

Gramma- thinking about having blonde hair- "It would sure be better than this gray hair I have"

We go into the bedroom where I comb in a mousse and Moroccan oil before setting her hair on rollers.

Gramma - Does your hair have any natural curl?

Me- Oh, a little, it seems to hold a curl for a little while

Gramma - My hair didn't ever have any curl, Gladys sure didn't want anyone to touch her hair, but I love
to have my hair combed.

Me- See it's not so bad to have your hair washed once a week, now is it ????

Gramma-  OH NO- I ALWAYS ENJOY  having someone work with MY  hair.........

Time to go 'out for supper'

We've had a stretch of below normal temperatures, snow, and ice. Because of that we haven't gone to the Cornfield, Subway, or McDonalds for awhile. Grandma wants to carry on the tradition of occasionally taking us out for 'supper' just as she and Grandpa had been doing for years. We usually try to order something that all toll comes under $20.00. That is usually the special at the Cornfield, or a hamburger or fishburger.
In order to help, when I'm in town I stop by the bank and get a couple of $20.00 bills and put them in Grandma's room. She wonders for a short time-just how did I get that money, but will soon put it in her billfold for the next time we go 'out to supper'.

It's so rewarding to see her take the bill, add the numbers (to see if there's been some mistake) and count out the correct change.

In my profession this would maybe be part of the 'care plan' but for us it's just one way we can allow Grandma to maintain her dignity and carry on something she and grandpa did for years.
                                     I can just hear him say- "Kay----get that bill"

Baking....sewing....baking

Will and I decided to try Aaron's no or low carb diet. So, wanting to be helpful, I agreed not to bake for the first 2 weeks of this diet.

We bought store cookies for Grandma at tea time along with plenty of celery, carrots, and broccoli (For our diet)

Yesterday I prepared Grandma's tea, and when she came to the table she looked at the store bought cookies and said  "I would have thought THEY would have had homemade cookies one of these days".  So I took this afternoon off from my sewing project and baked homemade cookies for Grandma (See cooking blog).

Will went fishing.......

Tuesday evening

Grandma-sitting in her swivel rocker in her room doing word search
      "Boy-it's sure cold in here, do they heat this building"

Me-"Yes, but remember it's winter and it usually is a little cooler
         in the house this time of the year"

Grandma-"They sure don't keep the buildings as warm as they used to"

Me-Going over to the thermostat in the room
       "Well-it's 74 degrees in here now, that's a nice temperature to sleep-
         you wouldn't want it warmer because you wouldn't sleep as well,
         I think if you would move around some you wouldn't feel so chilly,
         also-this time of the year it's a good idea to wear a sweatshirt or
         sweater."

Grandma-reaching up to her ear and removing her hearing aid
        "There-now I can't hear you!!"

It just works better if I simply say, Oh, yaw--I suppose, yep that's for sure.......

Plan 2

We did go  into the clinic today, Due to a metal plate from previous surgery, the steroid injection we were planning on didn't happen. Suggestions for the knees and Bakers cyst include.

• Physical therapy to help the swelling and mobility
• Tylenol for discomfort
• Appointment to see the surgeon as the cushion of the cartilage is worn down and causing knee pain

We'll opt for suggestions 1 and 2.

Holistically, the risks outweigh the benefits for the 3rd option.

Mystery

We've been watching our calories and sodium intake for about 3 weeks now, and doing a fairly decent job at it, too. But, the leg in question continued to be swollen, but not red or warm to touch.

This past week, a softball sized lump appeared in the upper part of the calf. It was painful, especially when grandma put weight on it or moved her foot....It sounded like possibly a clot and the Nurse practitioner -on call -confirmed this possibility. We were diligent in hot packing and elevating the affected limb throughout the next couple of days.

However, when our interventions brought little relief, we knew we should head to the urgent care clinic.
An ultrasound,  to our surprise indicated a 'Baker's cyst'.

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/bakers-cyst/DS00448

We go in tomorrow for a possible steroid injection and aspiration.

We really did benefit from the healthy diet, I think we'll stay on it awhile!!

Sodium

So - after the holidays, grandma developed edema that was very noticeable. We visited the Doctor, who believed it was from eating too much Sodium. Edema can be painful, so it is discouraging to walk. Less movement = more edema. Elevating legs helps, but if it's uncomfortable so letting legs dangle also = more edema.

We wondered exactly how much salt do we eat?  This weekend we proceeded to read the nutrition labels on some of the products we have in the pantry.

• Can of green beans             1/2 of a cup   =  390 mg of Sodium
• Can of mushroom soup       1/2 of a cup   =  890 mg of Sodium
• Whole tomatoes (canned)   1/2 of a cup   =  220 mg of Sodium                 
• Soy sauce                           1 Tablespoon = 1160 mg of Sodium

So we asked ...How much Sodium do we need in a day?????     
 
According to Mayo Clinic

•           2300 mg. per day for people under 51

•           1500 mg. per day for people over  51

       http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/sodium/NU00284

 We would have been way over-just with the food mentioned above. Not counting the milk, bread, processed meats, cereal, etc that we may have also consumed.

So as a result of this research, we are now on a low sodium diet for Grandma, (and to help us eat healthier).

Oh yes, 1/4 of a frozen pizza = 750 mg of Sodium........Shucks-it was such a easy meal to make, too.