Worm
Today has started with a big morning.
First off, let me register now (and we will never speak of it again- maybe) my distaste for superhuman early mornings. The early birds are welcome to their fare- I want no part of it. Getting up at 5:15 for the privilege of racing round like a spastic child to make it to Vandy in time for morning rounds (6:15am) is no picnic. Though getting the opportunity to hear what the doctors are thinking firsthand and advocate for Mom's needs and wishes certainly makes up for a lot.
Second, has anyone considered discussing with the Department of Transportation and Highway Works the benefit of NOT simultaneously tearing up every road and interstate between the east and west sides of town? Currently, the junction of old Lebanon Pike and Lebanon Pike does not exist, McGavock Pike is impassible above Lincoya as they are replacing the railroad crossing, the Two Rivers entrance to Briley looks like a toddler assaulted it with Tonka trucks, the entrance to 40 from Briley has been rent asunder and I continue to be bitter that they eliminated the death trap 3 lane crossing to get to 440 from the 40 merge. Other than those minor points, though, the drive was delightful. It was fabulous to have a break from the bumper-to-bumper suicide drivers in LA.
Mom was sleeping when I arrived-Hah! To be so lucky. So I just straddled the chair and braced myself on the rail so I could hold her hand while she slept. It was peaceful to watch the sun struggle to rise from behind the storm clouds through her window. When she woke, Mom gave me a hug. Awkward but priceless. We rested awhile before I gave her her morning massage and convinced her to eat some pureed sausage. Delightful.
The doctors came through for their rounds. No big surprises. They are still unsure whether they are going to cut the ankle soon but probably will wait a couple more weeks for the swelling to go down a bit further. They are hopeful that she will be able to move to a rehab center within the week.
Roland came over for a visit once Mom was awake. She wanted to know what day it was so Roland told her. He explained how all the other family had been to visit and were back home right now but that I was staying with him. She either said 'Thank you' or 'Thank God.' Hard to say. Her expression was funny either way. Being the smartaleck she is, she asked if we had been having fun. I asked her if she had lost her mind but Roland pointed out, rightly so, that any time with Mom was a good time. We just asked that she not go to such dramatic extremes again.
Speech therapy came to visit and see Mom's potential for going to a valve system on her trach. She did very well for them; we were all impressed. Hopefully they will fit the valve today so that she doesn't have to depend on my clueless lipreading any longer. She indicated she felt the same way. :-)
Once they had left, Mom asked why she was so sick. I tried to bring her up to speed but am not certain how much she heard. She was quite exhausted from the speech therapy session. We assured her we would just tell her again later if she forgot and left her so she could get some rest.
I am going to stop by the Stallworth center on my way back over to the hospital. I will let you guys know how it looks. In the meantime, for those who would like, Mom can receive balloons again. [We are staying away from flowers till her trach is out.] They can be delivered to the Trauma Center at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Anything else should probably go to the house so that we can make sure she gets it.
Well, I am off for the hospital. I'll get you guys some new pictures here soon. I am as ever yours-
jacqui
First off, let me register now (and we will never speak of it again- maybe) my distaste for superhuman early mornings. The early birds are welcome to their fare- I want no part of it. Getting up at 5:15 for the privilege of racing round like a spastic child to make it to Vandy in time for morning rounds (6:15am) is no picnic. Though getting the opportunity to hear what the doctors are thinking firsthand and advocate for Mom's needs and wishes certainly makes up for a lot.
Second, has anyone considered discussing with the Department of Transportation and Highway Works the benefit of NOT simultaneously tearing up every road and interstate between the east and west sides of town? Currently, the junction of old Lebanon Pike and Lebanon Pike does not exist, McGavock Pike is impassible above Lincoya as they are replacing the railroad crossing, the Two Rivers entrance to Briley looks like a toddler assaulted it with Tonka trucks, the entrance to 40 from Briley has been rent asunder and I continue to be bitter that they eliminated the death trap 3 lane crossing to get to 440 from the 40 merge. Other than those minor points, though, the drive was delightful. It was fabulous to have a break from the bumper-to-bumper suicide drivers in LA.
Mom was sleeping when I arrived-Hah! To be so lucky. So I just straddled the chair and braced myself on the rail so I could hold her hand while she slept. It was peaceful to watch the sun struggle to rise from behind the storm clouds through her window. When she woke, Mom gave me a hug. Awkward but priceless. We rested awhile before I gave her her morning massage and convinced her to eat some pureed sausage. Delightful.
The doctors came through for their rounds. No big surprises. They are still unsure whether they are going to cut the ankle soon but probably will wait a couple more weeks for the swelling to go down a bit further. They are hopeful that she will be able to move to a rehab center within the week.
Roland came over for a visit once Mom was awake. She wanted to know what day it was so Roland told her. He explained how all the other family had been to visit and were back home right now but that I was staying with him. She either said 'Thank you' or 'Thank God.' Hard to say. Her expression was funny either way. Being the smartaleck she is, she asked if we had been having fun. I asked her if she had lost her mind but Roland pointed out, rightly so, that any time with Mom was a good time. We just asked that she not go to such dramatic extremes again.
Speech therapy came to visit and see Mom's potential for going to a valve system on her trach. She did very well for them; we were all impressed. Hopefully they will fit the valve today so that she doesn't have to depend on my clueless lipreading any longer. She indicated she felt the same way. :-)
Once they had left, Mom asked why she was so sick. I tried to bring her up to speed but am not certain how much she heard. She was quite exhausted from the speech therapy session. We assured her we would just tell her again later if she forgot and left her so she could get some rest.
I am going to stop by the Stallworth center on my way back over to the hospital. I will let you guys know how it looks. In the meantime, for those who would like, Mom can receive balloons again. [We are staying away from flowers till her trach is out.] They can be delivered to the Trauma Center at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Anything else should probably go to the house so that we can make sure she gets it.
Well, I am off for the hospital. I'll get you guys some new pictures here soon. I am as ever yours-
jacqui
posted by Jacqui at 9:33 AM
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