Kate and I are going to Memphis tomorrow to visit with our daughter, Jesse, and her two boys. We arrived at our hotel room in Nashville about 25 minutes ago and are settled in our room. Kate is resting right now. As soon as she is ready, we will go over to the mall where I would like for us to look for some tops to go with various color slacks. I would also like to get her a couple of pairs of khakis for everyday wear. Clothing continues to be an issue although we are making progress. She is getting more accepting of my help. That ony occurs when she just can’t find something. She almost always likes to try on here own first, but it is getting harder and harder for her. The problem is twofold. First, she can’t remember where she put her clothes. When she looks, her eyes have difficulty seeing them. It is the brain and not the eyes that is the source of the problem.
This morning about an hour or 90 minutes before we the time I wanted to leave she was wearing a pair of khaki slacks that are too baggy for her around the legs. They fit fine in the waist, but they make her look heavier than she is. There were cheap slacks that I got her a month ago for ordinary daytime wear. She was also wearing her yellow sweater that is very soiled and stretched around the cuffs of her sleeves. Unfortunately, it is her favorite sweater. Even she told me early this week that it needed to be replaced. I have bought two sweaters to replace this one in the last 6 months. I don’t know where the first one went. I bought the second one, and Kate still gravitates to the old yellow one.
At any rate, I told her I would like for her to wear something else for the trip since we were going shopping and then to eat dinner in a nice restaurant. She asked what I would like her to wear. I asked her if she would like to wear black or brown slacks with the top she was wearing. She said brown. I went to my closet where I keep several pair of slacks and picked out a brown pair. I took it to her and then picked out what I thought would be a better top. I left her to dress while I finished packing.
After 20-30 minutes, she walked in wearing the identical things she was wearing before. I said, “You’re not wearing the clothes I picked out.” She asked, “Where are they?” I told her I didn’t know, that I had given them to her. Then I went back to her room to find them. I couldn’t find them anyplace. I finally went back to my closet and picked out a pair of black slacks, and she wore the same top she had on.
I asked if she had packed her suitcase. She didn’t remember. I opened it and found nothing in it. I left her to pack it. On Wednesday afternoon I bought 3 tops at one of her regular stores and packed them in my suitcase. I also packed underwear, a bra, and a couple of pair of slacks in case she didn’t remember everything she needed. I always have a toothbrush and toiletries she is likely to need except for make up which she doesn’t regularly use
Something else happened before we left. She came into the family room with her hands filled with small pictures in picture frames. She asked, “Should I take these with us?” I was puzzled and went over to see what she had. She told me, “I don’t want the children to break them.” I told her we were going to the boys and it was best to leave them here. Apparently, she thought I had told her somebody with children was coming to our house. I am seeing more signs of this type of confusion.
When we left the house, we went to Henry’s for lunch. She showed no signs of being perturbed. We had a nice lunch. The drive was a long one, but we were comfortable. I was not anxious as we had no particular deadline to be in Nashville.
5:23 pm
We just ran over to the mall and bought 5 tops and 2 pair of khaki slacks for Kate. We are both pleased with the selections. I am particularly happy that the total dollars spent was only $271. We would have spent more than that at her regular shops. For the first time, we bought a pair of slacks that are a size 16. I have been suspecting that some of the 14s we have been purchasing were a little too small.
8:38 pm
We had a terrific dinner. It turned out that the restaurant at which we ate was not the one I had intended. The good news is that it was very good. We are now back in the room. The TV is on to a Whoopi Goldberg movie. I think it may be Sister Act I or II.
Kate is discovering that there are many things she neglected to pack and that I did not cover her on. She has no sleeping attire, no toiletries, no bra, and no night guard. This reinforces my decision to cancel our trip to Europe. I need to cover too many things for her. It is a challenge for me to remember all of my things as well as hers.
