The Rest of the Story

Kate got up about 45 minutes after her confusion reported in my previous post. I am especially glad to report that she did not show any of the previous confusion. She didn’t ask my name or who I am. She was a little bit grumpy until we got to lunch. It was one of our days for a sitter, so I left for the Y about thirty minutes after we returned home. When I said goodbye, Kate looked a little disappointed and asked what she could do. I told her she and Mary could go to Panera or stay at home where she could work on her iPad. She said she would like to start by staying at home.

When I returned four hours later, Kate and Mary were in the family room. Kate was sleeping on the sofa. Mary said they had stayed at home the entire time. She said they had talked a little while, and Kate rested off and on. I was disappointed they had not gotten to Panera. I continue to think she feels more comfortable getting out with me than the sitter. I thought Kate would wake up when we were talking, but she didn’t. After I brought in a few things from the grocery, I went over to her. She opened her eyes. I asked if she would like to get up. She said she wanted to rest a little longer. After another thirty minutes, I asked if she would like to get a pizza. She did.

After dinner, I watched the news while she worked on her iPad. Then I played a portion of a DVD of My Fair Lady. She continued working on her iPad but seemed to enjoy the music. She went to bed shortly after 8:30. I was surprised after she had such a good rest during the afternoon.

It is now 9:00. She is still sleeping. We are going to Nashville today to visit our friend, Ellen Seacrest. She is in a memory care facility and has been declining very gradually over the past three years. Her most notable problem is her speech. It has been increasingly difficult to understand her. The last two times we have brought music into our visits. She responds positively to that. I may try that again this afternoon.

This time we are staying over night so that we can have lunch with a longtime friend from West Palm Beach. He is in Nashville for his brother’s 80th birthday celebration tonight. After our lunch, we’ll return to Knoxville. It should be a good weekend.