It’s Tuesday already? Where is the time going? I feel like it’s flying by, but at the same time, March was the LONGEST MONTH EVER!! It seemed as though it would never end! Surely April has GOT to be better!
This past weekend, M and I FINALLY had two of our grandchildren over to spend the night Sunday night – the 11-year-old and the 5-year-old. Before M’s diagnosis, we had the grandkids over to the house AT LEAST every other weekend, but since then, we haven’t had them here. It’s not that I didn’t want them here – but it got to be too hard to manage the kids and him.
Don’t get me wrong – the kids are great. But they’re kids. They make noise and they can be silly and they don’t always listen. I know that. I raised two of them. So did M. But ever since his dementia symptoms really started kicking in, he has absolutely no patience for kids behaving as kids. I don’t understand it.
So every time we get them together, I feel like I’m running interference. Between trying to keep the kids happy and trying to make sure M doesn’t lose his temper and everyone keeps it together . . . visits are absolutely no fun for me.
Now that the kids are out of school and their parents are (mostly) working from home, they’re extremely bored. All the playgrounds have been closed, so the kids are getting tired of looking at the four walls. I decided that M could get over it and that I would give the kids and their parents a break – and we took them for about 24 hours.
And we had a blast! We walked to the local elementary school (where the playground wasn’t closed) and the kids played on the playground there. We let them make their own pizzas, watched movies, got out the bubble machine, got out the water tables, made brownies, walked the dogs – you name it! It was a great time!
There were a few moments when M got annoyed . . . I think the worst time was when the boys found the recorders that were left over from when our kids were in school. How many times can you hear “Jolly Old St. Nicholas” played on a recorder before you lose your mind? M really started to have a fit about “all the noise” but I squelched it. They were just having fun – and it was over soon.
After we took the kids home on Sunday, I told M that I wanted to start having the kids over to the house more often – like we used to. But I don’t want to feel like I’m having to choose sides between him and the kids. He had no idea what I was talking about.
Work at the hospital is busy and intense. There are 1,498 COVID-19 cases in our state and 52 in our county. The hospital is on a search every day for protective equipment – masks, gowns and gloves. So please – do all of us in health care a favor . . . stay home, wash your hands and stay safe!
You poor dear–you are just swamped.