Nap

Spring Fling. A fun in and out of the sun day. #TSJ

Today was Spring Fling day at Connect, the brain child of staff member Jess, and what a great idea it was. Technically it is Spring but we continue to enjoy summer like weather here, so much so I’ve had to resurrect Janet’s sun hat from last year. She still looks cute in it. She was also cute with her shirt saver on and a flipper in her hand as she helped Jess make pancakes for brunch this morning. For some reason she didn’t think I was coming to see her today and I’m not sure that she was upset about that at all. She seemed to be having lots of fun without me. Jess does a great job with Janet, always making sure she’s busy.

The staff set tables up in the parking lot and hired a guy to play guitar and sing while everyone enjoyed the sun and food. It was really nice to have all the residents and staff together with friends and family in a really positive environment. The highlights for Janet besides making pancakes were meeting Brian’s baby daughter Olivia and playing ladderball with me. There’s a Keek of her excellent throwing abilities. @larrylatour

By the time the Fling was over it was after one which meant either a nap then shopping and stuff or shopping and stuff then a nap. Janet of course chose the latter hoping to avoid the nap all together. She actually nodded off a little in the car on the way to the mall. Yes, the mall again. I realized we should have bought her a few more shorts when the girls were here as she doesn’t have any at home and I also wanted her to have a pair of sandals. After quick and successful stops at The Gap and Urban Trail we were headed home for a quick nap. I would have been happy with Janet resting for an hour or so then getting up for Church and a sushi dinner. She exceeded expectations and slept for over two hours which meant no Church and no sushi. We BBQ’d salmon instead, enjoying it outside then I got Janet into lounging mode while we watched Silver Linings Playbook which we both really enjoyed.

It was definitely late when I got Janet to bed but after her late nap today she did just fine and should have a good sleep. She continues to show improvement cognitively, saying some really intelligent and unsolicited things today. On the physical side, I’m not liking her left leg right now but will at least get her in the hot tub for a stretch tomorrow and see if that improves things. Janet drank all her Peg-Lyte today with no results yet. Sunday was her day last week so here’s hoping. Praying for a good sleep tonight and continued healing.

Keeping Score. Late night for Janet. #TSJ

Janet was surprised to see me this morning as she had forgotten about swimming. Jess reported that they tried to go to the gym but it was busy so the only activity Janet got this morning was Speech with Mary Lou. Apparently that went well with Janet talking nice and loud and clear as she practiced asking questions instead of answering them like she mostly does.

Our drive to KGH was chattier than usual but in the pool Janet seemed a little tired and had zero command over her right leg. I wish I knew why this happens and how to prevent or correct it as it was tough for Janet to do her standing and walking exercises in our first session. The second half hour was better though and I was able to let go of her as she floated on her back for a couple of seconds. Same thing with standing on her own. It took a long time to get there but she was able to stand for a good five seconds a couple of times. Walking continued to be a challenge as her right leg was largely unresponsive.

While walking back to the car we were stopped by Monica, the transition nurse from 4B. She was very excited to see Janet and amazed by her progress as she had not seen Janet for probably seven months now. Janet had no clue who she was but enjoyed the compliments. Monica mentioned to me how she and her husband had gotten their Power of Attorney done and updated their wills after watching what Janet and I have gone through without a POA in place. She even told the story to a colleague the other day and they are going to get theirs done now too. If any of you married folks reading this don’t have an Enduring Power of Attorney in place and up to date wills, get on it. You never know what’s going to happen and things can get really messy without that paperwork.

We deviated from our intended lunch destination choosing to support a local business that I spotted along the way, Deli City Cafe. Good thing too as while we were ordering we saw our friend Roger who was just finishing his lunch there. It was nice to see his big smile and to know things are going well for Carrie and he. I wanted to get Janet back to Connect in case we could see the wheelchair guy so we ate our lunch once we got back there but no wheelchair guy. That did allow for a late nap for a tired Janet and I got her laying down a little before four. What was planned as a quick siesta turned into a two hour nap as we both fell asleep until six o’clock. Not sure what that was all about for me but I must’ve needed it.

Bob took Janet to the gym after dinner and she actually went without arguing. Bob mentioned Janet’s lack of command of the right leg but said all else was good. Janet seemed pleased and was ready to watch some playoff basketball. It was a good thing she had that nap as the game was really good and she was actually able to stay up to watch it all as it ended around 10:15. For the first time Janet was able to repeatedly tell me the score of the game and she is starting to understand some of the rules again too. I had her lounging in her wheelchair the whole game and was able to get both legs quite straight and she was comfortable the whole time. I noticed when I put her to bed that her right leg was toasty warm just like her left one, often it is quite cold, even icy sometimes. She was able to move it on command quite well to put her PJ’s on too. Maybe the lounging helped?

As I said goodnight I reminded Janet that Laurel will pick her up around lunch time tomorrow and bring her home to see Heather and me. She said, “I hope I remember”. I’m sure she will. Praying for rest and healing and lots of energy for tomorrow and the weekend.

Transfer of Power. Janet powers through without a nap. Again. #TSJ

An all too familiar sight greeted me at Connect this afternoon. Janet lounging in the living room with a big grin on her face. This time she very intelligently explained that she didn’t think she needed a nap so she chose to watch TV instead. This was not the usual defiant Janet or the whining tired and stubborn Janet. This was a very calm, articulate and reasonable Janet that I couldn’t get upset with. She understood that she would likely be ready for bed earlier than usual and that proved to be true.

Janet wanted out of lounging mode so after chatting with Jess to see how the day went we headed for Janet’s room but Brian was in the kitchen so we got to talk to him for a while and that took up any possibility of a power nap before our Skype chat with Mary/Gaga. Jess said Janet’s day had been busy starting with a shower then an early visit to the gym at which she was able to get really good stretches on Janet’s legs. Janet reported that singing with John was fun but she didn’t have the same sparkle in her eye about it as I’ve noticed before. Maybe just because she was tired.

While Brian was around I asked if he would watch me do a few car transfers with Janet to see if there’s any better methods than the one I’m using. He smartly invited Tez to observe as well and we spent a good half hour discussing how best to get Janet into the Santa Fe. Getting out is no problem thanks to Janet’s increased strength and her ability to “stand”. The consensus for getting in seemed to be, continue with the lifting for now but we’ll try and have Janet practicing moves that can enable her to do more herself. Long term it may mean a different car for us, one that is a little lower to the ground. Brian mentioned there is a Lexus that kneels like a bus so I checked that out but was extremely unimpressed with their website and couldn’t even find a mention of that feature. Very cool idea though.

Because of the transfer experiments we were a little late for our chat with Mary/Gaga but I think the movement and sunshine gave Janet a bit of a second wind and she was able to have a very nice chat with her mom. That took us to dinner time and Garrett had Janet BBQ a some chicken breasts for everyone. She’s really getting the hang of the BBQ thing and enjoying the challenge of cooking.

I gave her the option of going to the gym with Bob or Garrett and that seemed to prevent her from arguing about going so she wheeled off with Garrett. Janet was pretty tired by this time and was almost ready for bed when she returned at 7:30. That was too early though so we did a little research on something that was mentioned in the book Slow Dance. It’s called The Feldenkrais Method and is based on the theory that your brain can always learn new things and you can teach your body to move as it naturally wants to because over the years it’s learned to move incorrectly. The whole thing seems a little weird, like yoga for people still doing acid, but I think there’s some truth in it as well. If any of you know anything about it or have experience I’d love to hear from you.

Today was a solid day for Janet with good visits to the gym, good standing transfers(even surprising Tez when he “danced” with her), great BBQ’ing and really good communicating. I’ve stopped nagging her about drinking water and today she did quite well on her own. Looking forward to a fun day tomorrow. Praying for a restful and healing night.

This Girl is on Fire! A quote from Garrett, nothing to do with Alicia Keys. #TSJ

To my disappointment, Janet was waiting for me in the living room when I arrived at Connect a little before three today. I had told her last night I would be in AFTER her nap and that I wanted her to have her nap before I came to see her so we can do more together. She seemed to get that last night but had no concept of it today. Lorne said she flat out refused the nap even after nodding off in her wheelchair. I was a also a little disappointed she was not using the lounging function of her wheelchair so as to stretch her legs. Lorne did say he got Janet to the gym this morning along with a new volunteer, Joel, and they went through Janet’s complete workout. He said she was a little stiff which I found surprising but she had just had a shower and gets quite cold afterwards so probably tensed up because of that.

Janet didn’t argue with me about taking a nap and she slept right to five o’clock when we went out into the sun for happy hour. Dinner was late tonight so Bob offered to take Janet to the gym beforehand and she agreed based on being able to play poker after dinner. Unfortunately the gym was in full use when they got there so Janet had to wait till after dinner. Garrett took Janet for the second attempt at the gym and had a great workout with her bringing her back saying “this girl’s on fire tonight”. He sure had Janet laughing and had run her through all the family questions and was very impressed with her answers tonight. It’s not just me noticing the cognitive gains recently as sing along John mentioned an improvement in Janet’s memory today as well. I peaked in on a little of Garrett’s workout with Janet and he had her on her tummy laying flatter than I’ve seen in a long time and she was quite comfortable. Her left leg still wants to pop up when in that position so Garrett put a small weight on it to hold it down. Seemed to work. Back in the room the questioning continued with Janet answering quickly and correctly ninety percent of the time. She was even able to describe a little of her workout. I demonstrated to Garrett how much better Janet is standing these days and I was able to get her up to a point where I was barely hanging onto her and she stood for a good thirty seconds. That’s a long time for Janet and a huge improvement. She was even happy with it.

Missing poker because of the gym didn’t seem to phase Janet at all. There were so many positives coming out of the workout that she couldn’t help but be pleased and when offered the choice of watching the last of the poker, reading, watching TV or playing a game on the iPad, she chose the iPad. I guess she knew she was on a roll and wanted to keep it going. The first game involved reading sentences which were displayed on two lines of about six or seven words each. She did very well reading them as I pointed to each word and she followed. We moved onto the game where she has to identify the object pictured. There are a series of clues that can be given and tonight Janet got three or four pictures right with no clues at all and a lot correct with one clue that is spoken in a complete this sentence format and I was very impressed by how many she got that way. By far her best performance on that app. She asked to stop after twenty minutes or so and was ready for bed after quite a busy time this evening.

Praying for lots of rest that brings lots of energy for an active day tomorrow and for Janet to cooperate at nap time.

Devious? Janet planning to avoid the gym. #TSJ

I took my time going out to Connect today as I had an appointment to look at a Condo then get my haircut so I figured on arriving near the end of Janet’s nap time. She was waiting for me in the living room with a cup of juice in one hand and a big grin on her face. Former resident, Clint, was there to meet with his “worker” so it was nice to see him. Janet was not showing any signs of needing a nap so we hung out for a while chatting to Clint and Jess reported she had had a good day so far. Lorne had her in the gym “for a long time” and Mary Lou did some speech with her. She ate a large breakfast and lunch and hadn’t argued about drinking yet. She did argue about nap time though. After all the updates and chit chat we headed to Janet’s room for a bio break and were talking there afterwards when Garrett stopped by to ask Janet if she was going to have a nap or help prep dinner. In one of the quickest and surest responses ever, Janet loudly said “help with dinner” and was wheeling out the door immediately.

Dinner tonight was the roast chicken that Janet helped to spice up yesterday and she was given the task of chopping some asparagus and some potatoes to go with it. Using a rocker knife she needed no help with the asparagus and a little downward pressure from me on the potatoes. She then set the table and was visibly pleased to be doing these things, repeatedly asking in a loud voice if there was anything else she could do. Not sure where all this energy was coming from but I’ll take it.

We had to wait a while for the chicken to cook so I read some Slow Dance to Janet and once again there were a lot of similarities to note and this time they centered around rehab and the importance of Physio Therapy. Towards the end of dinner Janet was given the choice of going to the gym or the coffee house down the road to listen to some music. Normally she would reject a social activity like the coffee house but when it was placed against going to the gym the decision was easy. As we headed to the car I mentioned to her that this is the second night in a row where she hasn’t had to go to the gym. Janet said “ya, it’s great!” So much for what we read earlier, or maybe she remembered the part about rest being just as important? Garrett took Derick and Humberto and new staff member Keri (new to Janet’s house) and Janet and I followed in our car. Unfortunately when we got to the coffee house it was closed as they only do the live music thing on the first Wednesday of each month. The others went for a drive to Kelowna and Janet and I drove around Lake Country a bit since we are still rather unfamiliar with it. We managed to get up high on the hill to the east of town where there was a nice view looking down to where even Janet could see Connect. We also explored the area near Wood Lake and were disappointed at how inaccessible the waterfront is there. Most of the beach is privately owned and the one public area is not wheelchair friendly at all. Made me appreciate all those walks to the beach last summer at KGH even more.

I thought Janet would crash early tonight since she had no nap and she did fade a little during our drive but once back at Connect she wanted to play a game on the iPad. She chose the math game and did amazingly well for the first fifteen minutes or so, actually the best she’s done with me. Maybe it was the lollypop she was enjoying while we played or maybe she’s just getting smarter in her old age. I was impressed. That brain exercise did use up the last of her energy for the day and she very willingly got ready for bed but not until she was able to bite that lollypop into oblivion. It was quite difficult for her but when she finally did it she smiled with satisfaction.

Thankful for an enjoyable time with Janet today and the spark she had. Praying for rest and healing tonight and a successful session in the pool tomorrow with lots of energy for the rest of her day.