The Hair Bonnet

This hair bonnet was in a drawer.  We haven't used this hair bonnet for a long time.  We haven't even seen this hair bonnet.  Then one day.....here comes Granma, with the hair bonnet on.  Now I don't care if she wears the hair bonnet.  Goahead and wear the hair bonnet Granma, if that's what floats your boat, go for it.
But now we're on day three.  Okay, even three days of hair bonnet, no big deal, but I'm tell'n you.....It's the hair bonnet morning, noon and night.  She goes to bed with the hair bonnet on.  She gets up with the hair bonnet on, she goes through the day with the hair bonnet on.  We're going to church tomorrow......hair bonnet or no hair bonnet, that is the question.
For sure she won't be wearing the hair bonnet to church, the trick is how to get it off and away from her with out retaliation.  I know....when we get undressed and I'm pulling the shirts over her head (shirts, plural, because she tries to wears 3 or four of them at one time) amazingly the hair bonnet will come off and magically disappear." Hmmmmmm Granma, I don't know what happened to your hair bonnet."

THE END.  :)  Life is Good!

The Other Babysitters

I was under the impress that when Granma and I go to babysit, "I'm" the babysitter.  Turns out, the kids are too.  Before Granma and I get there, the kids have made a thorough inspection of the floor, making sure there is no debris laying around that might cause Granam to trip and fall.  The pathway to the chair Granma sits in is always clear and the chair is positioned just so....so Granma can just "PLOP" down into it. Sara, got a new dolly for Christmas. She brought it out for Granma to see.  Then Sara asked Granma, "Granma would you like to hold her?"  Look at Granmas face.  She held that dolly for a long time.

Sara wanted to read Granma a story,  so she scooted a chair next to Granma, put the book on Granma's lap and started telling the story. Sara's 4.

Joe likes to sit on Granmas walker and be pushed around, and Ben and Andrew are the alert "dogs"  When Granma starts to get up from her chair they'll let me know "Granma's up" in their big boy voices.  Sometimes Ben helps Granma move around the house, and  get up out of her chair.  They let her know when it's lunch time and time to pray.

Granma doesn't hear very well and so I use a big voice myself when I speak to her.  One day Sara told me, "Mrs. Cloyd, don't you think that was a little too loud?"  They are protective of her!  And I'm reminded, once again, that a little tenderness can go a long way.

I love these children.   I'm blessed by having them in my life.  I think Granma is too.

A NEW YEAR

It's 2011. Granma's 103. Healthy. Not taking any meds. Still able to get around with the help of her trusty walker. Eats good.  Sleeps.....well there's the thing.  I suppose her sleeping pattern could be worse. She gets up as many as 4 times a night, but that isn't every night.  Some nights she's only up twice.  That's really the norm....twice a night.  And what does she do when she gets up? Well lots of things.  Sometimes she gets dressed ....fully dressed, socks, shoes, the whole bit, then gets back into bed.  Sometimes she goes to the bathroom, potties and primps. Other times she wanders from family room, dining room,  living room back to the bedroom.  She has "sundowners"  I'm so glad I learned what that was. When she first came to us I didn't have a clue. Her behaviors got weird around 3 o'clock every day.  She started getting edgy, fidgety, restless.  She'd start moving around the house, from family room, to dining room , to living room over and over again.  Finally, like, the last ditch effort,  she'd head for her bedroom. It was like she was saying, "enough of this roving around stuff. I'm going to bed"  but it was only 4 o'clock.  I suppose I could let her go to bed but I was thinking, that if she went to bed now she'd be up  all  night and into the wee hours of the morning. The deal is.....if Gramas up......I'm up.   So I wouldn't let her go to bed.  That  is an executive decision and I'm stick'n to it. I've learned that if I    tell her we have to eat dinner first.....before we go to bed....for some reason that seems to calm her down.
Chuck and I talk about how she processes or doesn't process things. What parts of her brain are working and what parts aren't.  How she sees herself and us.  Does she know where she is?  Does she think she's a young woman? How much can she hear? Sometimes we think she can hear it all and other times we think she can't hear a thing. Is she play'n us?  How do you know?
Granma......what's going on up there in your head?
I better stay away from that one.  Being in my own head is bad enough.
Happy new year everyone.