We Belong Here

Wow! In some respects the days seem like they fly by and in other ways they are extremely long.  We are here! (on the farm in Virginia, that is)  Most of our stuff is still in NC, but at least we are starting to get Mike adjusted and dealing with yet another transition and change in our lives. But first....last Thursday morning we went to the Wound Clinic and the stitches were removed from the wound on his backside without any problem.  This was probably largely due to the fact that at 5:36 a.m., I heard something that woke me up. I came out into the living room to see Mike dragging a small table across the floor.  I put it back and he proceeded to drag it again.  I decided to see what he was going to do with it. He first took it and put it in front of the dresser and then moved it into the bathroom beside the tub.  I took it out, so then he dragged his white wing back chair into the bathroom.  I was amazed that it fit through the door. I saw him with it at the doorway and figured that would occupy him for a while, but next time I went in, he was backed up against the tub with the chair in front of him.  I dragged it back out and he dragged it back to the door again.  Somewhere in there I was able to give him a pill and then went to have my devotions so that we didn't get into a push-me/pull-you match.  When all was quiet, I looked in and he was sitting in the chair and half asleep.  I covered him with a blanket and he stayed there for a while. So by 11:00 when he was due at the clinic, he was more than happy to lie down on the table. There is still one small hole, but they assured me that the doctor was not worried about it because he knew what he had stitched together underneath and felt it would heal fine on it's own.  I'm going to keep an eye on it and see whether I think it needs to be checked or not.

Thursday afternoon we saw Dr. Gualtieri for probably the last time.  All of Mike's labs came back negative for any infections, so that's good. The hope is that since we are here and going to stay here, he'll calm down as we settle into a routine and he becomes comfortable.  Nothing new was done since we were leaving and Mike seems to need the meds during this transition time. I can still contact Dr. G., but it is a little scary.  I feel like we're cast out here with no real net to catch us if something should go wrong.

On Friday morning, everything went off without a hitch.  Rod came and took Mike as usual, Kristin  came and we were able to pack up the car with about 5 minutes to spare before Rod and Mike returned.  Then Mike, Kristin and I enjoyed lunch at Roly Poly (I had the best Cherry Pecan Chicken roll-up. Delicious!), walked around the outdoor shopping center in the gorgeous, sunny weather, ate frozen yogurt and just generally had a great visit. It's so nice to have an extra person when taking Mike on an outing. Especially one who doesn't mind staying on the go! Thanks, Kristin! Then we were off to Virginia.

Our first few days have had their good moments and their rough moments.  Right after we got here, Mike was helping carry things into the house and fell on the front steps (which are brick). He scraped up his knuckles and elbow. Then Saturday morning he got into a flight pattern that involved going up the front steps and down the back steps. I tried to distract him and keep him from going up and down, but it was no use.  I have no idea what he did, but he fell at the top of the stairs and hit his head on something (a doorway maybe). I just heard a loud thump and ran up to see him on the hall floor. He also has a bruise on his hip.  He's fallen outside also. He's just so headstrong and can't be still for hardly a moment, unless I make him sit or push him into the bed.  Once he's there, if he'll be still long enough, he usually goes to sleep within seconds. If he's really not ready yet, it becomes a struggle and then he really starts zinging around at high speed and it's best just to get out of his way.

Today I spoke with someone Mom knows who would like to help. She took care of her mother who had Alzheimer's. She's going to come three times this week, first thing in the morning to help with the shower, and early morning issues, which I am finding I'm just weary of dealing with and finding it hard to be kind and patient every morning. Please pray that this works out well, but more importantly, please pray that soon Mike will be able to handle the toileting issues himself and this won't be needed.  We had a good day for the most part today. Over the last 3 days, Mike has picked up sticks, we trimmed a little of a Magnolia tree, Mike picked up the Magnolia cones(?), we planted some lettuce and took walks. Praise God the weather has been gorgeous and we have been able to be outside a good bit. Saturday night, he sat and watched The Bible movie which was almost 2 hours long. We could fast forward over the commercials so it was a little shorter, but he watched the entire thing and was fairly still.  He is having more trouble sitting still to eat. Same thing was happening at the apartment.  Tonight, he never did sit down to eat.  I finally followed him around and had him eat yogurt and then got him to bed. I'm really hoping the Risperdal is part of the problem and did cut down his dosage by 1/2 pill today.  I don't think he was really any worse. Am also spreading out the percocet and we'll be out of that in a day or two. I do wonder if his antzyness is due to pain and it seems like it's his legs. Who knows? He may have a pinched nerve, or other real pain that he just can't tell me. He sure prefers walking to sitting.

The best thing he has said was last night or Saturday night when I was putting him to bed. He said "We belong here."  I hope that will continue to sink in and he'll be able to relax, enjoy life, be productive, feel useful, and recover more quickly because of it.  Thank you for your prayers and please continue to pray for Mike's healing, wisdom for me regarding his medication, safety and freedom from falls for Mike.  That wound would probably heal much better if he wasn't falling so much, but I just can't be with him every moment and he's so resistant lots of the time when I try to distract or reroute him. Pray the Lord would speak peace to his mind and body and soothe whatever is causing the agitation and anxiety. Pray also that he would remember that he is a child of God and just how much God loves him.  Thank you. You are precious to us!

I want to thank my Mom and Dad for all that they are doing for us: giving us a home, putting up with the restlessness, letting us rearrange furniture, helping with the laundry, finding projects to do, food, conversation, and so much more.  I really don't know what we would do without you.  Thank you and I love you so much!