Newbies Nest

[Lavande]

Re: Newbies Nest

Good Sunday evening Nesters,

Waiting for a touch of rain to move through, now that I have so much planted I appreciate the rain showers

Wags, sounds like your Dad is doing OK in his new home. Can’t ask for much more at this point.
Well I remember how much teens like having some money in their pockets & if they’re willing to do a little work for it then great!! I hope I can keep him interested in coming over & giving us a hand around here.

Hello to all & wishing everyone a safe night in the nest!

Lav

[wagmor]

Re: Newbies Nest

Quick sober check-in for me tonight. Hope everyone is doing well!

[NoSugar]

Re: Newbies Nest

I sure hope your dad has evened out, Wags. It is hard to see a whole new 'personality' in a parent. My mom was always kind of tough as I was growing up (she was a kind but very practical RN) but became absolutely mushy and lovey in her later years (and sometimes evil/angry). Both were disconcerting because they were so different from how she used to be.

Kensho, they screen all kids in Italy for CD - I think around 2nd grade. So it might be that more celiacs are identified in Italy, not that the incidence is actually greater. In the nineties I used to order food from Italy b/c there was so little gluten free food available here. You should have no problem eating on your trip!

You sound busy as usual, Ava, taking care of everyone (human and furry) around you. Here's a hug from me :hug:

[KENSHO]

Re: Newbies Nest

Hi Nest. Embarking on another busy week. I stayed awake last night with my mind swirling in 1000 directions very fast. Eventually it exhausted me I guess, and if finally stopped. I'm feeling calmer today (or more tired!), and am going to focus on one thing at a time, and not go off on any unimportant tangents.

Lovely spring here... lots of flowering trees and I got a new bird app that tells me what birds are singing what songs. We have robins, finches, doves, say's Phoebe, grackles, red-wing black birds and sparrows that were making music this morning. We see herons, pelicans, hawks, sandpipers, eaglets and eagles on our walks. Such happy creatures.

It has been enough time now since I last drank that I can only imagine what my life would have been like if I had continued. The first word that comes to me is "sad". I was sad and felt controlled and frustrated and toxic and stuck. Now my path feels open, happy and full of potential. Best decision I have ever made.

Have a good day All.

[Lavande]

Re: Newbies Nest

Greetings Nesters,

Kensho, I 100% agree!! I can’t imagine how miserable (or sick) I would be if I had continued.
Glad you’re enjoying all the nature Spring has to offer, it’s a gift from the universe really. It’s hard to stay focused when you have so much going on, I get that. Soon you’ll be off on your fabulous trip & you can leave the monkey mind home

Ns, my daughter married into a big Italian family & they surely do have some celiac issues. Everyone just basically does their own thing where food is concerned, confusing at times. Hope you’re still getting some nice spring temps.

Wags, hope all is going well with you & your Dad.

Just came inside from an abbreviated walk - too many allergens out there for me haha!
Hello to all & wishing everyone a safe night in the nest!

Lav

[wagmor]

Re: Newbies Nest

Kensho - yes, sad and toxic are the perfect words to describe how I felt while I was still drinking too. SO much better now, hands down!

Lav - I went to see my Dad today and his new PCP came for his first appt. She's AWESOME!!! I'm very relieved to have such a great Dr steering the ship. The care staff said he seems to be settling in and getting more comfortable, eating a bit more, participating a bit more. That sounds pretty good to me, as it hasn't even been a full week yet. His Dr is ordering some in-home physical therapy for him, where the PT will go to his memory care facility and provide him sessions where he can learn safe ways to get up/down, to use his walker more effectively, and to hopefully get a bit stronger. I think that's a great idea and will give him some additional structure and some things to do that are intended to help him have high quality of life. I couldn't be happier.


There's a woman living in my dad's new memory care facility who apparently has cognitive issues from drinking alcohol. It isn't dementia per se but it IS brain damage and presents much like dementia. If you even needed motivation to stop drinking, visit a memory care home. Aging is hard enough - why make things worse with something you can quit?

Take care everyone.

[Lavande]

Re: Newbies Nest

Greetings Nesters,

Wags, I’m happy to hear your report about your Dad, sounds ideal actually. He will definitely benefit from his PT sessions. Glad you found a good doc too, it makes all the difference.
Apparently alcohol can do quite a bit of damage to the brain, who wants that? We have so many reasons to be grateful for our quits!!

Hoping everyone else is OK & checks in soon.
Have a safe night in the nest everyone!

Lav

[wagmor]

Re: Newbies Nest

Sober check in. Hope everyone is doing well.

Good to see you Lav.

Catch you all tomorrow.

[KENSHO]

Re: Newbies Nest

YEA Wags! So happy to hear you're feeling so positive about your dad's care place. It must feel like a huge weight off your shoulders. I hope you are remembering to get some YOU time

We had a 11pm hail storm last night which took all the flowers and leaves off the trees, and flooded streets. It's a sad mess out there. But nature has a way of revitalizing - may take a few days! My son watches the nearby ditch grate for backups, and it is completely filled with debris and mud and muck. I may get him some waders later - it's going to be a huge job.

I'm not wanting to work today. But here I go....

Where is everyone else? It feels quiet here. Haven't heard from Byrdie or PAV in ages! Or many others..... G, are you out there??

[Lavande]

Re: Newbies Nest

Greetings Nesters,

Kensho, I’m listening to the evening news now & they said there’s a tornado warning somewhere in CO. Storms can do a lot of damage for sure. Hope everything dries out OK. Nice your son helps out when needed, appreciated

Wags, hope your day was good & your Dad is still feeling calm & settled.

We had a nice weather day, picked up a few more plants from an Amish greenhouse. You can never have too many summer blooms
Hello to everyone & wishing a safe night in the nest for all!

Lav

[wagmor]

Re: Newbies Nest

Kensho - I hope the storm damage and resulting mess isn't too terrible to clean up. Nature definitely finds a way to bounce back or adjust - it's us humans who usually have a harder time.

Lav - My Dad has some good days and some rough ones. I don't think he totally understands that he's in his new home, and he sometimes asks the staff to call me and ask me to come see him, even when I was just there. I'm going to set him up with a whiteboard that says: "Jami visited you _____ (name of day). She will visit again on _____ (name of day)" I'm also going to give him a special notepad where he can write down things he wants to talk with me about or things he's concerned about (he tends to perseverate about things like taxes or insurance payments or similar, even when we've already paid them or whatever). I'm hoping these and similar tools will help calm his mind and help him "remember" or at least track a bit more of what's going on.


Had a productive day in Wagland. Went and picked up a yard of mulch in our pickup truck, and I spread most of it single-handedly (what a great workout!). Got some furniture in the house moved around cuz I'm moving my office/classroom (I teach online) into the basement area where my dad was living up until early April. This is a big improvement in space for my work. For the past 6 years I've been teaching from one corner of our bedroom, having to set everything up and take it all back down every single day. I'm kinda sad my dad isn't able to live downstairs anymore but I'm grateful to be moving into a much larger space I can set up for the long run.


Hope everyone is doing well and got over the hump smoothly.

[NoSugar]

Re: Newbies Nest

Oh, man, taking down and setting up every day sounds wearing, Wags. It is great you can quit doing that. You are very thoughtful about figuring out what your dad needs. Maybe a calendar would be a good tool, too.

So sorry about your plants, Kensho. There has been a lot of large hail in this area but so far we've not been hit. As I was planting some things it occurred to me not to get too attached given what nature can do in an instant without warning. And for good reason, nature seems to be pretty pissed off right now.

Things are fine here - not much to report. Every day around 4pm I'm aware of NOT feeling the pull of addiction and am so grateful.

[Lavande]

Re: Newbies Nest

Greetings Nesters,

Very nice day here, no complaints

Wags, after working with seniors for so many years I came to realize that their basic personalities don’t change much even with all the confusion going on. You Dad was probably meticulous about bills & taxes & such so that’s not going to change. The whiteboard is a good idea provided he remembers to read it daily. Place it somewhere in his room where he can’t miss it, that may work.
It just took us 9 1/2 yds of mulch to take care of everything around here. This is why we hired the 14 yr old grandson to spread the mulch all across the back of the house. It’s a huge job for a couple of not-newbies, haha!!

NS, it’s hard to baby all these new plants then have some storm come & destroy them. So far so good here. I hope Kensho’s plants are OK.
I’m with you in feeling grateful to be out of the grips of AL, that was hell, not going there again!!!

Hello to all & wishing a safe night in the nest for everyone!
Lav

[Lavande]

Re: Newbies Nest

Wags, meant to say enjoy your new work space. It’s something you deserve & I hope it makes life easier

Lav

[wagmor]

Re: Newbies Nest

Lav and NS - great to see you both.

Hope everyone is having a good week. It's already Friday for almost all of you and soon will be for me too. Make it a good one!