11.26.2008

hectic.

my flight went smooth and quick to Vegas...and I didn't have to wait long for Mom and Auntie to pick me up. We were waiting for sister, and I had been texting her all day. She told me that she had no voice, but when she walked up, the poor thing was crying her voice hurt so much. We got her bags, and went to dinner at the Cheesecake Factory. I had heard many good things about it, but had never actually eaten there. The three of us giggled a lot, but it wasn't as loud as normal since poor Moxie couldn't talk or laugh. Sitting there, watching the servers and bartenders made me miss working. It feels nice to be able to say that I miss my job. Not alot of people can say that :)

It was a two hour drive to get to St. George, and we were all welcomed by 4 little dogs. Normally, I'm not a fan of the oversized rats, but they are just too sweet. Mom and Dad are going to keep one, actually. Its been a long time since we've had a dog, and Mom wants one for the grandkids to play with in Texas. Such a good Nana... After catching up a bit and planning out the next day, we were thankful to be able to climb into bed. I woke the next morning to see Moxie was gone. Dad had taken her to the doctors office to see if she had strep and to get a prescription. She didn't have strep, and the doctors tried to draw blood to test for mono...but as always, Moxie's veins wouldn't cooperate. While Moxie and Dad were out and about, Mom and I went to the store to shop for thanksgiving dinner. I began to prep myself for seeing my Uncle since he was diagnosed with a neurological disorder.

So Mom and I got done shopping, and made our way over to Uncles house. I was a nervous wreck. The last time I saw him was 6 years ago, but I was at my cousins graduation, so it was nothing but a quick hello/goodbye. I honestly cant remember the last time we had some time together, and that saddens me... Mom has seen my Uncle quite a bit, between her travels this summer, with helping Grandma, and Auntie. So she knew his condition. I could only imagine it. I had talked to him on the phone about a month ago, and hearing his slurred speech was hard enough.
"It's going to make you want to cry when you see him," she told me. "But don't. He doesn't like to see it make people sad. Just be happy to see him."
It was about a half hour drive to his house. He lives out in the boonies, but its so beautiful. He used to run a 4-wheel tour, so he lives around amazing red cliffs and sand dunes. Once we got there, we unloaded the groceries. Dad was inside, sitting at the counter on the phone...as always. [Some things never change :] Uncle wasn't around, so I went back to the car for another load. When I came back in, I saw Mom hugging him in the reflection of a mirror. "Don't lose it, Laurel." I rounded the corner to finally say hello, and was greeted with a more tender Uncle than I remembered. His face lit up as soon as he saw me, and began to walk towards me. Each step was a struggle for him, and he was hunched over like an old man. I looked at his face...such a contradiction to his body language. He's so happy, so full of love. Definitely changed...

For the next few hours, we caught up on so many missed years, interrupted occasionally by Mr. and Mrs. Cat...the sweetest kitties in the world. [my whole family isnt a cat family, but we wanted to steal them...even mom. thats saying something...] Mom baked up some pizza, and the chatting continued between everyone. After dinner, Auntie, Mom and I went into a room we had set aside for my Grandma.

[okay...a catch up on the Grandma situation. Grandma and Grandpa used to live in Alaska during the summers, and Palm Springs, California the rest of the year. They were both in their late 80's, and needed an in-home assistant. Grandma was beginning to get dementia, and Grandpa had...well alot of things. Congestive heart failure, diabetes... He passed away a few months ago, and Mom and Dad tried to let her stay home with her caregivers, but the sassy old thing kept kicking them out!! So, Mom flew back down to California, and began, yet again, another moving process. Grandma wanted to be near family, and she had none in California, but Uncle and Auntie were in Utah. So, to Utah they took her. Mom found a great nursing home for her, but poor Grandma was so confused. Since she wasn't used to all the stuff in her room, she thought it was a hotel. Each day she would pack up, and go to the front counter. "I'm ready to check out...here's my key!" My poor Auntie was ready to pull her hair out, between the unpacking and all the phone calls from Grandma...


my flight went smooth and quick to Vegas...and I didn't have to wait long for Mom and Auntie to pick me up. We were waiting for sister, and I had been texting her all day. She told me that she had no voice, but when she walked up, the poor thing was crying her voice hurt so much. We got her bags, and went to dinner at the Cheesecake Factory. I had heard many good things about it, but had never actually eaten there. The three of us giggled a lot, but it wasn't as loud as normal since poor Moxie couldn't talk or laugh. Sitting there, watching the servers and bartenders made me miss working. It feels nice to be able to say that I miss my job. Not alot of people can say that :)

It was a two hour drive to get to St. George, and we were all welcomed by 4 little dogs. Normally, I'm not a fan of the oversized rats, but they are just too sweet. Mom and Dad are going to keep one, actually. Its been a long time since we've had a dog, and Mom wants one for the grandkids to play with in Texas. Such a good Nana... After catching up a bit and planning out the next day, we were thankful to be able to climb into bed. I woke the next morning to see Moxie was gone. Dad had taken her to the doctors office to see if she had strep and to get a prescription. She didn't have strep, and the doctors tried to draw blood to test for mono...but as always, Moxie's veins wouldn't cooperate. While Moxie and Dad were out and about, Mom and I went to the store to shop for thanksgiving dinner. I began to prep myself for seeing my Uncle since he was diagnosed with a neurological disorder.

So Mom and I got done shopping, and made our way over to Uncles house. I was a nervous wreck. The last time I saw him was 6 years ago, but I was at my cousins graduation, so it was nothing but a quick hello/goodbye. I honestly cant remember the last time we had some time together, and that saddens me... Mom has seen my Uncle quite a bit, between her travels this summer, with helping Grandma, and Auntie. So she knew his condition. I could only imagine it. I had talked to him on the phone about a month ago, and hearing his slurred speech was hard enough.
"It's going to make you want to cry when you see him," she told me. "But don't. He doesn't like to see it make people sad. Just be happy to see him."
It was about a half hour drive to his house. He lives out in the boonies, but its so beautiful. He used to run a 4-wheel tour, so he lives around amazing red cliffs and sand dunes. Once we got there, we unloaded the groceries. Dad was inside, sitting at the counter on the phone...as always. [Some things never change :] Uncle wasn't around, so I went back to the car for another load. When I came back in, I saw Mom hugging him in the reflection of a mirror. "Don't lose it, Laurel." I rounded the corner to finally say hello, and was greeted with a more tender Uncle than I remembered. His face lit up as soon as he saw me, and began to walk towards me. Each step was a struggle for him, and he was hunched over like an old man. I looked at his face...such a contradiction to his body language. He's so happy, so full of love. Definitely changed...

For the next few hours, we caught up on so many missed years, interrupted occasionally by Mr. and Mrs. Cat...the sweetest kitties in the world. [my whole family isnt a cat family, but we wanted to steal them...even mom. thats saying something...] Mom baked up some pizza, and the chatting continued between everyone. After dinner, Auntie, Mom and I went into a room we had set aside for my Grandma.

[okay...a catch up on the Grandma situation. Grandma and Grandpa used to live in Alaska during the summers, and Palm Springs, California the rest of the year. They were both in their late 80's, and needed an in-home assistant. Grandma was beginning to get dementia, and Grandpa had...well alot of things. Congestive heart failure, diabetes... He passed away a few months ago, and Mom and Dad tried to let her stay home with her caregivers, but the sassy old thing kept kicking them out!! So, Mom flew back down to California, and began, yet again, another moving process. Grandma wanted to be near family, and she had none in California, but Uncle and Auntie were in Utah. So, to Utah they took her. Mom found a great nursing home for her, but poor Grandma was so confused. Since she wasn't used to all the stuff in her room, she thought it was a hotel. Each day she would pack up, and go to the front counter. "I'm ready to check out...here's my key!" My poor Auntie was ready to pull her hair out, between the unpacking and all the phone calls from Grandma...



my flight went smooth and quick to Vegas...and I didn't have to wait long for Mom and Auntie to pick me up. We were waiting for sister, and I had been texting her all day. She told me that she had no voice, but when she walked up, the poor thing was crying her voice hurt so much. We got her bags, and went to dinner at the Cheesecake Factory. I had heard many good things about it, but had never actually eaten there. The three of us giggled a lot, but it wasn't as loud as normal since poor Moxie couldn't talk or laugh. Sitting there, watching the servers and bartenders made me miss working. It feels nice to be able to say that I miss my job. Not alot of people can say that :)

It was a two hour drive to get to St. George, and we were all welcomed by 4 little dogs. Normally, I'm not a fan of the oversized rats, but they are just too sweet. Mom and Dad are going to keep one, actually. Its been a long time since we've had a dog, and Mom wants one for the grandkids to play with in Texas. Such a good Nana... After catching up a bit and planning out the next day, we were thankful to be able to climb into bed. I woke the next morning to see Moxie was gone. Dad had taken her to the doctors office to see if she had strep and to get a prescription. She didn't have strep, and the doctors tried to draw blood to test for mono...but as always, Moxie's veins wouldn't cooperate. While Moxie and Dad were out and about, Mom and I went to the store to shop for thanksgiving dinner. I began to prep myself for seeing my Uncle since he was diagnosed with a neurological disorder.

So Mom and I got done shopping, and made our way over to Uncles house. I was a nervous wreck. The last time I saw him was 6 years ago, but I was at my cousins graduation, so it was nothing but a quick hello/goodbye. I honestly cant remember the last time we had some time together, and that saddens me... Mom has seen my Uncle quite a bit, between her travels this summer, with helping Grandma, and Auntie. So she knew his condition. I could only imagine it. I had talked to him on the phone about a month ago, and hearing his slurred speech was hard enough.
"It's going to make you want to cry when you see him," she told me. "But don't. He doesn't like to see it make people sad. Just be happy to see him."
It was about a half hour drive to his house. He lives out in the boonies, but its so beautiful. He used to run a 4-wheel tour, so he lives around amazing red cliffs and sand dunes. Once we got there, we unloaded the groceries. Dad was inside, sitting at the counter on the phone...as always. [Some things never change :] Uncle wasn't around, so I went back to the car for another load. When I came back in, I saw Mom hugging him in the reflection of a mirror. "Don't lose it, Laurel." I rounded the corner to finally say hello, and was greeted with a more tender Uncle than I remembered. His face lit up as soon as he saw me, and began to walk towards me. Each step was a struggle for him, and he was hunched over like an old man. I looked at his face...such a contradiction to his body language. He's so happy, so full of love. Definitely changed...

For the next few hours, we caught up on so many missed years, interrupted occasionally by Mr. and Mrs. Cat...the sweetest kitties in the world. [my whole family isnt a cat family, but we wanted to steal them...even mom. thats saying something...] Mom baked up some pizza, and the chatting continued between everyone. After dinner, Auntie, Mom and I went into a room we had set aside for my Grandma.

[okay...a catch up on the Grandma situation. Grandma and Grandpa used to live in Alaska during the summers, and Palm Springs, California the rest of the year. They were both in their late 80's, and needed an in-home assistant. Grandma was beginning to get dementia, and Grandpa had...well alot of things. Congestive heart failure, diabetes... He passed away a few months ago, and Mom and Dad tried to let her stay home with her caregivers, but the sassy old thing kept kicking them out!! So, Mom flew back down to California, and began, yet again, another moving process. Grandma wanted to be near family, and she had none in California, but Uncle and Auntie were in Utah. So, to Utah they took her. Mom found a great nursing home for her, but poor Grandma was so confused. Since she wasn't used to all the stuff in her room, she thought it was a hotel. Each day she would pack up, and go to the front counter. "I'm ready to check out...here's my key!" My poor Auntie was ready to pull her hair out, between the unpacking and all the phone calls from Grandma... So after a few months of this, Grandma decided she wasnt adjusting well, and wanted to live with Uncle. So that leads us up to now, when Auntie decided to move her the day before thanksgiving, and I dont think that any of us knew those were her plans.]

So, Mom, Auntie and I unpacked boxes of nick-knacks from Grandmas house in California. We wanted to put things in her room that she would remember, and make her feel at home. I think they did a pretty good job :)

About 11, Mom, Dad, and I drove back to Aunties house, and she stayed at Uncles to finish up some paperwork. We got home, and poor Moxie was still in bed, not feeling much better. The girls stayed up talking for a bit, but made ourselves go to bed, knowing we had a big day ahead of us.

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