More remarkable progress to report: Elliott had only been home for three days
when he ventured outside to take a walk.
With his physical therapist by his side, he walked along our street for
about 10 minutes, rested briefly, and then walked back to the house. It may not seem like a major milestone, but
it was his first real walk in well over a month. Since that day, I’ve taken Elliott out on a
daily basis for a walk in the neighborhood.
He has increased his total walking time to nearly 25 minutes, moving
along at a steady pace. I’m truly
impressed by his determination to get back to his former level of
activity. In addition to walking, he’s doing
an exercise routine with free weights three days a week. At this rate, he’ll end up in better shape
than he was a year ago!
 |
| Out for a morning promenade |
As we focus on building up his strength and endurance, we’re
keeping his activities low-key – no dining out, house projects, or wild
parties. Aside from going to medical
appointments, he spends his time at home.
Afternoon naps are de rigueur,
as are three healthy meals a day (Elliott liked the tofu burgers!) and an early
bedtime.
I’m settling into the new rhythm of life with Elliott. One of the ongoing challenges is keeping the
clutter under control. Actually, I’ve
accepted that a certain amount of clutter in the house is inevitable. Because Elliott needs things within easy
reach, there’s Elliott-paraphernalia everywhere I look. There are tissue boxes, timers, water
bottles, magnifiers, Werther’s candies, empty candy wrappers, urinals, and
overflowing trash receptacles on every surface and in every room of the house. And
then there’s the 25-foot-long bright green plastic tubing for his oxygen that
snakes from room to room. I trip over it
at least once a day, and it’s certainly a miracle that Elliott manages to keep
from getting tangled up in it.
I just realized that his 103rd birthday, May 25,
is in less than two weeks. We haven’t
made any plans, and probably won’t do very much this year. Even a party at home might be too much, as we
don’t want to expose him to a large number of people (because of the
germs). While we appreciate the desire
of many family and friends to share in the celebration of this event, we hope
you’ll understand. If you want to call,
send a card or an email message, Elliott would be very grateful. For those who are in the area, feel free to
stop by for a brief visit over the Memorial Day weekend, any day between 1:00
and 3:00 p.m. I’ll offer you a piece of
birthday cake. No candles, however –
oxygen in use.
In other elder-care news, I celebrated Mother’s Day with my
mother, Katie, last Sunday.
Greenspring’s assisted living unit hosted a brunch for the residents and
Katie was the first in line at the buffet.
I guess my love of food is hereditary!
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