Last Sunday, Dad was rushing to the back door to get out to the garage when he tripped over Mum’s walker (which was where she always leaves it) and broke his hip.
He’s currently in hospital with a matching pair of hips, as he broke the other one a few years ago. He’s like the bionic man. Mum’s too unsteady on her feet to be left in the house alone, so she’s up here with me. Thank goodness for that guest bedroom!
It’s been an eye-opener how many people are required to keep 2 old people living at home. We’ve had to cancel food deliveries, food shopping, physio, doctors’ appointments and postpone a meeting with their accountant. Their frozen food deliveries for this week have been piling up in the council’s freezer, so a taxi will arrive with it all sometime today. Thank goodness for the huge freezer I have in the laundry!
Mum has turned out to be an easy guest. She absolutely loves having total control of the remote control for the tv during the day and she’s catching up on all the movies that she hasn’t seen because Dad didn’t want to watch them. I’ve been watching ‘The Sopranos’ in the evenings and she happily watches people getting whacked by the New Jersey mafia.
I’m living in fear today that the hospital will want to send him home. He doesn’t sound ready, so I’m hoping that they’ll at least give us the weekend. He’ll be coming here with Mum until he’s steady on his pins. Thank goodness my crazy year of travel doesn’t start until February!
Scout has been an absolute trouper. Mum has missed having a dog around, but since her last dog, Murphy, died, it hasn’t been safe for her to have a tripping hazard running around. Scout is old enough to keep out of the way. She’s been spending most of her days next to Mum on the couch, getting cuddles and food snacks. I think it’s been good for both of them.
At the moment, there’s a shower girl who’s here to give Mum her first shower in nearly a week. She’s from an agency up here near me, so instead of giving Mum her shower and then leaving like her normal shower girls do, we have her for a minimum of 1.5 hours. So she took Mum for a walk around the block and now she’s doing the vacuuming. For some reason, I hate doing the vacuuming, so this makes me happy.
I don’t know how long Mum and Dad will be here, but it doesn’t really matter. The Best House in Melbourne’s floorplan means that we won’t be tripping over each other, so it should be reasonably trouble-free. Dad won’t be nearly as easy a houseguest as Mum, but the extra lounge room will provide a bit of a buffer if I need it. Haha!
Of course, the best thing about this is that, because of early retirement, I’m able to be here for them. My brother isn’t well enough to take them in and my sister works, so we would have been up the proverbial creek without a paddle if I was still heading off to McKinnon every weekday. As it is, the family, especially Dad, can relax knowing Mum is being looked after.
Dad joke of the Day:
Very sorry to hear that news about your parents Frogdancer, hopefully your Dad makes a swift recovery and they’re both good houseguests for you.
Fingers crossed!
It sounds like a very stressful week. How fortunate for the family that you are available to host your mom (and dad?). Best wishes to all for a smooth recovery period.
Thanks! We’re staying away from the hospital today in case someone has the bright idea that he wants to come home with us…
Great that you are so adaptable to family situations and have the room to accommodate your parents. You are a real true trooper.
No, Scout’s the trouper, not me. 🙂
Popping back to add that your spelling of ‘trooper’ is like a soldier. Mine is like an entertainer – the show must go on!
You are right! No one knows what is around the corner and circumstances can change at any time. The various aged care services help people to maintain their independence but cannot provide full time care in this type of situation. The advantage of early retirement (and good health and suitable housing) is that you can step in if needed. Gold star to Scout for being such a good doggie!
It’s first thing in the morning here, and Scout is on Mum’s couch, waiting for her to get up!
I’m so sorry to hear it, Frogdancer. By the looks of that photo, though, your dad is recovering pretty well. I hope he has a speedy recovery. It’s lovely to see Scout being such a comfort to your mum, too.
Mum’s missed having a dog so much. She keeps sneaking food to Scout – so naturally Scout thinks Mum is simply FABULOUS!
We used to live together, multiple generations under the same roof, so for me, having my folks with me would be an absolute treat. My grandparents are dead and my father is back in Romania, which is thousands of miles away from us. We are excited when we have company and my bestie from Italy stayed with us for 2 months. LOVED IT.
Just enjoy their presence (even if it’s a tad difficult sometimes), you are so lucky they are still around 🙂
You’re absolutely right.