This afternoon was about the parents.
I'm getting better at it all, being more in the moment, focused less on what's next or what I did earlier. That kind of behavior continues receding as an instinct. Some things though, just not gonna change.
We had a big med change conversation with the folks today out at the house on the back 40. It's a 45-minute drive from my house. I try and just relax and enjoy the scenery. I went a little early to spend time with them and decided a walk would be better than just sitting around. Mom and I walked about 30 minutes before the PA showed up from the health insurance company.
We worked for about an hour on the new protocol of shots for Mom. This will reduce her shots down to taking them just once a day in the morning. It will keep her safer for her high highs and the lows.
She was resistant at first and said she has done well the last few weeks which she has. Apparently my sister and hubs had a heart to heart with them about the need to get the shots under control, and Mom responded. Unfortunately, it's probably going to happen again, with high numbers, so it's just time for a routine and schedule. It'll also help the family out there have more predictability.
She did a Hail Mary pass at the end however just as we were finalizing the protocol and starting to put in prescription orders. She said she didn't want to do anything new until she tried this one vitamin she'd read about in someone's diabetes book. So that took about 10-15 minutes of very smooth, professional medical talking from the PA and my step-sister to explain why that wouldn't work.
That she even tried that I guess is sort of where we're at. She's not all there and has up's and down's with gratitude and defiance. I'm grateful I'm getting healthier, pulling away and just not giving it any real estate in my brain.
After several hours of this, I then drove an hour to pick up my mom-in-law at the airport. She's always tired when coming home from traveling. I was also tired from the afternoon. After she passed through the gage, she flashed a smile at me and revealed she'd lost a front tooth while on the trip. She then proceeded to tell me about her appointment the next day and tried to dig the tooth out of her purse.
Cue the Twilight Zone theme song.
I think any day like this should always be followed up by dinner and drinks with friends which we had preplanned. We all love our parents but their quirks and idiosyncrasies drive all of us crazy.
The Long Island Ice Tea was just what the doctor ordered, and I haven't seen my friends laugh that hard in a long time.
I guess it's all a part of life.
*****
Aside from the laughs with friends, my true highlight was talking with El and helping her out of an anxiety and back spasm jam. She was ready to fly home and deal with her pain there, but we talked through it and she decided to manage it better and stick it out.
She's a One so it actually was helpful to bring that into the discussion.
I felt helpful but not overbearing. I felt like a mentor and a Mom, someone with healthy boundaries that affirmed her strengths and also provided just what she needed.
Yeah, it felt about as good as it sounds #amazing