I think if this blog was a book, it would be in three parts, and I would have written "End of Book 1" after my last blog. As far as my Dad goes, there's not much to report. He has finally settled in and knows that Whittier Place is his home. The last eight months was the LONGEST adjustment period that I've ever experienced with anything in my life. But it seems that is exactly what it was for Dad, an adjustment period.
At this point we see Dad maybe once a week and barely get any anxious phone calls. Life is back to normal and going to see Dad is actually fun. Megan's last visit was so nice, she ended up staying for a couple of hours hanging out with all the sweet people there including Dad. I could hear the joy in her voice over the phone as she recounted her time with Dad that day - she had been down in the dumps lately and I think we were both surprised by how much Dad turned her mood upside down. They played Bingo together and Dad was really making an effort to concentrate on the game (he won!). Then, because they were having so much fun, Megan sat with them during dinner. Her quote was "Dad and Tabitha could go on the road with their act. They were cracking me up." I know exactly what she's talking about because they're both really silly but are also good friends with good hearts.
About a week ago, we had to visit the Dermatologist because Dad started itching again. It turned out to be dry skin (thank goodness), but it was really nice seeing that crazy Dermatologist again. I told Megan, if you ever need to feel good about yourself, go visit the Dermatologist. He is so obsessed with me and Megan and how we handle Dad. His daughter will be my age (27) when he is 71, and he says that he tells everyone about these two girls who take care of their Dad who has Alzheimer's and he can only hope his daughter will do the same for him. He charged us a very minimal fee and then told me, anything you need, come to me, and I'll take care of Dad! Wow!
At this point, I have mixed feelings about how well Dad is doing. We are thrilled that he is happy and healthy and that we get to spend so much time with him, but I'm starting to think that his Alzheimer's journey may be much longer than we originally thought. I mean, if he can stay at this cognitive level for as long as possible, then that would be amazing, but who knows which direction Dad's disease is poised to go. It's exhausting to think about. I hate it when those thoughts creep up on you.
Anyway, blog posts may be more sparse in the future since there's not much to tell, but I will keep giving updates on our cute Dad.
Below is a video of Dad singing "Georgia on my Mind" and dancing to "Hit The Road Jack". He loves Ray Charles!
