Our Mothers Turn

Everyone talks about the circle of life but I think the best example of this is when the child becomes the caretaker. My mother is in the early stages of dementia. She still recognizes us and can function but needs a lot of care. In addition to tips about sewing, cooking, decorating, children, etc... there will be hints on how to deal with an elderly parent. The best decision I ever made was to move my household of our mother, our handicapped sister, my niece and myself in with my sister and her family. She believes and I agree with her that it is good for the children see the realities of taking care of my mom and sister and that family is important. My father was retired Army and always believed that family came first, then friends, then everyone else.

One thing that we have learned with our mother is to keep her hands occupied. Last Christmas I bought one of those block puzzles. It keeps her occupied even though she has managed to lose a couple of the pieces. The colors need to be bright although I took off the original packaging so she would not realize it was a child's game.