Just Babbling

Yesterday a neighbor of ours who has become a good friend to the hubby brought him a casserole and a loaf of banana bread.  He had told them a little bit about the situation with my dad, and well, that's something that folks do when they feel a need to do something.  It really was touching to me, and it did bring me a big warm fuzzy feeling.  Not only was it a sweet gesture, but I haven't been home.  And my hubby and the kiddos still had a warm, home-cooked meal for supper last night before football.  The kindness of people really is astounding, if you think about it.  I mean, we're all in this together, really, and the fact that it takes awful things like this for us to realize that is kind of unfortunate.

Last night was pretty uneventful.  We have a medication that we've started dad on to help him get some rest, because he's almost always pretty agitated and restless.  His body does not have the strength to do most of the things his brain tells it to do, which makes him a big danger to himself.  But last night he only got up once, at 4:30 in the morning.  Unfortunately, it ended with a fall.  By the time I came into the room mom already had him back up on the edge of the bed, but they were both pretty shook up.  He was not hurt, but it woulud have been SO easy for the outcome to be worse.  We're still trying to figure out how to deal with this situation.  He isn't an easy patient, and he'll freak out if we put one of those buzzers on his bed.  So I think from now on somebody is going to have to be mostly awake all night.  We're going to have to take shifts I think.

But I think I'll get to go home for a while today.  I miss my boys something awful, and I feel like I need a little normal today.

Oh good news folks!  A has a new buddy!  He exchanged phone numbers with a friend at school, and now the buddy calls all the time.  Today he is riding the bus home with A and they're going to hang out for the afternoon/evening, and we will take him home later.  A is SO excited!  I'm thrilled for him.  It's so cute to watch him, and I'm hoping this will happen more often for him now.

However, he also came home with a "sticker" from the teacher about how he didn't turn his homework in.  I had come home the other night and gone through his backpack.  I'm having a rough time figuring out what's expected of him so far.  The teacher has not communicated as much as his teachers in the past with me, and the notes A scrawls in his binder are impossible for me to figure out.  And when I ask him about it, I can tell he just writes down whatever his teacher writes down, and doesn't actually know what he's supposed to do.  It's very frustrating.  So we didn't know about the worksheet he was supposed to do, and he was very upset about the sticker, thinking he was in trouble.  I sent off an e-mail to the teacher asking him to clarify what A is supposed to be doing daily, and asking him if he and I could be in more regular communication so I can get a handle on the whole thing.  I just feel like this is the beginning of the same cycle that we go through every year with him, and it is so incredibly discouraging!  I thought we had a handle on it last year, and that he had a net of people around him, but now I wonder.  And this is not a good time for me to be meeting with the teachers at school all the time again.  Ugh.  So now I feel like I'm shirking my responsibility as a parent and A is going to fall out of the radar again. 

But it's Friday.  Today there is no football to worry about, he has a buddy coming over, and when I talked to J last night he was in a great mood because football practice went well, and it sounded like he was over the loss of his fish.  They can stay up later, I will hopefully get to see them and actually hug them uncomfortably tightly, and they can have some relaxing time this weekend.  I hope my dad has a quiet day today. 

I want to thank all my readers and my friends.  People who read my little blog and people who don't but still know this whole stinky situation have been unbelievable.  The support and love and understanding I have been feeling has made this whole thing so much more bearable.  I'm sorry for so many of you that I can tell know exactly what my family is going through, because I can tell you've been there.  I feel so blessed to be touched by all of you, and know that every word you write to me here or on Facebook, every e-mail, every phone call is precious to me.  I read every word.  Sometimes many times because they brighten my day.  I feel lifted up by all the kind words, and I pass them on to my family.  Thank you for your prayers and for just being out there for me to vent to.  I'm hugging you all in my heart!!!!!  xoxoxoxox