WOMEN AGES 50+ FOR APRIL 2024

exermom · April 10

Went to the Y and did HIIT. As I was going there, they were doing construction and before I knew it I’d hit a barrier. Looks like the whole front bumper came off. So I came home and Vince drove me to the dentist then to Aldi. Now we’re home, I have a pineapple angel food cake in the oven for Vince then we have the condo meeting then I go to pick up a rental car.

Rosemarie – my hip feels much, much better, thanks for asking. Still not perfect, but much better. I like Elsbeth, too

M – we don’t have grab bars in the bathroom. We’re fortunate that our doorways are extra-wide for a wheelchair, if it were ever needed (I hope it isn’t) One of my absolute criteria when purchasing this house was that all the living area HAD to be on one floor. Yes, we have two floors, but the bottom level is one spare bedroom, another full bath, my exercise room, and a party/game room. Places that I don’t HAVE to go to if I can’t

Rusty – welcome

Barbara – thanks for the update from Katla. Is there a reason she can’t come back?

Put a load of laundry in. It should be in the dryer when we have the zoom meeting. While I was at Aldi Vince went across the street to Home Depot to look at the tractor then came home and ordered it online. They should be here tomorrow to deliver it. They said anytime between 1 and 6 but for something like an extra $25 you can pick a time range. He decided “no way, I’m going to be home anyway”

Allie – I can’t get over how big sMiles is getting. I’m so very sorry to hear about the child at Miles’ daycare

I'm still sick to my stomach about the car

Michele NC

Anniesquats100 · April 10

Michele so sorry about your car accident. Hope you are okay. Is your neck stiff?

Lisa so brave of you, dealing with all those spiders! Ick!

Annie in Delaware

LisaInArkansas · April 11

Machka9 wrote: »

LisaInArkansas wrote: »

And the rest of the story...For my American compatriots, here's a jump in the WABAC Machine - I will always remember that phrase in Paul Harvey's voice. If you want to join me in the machine, here's a recording of that amazing voice, one with an always surprising ending.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2r6YueRZ4RI&ab_channel=A1Tech

Spent all day yesterday struggling with the quilt. Rant for all you creatives out there:
Finally got one small section of my niece's bookshelf quilt nearly completed, and I am not happy with it at all. I've got to figure out an easier way to make this happen, or I will never finish it. I don't want to admit that I cannot make a bookshelf quilt, people make these blessed things every day.

Here's my first-world designer problem: I appear to be suspended on this fence that separates realism and representation and need to fall off on one side or the other and get over it. I even know which side I need to fall off on, and I keep going back to trying to make it look real when I KNOW better.

I cannot make this look real, and I HAVE to stop trying to do so. It is possible (I've seen them) to make this look real, but I'm not that kind of designer, and I need to get over it. I'm trying to make something that puts people in mind, quite charmingly, of a bookshelf, not something that makes people think there's a rikkin-frikkin-frakkin *(&*(&%&#^%#&*(&) bookshelf lying flat on the top of a bed!

OK, rant over, I feel somewhat better now. Sometimes, you just have to give in to the fact that you cannot design what's in your mind's eye out of fabric. Well, I have to give in to that, anyway. *sigh* I'm such a noodge. Hopefully this self-lecture turned rant will be helpful in getting me over this bump. I need to get on with it. Honestly, it's one of the reasons I only do one quilt about every five years. Takes me that long to get over the last one!

OK, rant over. Between every paragraph written, I've been getting my chores done or begun, peeled all the bits off the top of the stove and threw them in the dishwasher, along with a few breakfast dishes, sheets and towels in the dryer, dark items in the washer, and the rain is now predicted to hold off until noon or 1 p.m. I think I'll go out and get a couple outside things done... because IF they finally got the rain chances right, I'll be in inside all afternoon.

Later, my babies,
Love,
Lisa in AR

A friend of mine does amazing quilts but she has a whole quilting set-up and a quilting machine. She did nice quilts before she got the machine but the machine took her to a whole new level.

So perhaps the bookshelf quilts you have seen were made by someone with quilting set-ups and machines.

M in Oz

Thank you, Machka - That actually makes me feel quite a bit better. Images seldom note how the quilts are created.

pipcd34 · April 11

410410

barbiecat · April 11

Hooray. We went to the lawyer's office and signed our wills, community property agreement, durable power of attorney, and health care directives. Annie came into the office with us and behaved well. Tomorrow I'll go to the bank to put the new wills in the safe deposit box and bring home the old documents to be shredded.

Barbie in NW Wa

grandmallie · April 11

I have one of the 4 wheeled walkers with the seat and basket like you showed and I think I might take it on the cruise with me instead of the scooter..I still get the exercise but can steady myself when needed.
I know Miles is getting big..he is my little buddy..
MIichelle- so aorry about the accident.
Machka- so exciting to hear about your home purchase and can't wait to see all the pictures
The Crown is on Netflix it is about the British monarchy with the death of King George and the reign of Queen Elizabeth.
That picture of Miles is at daycare not at his house.

GodMomKim · April 11

Hi Gals,
Can you get up off the floor with no hands or one hand?
1 hand

Can you get up off a toilet seat or relatively hard chair with no hands? Legs & core strength.
yes

Can you climb up at least 16 stairs (one residential flight)
yes (did this twice today)

Do you have grab bars in your bathroom or toilet room?
no

Do you have railings in and around your place where you need them?
Do not currently need – but have a railing to put up when I have time

Could you get in and out of your place with a wheelchair?
I have a ramp I can put in place to allow it if needed.

The following is a vent, with tears – Just skip it, I just needed to vent somewhere.

Oh my!!!! I have my mom here, we need to go to the lawyers to sign the final adjustments to her trust. It has been a wild ride. It is tax time I have been nagging and being told all is fine.

Then yesterday when I arrived to pick her up, she admitted in tears that she has not started and has lost all the paper work that has gotten sent. So I went room by room, drawer by drawer, cupboard by cupboard and found everything. But she is so private and controlling I had never done this before.

And things are so much worse than I ever imagined. And she is in so much denial. It’s partially because she is having some memory loss, but it is more because she doesn’t have the stamina and gets so overwhelmed, and just stops doing whatever she was doing and goes to sit down or take a nap.

Honestly I would be overwhelmed at 64 if I had 2,700 feet of house to care for, 1 acre of yard to care for, and a son living with you that you do all the cooking, laundry and cleaning for - and she is 95. The only reason she has no help is because she refuses it - she could afford it, I have offered to set it up, to do it myself. And she just tells me I am being MEAN and hateful.

But I brought everything here and last night got everything straightened up to have her taxes done, and will be dropping them off this afternoon on my way to her house to drop her off.

As if that was not enough she decided to go from her bedroom to the bathroom this morning without either her cane or walker in her socks and slipped and fell. I got her up without any help from her because she was being stubborn and thought grabbing the hot radiator would be a good idea and I refused to let her use that to get up. Just what I did not need was her to burn her hands!!!! So in the middle of this fall/lift she peed and pooped all over, I got her on the toilet, told her just finish then I will come in with some cleaning supplies..

Instead she used a couple of rolls of toilet paper because she was embarrassed and did not want me to clean up so now the plumbing is clogged….. thank goodness I have a favorite plumber and he has my key (long story but when she was here last year I had a similar problem) so while we are at the lawyer he’ll fix the plumbing and I’ll do free embroidery for him. And it is only 10 am!

8pm and a few minutes to finish this. The rest of the day went ok, although I did not have enough time to get any of my stuff done… and as I was driving home I hit a pot hole, not a big one, just really a freeway divot, and every light on the dash went on and stayed on…. If I believed the dash I had 4 flat tires, my seat belt was not on, the doors were open and I had not put the gas cap on. It was driving fine, so I got to the slow lane as a precaution and drove home. I got home and turned the car off in the driveway then turned it back on and all is fine… And the plumbing is fixed and there were flowers on my kitchen table. I wish my plumber was not 25 years younger than me and did not have the nicest sweetest wife ever. LOL

Thinking of you all,
Kim in N. California

cityjaneLondon · April 11

Kim - That sounds like a great day! It must make it worse when so much of her troubles is self-inflicted.

The rollator wouldn't be for after the operation, just before. Afterwards you are expected to walk with elbow crutches or canes for the first while, and then unsupported as soon as possible, whenever you can. My right hip is much the worse, and is being done first, so I should be able to walk unsupported fairly soon. The rollator would be for now, until the operation. Currently, I can only hobble a few yards, and can't go further than the corner. Kerbs are difficult. The cane helps with the pain a little, but i can't use that when shopping nearby with my trolley. I can't get as far as the bus stop.
I will go out tomorrow to the pharmacy to pick up my BP prescription and more ibuprofen. It's just at the top of the street, which is just about doable with the cane, if i am on top of the painkillers.
I think I probably won't go for the rollator. It might be something that just sits in the hall.
I'm regularly doing all the exercises for legs they recommend, and more. Just not to weight bear for long on the hips. I'm also concentrating on upper body strength, with push ups and planks, and dumbbells. I can still do downward dog, get up with one hand, rise from a low chair. My core strength is good. My balance is good. Some days, with good pain control, I can get around the house quite well, others I can barely hobble from the kitchen to the living room.
Only seven weeks to go!

Love Heather UK xxxxxxxx

lesley9337 · April 11

Hi I'm new! Wow this is a busy thread, I started reading but got defeated! 54, I live in BC Canada. I am doing Dr Jud Brewer's Eat Right Now program. Anyone else? It has completed ended mindless snacking for me which is incredible, impossible I would have said. I'm also a recent joiner of ACA if there's any other recovering adult children around. Thanks for letting me join. I look forward to getting to know you all.

skuehn48 · April 11

OregonMother · April 11

Oh Kim. I'm so sorry. That is one rough morning.

Love you.

Flea
Willamette Valley OR

evie1958 · April 11

Lesley9337 Welcome to our thread! Yes, we are a busy, chatty bunch, don't feel you need to reply or comment on each post (a mistake I made at first!) Because we are so chatty, you'd get nothing else done all day! lol Just jump into whatever conversation interests you, our subjects are varied although we do try to stay away from politics and religion. Please sign with a name you would like to be referred to as and a general location so that we can get to know you better. I'm in BC also!
Kim, yikes what a day! How nice of your plumber to leave flowers for you! It's unfortunate that your mom is being so stubborn, my mom was like that and it landed her in a wheelchair after she fell backwards and crushed a vertabrae. She had MS, so had mobility challenges already and refused to use a walker in the house. Neither my dad nor I could say anything to change her mind so..... oh well, it is what it is.
Michele, sorry about your car accident! I hate construction zones and it's the season here! Well, usually year round for us, but more annoying now that the better weather is starting.

Feeling very unmotivated today, but will go to the gym tomorrow, I promise!! lol

Evelyn, Vancouver Island

RustyBFF · April 11

Hi all and thanks for the welcome

Kim in N. California - my dad has Alzheimer’s and it is terrible to see your parent so confused and helpless your post made me think of how it was in the beginning and how much he hid from us. It's made me hugely proactive around trusts and lasting power of attorney for me and my husband though. My father has a social services review today and things like that always make me tearful. I think I will treat myself to flowers rather than my usual chocolate or wine to cheer me up though. Sending a hug for you x

Lesley9337 I am new here too

The weather has been terrible this week in the north of England (I am in Yorkshire) but I am hoping for nicer this weekend I miss spending time in the garden. By that I mean having a coffee and listening to the birds and water feature I have a black thumb rather than green fingers and cannot even keep the basil in the kitchen alive.

Have a good day everyone

Machka9 · April 11

ginnytez · April 11

KimI feel bad for you and your Mom! It sounds like she is coherent enough to realize some behaviors are wrong-that must be horribly frustrating for her. Equally frustrating for you that she can't be a bit cooperative.

I can get up from the floor using one hand (do this at least once a day with floor stretches)

Getting off toilet or hard chair with no hands is not a problem.

Climb up 16 residential steps is not a problem.

Grab bar in bathroom or toilet room-no. Shower is complete step in (very small lip). Toilet is next to sink so could use that for support.

Railings on front stairs; railings on each side going to basement.

Wheelchair-would need small ramp for either front door or garage (each has two steps).

Off to get morning stretches done so I can continue the above! Rainy here the next two days. Have 8 am dental appointment this morning (cleaning); Teams meeting from 9:30-11:45; In house lunch meeting from 12-1:30; stop by Health Department for TB test (totally abundance of caution, hazard of public service)-and then nothing on calendar! That doesn't mean I have nothing to do-but I will actually have some time to do them! Friday definite work from home day! Also MUST do taxes this weekend!

Take care all,

Ginny in Ohio

Machka9 · April 11

Some questions prompted by something further up.

Can you get up off the floor with no hands or one hand? Yes.

Can you get up off a toilet seat or relatively hard chair with no hands? Legs & core strength. Yes. But getting out of one of those really soft sofas that nearly swallows you is challenging! We don't have those in our house, thankfully!

Can you climb up at least 16 stairs (one residential flight)? You betcha! I climb lots of flights of stairs. It works similar muscles to what I use cycling.

Do you have grab bars in your bathroom or toilet room? Not yet, but one of the things I really like about our new place is the size of the main bathroom. It's big enough for grab bars and possibly even a wheelchair. Grab bars will be installed.

Do you have railings in and around your place where you need them? In the new place ... yes! In the current place ... no. It's one of the reasons we're moving.

Could you get in and out of your place with a wheelchair? In our new place, a person could get into the house through 2 of the entrances up 2 steps and it wouldn't be difficult to put in a ramp. In our current place, it would be difficult to get in with a wheelchair and difficult to set up a ramp.

However, our new place has 7 steps up to the front door!! I like that because it means I can do some stairs at home. And there are railings on both sides to help my husband get up and down.

Machka in Oz

Machka9 · April 11

GodMomKim wrote: »

Hi Gals,
Can you get up off the floor with no hands or one hand?
1 hand

Can you get up off a toilet seat or relatively hard chair with no hands? Legs & core strength.
yes

Can you climb up at least 16 stairs (one residential flight)
yes (did this twice today)

Do you have grab bars in your bathroom or toilet room?
no

Do you have railings in and around your place where you need them?
Do not currently need – but have a railing to put up when I have time

Could you get in and out of your place with a wheelchair?
I have a ramp I can put in place to allow it if needed.

The following is a vent, with tears – Just skip it, I just needed to vent somewhere.
Oh my!!!! I have my mom here, we need to go to the lawyers to sign the final adjustments to her trust. It has been a wild ride. It is tax time I have been nagging and being told all is fine.

Then yesterday when I arrived to pick her up, she admitted in tears that she has not started and has lost all the paper work that has gotten sent. So I went room by room, drawer by drawer, cupboard by cupboard and found everything. But she is so private and controlling I had never done this before.

And things are so much worse than I ever imagined. And she is in so much denial. It’s partially because she is having some memory loss, but it is more because she doesn’t have the stamina and gets so overwhelmed, and just stops doing whatever she was doing and goes to sit down or take a nap.

Honestly I would be overwhelmed at 64 if I had 2,700 feet of house to care for, 1 acre of yard to care for, and a son living with you that you do all the cooking, laundry and cleaning for - and she is 95. The only reason she has no help is because she refuses it - she could afford it, I have offered to set it up, to do it myself. And she just tells me I am being MEAN and hateful.

But I brought everything here and last night got everything straightened up to have her taxes done, and will be dropping them off this afternoon on my way to her house to drop her off.

As if that was not enough she decided to go from her bedroom to the bathroom this morning without either her cane or walker in her socks and slipped and fell. I got her up without any help from her because she was being stubborn and thought grabbing the hot radiator would be a good idea and I refused to let her use that to get up. Just what I did not need was her to burn her hands!!!! So in the middle of this fall/lift she peed and pooped all over, I got her on the toilet, told her just finish then I will come in with some cleaning supplies..

Instead she used a couple of rolls of toilet paper because she was embarrassed and did not want me to clean up so now the plumbing is clogged….. thank goodness I have a favorite plumber and he has my key (long story but when she was here last year I had a similar problem) so while we are at the lawyer he’ll fix the plumbing and I’ll do free embroidery for him. And it is only 10 am!

8pm and a few minutes to finish this. The rest of the day went ok, although I did not have enough time to get any of my stuff done… and as I was driving home I hit a pot hole, not a big one, just really a freeway divot, and every light on the dash went on and stayed on…. If I believed the dash I had 4 flat tires, my seat belt was not on, the doors were open and I had not put the gas cap on. It was driving fine, so I got to the slow lane as a precaution and drove home. I got home and turned the car off in the driveway then turned it back on and all is fine… And the plumbing is fixed and there were flowers on my kitchen table. I wish my plumber was not 25 years younger than me and did not have the nicest sweetest wife ever. LOL

Thinking of you all,
Kim in N. California

So sorry Kim!

cityjaneLondon · April 11

Enjoyed having Edie for half an hour this morning, before John drove her to the Football Elite Performance centre! He is collecting her at 3 pm. She was concerned about getting her ponytail just right.

Then I realised that the mild urinary irritation which had been building over the last few days was getting worse. I certainly don't want that on top of my arthritis pain.
I did a test strip, which is out of date, but still works, and I definitely have leukocytes. So I rang the doctor's and explained my mobility problems, and a doctor is going to ring me back this afternoon and give a prescription for me to pick up at the pharmacy. I was going up there anyway today. Edie will be here, but she could stay with John, or come with me. John has just now kindly taken a urine sample up to the doctor's on his way to the shops.
I've ordered some fresh strips!
Definitely don't want to wait for it to get worse with the weekend looming! I'm wondering whether the heating pad I'm using at night is encouraging bacterial growth? It is so comforting.

Had a chat with G this morning. She has just been up to the Cotswolds to see her son and granddaughter, visiting from Singapore.

I did an online Waitrose order after that, for delivery tomorrow pm.

Poor John has had his normal routine completely disrupted. "It's all go!" Is what he said as he went out shopping. I expect he will be glad to get away to cricket tomorrow!

Love Heather UK xxxxxxxx

Anniesquats100 · April 11

Good morning ladies!

Wow Kim, to have financial, sanitary and plumbing messes all on one morning! You are an angel to cope with all that! You get a star in your crown, as my mom would say.

It was a real shock to me too when I figured out Dad was not on top of his finances anymore. So sad when a person declines like that. And so hard to help them when they won't admit they can't do it. A heart breaker. Hugs for all of us dealing with dementia.

My dad gives money to charities to excess. It makes him feel good. He makes little piles of charity mail to respond to, and then I throw them out. He hasn't called me on it yet. But it's a confrontation waiting to happen.

He left the faucet running overnight last night. But the thing I worry about is his walking. He has gotten lost twice now. I can't stop him from leaving. I can't convince him to wear a device. If we put him in a home, they wouldn't let him walk his three miles. So it's a risk I am forced to live with, for now. But his cognition and his physical health are declining. Except that his physical therapy is going to work on his balance.

Have a marvelous day, despite the challenges. May you be happy, healthy, safe and free.

Annie in Delaware

LisaInArkansas · April 11

Kim - Glad you're venting, dear heart, it's a completely necessary release valve for days just like that. I'm sorry, too, that there aren't any easy answers for your mother's behaviors.

This group does seem to go in waves of actions like caregiving and self-care, weight loss/maintenance and the importance of exercise. The subjects of the posts vary across the spectrum because our health involves our entire lives, not just whether we lose weight or exercise.

Annie - No easy answers for you, either, dear heart. Just holding you all up, those who help the ones they love in ways you never contemplated, but nonetheless take on.

Acupuncture this afternoon, I think. They were closed the first three days of the week due to the eclipse, and I think I scheduled for today, but didn't note it on my calendar. I'll call and check after they open.

My arms and shoulders aren't in nearly as bad a shape as I feared after wielding that huge pry bar/crowbar to pull the siding. It will rip the siding right off if you get the leverage in the right place, so it makes things easier at one level, but the blinking thing is six to eight pounds of metal, and much of the work was over my head. Probably for at least an hour of the three hours I was working on it all.

Slept like a baby though.

More adventures in home renovation and clockmaking:

Sunny weekend coming up, so Corey will want to be outside working, which is fine with me. I think if I do go to acupuncture today, I will get some paint to get started on getting the carport painted as soon as I'm done with the two walls.

At this point, I'm planning on painting it the same deep teal color as that wall in the sunroom - which is the outside wall of the house in the back. At least I think we are. Need to talk to Corey - we might want to go with white under the carport to match the trim and teal just on the outer walls. But with three doors, a large brick chimney, and a window under the carport, it breaks up that teal expanse pretty well. Worth thinking about. He'll be talking for his good morning call in an hour or so, we can decide then.

This is a quick look at the wall I was working on. Already wiped down most of the spider webs... (yurk)

Also need to get five gallons of paint strained to use in the kitchen--and before that, I need to go through and get all the dings and scobs on the paint in the kitchen hit with some caulk. While I plan to paint the wainscoting beadboard the same white as the rest of the kitchen, I'm thinking about painting the railing around it teal to match the cabinets.

Lots of thought, not much action yet this morning. Last night I got a little creative, doodling around while I was watching TV, and put this together. It's an illusion - the "quilt fabric," is an image, which I glued to the canvas. The frame is from a thrift store. Just having a little fun with stuff...

Not sure what else the day holds, but looking forward to it...

Later, y'all,
Love,
Lisa in AR

WOMEN AGES 50+ FOR APRIL 2024

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