This article was written for Annabel & Grace, which is now part of Rest Less.
Had to collect mother this morning as she was meant to be coming to us for a deferred Mother’s Day lunch and when I got close to her house the snow came down thick and fast and driving became extremely hazardous. I found her still in bed as she had forgotten I was coming but was so thrilled to see me as she had NO water. It was snowing so hard that I had no time to find out why and I bundled her and her dog into the car and drove her back to my house for a couple of days of ‘thawing out’. Landlord is not answering his phone which is not unusual as whenever there is a problem he does a disappearing act.
All the children cooked lunch and whilst it took 5 of them, though Youngest Son did not contribute too much in the way of food but more in lunch time banter and a little bit of clearing afterwards, I have to say they did an incredible job and are probably wondering what all the fuss is about cooking the Sunday lunch. However I think once a year is enough for them and so I am not redundant yet!
Just taking a large pill for patience as my mother keeps asking when I am taking her home and when I say I am not she then says “oh good” – no idea what that’s all about. Eldest daughter found her in the laundry room looking for the loo…..still at least we haven’t quite got to the stage where she cannot remember what to do once in the loo!! About an hour after having lunch she asked when she was going to get anything to eat – this short term memory loss is a real learning curve! At least she knows that she is doing it but it can get quite wearing when you have to keep repeating everything.
London Hotel West HollywoodProbably the phone call from OH, poolside in the sun in Los Angeles may have tipped me over the edge as I prepared to carry all the dustbins out in the pouring rain (another OH job that he is absent for though I am noting it all down and I definitely have credits owing). Apparently the hotel, The London Hotel West Hollywood is very comfortable and it is the LA marathon today so he has to stay in for the day and relax by the pool!
Children all returned to London, uni and school and I am left with one 86 year old Mother watching a programme about another 86 year old lady….Our Queen. How different can two women be who were born a month apart? One totally in control with a formidable energy, ruling her family with a firm hand (one would imagine) with a wicked sense of fun whereas my own mother is completely dependant on her family for everything, totally out of control and with little will to live as she cannot remember what happened yesterday let alone plan for tomorrow. Still we both enjoyed watching the programme and who knows what tomorrow holds for both of us!