Not so easy to post when there are other people in the house! But everyone is still sleeping so I'll see if i can get a short one in.

Prayer certainly does work and I think besides myself there are many others praying for me right now! Although in many ways, this visit has been very difficult, we did laugh and laugh hard last night--mostly at Dad's expense. We played Uno and for the life of him he couldn't figure out how to deal the cards dealing to the right instead of to the left! The first time he said it was because he was dealing with his left hand and the second time he insisted he couldn't be dealing in the wrong direction because this time he was dealing with his right hand! We all, including Dad, laughed so hard our stomach's hurt and tears were coming!

It's good, too, to have other people see Dad's foibles and to know that I'm not losing my mind! Dennis is so ambitious and even though he's not feeling that well, he can't sit still and is busy around the house all the time. Yesterday he scrubbed their bathroom and laundryroom's floors not to mention all the work he's doing outside. He's taken apart some skids to build roosts for the chickens and uprighted the blown down greenhouse which had been demolished by winds over a year ago! Yesterday he got Dad to begin digging holes to more permanently anchor it in the ground which, of course, should have been done the first time they built it.

The weather has been good but rain is in the forecast for much of next week so they're working outside while they can. We need the rain and although it would be nice if it didn't rain all the time, we could use a good soaker.

We've met the people across the street and he is a major in the Marine Corps and acts like it with stern discipline. A flight instructor--flies helicoptors--he will be going to Virginia for a yr. and then N. Caroline for 2 while his wife goes to the vet school here. Three horses are on the property now and likely at least one more will join them as she's looking for a room mate who will likely bring another horse to the land. She seems young and very nice and very pretty. He's not bad looking--can't guess his heritage but he is dark complected but with a last name of Scott. But don't see any Black or Mexican in him which I find interesting. Genetics have always been fascinating to me. In any case, we think they'll be good neighbors even if we won't see very much of them--they did appreciate the pot roast I sent over.

We toured the Blue Bell Ice Cream factory with Millie, Dennis and her mom. As always it was very interesting and they were very generous with servings of their product at the end of the tour. And it's true--their employees can eat all the ice cream they want and then they sell the rest!

It is so sad to see Millie's Mom and makes me feel try to learn some lessons from this. Although I don't remember her Mom ever being particularly healthy--she had polio when she was in her teens and has had several hip replacement surgeries. Today, at 93, she is almost totally incapacitated sitting in her wheelchair with her head down and her nose constantly dripping virtually completely helpless. If she thinks about it, she can wipe her nose, but most of the time Millie has to do it for her. She can feed herself some but mostly has to be fed and cannot go to the bathroom without help from both Millie and Dennis nor can she get up or lay down in bed without assistance. There is absolutely no muscle tone.

Interestingly, she can apparently hear pretty well but is virtually blind. She spends her limited time awake sitting in her wheelchair looking downward in a hunched over position. She can and does sleep as much as 80% of the time. Millie insists that she has a good quality of life but it's hard for me to see it. Of couse, what else is there to do? Although she herself may want to die, these decisions are not always left to us and how fortunate she is to have Millie and Dennis to make her life as comfortable as it is.

Made my meetings yesterday and renewed the support I needed for this time period. Tim was there--the young man who makes my heart sing every time I see he's still in recovery.

Gotta run!

Peace!
Carol