Graduation---Again!!!

He's tired after all his PT assessments!

Yesterday at my sister's, Boo had to tell Peggy Sue all about Boudreaux (her son).

Boo is tired and cranky---a rare thing indeed.  (Well, tired is not rare, but cranky is.)  We walked 2.5 blocks this morning right after breakfast.  Then a couple of hour later his physical therapist came to reevaluate his progress.  He has now met all of his pt goals.  The changes in his medications made a big difference in his alertness and his stamina. Now he can walk and exercise without lack of stamina and balance being a huge issue. He has quite a ways to go, but he is definitely on the way! 
LIFE IS GOOD!!!

Spring Weather---at last!!!

Boo loves this weather---bright, sunny and not too hot.

Daisy resting beside Boo.

Boo seems fascinated by all the flowering plants. It's hard to convince him to come inside.

     This lovely weather has chased us outdoors. We're also "babysitting" my sister's dog, Daisy, and her cat, Peggy.  Daisy has had a lot of fun walking with Boo.  The two of them spent an hour in Mom's backyard.  Daisy stayed beside Boo and listened to him talk.  I'm not sure what one says to a dog for an hour, but Daisy seemed to enjoy it.
     Boo is doing a little better.  His cardiologist adjusted some of his medications.  For a while afterwards, his BP fluctuated greatly and we kept the home health nurse and his doctor busy.  Things seem to be smoothing out finally.  Boo is more alert, more active and definitely more opinionated.  He is walking 3.5 to 4 blocks daily and doing PT exercises with no problem.  Boo tends to become unsteady in the evening still, but at least it's not all day anymore.  Schedule changes remain an issue.  I really have to be careful not to overload his days.  Right now he can handle more physically than he can emotionally. 

Birthday Party

Enjoying dinner!

Last night we went to a Chinese buffet in Rockingham for a birthday dinner. Boo thoroughly enjoyed himself. He had hot and sour soup, two kinds of shrimp, steamed crab, spare ribs, lots of stir fried vegetables, part of my piece of chocolate cake and a fortune cookie. He slept on the way home and then went to bed early---about 8:30pm. He woke only to take medication and eat a snack. This morning he informed me that he likes eating out, but it’s too tiring. Oh well…


This morning after Mary brought Boo Communion, we found a Latin Mass on TV. Boo remembered the responses and what they meant. He has talked nonstop about praying the Mass in Latin growing up. I wish I’d had the foresight to record it for him. Maybe we can do that next time.

Boo seems to be adjusting well to the changes in his medications. He is far less unsteady and dizzy. However, his stamina is poor. We are working to improve that---slowly and steadily. Most days he tolerates three twelve-minute standing exercise periods and at least one walk outside. His walk varies from 1.5 blocks to 2.5 blocks depending on weather, his steadiness and his BP.

One of the things we will begin to change this week is the timing of his walks. Because he doesn’t tolerate the heat in the summer, we walk in the early morning and late evening. Boo has been less open to changing his exercise routine and his schedule recently. So, I have begun to discuss the upcoming week with him and remind him of things that are going to be different for him. Those changes that are inevitable, I try to make SLOWLY and with as much explanation as possible.

Doctor's Visit

He SAYS he's watching westerns!

I think he's sleeping.

Boo has had a very busy day.  First thing this morning, he had a physical therapy session.  Then, we got dressed to go to the doctor, had lunch and went to the doctor's office.  We're back home now and Boo is exhausted---not that he will admit that. He is watching westerns with his eyes closed and snoring.

Boo's primary care physician has altered the ammounts of two of his medications.  Hopefully that will help decrease his vertigo episodes.  If not, we'll try somethihng else.  At the doctor's office, Boo's left foot was fine.  PT had not yet faxed his doctor their evaluation.  So, we'll have to wait on that.

Lazy Day---for one of us!

23 February 2011

Boo has managed to sleep until 11:00 this morning. He woke to take his 7:00am medication and eat a light breakfast. Then he decided to go back to bed while I caught up on a few chores. I neglected to set an alarm to remind myself to awaken him. Here it is 11:00 and I am definitely having trouble convincing him to GET UP. He wants to sleep a little longer. When lunch is almost ready, he must tear himself out of bed. He’s due a second round of meds at noon and needs to eat before taking them.


Yesterday Boo began rolling his left foot towards the inside when he stands or walks. His left side is the most affected by his last two strokes. Until now, his left-sided weakness only manifested itself when he was tired or sick. At those times he is prone to drag his left foot when walking, have difficulty lifting his left foot to dress himself and, once in a while, bumps into things---as though he is less aware of his left side. Neither his physical therapy assistant nor I can determine what is causing this new issue. All the usual culprits---elevated or abnormally low BP or glucose levels, overexertion, illness---don’t seem to apply. Tomorrow Boo has an appointment with his primary care doctor. I guess she’ll evaluate this then. His physical therapist will visit either tomorrow or Friday to see what she thinks can be done to correct his foot turning.

Boo, Grumpy and Grumpy's long suffering wife

We had a wonderful visit from some friends that have known Boo for years and years.  It's always a joy to spend time with Grumpy and his wife.  Boo was rather quiet and seemed to need to search for words when he did talk.  Now that they've gone home, he can think of things to say.  Oh well...

Reevaluation and Improvement

Boo walking with physical therapist

Yesterday was assessment and evaluation day for Boo with Home Health. He was discharged from occupational therapy. Even with his recent vertigo problems, he met his goals for self-care. Besides his usual morning and evening routines which include dressing, bathing or washing off and mouth care, he is helping with some meal preparation and housecleaning. OT had not set any goals for Boo beyond dressing and basic hygiene because neither they nor his doctors thought he’d be capable of anything else. Yesterday he demonstrated to his occupational therapist his sandwich and snack making skills. He also showed her how he sweeps the house (with a carpet sweeper) and cleans the bathroom sinks and mirrors.


Boo has not yet met his physical therapy goals---although he has made a lot of progress since his last hospitalization. PT will continue to work with him to improve his balance and stamina. Intermittent vertigo has been a real issue. On the positive side, Boo has not lost muscle tone even though he hasn’t been able to walk or do his standing exercises as much as we’d hoped. His persistence in doing his seated and lying exercises twice a day when he couldn’t walk definitely made a difference.

Yesterday Boo had few vertigo episodes. He walked a total of five blocks all day (total from three separate walks.) Last night he was tired and went to bed early, but he’s fine today.

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Ok, maybe he’s not quite fine. Boo walked two blocks this morning, ate lunch and took a nap. He’s a little confused now---not remembering that my mother is at the beach, not remembering that his father died. He is alert and remembers the day to day things that most concern him---where the coffee carafe is, where his snacks are, how to find westerns on TV.