Monday, July 20, 2015

I can’t believe it has been 2 months (60+ days) since I last made an appearance here in Blogland. Sheesh! But I do seriously have real reasons for my absence this time…as opposed to excuses.

I haven’t been myself lately. I just feel really off, emotionally and physically. While this isn’t anything new in my world, the reasons for it are new to me. Let me explain…

For the past 3 years, almost to the day, my sister (who is also my birth-mother, her parents adopted and raised me, get it?) has lived with Richie and me. We brought her down to Pensacola to live with us in July of 2012 and have not regretted that decision…until the past couple of months. Well, regret is a strong word…I’ve just been massively overwhelmed since May.

She is 70 years old but her health took a nosedive in the past couple of months that made her more like a 95 year old. Her memory has been quickly disappearing, she’s become unable to walk normally as though her feet are magnetized to the floor, she’s weak to the point she can’t get herself up out of her chair, and she’s become incontinent both with her bladder and her bowels.

*sigh*

Needless to say, I have been waiting on her hand and foot, 24 hours a day during this time. It just finally became too much for me to handle so, a week and a half ago, I took her to the Emergency Room and they admitted her. In fact, they wound up keeping her for 6 days!

They found no real concrete reason for her decline, especially as rapid as it has been, but they did find a few things that might be contributing factors. The greatest thing they did for us was to help me get her into a nursing home!

She and I had been talking about it and it’s what she wanted to do, feeling that she would receive more care than I am able to give her here at home. We both knew that I was absolutely at my max and she still needed more. As guilty as it makes me feel, I do know that we are both better off with her there.

The day I got her into the Nursing Home, I came home to find out that our house had been broken into!! (When it rains, it pours.) They took all of my husband’s pain medication, knowing right where he kept it. Hmmmm…

So yeah, we are 99.9% sure we know who did it. We spent a couple of hours with the Sheriff’s Department Deputy Thursday evening giving our statements and they dusted for fingerprints. Luckily, our next door neighbor happened to see the guy park out front and come around our house, down the driveway and into our back yard (so he could come in the back door.)

Well, guess what? This happened early Thursday morning…while I was still home…in the bed…naked!

Now I am uncomfortable being home alone. I can’t sleep if Richie’s not home with me, either. We are keeping a gun on the bedside table. Being uncomfortable in your own home is a horrible feeling.

On top of all that, I made the trip to Huntsville, Alabama with my oldest daughter to the baby shower for my youngest daughter on Saturday. Six hours there and six hours back. We left here before 7am and got home a little after 11pm. I am so glad we went and she loved the handmade baby quilt that I managed to make in the few free moments I’ve had over the past few weeks so the trip was well worth it…but I’m still exhausted!!!

So, I guess that gives y’all an idea of what my world has been like lately. Throw in the fact that I turn 50 in on Friday, the first birthday that has ever really freaked me out, and I’m just not doing too great right now. I wasn’t intending on coming here and having a pity party but I guess I kinda disintegrated into one, didn’t I? Sorry.

I have posted a few new things in the Craft Therapy Shop and hope you’ll take a minute to look. I could really use some sales so please, buy lots! Also, I am planning to add some more new items, including original T-shirt designs, so be sure come back in a few days, too.

I hope you’re all doing well. I’ll be trying to catch up with everyone but it might take a while so please, be patient with me.