What's Wrong with ME!

BAH HUMBUG! That's the attitude that I've had for the past several weeks. It's been bad in the past but this year I just can't even think about Christmas without getting irritated. I just can't get into the joy of giving. Now don't get me wrong, it's not the reason for the season. I've been at just about every church function this year to include a memorial service this afternoon and I adore that part of Christmas. But all the running around and worrying about presents and sending things out and parties. I'm sick to death of all that stuff. I hope that in the next several days that I can shake this irritation. Maybe my trip will calm me and give me a different perspective and God will answer my prayers for Christmas Spirit. Another thing that is bothering me is that this is the 1st Christmas without my Dad and literally the last memories that I have of my Dad were last Christmas. I suppose that's not helping things much either. Please pray for me in the next week to come, may I find a peace about this season.

Almost Forgot

I almost forgot, in all of my ramblings earlier, I forgot to mention Stellan. If you don't read MckMama's blog, then I'll fill you in. About a month ago Stellan was rushed to Boston and almost died (sounds dramatic but it's true). He then was sent into surgery for his second abalation. Needless to say God answered so many prayers and guided the surgeons hands, minds and hearts and Stellan is now SVT free. Yep he sure is, it went better than anyone could have imagined (of course God knew). The extra pathway was complete abalated and Stellan is now an active, mobile 1 year old. (See MckMama's blog listed for all the details). Also if you haven't been to Kelly's blog site in a while, Harper is growing like a weed and is no incredibly gorgeous. And last but not least, Luke (Annabelle's younger brother) is wonderful, just the most handsome little boy. And just my opinion, he looks just like his granddad Cole (Rebecca's dad). So check out those websites. Lots of love and next time, I'll try and remember all the news.

PS. Check out the Sullivan's website, it's new and heart wrenching and heartwarming all at the same time.

Why Snowflakes???

Mostly because I'll be seeing a bunch of them this Christmas. Obviously I won't be in the South, since I've only seen snow at Christmas twice in my 36 years. So where am I going to see snow...I'm going to Indiana, Indianapolis to be exact. I'm actually really excited about being away for the holidays. I've never been anywhere but my parents' house for the holidays. I think that I just need to do something different this year, with it being the first Christmas without my Dad, that in itself is going to be hard enough so to do something totally different will be a nice diversion. The opportunity presented itself in the form of J's latest Army mission, so I was more than glad to say I'd go up there to be with him. God definately had his hand in this and I'm definately not going to question his decisions in my life. I just thank him for this guidance. I am also looking forward to really embrassing the season for what it is, Jesus's birth. All the presents and commercial things this time of the year get on my nerves. So I am truly grateful for this getaway and time away so that I can think/reflect on the reason of the season. Well until next time, pray that I can find some real winter clothes so that I don't freeze in those snowflakes.

Thank You

Why Red, White & Blue today you ask.  Well, I'll tell you why.....IT'S VETERAN'S DAY!  And I just wanted to say thank you to all those are in the military and also to the families that support those soldiers.  I am so very proud to be the wife of soldier. J. you are my hero and I love you.  

Finally!

I know, I know, it's been a while.  A long while, no excuses, I just did not have any inspiration.  So, what's been happening, well almost 9 months after my Dad died, I don't think I think about him any less or miss him any less but I have gotten to a point that when I do think about him, it's not him in a bed with limited memory or faculties.  It's more like him sitting and the kitchen table in the early morning drinking his coffee staring out of the back window looking for deer in their backyard.  That's the memory that I carry with me now along with many conversations with him during this time, I suppose this was our quite time, J hadn't come downstairs and my Mom hadn't gotten up yet, so it really was our time together.  And on another note my Mom seems to be turning a corner in finding out what her life is like without my Dad.  She's going out more on her own, like just this weekend she went to a wedding and this past week she went to a luncheon at the church, I can't tell you how proud I am of her.   Well until next time...

Great Article

If you have the time this is a good article about early onset Alzheimers ..... http://abcnews.go.com/Health/AlzheimersNews/story?id=7571166&page=1.  

Blessings,

Magnolia

Wordless Wednesday!

Blessings,

Magnolia

Kayleigh Freeman

As many of you may know by now, Kayleigh has gone home to be with the Lord.  I for one am torn by this because this little girl has been through so much and I am so glad that she is with our Lord and Savior right now, but of course my heart breaks for the family that she left behind.  So please pray for that family now that they may have the peace in knowing that she is whole now and they will one day see her again.

NOT ME MONDAY

That's right!  Since Stellan is safe and sound at home, MckMama is back at it with another NOT ME MONDAY, and so are we.....

I did not recently buy 2 long maxi dress just so that I don't have to shave my legs as often in the summer, that would be just lazy and ridiculous (I mean come on, who would have one for every day of the week now, just in case they went on a shaving sabbatical).  Not me!  Also, I would never use an excuse like the school field trip to get out of work, I mean did they really need another adult to be at the tours of our manufacturing facility.  I also did not take my camera with the cover of taking pictures so that we could put them in our news letter, that would be just silly.  And I also did not go trotting around town on Saturday without a stitch of makeup praying that no one would see me (thank goodness it's a BIG town).  And lastly, I would not be overly excited that my hubby is coming home from a 2 week class in TX, no NOT ME!

Blessing and a Great Week!

Magnolia

THE LAST STAGE

Stage 7 as defined by the Alzheimer's Association

Very severe cognitive decline (Severe or late-stage Alzheimer's disease)

This is the final stage of the disease when individuals lose the ability to respond to their environment, the ability to speak and, ultimately, the ability to control movement. Frequently individuals lose their capacity for recognizable speech, although words or phrases may occasionally be uttered Individuals need help with eating and toileting and there is general incontinence of urine Individuals lose the ability to walk without assistance, then the ability to sit without support, the ability to smile, and the ability to hold their head up. Reflexes become abnormal and muscles grow rigid. Swallowing is impaired. This is the stage that is the hardest for families, or at least it was for me.  I would sit and talk to my Dad and he'd just stare at the TV or the ceiling fan or what ever. It really stunk that I couldn't communicate with him at all.  He'd mumble sometimes  but that was about it.  I've put off this last stage because it's how I remember my Dad the most and I don't want to.  Although I have forced myself to think about times when he wasn't sick to get those images out of my head.  I remember the times when he and I would play basketball and when we'd ride bikes at our beach house and go to my grandmother's for breakfast almost every morning in the summer when he was on vacation.    Okay enough about that.  I do want to ask you all to keep praying for  Stellan, he and his family have had a time of it.  They are currently in Boston being seen by one of the top doctors in this field in the country.   Love & Blessings, Magnolia

ANOTHER YEAR OLDER!

Yes, I am another year older.  I am now labeled "mid to late 30s".  Do I feel older, in some ways yes and in some ways no.  I don't feel like I look any older and I don't feel any older, but my thought process is maturing.  I don't just do things nowadays, I think about what I'm doing and what the results or consequences are.  I also have grown in my walk with God, he has taught me so much in the last few years, I couldn't begin to go through everything.  The biggest thing is patience.  I have become more patient with others, especially with J and his missions with the Army.  I remember when he told me a couple of years ago that he would have to go back on active duty.  The first thing that I did was pray for patience and understanding.  You see the 1st time he was on active duty I was not the most patient person and I was definitely not understanding.  And God has sure answered my prayers.  To date, my pitching fits has been minimal and J and I are more understanding of each others feelings.  So therefore, I have grown in that aspect of my life.  There are a ton more examples that I could give but then I'd be babbling.  So onto the fun part of my birthday, Wednesday was my birthday and was fairly uneventful, but J and I had a nice time yesterday.  I asked to go to the zoo here in town for my birthday outing and of course he being the good husband that he is we went.  Along with everyone else in this city obviously!  But all in all, we had a great time and I got some great photos.  

Blessings,

Magnolia

Easter 2009

Well to tell the truth Easter this year went better than I expected.  I was dreading going to my Mom's since it was the 1st time I had been home since my Dad passed away.  But we had a nice time.  J and I left Friday at lunch and drove down.  We took Mom to the grocery store since she was "wigging out" about not having a ham for Sunday lunch.  So about $100 later we left the store and headed home.  We ended up eating seafood with my my sister and her family that night.  Saturday J, Mom and I headed out to go shopping, we went up to Myrtle Beach and stopped at the new Market Place Commons, which was nice and ate lunch, we shopped a while there and then headed to Coastal Grand Mall where we stayed for a while (thank goodness there was a Starbucks there!).  Then we headed to Lowe's to get Mom a new mailbox since someone backed into her's.  On Sunday we got up, got dressed and went to church and then cooked lunch and my sister and her family came over to eat.  After lunch we all headed outside to erect Mom's new mailbox!  That in itself was an adventure but it got done and about 4:30 yesterday afternoon we headed home from Mom's house.  Needless to say, we stayed busy and that's the way I like it.  I have ants in my pants and can't sit still so keeping busy was great for me.  All in all Easter was nice but I still missed my Dad like crazy and that part of it sucked!  But the meaning was still there and I know because of what happened on that cross so many years ago, I'll see my Dad again one day.  That is the one bright spot over the weekend.  I am so incredibly thankful for that.  So how was your Easter?

Blessings,

Magnolia

HAPPY EASTER!

Happy Easter to you all out there.  I'll update more later about our trip to Mom's this weekend.  Lots of Love!

Magnolia

What I'm Thankful For

There are so many things that I am thankful for, it would be silly for me to even try and list them all.  The top things on my list are Jesus & my family.  So let's talk to the 1st on my list, I'm thankful for his life and the lessons he taught while he was here.  I'm thankful for his death (might sound weird, right), without his death I would not have everlasting life, so I am extremely thankful for that.  I am thankful that my Dad did not suffer his last months & weeks on this Earth.  I have a co-worker who's Dad was diagnosed with terminal cancer a while ago and is now in the hospital after having a massive heart attack.  Please pray for her Dad and she and her family.  I can't imagine seeing my Dad all hooked up like that to machines, so I am thankful for the way he left this Earth.  So when you are having a rotten day, remember the days leading up to Jesus death and be thankful.

With Blessings & Thankfulness,

Magnolia

Why Jesus?

That's the question.  Why did Jesus come to Earth, why didn't God send some angel?  My thoughts are these.  Jesus was proof of God's devotion to us.  The most important person  for the job was sent.  You see, no one else was qualified for what God had to do.  Jesus was the only one that could die and rise again, and pay for the ultimate for our sins.  So when I think about Easter, I think what an important job/mission (or whatever you want to call it) Jesus had.  Thank you to an awesome God.

Also, I need to update on Stellan.  Stellan is still in the PICU with varying bouts of SVT.  The next step seems to be an abolation.  Which is not the best option but the only one that Stellan has at this point.  Please pray for Stellan, his doctors and his family.  

Blessings,

Magnolia

Easter is Near

It's Monday of Easter week and I thought that I would take a cue from my blogger Kelly and try and write something everyday this week.  So I am going to start with...

What Easter means to me?

Easter is a time for renewal, birds, flowers and green grass.  I love seeing the Dogwood trees bloom every Easter here in the south.  If you've never seen one, they are stunningly beautiful trees when in bloom.  But in that theme of renewal, comes a renewal faith.  It reminds me of the sacrifice that was made for me.  Jesus Christ made the ultimate sacrifice so that I would live forever with him in Heaven.  That amazes me every time that I think about Easter.  I could 

never repay Jesus for what's he done, and thank goodness he's not into repayment.  Not to mention, it reminds me that I am not perfect and that God really understands that, and that is why he sent his son, so that we could all live with him in a perfect Heaven.  You see Jesus took all of our past and future sins away so that we could b

e with a perfect God in a perfect home.  How amazing!  So join me

 when you see the spring flowers and think about the sacrifice and the real meaning of that sacrifice.

Love & Spring Flowers,

Magnolia

2 Months Today

Two months ago today I lost my Dad.  It seems like just yesterday.  I've been thinking about him quite a bit today, I also found some old photos of Daddy when I was cleaning up my bookshelf.  There he was in his ski suit about 9 years ago on top of the Rocky Mountains snow skiing.  I can't even begin to tell you how much he loved skiing.  Daddy was always athletic and enjoyed a challenge.  So when I first went skiing with the church youth group with I was a freshman in high school and came back telling he and Mom how much fun it was, he decided right then and there he wanted to give it a go.  So he and Mom ended up chaperoning every ski trip from that point on.  They absolutely adored Colorado.  My Dad was like a kid in the candy store every time he popped those boots into his skis.  I wish so much I could see him coming down those slopes one more time, but I can't.  As of 2 months ago, I will never see my Dad alive on this earth again, but I will see him in our heavenly home.  So today, I can only stay here on Earth and finish the mission God gave me and look forward to the day that I see my Daddy again.   

Blessings & Tears,

Magnolia

Rainy Saturday!

Thought I'd jump on here in the middle of the day since J and I aren't doing much since it keeps raining and storming off and on all day long.  Some times we all need lazy rainy days at home just to do nothing.   I appreciate days like this, just so long as there aren't too many of them.  I get a little antsy after a while in the house and then I get really goofy.  

Ok enough about me, I do have an update on little Mr. Stellan.  He was had it rough he last couple of days, in and out of v-tach, having a central line put in and fairly constant SVT when he's not in v-tach.  We are still needing to pray for Stellan so that the Lord heals his heart fully.  Thanks for all you've done for Stellan.  

Blessings,

Magnolia

Stellan Update

Stellan's heart is still in SVT.  He and his Mom have had a very crazy day, everything from them not being able to get an IV in to a central line being put in, to another episode of v-tach to Stellan finally getting some rest.  Please continue to pray for Stellan, that his heart returns to a normal rhythm soon.

No Change

Just thought that I would update on Stellan.  There is no good news to report, Stellan has been in V-tach and SVT all day and they can't seem to get his heart to break out of these rhythms.  The Drs are surprised that he has tolerated these heart rates for as long as he has.  Please let's pray for Stellan.  Thank you in advance for your prayers!

Love & Blessings & Thanks,

Magnolia

Prayers Are Needed NOW!

Please pray for Stellan (McMiracles Blogspot on the Sidebar).  He has been in SVT for the last several days and nothing the doctors are doing can get his heart to slow down for any length of time.  Please, please, please pray for Stellan and his family.  And if you are so inclined, go to Jennifer's blog (MckMama) and read her latest post on miracles and God's will.  It is so true about God's presence, I felt it when my Dad passed away, it is a feeling that can not be described but you definitely feel it and know it's God, no doubt.  Again, please pray for Stellan to be healed.

Thanks and Prayers,

Magnolia

Wordless Wednesday!

Love & Blessings,

Magnolia

Here comes Peter Cotton Tail!

Can you tell that I changed my blog again!  That's because Easter's coming!!!  My favorite time of the year.  There's a lot of reasons for it being my favorite, #1. My birthday is around Easter, #2. My Anniversary is around Easter and the day my Savior died is Easter.  Of course the last one is the the biggest on the list.  I am in awe of knowing that someone thousands of years ago was loving and brave enough to die for my shortcomings, is that not astounding???  I try to think about what was going through his mind and the minds of his loved ones here on Earth on that day, but I just can't even get my brain around it.  I suppose it'll be one of the many questions that I'll have when I have my chat with the Lord when my time on this planet is done (I wish I could take a list with me, I just know that I'm going to forget most of them!). Anyway tonight think about how grateful we should all be that Jesus saw fit that we were worth the sacrifice.  I know that I am so unworthy of his sacrifice, but I also know that I'll keep trying.

Love & Many Prayers,

Magnolia

Update on Gracie

It is with tears in my eyes that I tell you that Gracie has gone to be with God.  She was so sick, the transplant didn't work, she was too sick for a Berlin Heart and not a candidate for another transplant and was on ECMO.  Please pray for her family and know that she is healed completely now and having a great time in Heaven with my Dad.

Blessings & Tears of Joy & Pain,

Magnolia  

Urgent Prayer Request for Gracie

I'm going to ask you guys to pray for Gracie.  Please read her story here http://www.thegledhillfamily.blogspot.com/.  May God's will be done. 

Much Love & Blessings

Magnolia

Friday Again? Thank Goodness!

Another work week complete!  Yeah!  Of course we are supposed to get lots of rain (maybe some storms) and can you believe it, SNOW this weekend.  I guess that means no picture taking for me this weekend (darn!).  But it does mean that I can get around to really cleaning my house.  I started a little tonight by going through my closets (yes, more than 1 ok) and pulling out things that I haven't worn or don't like or don't fit and put them in the charity pile (everything that J and I want to get rid of goes to a charity unless it can't be used again or is just plain nasty).  I decided to be really honest with myself this time around and I pulled out a load of stuff, I still have to go through my shoes but that shouldn't take too long.  I'm so proud of myself for getting all that done tonight even after working all day, usually I'm a couch potato when I get home.  Now if I can get motivated to clean my bathroom the rest of the house will be easy.  Wish me luck!  

Blessings & Dish Pan Hands,

Magnolia

How's It Going? Really?

So as you know I've been avoiding talking about myself or my family for a while.  Truth be told, there's not a lot to say.  Well, maybe there is.  I am going to start out by saying how incredibly proud I am of my Mom, she has picked herself up and gotten things done all while grieving her husband.  She and Dad were married for almost 52 years (that's not a typo, that's a loooonnnngggg time, especially these days) and for the last 7 years she's been there for him, from checking and double checking medications to trips to the doctor to just sitting with him those last few days, she if the true example of "till death do you part".  And on top of it all she has COPD and is diabetic and kept herself healthy during all of this.  I am so in awe of my Mom I just can't begin to tell you what a wonderful woman she is.  My sister is getting there in terms of grieving, she has good days and not so great days, but that's to be expected.  Now for myself, there are unexpected moments that I think about my Dad and just want to crawl up on a closet and cry my eyeballs out.  At those moments, I just stop and talk to God and Daddy (there standing in Heaven thinking I'm nuts I promise you), just as if there were standing right beside me and somehow I realize that I'm okay.  I will say this, I've noticed that I talk a lot about him, more so now than ever, he's probably thinking that's kind of funny too (that's me Dad, your source of entertainment, right!).  So now that you know what's been going on I'll leave you all with a little advise on grieving, I've found that I find solace in my hobbies/passions.  As you all know photography is my passion, so I've been snapping up a storm and that really calms me down, so find a hobby/passion that you can throw yourself into.  Well that's enough for tonight.  Sleep tight!

Sweet Dreams,

Magnolia

BIG News!

I must have missed this BIG news, guess it was one of those days that I was out in "la-la" land!  Here you go...

Congress approves $10 billion in scientific research funding

The Alzheimer's Association commends Congress for passing the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which will provide a much-needed $10 billion increase in funding for National Institutes of Health (NIH) for research — the largest funding increase for NIH in 5 years. For the more than 5 million Americans living with Alzheimer's disease, this investment is a significant first step in working to bring scientific breakthroughs in Alzheimer's and other major chronic diseases to fruition.

We applaud Congress and the Obama administration for recognizing that this vital infusion of funding into scientific research that works to save lives but also works to shore up the scientific research enterprise. The American Economic Recovery and Reinvestment Act also includes $1 billion for a Prevention and Wellness Fund at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). It is our hope that strategies to address chronic disease and expand health brain initiatives will result from this additional funding.

We would especially like to thank Sens. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) and Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) for their leadership in helping to secure this substantial funding increase for NIH. We are optimistic that part of this funding will increase support for research to cure, prevent and effectively treat Alzheimer's disease.

Finally, we would like to thank the thousands of Alzheimer advocates from across the country who reached out to their members of Congress to urge their support of this important legislation.

The Alzheimer's Association
The Alzheimer's Association is the leading voluntary health organization in Alzheimer care, support and research. Our mission is to eliminate Alzheimer's disease through the advancement of research; to provide and enhance care and support for all affected; and to reduce the risk of dementia through the promotion of brain health. Our vision is a world without Alzheimer's. For more information, visit www.alz.org.

This news thrills me to death needless to say, just wish that it had happened 5 or 10 years ago, but better late than never right!  

Pic of the day

Blessings,

Magnolia

What you don't want to know

OK, does the next article scare me half to death, yep it sure does, but I have taken my postings very seriously on this blog, so I feel the need to share this one with you.  You can never be to prepared.  So here it goes.

Bad gene, parent with dementia raise memory-loss risk

09:16 PM CST on Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Bloomberg News

Middle-age people are two to three times more likely to have poor memories if they have a parent with dementia as well as one or two copies of a gene known to increase the risk of Alzheimer's disease, a study found.

Researchers at Boston University gave memory tests to 715 people whose average age was 60 and also checked if they had a variant of a gene known as ApoE4 that increases the risk of Alzheimer's. Among people with one or two copies of the bad gene, those who had a parent with dementia performed much more poorly on the memory tests than people whose parents didn't have dementia, said Sudha Seshadri, an associate professor at the university's Alzheimer's Disease Center.

The findings may help families of the 5.2 million people in the U.S. who have Alzheimer's, a progressive, fatal disease that destroys brain cells, understand their risks. Americans older than 55 fear they will develop Alzheimer's more than any other illness, according to a 2006 MetLife Foundation survey.

"What's interesting is the fact that the difference is so large between the two groups," Seshadri, the study's senior author, said in a telephone interview today. "It's equivalent to the difference between people who are 15 years apart."

As people age, their memories often decline. None of the people who were tested had clinical symptoms of dementia and all fell within the wide definitio

ns of normal memory performance, Seshadri said.

Reducing Risk

At this point, there are no special steps middle-age people should take if their parents have dementia beyond following standard healthy-living practices, Seshadri said.

"Everybody who is middle-aged needs to do things to reduce their risk of dementia and heart attack by staying socially engaged, engaging in physical activity, controlling their blood pressure and diabetes and maintaining a healthy weight," she said. "Those are things everybody should do."

Ten million baby boomers eventually will develop it, says the Alzheimer's Association, adding urgency to efforts to prevent or treat the illness.

For the study, Seshadri and her colleagues followed children born to people who were enrolled in the long-running Framingham Heart Study begun 50 years ago.

Further research over time will be needed to see if the people who scored more poorly will go on to develop dementia at a greater rate than their peers whose sc

ores were higher, Seshadri said. The findings were released in advance of the annual meeting of the American Academy of Neurology, where Seshadri's study will be presented at the end of April.

Thanks for reading even though you might not want to know.  I know that I don't even like to think about my chances of having AD and what my husband may have to go through.  I've prayed about it and I know that God will do what's best according to his plan.

Blessings & More,

Magnolia

Dementia as Cause of Death

Here's your news article of the week...

TUESDAY, Dec. 9 (HealthDay News) -- New research suggests that medical officials often fail to record severe dementia as a cause of death in patients with the condition.

This finding not only points to a lack of knowledge about how dementia -- a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease -- can be a deadly illness, it suggests that deaths due to Alzheimer's and dementia may be severely underestimated, said report co-author Dr. Susan Mitchell, an associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School.

"With dementia so underrepresented on death certificates, it further exacerbates the issue of dementia not being a terminal illness," Mitchell said. In addition, she said, bad assumptions about dementia can lead doctors and relatives to make ill-informed decisions about patients at the end of life.

Alzheimer's disease is the fifth leading cause of death among people 65 and older in the United States, according to 2004 federal statistics. Those figures were based on information from death certificates, Mitchell said, and some studies have suggested the numbers are too low.

In the new study, Mitchell and her colleagues examined the medical records and death certificates of 165 patients with advanced dementia who died between 2003 and 2007. They all lived in Boston-area nursing homes.

Thirty-seven percent of the death certificates didn't list dementia as the main cause of death or a contributing factor. Just 16 percent listed dementia as the main cause of death.

In patients with diagnosed Alzheimer's disease, one-third didn't mention the condition as a cause of death or contributing factor, the study found.

The findings were published in a letter in the Dec. 10 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Mitchell said the failure to recognize dementia as a cause of death doesn't appear to be intentional. "There has been a general under-recognition of dementia as a cause of death. People have trouble getting their head around that."

Thank goodness my Dad was one of the few who's death certificate listed dementia as a cause of death.  If anything good came of his suffering it is that he's check is on the side of saying that AD & dementia is in  fact a terminal illness.  I thank the hospice doctor for helping this cause, may more doctors be more like him and be bold enough to list AD or dementia as a cause of death.  

Picture of the day (and by the way the last picture posted are the gears of a tank!)

Blessings,

Magnolia

Stage 6

Stage 6 as defined by the Alzheimer's Association

Memory difficulties continue to worsen, significant personality changes may emerge and affected individuals need extensive help with customary daily activities. At this stage, individuals may:

• Lose most awareness of recent experiences and events as well as of their surroundings

• Recollect their personal history imperfectly, although they generally recall their own name

• Occasionally forget the name of their spouse or primary caregiver but generally can distinguish familiar from unfamiliar faces

• Need help getting dressed properly; without supervision, may make such errors as putting pajamas over daytime clothes or shoes on wrong feet

• Experience disruption of their normal sleep/waking cycle

• Need help with handling details of toileting (flushing toilet, wiping and disposing of tissue properly)

• Have increasing episodes of urinary or fecal incontinence

• Experience significant personality changes and behavioral symptoms, including suspiciousness and delusions (for example, believing that their caregiver is an impostor); hallucinations (seeing or hearing things that are not really there); or compulsive, repetitive behaviors such as hand-wringing or tissue shredding

• Tend to wander and become lost

Keep in mind that every person is different, so some of these symptoms may not be as severe, I will say that my Dad did have quite a few of these symptoms and they did seem to progress rather rapidly.  Of course during this stage my Dad had a laundry list of other medical conditions, he had renal failure, and his kidneys were not so great.  You see along with AD he was a long time suffered of the gout and polycythemia which he took various medications for many years, thus causing his liver and kidneys to start failing.  So consult with your doctor about medications for pre-existing conditions and see if they are needed at this stage of AD.  Also, my recommendation to many terminal illness families is to go ahead and look into some sort of home health care providers (if you want to keep them at home).  These services, whether it is hospice or private care givers, will help the primary care giver to get some sort of relief and much needed help.  I'm not saying that you need to call them right away, but at least be aware of the services in your area.  And most important, see a lawyer and get necessary paperwork in place, if you haven't already.  Living wills, power of attorneys, etc are several of the documents that you can discuss with your lawyer.  Be prepared.  

Picture of the Day (can anyone guess what these are??)

Blessings,

Magnolia

Not Me Monday

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

So let's see, what did I not do this past week. I did not go and have my nails done again instead of fixing my chipped nail, that would be excessive and a total waste of money. I most certainly would not suggest to my loving husband that we could just go to Publix Grocery store Saturday night and pick up dessert for Valentine's Day, no not me, I would have baked a cake or already picked something up at the bakery. And I most certainly did not try on a formal dress and tell hubby that I would have to think about the dress because I thought that it might show a few too many bumps on my back-end, even though the truth is that it's a stunning dress and makes me look thin but it's red for goodness sake and bound to garner attention. I would not come up with some crazy excuse like that. And I would never call my oldest niece a "knothead" for something goofy she did over the weekend, I'm a tender loving aunt and would only say nice things to her. Well that's about it for me. What about you??? let us all know what you would never in a million years do.

Blessings,

Magnolia

Green, Green, Green!

Ok, let me start out by saying Happy Be-Lated Valentine's Day.  J. and I had a nice weekend, we started out by sleeping a little late and then just goofing off.  We went to the mall and then hit up our favorite sushi joint.  J and I do simple when it comes to holidays.   Just a nice day with my honey.  Now on to the title of the post.   Yet another little known fact about yours truly, I'm a Nascar junky!  So just to let all of you know out there, today is the 1st race of the '09' season.  Yep the Daytona 500 is today, so J and I will spend most of our Sunday afternoons at home now so that we don't miss a race, or at the very least, we'll tape it and watch it later on Sunday night, it's what we affectionately call "speed racing", since we can speed through the race (more like speed through all the commercials).   

Look what is popping up in our yard....

Blessings and Happy Nascar Watching,

Magnolia

WOO HOO - It's FRIDAY!

I can't even begin to tell you guys how glad I am that it's Friday, just the thought of being able to sleep later than 6am tomorrow morning is a blessing.  I think that the last 2 brain cells that I had yesterday are gone.  I need time to unwind and catch my breath.  I haven't had a chance to do that since my Dad passed away 2 weeks ago and I desperately want to "stop and smell the roses" this weekend.  And most of all I need to grieve.  I'm not a very weepy person, and I've caught myself getting really close to losing it several times this week.  So wish me luck and pray.  Talk to you soon and if I do find those brain cells at Target, I'll be sure to let you all know.

Blessings,

Magnolia

Stage 5

Stage 5 defined by the Alzhemer's Association

Major gaps in memory and deficits in cognitive function emerge. Some assistance with day-to-day activities becomes essential. At this stage, individuals may:

• Be unable during a medical interview to recall such important details as their current address, their telephone number or the name of the college or high school from which they graduated

• Become confused about where they are or about the date, day of the week or season

• Have trouble with less challenging mental arithmetic; for example, counting backward from 40 by 4s or from 20 by 2s

• Need help choosing proper clothing for the season or the occasion

• Usually retain substantial knowledge about themselves and know their own name and the names of their spouse or children

• Usually require no assistance with eating or using the toilet
  

This is a tough stage, you can tell by the look on your loved ones face that they are struggling and they get testy when you remind them of things like what day it is or they may need a coat outside.  Of course the severity of the mood is dependent on the patient.  Like I've stated before every patient is different.  I've personally heard horror stories about how disgruntled patients can be and sometimes violent, I thank my lucky stars that my Dad was not that violent.  My advise is to be supportive not condescending.  When they don't recall the day, say something like "you know it does feel like a Friday, just on Wednesday" or if the patient is retired or has no plans, who really cares what day it is!  Life is to short to worry about what day of the week it is.  

And just as a side, can anyone shoot me in the foot, I think that it might be less painful than installing our new operating software at work!  I'm a pretty bright gal, but there are only so many brain cells that I can blow (kind of like fuses) before I am just brain dead.  I think I might have about 2 left this week!  Hopefully I can pick some up at Target this weekend (they do sell them don't they??).  Ok enough for now.

Go COCKS!

.

Blessings,

Magnolia

Being Grateful

I have been so grateful these past weeks, for my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ most of all, but also for my family & friends.  I received many cards and donations since my Dad's death and you learn so much about people and so much about yourself.  I know that a lot of times I take things for granted, I think that most people do, it is just human nature.  But seeing how people have supported me makes me stop and think long and hard about so many things that I take for granted.  So I just want to thank all of you for your love and support and for you to know that I am so grateful to have you as a part of my life.  And to the Good Lord Above, I praise and thank you for all that you've done (and haven't done too) in my life.  

Picture of the Day

Blessings & Gratefulness,

Magnolia

PS.  That's a magnolia tree in the pic if you were curious.

God is So Good!

God reminds us each day that there are miracles going on around us and that we need to stop and take notice.  You see I was way busy and wasn't going to write anything here tonight but God guided me to my friend Rebecca's (Annabelle's Mom) blog right when I fired up my computer and had the most beautiful surprise.....

12WKS_6.JPG

That's right Rebecca's pregnant!!!  What a wonderful, praiseworthy God we have.  Congrats Rebecca, Scott & Wyatt.

Blessings,

Magnolia

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

That's right it's Monday. Wow! Where's the week gone. I did not eat out everyday this weekend, nope not me, I'm a junior Paula Dean and love to cook. I also did not make the entire Saturday a day of beauty (nails, toenails & hair), that would be just too excessive. I most certainly did not buy 4 new scarves this past weekend, knowing that I had a zillion at home. And I most certainly did not did not put a comb in my Dad's casket so that he could have nice hair in heaven (I was constantly messing with his hair, or I should say what hair he had and he hated it). So what did you not do??

Picture of the Day

Blessings,

Magnolia

Urgent Prayer Request!!

Please prayer for a young family The McClenahans, they lost their daughter Cora today.  Cora is now in heaven with Annabelle, Audrey and my sweet Daddy.  Thanks so much.

Education & Alzheimer's

Ye another article that I have found about reducing the risk of Alzheimer's... 

Feb. 2, 2009 -- Having more education reduces the risk of Alzheimer's disease but does not slow memory loss once it starts, says a new study.

Reporting in the Feb. 3 issue of Neurology, scientists say they found that education does not appear to protect against how fast people lose memory once forgetfulness begins.

"This is an interesting and important finding because scientists have long debated whether aging and memory loss tend to have a lesser effect on highly educated people," says study author Robert S. Wilson, PhD, with the Alzheimer's Disease Center at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago. "While education is associated with the memory's ability to function at a higher level, we found no link between higher education and how fast the memory loses that ability."

He and colleagues tested the thinking skills of 6,500 people from the Chicago area with an average age of 72 and varying levels of education.

The level of education of people in the study ranged from eight or fewer years of school to 16 or more years.

Interviews and tests about memory and thinking functions were given every three years, up to 14 years.

When the study started, people with more education were found to have better memory and thinking skills than those with lesser education.

The results remained the same regardless of other factors related to education, such as job status, race, and the effects of practice with the tests.

Further analysis, however, showed that the "rate of cognitive decline at average or high levels of education was slightly increased" during early years of follow-up study, but then decreased slightly later, compared to people with low levels of education.

"The results suggest that education is robustly associated with level of cognitive function, but not with rate of cognitive decline," they conclude.

I am determined to keep you guys updated on the latest news, reports etc.  Today was a little hard, J and I went to church this morning, this was the first time back since my Dad died.  It was bittersweet to say the least.  I know that I needed to be there but I sometimes I hate hearing "I'm so sorry to hear about your Dad".  I can't help but feel this way and I know it might be wrong, but it is what it is.  Thank goodness we have good friends in our "monster" church that supported us today.  I thought that I was doing good up until the point that J pointed out that in our worship guide, in the announcement section that that was a prayer request for my family and I and the announcement about the death of my Dad.  I quickly turned it over and tried to forget about it for right then.  I have teared up throughout the day, just different things make me a snotty mess.  The one thing that keeps me going is knowing that my Dad has his memory back because Our Lord and Savior has healed him.  Knowing that helps me get through the day.  Thank you Heavenly Father for those thoughts and healing my Dad.

Blessings, 

Magnolia

Coffee, Not Just a Morning Drink

I was again on the net reading the latest research and found this interesting article  (http://www.webmd.com/alzheimers/news/20090116/coffee-strong-enough-to-ward-off-dementia).  To make a long article short, it's about how coffee consumption in midlife reduces the risk of dementia in the elderly by quite a significant percentage.  Of course I love to hear this because I am a coffee freak!  Breakfast, lunch and after dinner and I don't mean wheenie coffee either, I mean Starbucks Bold or something comparable that's close at hand.   I inherited this obsession from my Mom (or at least I tell myself this).  She can drink it all day, even when it's cold!  Now I drink it all day long, but I can not drink it cold, I have to draw the line somewhere right???  Well that's my news on AD for the day.  On to something that just makes me smile ....  Harper's Home!!!!  Yeah!!!  What a wonderful time for Kelly & Scott to be able to bring there little Ms. Arkansas home.  Oh, and did you notice that I changed my background, Valentine's day is coming up so why not!

Picture of the day

Prayers & Blessings, 

Magnolia

What Now?

So what now?  We grieve, try to live and make the most of each day the good Lord above has given us.  That's all I know how to do.  We also, do a "boat-load" of research on this awful disease that has claimed the life of my very 1st Valentine.  I have been on the net trying to figure out the best way to use the talents and resources God gave me to combat this killer.  Did you know that Alzheimer's is the nation's 6th largest killer.  Did you also know that scientists really don't know if Alzheimer's is the cause of or the result of what is going on in the brain of a dementia patient.  There are so many little known facts that I want to discuss here and keep everyone updated for starters.  I have a few passions in life and I think that this project is fast becoming one.   I am going try to not let my Dad's death of the is hideous disease be in vain.  So Let's get back to some education.....

Stage 4 as defined by the Alzheimer's Association

• Decreaed knowledge of recent occasions or current events
  
• Impaired ability to perform challenging mental arithmetic -- for example, to count backward from 75 by 7s
  
• Decreased capacity to perform complex tasks, such as planning dinner for guests, paying bills and managing finances
  
• Reduced memory of personal history
  
• The affected individual may seem subdued and withdrawn, especially in socially or mentally challenging situations
  

This stage is very noticeable to friends & family but does vary from patient to patient.  For example, my Dad could remember his time in the Navy when he couldn't remember what he at for breakfast.  And of course depending on the patient's personality before onset, you may or may not notice them being withdrawn or subdued.  My Dad was a quiet sort of man, so if he didn't talk a lot that wasn't abnormal.  I suppose that if I were making an assessment of a patient, I would take his behavior as a whole and not necessarily individual events into account.  So now onto my favorite part.....

Pic of the Day

Blessings & More

So What's the Story?

So let me start at the the semi-beginning.  As you know my Dad was in Stage 7, he had been sleeping quite a bit for sometime, but would always wake up and eat at least a little something before he decided he had enough and tried to throw the rest in the floor.  J & I had seen him at Christmas and he was still in good spirits and tried to call for our dog when we let her up on the porch (what a sweet moment, he absolutely loved our dog), but we noticed that he had lost more weight and he wasn't eating much.  Of course, being the overprotective daughter that I am, I call my Mom everyday after work to check on her and Dad.  She kept giving me the same report, that Dad was about the same.  Well the beginning of last week, she said that he wasn't eating a lot (even less than before) and sleeping more (even more than before).  By Tuesday afternoon, my Mom & sister could hardly wake him for more that a few minutes at a time, Mom said that he had done this before a couple of months earlier and then snapped back.  By Thursday morning with another report of no eating and still non-responsive, I was concerned to say the least, at lunch I called J and told him to put in vacation time from work so that we could go down Friday morning.  But at around 6:45pm that night, after I came home, packed, ate dinner and started a load of laundry, my sister called to tell me that my Dad was gone.  She and my brother-in-law were there with my Mom when he was called home.  As you can imagine I was in a state of shock, I just started throwing things in my luggage (that was already partially packed) and prayed.  J. packed his clothes, we told our neighbors and asked them to look after the kids and hit the road for a 3 hour drive.  When we got to Mom's everyone had gone home and the funeral home had already been to the house to take Dad.  Of course, I being the stoic, rock-type of person, just hugged my Mom & sister and told them that we would get through this together.  You see I'm the type of person that cries, grieves and yells in private, I don't like to get upset in public or around other people at all, that's just the way God made me, thank goodness since my sister was a big pile of balling snot.   She finally went home and I put Mom to bed and stayed awake to make sure she got her rest.  The next day was hectic needless to say, friends, family and the funeral director were all in and out of the house, Mom, my sister and I went out to the funeral home to pick out all the necessary things.  By the time we got back to Mom's there were probably about 50 fried chickens at our house (by the way, there are only 7 people in our immediate family) I'm telling you that every chicken in the county was slaughtered and fried and brought to our house!  Ok, back on task, we decided to have visitation and graveside services all in one day (only shoot yourself in the foot once!) so I put Mom to bed again and waited until she was asleep before I curled up and passed out.  Saturday was a beautiful day, the sun was shining and it was cool (ok maybe a little cold).  We arrived at the funeral home for visitation about 11am so that we could say goodbye (actually see you later) to my Dad in private, it was quite emotional and yes, stoic me cried, quite a bit actually.  At 12 noon, people started to arrive and they didn't stop until after 2pm, we then piled in the limo and headed out to the cemetery for the graveside service.  At this point many of you might ask why no church service, well my Dad was not a very showy person and just a few words by our preacher at the cemetery was just fine with him when Mom asked years ago (when they bought their plots, before Dad was diagnosed).  The service was beautiful, not too long but great, paying tribute to a wonderful, beautiful, kind man, my Daddy.  After that, we just spent time as a family for the next few days.  Before I close out this post I would like to thank some people who have been with us through this journey, my Mom & Dad's Supper Club, their Sunday School Class and their neighbors and Preacher Ted.  I am so grateful that you have been there for my parents, checking on them daily, bringing cookies, soup, etc.  You guys have been more of a family than I could ever ask for in one lifetime.  My God bless you everyday.

Some of Dad's Flowers

Blessings & Love,

Magnolia