A Visit With Grandpa!

I had the privilege of spending Father's Day with Grandpa this weekend! We arrived in Cardston about 6:45pm on Saturday night and went straight to the Chinook Lodge where he is staying. We found him in his room where we hugged and kissed and visited for a little bit.

Grandpa told us we were lucky we didn't miss him. He said he almost checked out of the country!! I thought he meant he was thinking about going to Spokane to Jordan & Leanne's Wedding. But he said no, I almost kicked the bucket!! I asked him what happened. He said he got a piece of bacon caught in his throat at dinner and it took quite a bit to get it to come loose. It was still giving him some trouble, but he was obviously not having breathing problems about it. Just could feel it in his chest.

Diana called and invited us all out to her place. Grandpa decided to come, so we got what he needed and took him out to the Jacob's ranch. We had a little supper and visited a bit more. We then went to bed. When we got up in the morning, Grandpa hadn't slept very well, and seemed a little out of sorts, so we decided to take him back to where he was more comfortable. He said he just knows what he can do there, and they know what he can do there.

Anyway, when we got there, we checked in and they were glad to see him back. Apparently the message that we had taken him hadn't been relayed to the morning crew and they didn't know where he was. They did figure he was "checked out" since his medication was gone, but they didn't know with whom he left. They put him on what they call the "Jiggler". It's an exercise machine for the residents. He jiggled on that for 5 minutes, then we went up to his room to get ready for church and lunch.

We had lunch with him there at the Chinook. A couple residents came up to him and asked him how he was doing from the night before. I guess it was a pretty big deal. He said they pounded on him for quite a bit trying to get it loose. While he seemed to have trouble eating at Diana's for dinner and breakfast, he seemed to be doing better at lunch. After Lunch, we went to Sacrament Meeting with him. I even attended Priesthood meeting with him. (He wasn't sure if I was okay with that, he kept asking if I was going to stay.) I assured him, I was okay with attending priesthood, but he seemed concerned about it. :)

At any rate, we finished there and took him back to his room. He seemed pretty tired and seemed to need a nap. We told him to take his nap and we would be back to visit with him some more after dinner.

We went back to Diana & Ron's and had dinner with them and Michael and Alita and their two kids were there. We played a couple rounds of Phase 10 and then back to Grandpa's.

We found him in his room again and visited some more. It was fun to hear him reminisce about different things. He talked a little bit about how difficult it was for him to be confused at times. I told him I didn't mind, I was used to it with taking care of my mom. It was a natural thing that happens when we age, and it was really okay. He just needed to be patient with himself and let us know when he was confused, so we could help him the best we can. He seemed okay with that.

He was very sad when we told him we were heading home on Monday morning. I guess he thought we were staying longer. I felt bad, but was still very happy to have had to opportunity to spend the day with him. I promised to come back early in the morning to give him a couple more kisses before we left. He said that would suit him fine. We did just that. It was hard to say good bye, Just one more kiss!

He does seem pretty lonely, he doesn't watch TV or read, or really socialize much. He does enjoy the faxes he gets. **Thanks Brent and Karen for setting that up!!** So, feel free to fax him notes and letters when ever you like. We try to do it during meal times (8-9am, Noon-1, and 5-6pm) so the machine doesn't bother him and he has something when he gets back to the room.

What a Great Way to Spend Father's Day!!