So, starting today, I'll be calling her at least twice a week since she's started sundowning harder during the evening hours. So if I call her while she's in that process, it lifts her mood.

She's started to forget how long she's lived at her current place (about 20 years now) thinking she's just moved in.

So we're thinking, end of April, we're going to drive down to visit her for a month or so.

So when she sundowns, she can get pretty confused and also angry. But in so far, she still mostly recognizes my voice (or at least "Call from... (name)" on the phone's verbal -- what's the word.

caller id

But she's still always excited to hear from me, so hopefully having me around for some time will help her, too. And I've missed her.

I'm doing my best to take things as they come, and I know to gently redirect her rather than counter with things that are drastic compared to her recollection.

As a note, she developed this not because of disease, but because she didn't get enough oxygen at one point when she was in the hospital, so that's caused the damage.

Even with these issues, it'll be good to see her again.

I'll be alright. This is just on my mind today.

This is probably a lot harder on my mom. Because grandma is her mom.

But I figure, if I go there too, I can also make sure mom gets a rest from grandma if she needs it. Because I can always do something with her to either distract her or just talk for hours.

worse case scenario, we tune in to the jewelry shopping networks on tv and riff on what we perceive to be bad designs.

But yeah, just getting this out there, and since we'll be driving, I'll likely be mostly offline since I get motion sickness in the car, and it's even worse if I try to read or write.

Going to be calling her twice a week instead of just once. Oof. She really doesn't remember moving into her parents' old house.

Or renovating it to suit their needs.

But, that's okay. I mean, it's not. But I promised her that if she still felt like she was out of place in the house, we can go look around it together and see if we can make it feel right again.

And she looks forward to my call on Tuesday, too.

She also still recognized me, which is a relief.

She's still herself, too. She's just. It's definitely clear that she's slipping further. I just hope she doesn't forget herself.

Hearing her say that she doesn't remember if she should be looking for her parents at another house or the cemetery is... kind of haunting.

I forget how long it's been since they passed.

But, I'm glad enough that she felt comfortable airing her concerns to me. It means if it happens again, we can do something, even if it's gently distract her with a puzzle or something.

You are strong! And kind.

I appreciate it