Hospice, dreams come true, and the irony of it all...

Yesterday, I entered the hospice chapter of the journey with my dad.  Not necessarily because he is ready for it but because the hospital is having trouble placing him in a nursing home without it.  Medicare and Medical have ridiculous rules and have made my life a living hell with all of their bureaucracy.  I've signed the consent forms before but we've never ended up using hospice because my dad has rallied.

(For those of you who don't know what hospice is it's type of care and philosophy of care that focuses on the palliation of a chronically ill, terminally ill or seriously ill patient's pain and symptoms, and attending to their emotional and spiritual needs)

Right after the hospice social worker got there my son called, he and his friend decided late Friday night to go to Mammoth for a snow boarding adventure.  Christian wanted to know where to go to rent equipment so I asked my dad.  His reply was "tell him to go to Footloose and ask for Tony, he's part owner and an old friend, tell him you're my grandson and he may be able to hook you up, or to to Kittredge's and ask for Bob, tell him you're my grandson and he'll take care of you."  Moments like these are encouraging but heartbreaking at the same time because mentally my dad is sharp and clear but his body is failing him.

I started taking my kids to Mammoth several years ago during the summer, the first trip they were pretty bored, they couldn't deal with the quiet of the mountains.  So the first trip was sort of a bust except for canoeing on Lake Mary and a visit to Whitmore pool.  Then four years ago we went again (minus Jade, our oldest daughter) for my Uncle Pat's memorial celebration.  This time Christian fell in love with Mammoth and has really wanted to go during the winter.  Well, this weekend he's there and staying with my dad's cousin.  He even got offered a seasonal job at the mountain yesterday! He posted a picture on Instgram saying "a dream come true, I think I just found where I want to spend the rest of my life."

 
The irony of all this is that Mammoth will be my dad's final resting place.  We lived there when I was a kid, after my parents divorced.  After I went to live with my mom, my dad stayed and I spent most of my summers, long weekends, and spring breaks there until he moved to Las Vegas when I was in high school.  The standing joke with my dad for years was him saying that when he couldn't ski anymore, strap him to a pair of skis and push him off the top of the mountain.  I can't tell you how many times we've looked into buying a place either in Mammoth or Bishop so my dad could live the rest of his days there.

There's something magical about living in Mammoth and it seems to be in the DNA of the men in my family.  My dad and one of his younger brothers, Pat lived there for years.  My other uncle had a second home there for a while and my dad's cousin has lived there for 35+ years.  And now my son is wanting to live there for the rest of the winter at least.
Irony.

 

My thoughts on turning 43...

Yesterday was my birthday, yay....happy birthday to me!  It was also the first day of school which for me is sad.  My husband and kids made sure that I woke up to roses, cards, and chocolate, it was very sweet.  Then I did the usual and made breakfast and lunches.  After the kids left I sat down with my coffee and cried a little.  When the kids were in elementary and middle school I looked forward to them going back, now not so much.  It's different now that they're teenagers/adults...I miss them when they're gone more, I really enjoy hanging out with them and their friends.  Ten years ago, I couldn't for the life of me imagine getting to this point but here I am.

Anyway, after a good workout I met three of my friends for lunch.  I am so incredibly blessed to have Godly women in my life, people who love you no matter what, that is a precious gift.  I ran some errands and picked up a cake at Costco, which was amazing (Chocolate Tuxedo Cake)!  Christian and some of his friends were here, along with my girls and they sang happy birthday to me before the guys had to leave for football practice.  Tomorrow I'm going to TAPS with my mom for dinner and next week meeting a couple of friends for dinner at Citrus City Grille.

One of the things I've been thinking about is how at this age it's weird to me that some people I know from high school are having grandkids and some are having babies.  In 2.5 years my kids will all be graduated from high school, Jade will have graduated from college and on to grad school.  She's moving next month to downtown Riverside and starting school at UCR, I'm really proud of the woman she's become and the challenges she's overcome.

The end of the month starts football season and it will be the last year for Christian, as he's a senior!  Crazy.  Pretty soon it will just be Mackenzie at home, then on to being empty nesters.

I am really really blessed.  I have a wonderful family, friends that are like my family (probably closer), I'm in good health and pretty good shape.  I used to be worried about aging and getting older, now not as much (of course I still have my days, who doesn't?).

All in all it was a good day, hoping for a great week, month, year!  Happy Birthday to me! :)

Things I'm thankful for...

It's November 10th and I realized I haven't posted since last month.  I can hardly believe the Holidays are upon us.  I love fall, as you already know and Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays.  At our house I like to go around the table and have each person say what they are thankful for.  This month I see a lot of people on Facebook saying each day what they're grateful for, I'm late coming into it so I thought I'd just list a few things here.

1. A God who loves me no matter what!
2. My health
3. A loving husband
4. Three smart, healthy, talented children that are growing up to be amazing people
5. Having a loving family (parents, sister, cousins)
6. Being able to live in a free country
7. Dear friends that love and support me
8. My job and getting to work with great people
9. Opportunities to grow and change
10. My talents/skills 

I encourage you to take a little time this month and reflect on what you're grateful for.  Even in hard seasons we have a lot to be thankful for (trust me, on this one!). 

Ciao!

Get moving...

When I told my friend what this blog is about, she held her breath for a second because I said it was all about the F words. These words are....faith, food, fitness, fashion and family, all starting with F. Hee hee. =)

Have any of you seen the movie Julie and Julia? One of the things I didn't like about it is that Julie let her health and her relationships go to hell while she was working on her blog/project. I'm a big fan of exercise and staying in shape. The key there, in my opinion, is finding something you like to do. I've been through phases where I've worked out in a gym (weight training and cardio). I've also done kickboxing, aerobics, pilates, yoga, walking and running lots of miles, and I used to jump on the trampoline in our back yard. When it comes to exercise, you have to do something you like to do or you won't do it.

My husband runs barefoot, I think he's nuts. Running on the beach? Absolutely. But asphalt, not so much. However, he loves it and it works for him. As for me, I'm just back to walking and doing some pilates. Exercise is important for your health and your well being because we were made to move! So, my encouragement for you today is find something you like to do and get moving, weather permitting, of course.

Have a beauty-filled day.

Ciao