Once again, this week was mostly about Mom. After the tour last Friday we decided that Chapman Place would be a good place for her. That was hammered home during the week too, because she isn’t cleaning herself or changing her clothes unless someone from the home health care place makes her, and she’s been trying to exit the building or get someone who works there to take her home. Assisted living just isn’t enough any more. So, I went back to FW on Monday to start signing paperwork, which didn’t take all that long. Lake City Place and Chapman Place arranged things so Mom’s last day at Lake City was Thursday, and Friday was her moving day. So I went to visit a couple times during the week, and brought back several things so we didn’t have to move them all at the same time. Things I knew she wouldn’t need at the new place, like Gramma’s old violin and the dozens of photo albums and Grampa’s war mementos. I also got the rocking chair back this week from being re-caned, but she won’t have any place to put that either. Friday was the big day. I took the day off work, and Beth and I went to Lake City Place after breakfast to pack Mom up and get her moved. She was not very present. It didn’t seem to register with her that she was moving, but then she hasn’t known she lives there all along either. Beth took her to the kitchen in the common area to make some cookies while I packed so we could keep her out of the way, but mostly she just sat there and didn’t talk, and fell asleep a couple times. We had both the van and the truck, so I was able to get everything that we were moving into both of them (the bed was tricky) and leave a few things to move out later. Beth and I took Mom to the new place, and she sat watching TV in the common area while I got everything moved into her new room. The room looks nice all set up, and everything we brought has a place, so she should be all set. I stayed until it was getting close to her dinner time. It didn’t seem to faze her when I left, but I’m sure she didn’t really comprehend that she had a new room at a new place and was going to stay there from now on. The place is certainly noisier and more chaotic than where she’s coming from, so I hope adjustment isn’t too hard. Anyway, the rest of her things are now in my house, taking up a lot of room. But I did get a better TV out of it.

Saturday was relatively quiet, Beth took the girls shopping in the morning and they were at a skating birthday party in the afternoon, after which we all went shopping again, including to TJ Maxx, since Natalie had a gift card from her birthday. However, that place is so crowded and chaotic it gave her a panic attack so things were cut short. Sunday we all went back to FW to visit Mom in her new place. She seemed content, more or less, but she still didn’t seem to realize that that was where she lived now. The nurses also told us that she slept in the common area on the couch the last 2 nights, and they couldn’t get her to go to her room, so they just let her sleep on the couch. But we brought her stuffed dog with us, which we had left at the other place by accident, so maybe she will now. Anyway, it was nice to see her out of the room…although when we went to see the room it was like she was seeing it for the first time. We also brought her a few pieces of jewelry and some of her fetishes, so she’ll have some more familiar things there now. We were able to take her downstairs at the place, where they have an aviary. Mom liked watching the birds. Again we stayed until close to her dinner time, and again it didn’t seem to faze her when we left. It seemed to us that she was fitting in there. Hope so. We just headed home after the visit.