October!

Mom has been really sick for all most a year. In December of 2010 she had pneumonia and since then she has continued to progress toward ill health.  She  had to go to the hospital three times  in October; twice for really low blood sugar. While in the hospital the first time her doctor determined that she was not being properly dialysized  at home-This is more than likely the reason for her deteriorating health. She is now on hemeo-dialysis  and it appears she is on her way to healing. Her cognitive impairment which we hope is related to the poor dialysis is slowly clearing, she is eating now and her mobility is much better. I am praying that 2012 is a better year for her physically and emotionally. She has had so a difficult year. I want peace of mind for her more than anything!

September 15, 2011

Mother is still in the hospital and still not eating. Doctor Dutton, Rose the RN and Gail the taeching nurse are awesome. Carla is putting her earrings together and the Kaiser employees are buying them. I hope she starts eating soon!

Prayer

I pray that my mother stops throwing up, stop having diarrhea, that she regains her appetite, that she regains her strength, that her chronic cough stops and that she takes the time to heal her body!

63

My sister and I are at Kaiser hospital with my mom. My sister walked into my moms room last night and my mom was cold and unresponsive. My sister called 911 and then she called me. She left a message on my phone crying and all I could understand was that she the ambulance was on its way! I went numb feeling that my mom would transition. Vaschelle and I got in the car and headed to my moms. When we arrived my mom was in the ambulance eyes wide but non responsive. It was determined that her blood sugar level was extremely low-63. Wow! She had come very close to a diabetic coma. Thank you Obatala for sending my sister in my moms room. The folks at kaiser have run many test and they have determined that she has urinary tract infection. They are giving her antibiotics for that piece. I pray that her blood sugar never dips down to such a dangerous level again. I pray that she regains her appetite. I pray that her mobility increases. I pray that she goes into 2012 doing much better than she has done in 2011. This has been a rough year for her. I believe in the Power of the Orishas, the Ancestors and the Love of Friends and Family. My mom is laying in the bed  eating vanilla wafers and watching a movie on AMC

To not know!

It pains me to see my young mother struggling with her health! Will she ever  get better or is this the beginning of a downward spiral! Only they know.

My Mother

My Mother needs a DMV disability placard and I also need to complete the Nolo kit with her! The DMV piece is easy the Nolo kit is challenging, but it needs to happen!

Today I went over to my moms house.I arrived around 11am and she was fast asleep. I went in and said hey ma-She said "I wish yall  would leave me alone". Spirit spoke to me and said "Its okay". I moved on.....cleaned the bathroom, moped the living room, organized the den, went to get some cleaning products for the house, stopped at the taco truck and got myself a ground beef burrito with no rice and got a ground beef burrito with no rice for my mom. When I got back to her house I realized my mom who had been sleeping since this morning had not taken her meds. I went in into her room and woke her asking her rather or not she needed to take her meds. She commented in a  semi hostile tone that she could take them later. I ate my burrito and then went outside and picked up the trash that was in the front of the house. My mother woke around 4:30. I let her know that I had bought her burrito. She ask me for a popsicle. I brought her a red and yellow popsicle. My aunt Betty called and spoke with my mom for a nice chunk of time. After getting off the phone my mom warmed up her burrito and ate it. Shes back in her room resting.Shes such a survivor!

Ruby

My mother is 64 and  has renal failure. A little over five years ago she started in home dialysis. Her health is de-compensating. Recently I  have noticed that her mobility and cognition is quite impaired. She is angry and quite hostile. I can not deal with the hostility. Seeing her ill is one thing, experiencing her hostility is another. She is still employed even though it is apparent that she should retire. She is used to being in control and his very stubborn and prideful. I am of the opinion that my moms pride in this situation may further her suffering. However I am not the authority on this. Her stubbornness and pride maybe her salvation in this all. I have no idea.  I will simply pray for direction and guidance. She is so young!

Vaschelle

Vaschelle is home!

44 years ago today my mother gave birth to me!

I am writing this has it shows up. My mother kept telling me that I needed to go see my granny. I was in my late twenties or early thirties and had not seen her in many years. Granny's health had started to decline and she had moved in with my aunt Betty ( her youngest daughter) and my uncle Micheal (aunt Bettys husband) in Houston Texas. I was having a hard time in California so I decided that the change would do me good. Aunt Betty was loving Sade and Kenny G, Uncle Micheal was being Uncle Micheal, Michelle was busy turning out cakes for Houston's finest and Tylan had not yet had his first haircut. Granny's room was on the east side of the house and outside her bedroom window there was a big green back yard and flowers. Granny loved flowers.

As a youngster I spent several summers with my granny and one of her sisters in the country; Chilton Texas. I remember very fondly; cutting out paper dolls from the sears catalog, drinking tea out of aluminum cups, those red or green iron lawn chairs, feeding the hogs, being afarid of the mice, watching the young and the restless, playing in the big aluminum wash tub or the sprinklers on a hot day, having to wash my feet before getting in the bed at night, the dirt road, grand daddy long leg spiders, my cousin bubba, okra, greens and hot water cornbread and sitting on the back porch eatting bright red watermellon with jet black seeds....such a sticky situation!

My granny took me on my first road trip at the age of six.  My Uncle Johnny, her oldest son,  had moved to JacksonVille Florida and granny and I rode the greyhound bus from Waco Texas to Jacksonville Florida to visit him and his family. Granny packed us friend chicken, sharp cheeder chesse, saltine crackers, summer sausage, snacks, sodas and made sandwiches for the trip  "Are we there yet"? This memory brings tears to my eyes; tears of joy and gratitude.

This Blogg is dedicated to my Granny Jennie Mae Kirkpatrick

Where would I be if it were not for the love of my ancsetors.  My granny was one of  ten children. Granny was born in Chilton Texas in the early 1900's as were all her siblings. Slavery was behind her and the civil rights movement was on the horizon. She had five brothers and four sisters. She gave birth to four children. Two boys and two girls.Two of her children were fathered by Johnny Reed and the other two were fathered by Floyd Griffin. My mother is her second child and her oldest daughter.