Easter week already??

It's hard to believe this is the week of Easter.  Time seems to be just screaming past.  I feel like I'm going to blink and it will be summer, and that's probably exactly what will happen.  I got a call yesterday from the Memory Care nurse in charge saying that mom was having trouble swallowing and she wanted to have mom's doctor sign an order for mom to have a soft diet.  For those not in the know, as Alzheimer's progresses, difficulty swallowing and a risk of choking go right along together hand in hand.  With the choking part, comes and additional grim tendency towards aspiration pneumonia.  People choke, inhale, and suck whatever is in their mouth, down into their lungs.  Sorry...I'm a nurse, so we tend to tell it just like it is and sometimes it's more than you wanted to know, but there you have it.  Once you have food particles in your lungs, it's hello pneumonia.

We discussed going straight to a liquid diet, but if they do that, oftentimes people just quit eating, period, and I totally get that.  Pureed food is just a nasty thought and I'd almost want mom to quit eating on her own rather than offer her that goo.  I can just see the look in her eyes if I tried to sell that idea.  She already puts her hand over her mouth if it's something she thinks is Ewwww.  I know I could sell the idea of chocolate milkshakes or chocolate "sofa's", from the HP Pharmacy, so I may try that.  Mom named chocolate sodas "sofas" years ago and I don't really know why.  Probably because she knew she'd be as big as a sofa if she had them too often.  Maybe I can see about them making her a milkshake occasionally. 

Lastly, mom has been stuck on talking about the Dallas Country Club for the last week or so, and I'm not sure why.  Maybe that's where she thinks she is when my brother comes to eat with her on Friday's.  For whatever reason, it made me laugh, and that's good.  The funniest part is, we were never members of the DCC.  We were members of Brook Hollow.  Mom used to think she was at St. Marks when he came.  Man, she's getting around. 

No puppy news yet but it can't be long now.  Blue Bell is going to explode if she doesn't have them soon.  I went online and found a gorgeous male, 6y yr. old black and tan for adoption, over the weekend.  He and Sis would have looked like bookends.  I heard back yesterday he'd already found his forever home.  Good for him.  His name was Shadow.  Sounds like a lap dog to me.  Purrrrfect.