Back from "vacation" I guess.

We went to go help my parents and see how they were doing, etc. My dad has had a series of medical tests, but no results yet (not expected until Tuesday I guess). He was starting to feel a bit better late last night. As time progresses we are convinced it was probably a small stroke. He had other symptoms that have since been ruled out as drug side effects, etc., etc. Though I guess we should know more next week.

His vacation is over next Monday, and if he turned a corner, he may be able to return to work without even telling his employer. Will see. Otherwise it seems he is well covered for disability, etc., and after talking to everyone and their brother it seems the general concensus is with time, and maybe therapy, he should (shortly) be back to 100%. Though his doctor did say something like there is only 50/50 chance of full recovery. But everyone else tells us otherwise. 100%! From their personal experiences. Positive thinking is good.

His mental function is pretty amazing overall, so I felt better after spending so much time with him this weekend. Trouble communicating, yes. But otherwise he seems fine. & it certainly isn't getting him down.

He certainly can not drive. We spent the weekend doing yardwork and housework, cooking, and playing chauffer. My mom can not do a lot so I know they really appreciated the help. (The GPS came in handy with the whole chauffer thing!)

The hardest part for my dad is sitting still. We noticed he did better with rest. But like hell he will actually rest.

So that's the long and the short of it.

-------------------------------------

I spent a couple of nights at my parent's house and I slept like a BABY. LOL. It was divine. I slept in until like 10am the other morning - I don't remember the last time I slept past 8am. I am not much a fan of sleeping in. But it is nice once in a while. Certainly would never get so much peace and quiet at home.

Since we were going to help my parents and were worried, I didn't exactly look at the long weekend as a "vacation." But it ended up that way. We just had a really nice, simple weekend. My dad and I took the kids for a walk to the creek by their house the other day. The kids spent most of the time in Grandma's pool and on my parent's tire swing. We didn't really do much else. I expected it to be a hard weekend and came back amazingly refreshed.

We decided to come home last night since everything seemed well under control. I wouldn't be surprised if we spend many weekends there though in May/June.

I told dh I had the maybe the first twinges of regret ever for not being closer. BUT that didn't really last very long. Dh and I discussed much how if we lived closer we just wouldn't necessarily have the TIME to help them out. We would both be working, for sure. It's such a catch 22. In the grand scheme of things we can help plenty - the distance is not long. I appreciate that we are close enough to help substantially. Dh has all the time in the world to help them, if nothing else. The distance is give and take.

--------------------------------

Of course, the weekend wasn't all "good." We went swimming yesterday for a long while and it was a bit chilly so we spent a good chunk of the time in the hot tub. We have noticed BM is a little sensitive to pool chemicals. He gets bumps on his elbows and knees which seemed to worsen over the weekend but get better with bathing. (It doesn't seem to matter which pool - so generically figure it is the chlorine).

So we spent a chunk of time in the hot tub/pool and I made sure to rinse him off real good when we got out, hoping to lessen his skin irritation.

Well we got home rather late last night and when he undressed for bed we realized he was pretty much covered head to toe in a pretty bad rash. Ugh. We called the doctor and stocked up on Benadryl. I think it's safe to say he won't be hot tubbing again for a long time. Though we are not quite sure what is going on, the hot tub is easy enough to avoid. He's fine; just itchy. & red.

We actually had a fun BBQ to go to today, but not sure we will be up to it. It wouldn't be the worst to have a day to laze around the house.

---------------------------------------

Completely off topic, but dh and I were having a discussion about healthcare on our drive home last night. We were talking about healthcare costs and obesity, etc. I had told dh many times that most of the SAHMs I know did not cook. At all. That fast food seems just as much a way of life for 1-income families as it does for 2-income families, around here.

I don't think dh believed me, but it has come up a few times. I truly appreciate all his home cooking and the good examples he sets for our kids (which they would NOT get from me - I was raised in a horrible environment as far as food). Our kids will eat anything - their experience is completely opposite of mine and I am very appreciative they haven't taken to my bad eating habits.

& what dh feels is the "bare minimum" or what is expected of him, he doesn't realize is a truly huge gift in our society. I told him the "bare mininum" is frozen meals or meals out as far as I was concerned. In this day and age. To him, the bare minimum is a home cooked meal every night. IT's his "job" in his eyes.

So anyway, as we were discussing it he said he was starting to believe me. I guess the women at tee ball were talking about how they never cook, etc., the other day. & I guess dh had to bite his tongue. He was thinking, "Pffft. It's not that hard and certainly not that time consuming." Clearly eating well (healthy home cooked meals) is a priority for him.

I told him I appreciated him biting his tongue. Something he is not usually good at. But yeah, I could just see him telling a bunch of women that "cooking is not that hard." LOL. He could really get himself into some trouble.