Collapse

I think I have finally watched enough of the teacup video. I still enjoy it, but I am not fixated on it and I stop wanting to watch it over and over and over again.

Tonight my mom teaches me how to play Collapse. I just go click, click, click. That is easy enough to do. I have learned to click the bombs too. I have a short attention span, so either my eyes drift off the computer screen or I stop clicking. I am sure you can guess what happens - Game Over.

Nonetheless, I am getting better and better at it. Initially I kept clicking the same spot even when it did not produce any effect. Now I move the cursor around and click. My mom gives me verbal prompts, such as click the bomb, click the red blocks. She does not know if I understand color concepts or not. She figures that there is no harm teaching me colors at the same time.

Service Provider

The management of my home has taken a toll on my mom. Even though she has been very stressed, it was difficult for her to make a decision to switch to a service provider. Last night, a meeting was held and she announced the change of management to the staff. The effective date will be April 1. Since my mom has done this for so long, a friend asked her if she was serious, thinking that this may be an April fool's day joke.

Maybe my mom will be able to have a life again. I am looking forward to spending time with a less stressed mom. It is time to start dreaming and if I dream hard enough, my dreams will come true. It will be nice to go to Disney again. Cruise will be nice too.

When I visited my mom this afternoon, I asked for the "car". My mom set up the Wii game and the steering wheel with base for me. After a while I got frustrated with the steering wheel. My mom gave me the black steering wheel I used to play with. I was definitely happier with it.

The Worst is Over

Grandma's burned skin starts to peel off. She is feeling better as the area is no longer itchy. As expected, she gets tired very easily. She is supposed to be more active to build up her strength and endurance. However, it has been too cold and slippery for her to go out. My mom tries to take her out regularly, but sometimes she refuses to go when it is really cold outside.

I have been waiting "impatiently" for either Emily or Peter to announce their wedding plans because I don't want to be the first one to publicize it. I am so glad Emily finally did. Now, I can talk about it too. I am going to be a good brother and help her in any way I can. I have offered to do some pick ups for her on her wedding day. As you know, microphones and speakers are my favorites. I will love to pick up the sound system for her.

Teacup

Last night was my sleep-over night at my mom's home. As soon as I got into the room, I asked for "teacup". My mom turned on the video of me on the teacup ride. I smiled and clapped as I watched it. I asked her to replay it over and over again for a few times before I was willing to go to bed.

As grocery prices go up, our freezer becomes fairly empty. My mom capitalizes on this week's meat sale to stock up. After tucking me in, she went downstairs to cut up and package the meat. She came upstairs to check on me periodically. Every time she came up, I was sitting in front of her laptop. I know how to turn on computers, but I have not figured out how to turn on the laptop yet. I sat staring at the laptop hoping that it would come on automatically.

My mom finally finished her task by around midnight. I asked her very nicely for "teacup", so she turned the video on for me before she went to brush her teeth. When she came back, I was viewing the video on a full screen. She was surprised because she didn't know this could be done. It took her a while to figure out how I did it.

The video showed that at one point, I laughed so much that I almost drooled. When I watched that part, I started to swallow.

Stretched to the Limits

Managing my home, caring for Grandma and chairing the Board of Chinese Outreach are all very demanding on my mom. She is feeling stretched to her limits. It would have been worse if she has to go to work. This is her third year of leave of absence without pay. Last year, she substituted occasionally at the Faculty of Nursing, U of A. This year she can't even do that because she has been so busy.

Despite her lack of time and energy, she continues to take me home for visits. She gives me crayons to color or pen and paper to draw. She also puts on the Sound of Music songs for me. The song I enjoy the most is Do-Re-Mi. One day when my mom asked me if I wanted to listen to Do-Re-Mi, I said, "Fa". Today, when she "sang" (I use the quotation marks because her singing is terrible!) Do-Re-Mi-Fa, I said, "So". I started to sing along and when the songs goes like this ". . . I must have done something . . .", I join in and sing, "good".

Comfort Foods

My mom has been feeling stressed and she turns to foods for comfort. Every so often she jumps out of her chair, hops downstairs looking for a bite. She tries to pick healthy choices, such as fresh fruits. She generally doesn't go for sweets. However, she has a pitfall - nuts.

In the afternoon, she heads outside to remove the packed ice on the parking lot as a strategy to suppress her urge for comfort foods. This also gives her an hour or two of needed exercise. The activity gives her the added bonus of stress relief.

When I come home from my volunteer job and see my mom attacking the ice with vengeance, I offer my help. My contribution doesn't lie in how much I do. To be honest with you, I really don't know how to do the job. I have a support worker who is willing to take the time to teach me. With his help, we have cleared a section of the parking lot for safe passenger loading.

Radiation Burn

At the beginning of her radiation treatments, Grandma got a nice tan on her chest. Now her chest is black from radiation burn. The area hurts and she finds the itchiness unbearable at times. Fortunately, there is no blister or skin break. We have been told that the effect of radiation peaks in two weeks. We are currently at the two-week point. Hopefully, her skin condition will not get any worse than what it is now.

It rained a few days ago and our parking lot is very slippery. My mom has been going out daily to work on breaking off big slabs of ice. She can only do some each day because she will be in too much pain if she does too much. She managed to remove all of the ice in front of the garage so that there is at least a safe area for loading and unloading passengers.