Sunday, October 20, 2002
Originally I was planning on doing a solo trip up to see Mom this weekend so as to bring her a telephone (her line should be turned on come Monday), but after talking it over with Erika, we decided to aim for Sunday instead, so that the whole family could go for a visit.
We arrived at around noon. We soon discovered that Mom was about to have lunch, and so we went to join her in the dining area. Both of our girls got quite the reception -- especially little Annie, whom half the room seemed to coo over.
We soon got one of the family rooms to ourselves and were served the same lunch everyone else was having. It was the first time I've eaten there. None of the dishes are ever going to win any culinary awards, but as Erika pointed out, it's undoubtedly heartier fare than Mom has had at her own home. I have to say that the staff there treated us very well, and we were all very well fed by the end of the meal. Both Vanessa and Annie loved playing with the 70s vintage organ that was in the room, and after their meal both of them ran around in the "play" area outside of the room.
Mom was doing "okay" today. Not at her best, but not at her worst either. She was thrilled to see Annie walking around, and remembered that Vanessa was having ballet lessons, but she still talked about going home, and seemed (pleasantly) surprised at the pictures on her bedroom wall, even though I had hung them there the previous week.
Mom mentioned that she's made friends with one of the other ladies she dines with, who is also from England, saying that they had a lot in common and liked to chat. Am glad to hear that she is making friends -- though I gather she has already charmed many of the staff.
At the conclusion of our visit Vanessa had a blast dashing across the grounds and while perched atop my shoulders, picked pears from one of the local trees. She also proudly presented a number of new drawing for her that she drew while riding in the car on the way up. Mom very appreciatively accepted these gifts from her, which made me smile. Vanessa said she had a great time visiting "Nana".
I was heartened by Erika's comment afterwards that she thought it was the best place for Mom to be.
This promises to be quite the week: on Wednesday the local auctioneer will be coming by Mom's house and carting out what they believe they can sell. Friday I head up to the legal office in Keswick to sign over the house to its new owners, to be followed up by clearing out what's still left in the house. I imagine it will be very odd to see the house emptied of contents. It will likely be the last time I see the place.
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