Vermont Part 1

We arrived in Vermont Sunday noon after a very long trip. We left Friday night about 7 pm midst heavy thunder storms. Needless to say, our traveling time was very poor. By the time we got to my dad's house in Troutville, VA it was 9:30 and we were not very excited to try to travel any more in the storms. So we spent the night there. Of course, they were gracious hosts. They quickly found beds to put all of us up. We were told that the storms were to continue through the next day all the way up the coast. But we would rather drive in the rain during the day than at night. So we had a very good night's rest.

Monday was long and greuling. With two 3 year olds we had to make numerous stops. We stopped at the fast food places, a mall, rest areas, etc. But not only did we have to take potty breaks for the girls, but Rick needed them too. I think the strange places confused him and he didn't seem to know how to go by himself. So I ended up taking him into the ladies restroom with me. We got a few strange looks at times but no one said anything. It seemed to work out fine.

I have learned that some of his anxiety spells are related to his needing to use the bathroom. He gets very anxious and shaky. He just can't tell us what he wants. But if we ask him if he needs to go to the bathroom, he usually says yes. Or nods his head. Then after going he is better and more relaxed again. It seems we are constantly learning new things to help him.

We got to Schenectady, NY about 9:30 pm Saturday night and decided the girls ... and all of us ... had had quite enough traveling for one day. Even though it was only 3 hrs to our destination, we decided to spend the night with our long time friends, Howard and Bonnie Spink. Again, our hosts were most gracious. Cheryl and Tamara, with their daughters, slept upstairs in the bedroom there and Rick, Erin and I had the camper to ourselves. When we woke up Sunday morning, there was a good bacon and egg breakfast waiting for us. We got on the road about 8 am, much to Cheryl's chagrin.

Of course we were all very glad to be at our destination. The last few minutes of our travel I was watching Rick closely. He was very alert and watching the scenery. I asked him if he knew where he was and he said yes. He seemed to be more alert than he was the entire trip. When we got to Bev's house (his sister) and he saw her, he just hugged her and hugged her. He became teary.

Rick's cousin, Lafe, came over with his friend, Lisa. Lafe is a professional musician and sings and plays his guitar and harmonica. So we sat around the dining room table singing for an hour or two. Rick really enjoyed this. He sang out loudly on all the songs he knew. It was just a good time for all of us.

Monday was rainy so we didn't get to do any outdoor activities. We decided to go see Rick's cousin, Jackie's new home. It is in Northfield, VT and she and her husband, Jerry, have 10 acres of land with 4 horses. Rick was so happy to see Jackie. He hugged her a long time. Then he got quite teary and crying. I believe it was tears of joy. He loved looking out the window at the horses. This may have been a little nostalgic for him and may account for some of the tears.

Monday night, Bev had made reservations for us to make stepping stones using old brick she had picked up from the river bed on the Coburn home place. She told us that the farmhouse had originally been planned to be brick. The brick was all made and then some one wanted to buy it so it was sold. They made a second batch of brick but ended up selling it too. Therefore, the house was made out of wood. So the brick we used was probably as old as the brick that was supposed to be used for the Coburn homeplace.

Bev and I spent time hammering the brick to break it into little pieces so that we could use it to make designs on the stepping stones made out of concrete. It was a lot of fun and now we have useful souvenirs of the Coburn homestead. Mara and Emma had a good time playing in the rain. They got quite soaked.

Tuesday turned out to be a very nice day. So we went to Stowe to go Alpine Sliding. As we got up to the village and up the mountain, Rick became more and more animated. He kept pointing to things and making comments like, "There it is." We knew he was recognizing places. When we went into the bathroom, he told me. "I want to go up the mountain." "I've seen too much." I've seen so much." He was so excited to see these places again. He couldn't articulate what he was seeing but we knew he knew what he was seeing and was happy about it.

This morning was rainy again. We were hoping to go horseback riding today, but our plans got changed. We just hung around the house this morning. Rick's friend, Bob Forrend, came by and visited and had lunch with us. He has been a great friend to Rick since high school. Rob, Bev's son, and Cheryl and Tamara, went to the movies this afternoon. I stayed here to let the girls take naps. Rick, Bev and Erin went to the farm to feed the pony. They just got back. So I guess I will go now. I will make more entries later on. I will add pictures when I get home. We will be leaving VT on Saturday morning.

God's Provisions

The anxiety attacks seem to be getting worse. I haven't been able to figure out why they come. We have increased Rick's Xanax up to .75 mg 3 x d. But it doesn't seem to help. He still has the attacks.

I was looking at the online Bible that Lifeway.com provides free. I was trying to find a scripture that would be a good one to put on my email signature. I came across Romans 16:20, "And the God of peace will crush Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen." This verse seemed to jump out at me. It was what I needed to hear. I printed it out and taped it to my computer and my bathroom mirror. I thank God that I can stand on His promises.

Last week, Rose, one of the ladies at our church that we have known for a long time, called me and said she was up a good part of the night thinking about having a special prayer time for Rick. She wanted to know what I thought about it. She said she had already discussed it with the Pastor and he was all for it. I was excited about it. It seemed that God was answering my prayers. We decided to have the prayer time Tuesday, June 20, at 9:00 pm. She felt that maybe everyone would be winding down from their daily activities and could spend 5 minutes in prayer for Rick. So it was put into the church bulletin Sunday and also announced from the pulpit. Several people called others outside of the church to pray for Rick and I emailed everyone in my address book.

Last night, there were 15 people who came to our house to anoint Rick with oil, lay hands on him and pray for him. This is in accordance with James 5:13-15, "Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick."

We also stood on Matthew 18:18-20, "Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. Again I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven. For where tow or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them." Mark 11:22-24, Have faith in God. For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, Be removed and be cast into the sea, and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. There fore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them." I Peter 2:24, Who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness--by how stripes you WERE healed."

Our prayer time lasted longer than the 5 minutes called for. It was a great time of reaching out to God our healer and seeking His face. We believe that in God's timing the manifestation of Rick's healing will be seen. Praise God!

Yesterday morning I took Rick to get his blood drawn for a Dilantin level. This was to be done 6 weeks after we increased his Dilantin. This morning, I got a call from the doctor's office saying it was 34.3. The normal therapeutic range is supposed to be 10-20. So he was way over. We have to decrease his dosage back to where we originally had it. Dr Pearce is away on vacation this week so I couldn't talk to him. My question is: Can this high level of Dilantin be causing Rick's anxiety attacks? I decided to talk to Dr Pearce's physician assistant, Rich Lowder. He said that it is highly possible that it is causing the anxiety, twitching, confusion and the like. I am very anxious to get him down to the proper level and see if we get rid of the anxiety. I am excited to think that we have found a cause for this and maybe we can leave off the Xanax.

We are leaving to go to Vermont Friday. There will be 7 of us traveling up to see Rick's sister, Bev and her family. This is where Rick grew up. We are hoping this will be a very good trip for Rick. We are planning on horse back riding and alpine sliding and having a wonderful time with our family we don't get to see very often.

Thanks again for all your prayers. It is only through the grace of God that we are able to carry on.

The Alzheimer's Prayer

Click the title to follow the link.

Disease Progression Sneaks Up On Us.

The last several days, even in to last week, Rick has been much more anxious than previously. He has become so shaky that his feet come right off the floor. (This is while sitting.) His arms and hands shake so badly that the glass of water sloshes all over. This doesn't seem to happen anywhere but at home, or with family members. I have been giving him Xanax every morning now for the past week. Sometimes he wakes up this way. I called Dr. Pearce who gave me permission to give him .5 mg of Xanax now instead of just .25 mg. This seems to help.

Today we have planned to have supper with our friend, Cindy English and her son. Cindy was our patient at Dayspring while we worked there. She is still seeing Dr. Pearce and comes down monthly for therapy. Many times we try to get together when she is down.

I told Rick this morning that we were going to see Cindy tonight. I didn't think it sunk in at the time.

I called the Center this afternoon to let them know that I would be picking Rick up about 5 pm today. They told me that Rick was having a bad afternoon. I spoke with Sabrina, the nurse, who told me that she gave him an extra Xanax .25 mg this afternoon. She said he was just sitting down. She got him up and walked with him. That and the Xanax seemed to calm him down.

When I came to pick him up this evening, he seemed ok. But when I told him again that we were going to see Cindy, he didn't seem excited. Usually he shows excitement and interest in seeing old friends. But he didn't seem to take it in.

We got to the restaurant before the others. Rick sat quietly waiting. Not much interest in anything. No comments about anything. When Cindy actually arrived, I don't believe he said much to her. She and I talked throughout the meal. Erin and Patrick talked, but Rick just concentrated on his dinner. When he was done eating, he sat there with his head down and actually went to sleep. I woke him up and tried to get him into the conversation some, but it didn't work.

When it was time to leave, he didn't show much remorse of having to go. Cindy hugged me good bye and then hugged Rick, but he hardly responded.

This is so different from what he has been like. He usually has enjoyed being with others. Even if he didn't say much he at least made eye contact and smiled. He would make short comments that may not have fit, but at least he was trying to enter in. Tonight, he didn't make any effort to enter in to the conversation at all.

This was very hard on Cindy. We haven't seen her now for several months. It is harder when the change is so sudden. We, who are with him all the time, only see the gradual change. It doesn't seem as stark.

After we got in the car, I thought that I should give Cindy this web address. So I wrote it on a napkin I had in the car and then gave it to her. She hugged me and cried. I cried too. It was more than either of us wanted to see.

Thank you, Cindy, for your friendship and your prayers. It is only by the grace of God that we can make it day by day.

Rick went to bed tonight at 8:30 pm. He can't seem to enjoy a TV program anymore. Not even his favorite, Walker, Texas Ranger.