Expectations

I've heard all the stories.  The good, the bad and the ugly.  Huntington's Disease is known to have an element of dementia.  We have all heard the stories where a person with dementia moves house and goes into a downward spiral.
I'm hoping this is not the case for us.  Next month we leave our home of 31 years and head south for just over an hour to our new house between the estuary and the ocean.  It has all happened in a month and I can only say it was God who was is control. 
Neither my younger sister or I envisaged our house was go under offer on the very first 'home open'.  The agent only invited people on his data base and we received an offer $10,000 more than we had hoped for.  But don't stop there, there is more.  The agent went back and wrangled $5,000 more from the buyer.  I was speechless!
We had not advertised our house on the agent's website or even had a For Sale board at the front of our property.  The agent said it cost $130 for the board.  I retorted if he wanted the board erected on our property for advertising reasons he could pay for it himself.  He did.
Everything has gone through without a hiccup.  Only now there are some minor hiccups but plenty of time to sort them out.
I've even booked the removal van, the carpet cleaner and so many other things.  Now it's time to pack.
Merv will be in respite during the move.  I'll pick him up ten days later.  I hope he'll be as thrilled as we are about the move.

Mel and the Sold Sign for our new house

Emergency

On Thursday I dropped by the baby shop and bought a Baby Monitor.  I had no baby in mind.  I bought it for Merv to use.  He has decided he wants to get up during the night to go to the toilet instead of using his urinal bottle.  Very much a hit and miss affair!
I had ran out of time to read the manual and get the damn thing operating, therefore on Friday night Merv fell with a thud on the bathroom floor.
I had no choice but to ring 000.  It was 4:30am and I had tried unsuccessfully but failed at all attempts to get him off the floor.  I had woken to find Merv sprawled on the bathroom floor.  The floor had been wet and he slipped on his way to his toilet.
I tried sitting him up and asking him to pull himself up using a dining chair with arms to support him.  I then suggested he crawl to the bedroom and use the bed to pull himself up but he was like a trapped spider.  Arms and legs flailing aimlessly with anxiety.
I put some towels under his head, located my mobile phone and rang Emergency. I explained the situation and answered all their questions.  I unlocked the front door, turned on the outside light and waited.
I dressed in case Merv had broken or damaged a limb. It wasn't long before the young man and  woman paramedics arrived.  They were a blessing, managing the situation professionally but with compassion.  They took Merv's blood pressure, made medical observations and assessed him for damaged limbs and body parts.
After ten minutes they had him in sitting position and using a towel under his arms as leverage they pulled him up and sat him on the chair.
Merv refused to go to the hospital and I signed to say that was his decision. 
After he had used the toilet and was tucked up in bed once more, he lay motionless for the rest of the night while I dozed for a few hours.
Needless to say the Baby Monitor is up and running tonight.  Merv has been given instruction how to ring his bell to get my attention and wake me from my slumber.

Goodbye January

The new year has come and gone without a blog from me.  I have certainly thought about it but my fingers haven't hit the keyboard for awhile.
Christmas was a lovely celebration.  Though it was the first without Mum.  My younger sister invited us to her house and we delighted in celebrating with her and her family.  It was a lovely day.
Merv's Huntington's has progressed. Though his injury from his fall in October has healed he is still unable to walk without assistance and only in the house. Outside he uses his wheelchair.  His speech is difficult to decipher at times and his response is very slow.  I have to remember it is his disease which slows him and he's not just being a grouchy old man! Yes it's hard to live through it, knowing what we had and being aware of what is to come.
That brings us to the house.  I had decided over twelve months ago to do up the house and sell it while keeping in mind when Merv goes into residential care full time I am unable to sell the house without giving fifty percent to the care home.  If I stay in the family home I don't need to do that.  Oh the laws of the land and behaving shrewdly!
At the end of January this year we received a very good offer on our home of thirty one years.  I had  help from family, friends and tradies renovating and bringing our much loved home to what I could foresee as a healthy selling standard.
Today we viewed and put forth an offer on a house an hour away from our current house.  It is more than adequate and suits our budget while giving us a 'sea change.'
It has enough room for Merv, myself plus daughter Mel who is coming to live with us.  It was super cheap as real estate prices have plummeted in the area.  It is definitely livable but needs work to make it into a home.  Oh, yes another long term project.
I don't sleep well at night.  My nights are filled with what is happening.  Selling and buying houses but mostly of Merv's wellbeing.  When I wake at night I check on him and ask him if he wants to go to the toilet.  Many times he does.  I will sleep afterwards depending on the time.  I dread the thought of placing him in care permanently.  It fills me with dread, but it is something I need to do not just for me but for him also.  There will come a time when I will not be able to give him the care he deserves and requires.
At this time we will move to our new house and see how we go.