Tuesday, Oct. 11

We were up a 7 a.m. this morning, but I skipped my exercises to get ready to go for a dental appointment at 11:30. Since I knew I wouldn't be able to eat right after I got back from the dentist, I had a little more for breakfast.

Once I was ready for the day, I called Mother on the intercom, but when she didn't answer right away, I started out the door to go see about her. She buzzed back just as I got to the door. I answered the intercom, but couldn't contact her further, because she had somehow pushed a button that left her intercom open.

So I went to her house to find out what was wrong. She seemed nervous, and her hands were trembling, and I asked if she was ill and needed a doctor. She denied that she was sick. I finally asked if she'd fallen, and she admitted that she had. She said she'd bumped into a worktable in her kitchen and fell to her knees.

She showed me her left knee, which was swollen and very bruised. Apparently, she had somehow also fallen on her backside, because she complained that her lower back was hurting a little. She'd crawled to the intercom to answer it.

I retrieved her walker from her bedroom and insisted she use it. She has resisted using it, but I firmly insisted she begin using it today. In fact, I asked her to get up and use it to go to the bathroom, so I could assist her in learning to use it, and to see if her legs are functional. She made it to the bathroom and back just fine.

So I made sure she was comfortable on her couch and had a cup of coffee, a glass of water, and Ibuprofen for pain, before I returned home to make a haircut appointment for the two of us for tomorrow (we'll play it by ear as to whether Mother will feel like meeting her appointment).

Then Hubbie and I went to the dentist's office. By noon, I had still not been called back for my procedure, and I knew Mother would be hungry and ready for lunch. So I suggested Hubbie go back home and fix her something to eat and then come back to the clinic.

In the meantime, I was finally called back for my procedure. Because the procedure was painful, I was given gas and then shots. Hubbie returned shortly after the procedure was done.

My plan for supper tonight was chicken noodle soup, because I knew I'd need a "soft" meal. Mother was scheduled to make the soup today, but it was out of the question after her accident, so I asked Hubbie to do it. He's made chicken soup dozens of times before, but for some reason, today he chose to have brain freeze, and seemed not to know the first thing about how to do it. So I instructed him and then helped put it together.

It took a while for the effects of the deadening agent to wear off, so I couldn't eat lunch until around 3 p.m., when Hubbie fixed me a couple of poached eggs and bread and butter. Fortunately, he hadn't forgotten how to do that.

Later, after the chicken was cooked, I cooked noodles in the broth, and then took a serving of it to Mother. After Hubbie and I had eaten, I went back to Mother's to wash her dishes and see if she needed anything else. She didn't, but I stayed around until she nodded off, and then came back home.

I meant to go back to her house and help her get ready for bed, but when I buzzed her on the intercom at 9 p.m., she said she had already gotten into her night wear, and was going to camp out on the couch tonight, so she said she didn't need anything more tonight.

So we watched tonight's elimination episode of "Dancing with the Stars." The one who was eliminated was the one I predicted would go. Too bad. She's actually a good dancer.