Some of It Is Stopping, Kinda...

 Super-fast update...

First & foremost: The Pipsqueak's rapid COVID test came back negative. There was some anxiety because no matter what she or AJ did, they could not access the results through the online portal and had to wait until Sunday morning to try to get hold of someone via phone. The standard (slower) test results won't be back until Tuesday or Wednesday, but we're all breathing a heck of a lot easier now.  On the downside, another one of the girls tested positive but is asymptomatic.

The aides/agency: I'm still working up a single document listing all the invoices by date and things just keep getting weirder.  To add insult to injury, we've had Dad under the auspices of a hospice program since early this year -- not because he's on his way out, but because they have a longer-term program specifically for families in our situation (where the time period can be up to 2 or 3 years, rather than hospice's usual 2-3 months). Well, he gave us a bit of a medical scare last week and we're still arguing with them about getting a basic wide-spectrum blood test done. Worst case scenario, we find out what's going on and know we can't do anything about it; best case scenario, we find out what's going on and are able to do something about it. In either case, we at least know what the blazes is going on... and the lead doctor for the program is refusing to do anything but the most bare-bones basic test "...because you're not going to be able to do anything anyway."  Dealing with dementia is a soul-sucking horror straight out of an H.P. Lovecraft story, so thankyouverymuch to all the "helpers" and "providers" who keep making things worse instead of providing actual help and/or comfort.

My stupid camera: I've downloaded the user manuals for the two cameras in the running as replacements and will probably lay out far more money than I really should in a few days. <sigh>

Anyway, that first point was what I wanted to make sure I got out there, the rest kinda just slipped out because I really needed to vent... Sorry for hijacking your blog-reading time, gang.

Oh, we had a (very) small family celebration dinner Sunday night to recognize Miriam's scholastic achievements, and she's really looking forward to getting back into her classes once the winter break is over (she's still in school this week, but pretty much everyone's slacking off for the holidays).

Also, since I'm not entirely sure I'll be making another post before 2022 rolls around, I just want to wish all my readers a very happy holiday season and a happy, prosperous, and HEALTHY new year!

Y'all be careful out there, okay?

Would Someone Please Just Make It Stop?

 O-kay... The dance studio's big holiday recital/show was this past weekend, and Miri was in 11 of the 30 numbers.  Yeah, almost half the show -- how crazy is that?  In one of the numbers, she and one of the other older girls were sort of guiding/helping/herding some of the youngest through a ballet number (very cute!), and in another she was the swing and had to take the place of one of her friends whose family had apparently forgotten about the show, made other plans, and gone out of town.   It sounds horrible, but the Pipsqueak had conscientiously attended every. single. rehearsal.  even though she was just a swing, so the number came off without a hitch.  In fact, all her numbers (all groups of 4 or larger) turned out really well.  Some friends of ours from our adoption group came -- they haven't had a chance to see Miriam dance since the whole pandemic mess started -- and said they were really, really impressed with how much she's developed as a dancer in the interim and how good she looked onstage.  We were also joined by one of Mom & Dad's neighbors -- one of very few remaining in the neighborhood who moved in around the same time back in 1970 -- and after repeating how good Miriam looked, she added, "She dances well above her age."  (I've said that my niece has been "punching up" in many ways since birth, and this isn't the first time someone who's not heard me say that has made some kind of statement to the same effect.)

For the past two weeks, Miri has been going to physical therapy twice a week to help heal & strengthen the ankle that gave way in gym class a little while back.  Not only is she doing really well physically, she's actually having fun during the PT sessions and is making sure she does all the assigned exercises at home.

The real icing on the cupcake came tonight... I had taken Mom shopping and just moments before we got back to the house Miriam called to tell us she's been accepted into the National Junior Honor Society!  She was so happy that she kept giggling through the call... she's worked really hard in school and there've been a few grumbles about no one really recognizing how much time & effort she puts in, so this is A Big Thing for her.

So what is it that I want to make stop?

My "trusty" camera's been acting up most of the year, and I had so much trouble with it at the recital that I've decided I have to bite the bullet & replace it. At first it wouldn't turn on at all until I'd done two battery swaps; the zoom refused to work at all until it suddenly did after about 20 minutes of my trying to use it; several times the camera would stop recording video and switch to photo mode if I touched the zoom switch; lines of the in-camera leveling display were not only not parallel to each other, it turned out that none of them was parallel to the floor, either; the automatic exposure sometimes worked and sometimes didn't; and plenty more.  Now all I have to do is come up with money I don't have to replace the camera...

 But wait, there's more...

One of the  girls in the small group dance where Miriam filled in for a friend who was out of town was annoyed with her for "taking away" the original girl's position (this number happens to be one of several in the show that the team will be presenting in competition in the coming months). This despite Miri being the official "swing" for the group, despite both the team coach & studio owner placing her in the group to fill the blank spot, and despite Miri repeatedly saying it was only for this one performance, she has no desire or intention to take the slot away from her friend, and that as the official swing it was actually her job to dance in that performance so no one had to worry about changing the placement, choreograpy, etc. at literally the last second.

But wait, there's more...

Even better, the friend whose spot Miri danced -- you know, the one who was out of town -- has apparently been annoyed as well, despite not having been available for this one performance.

But wait, there's more...

While all this other "outside" good stuff was going on, the company we've been using to provide in-home aides to give Mom at least a few hours of breathing space each week has suddenly "gone corporate" -- new answering system on the phones that makes reaching a human impossible, no one returning calls or providing promised feedback, the one person in management that Mom had become friendly with changed to a new position in management and no longer answers her cell phone outside specific hours on specific days, and the latest invoice has some really weird stuff going on that we need an explanation for pronto to avoid problems with the insurance company.

But wait. there's MORE...

Late this evening (technically last night, since it's well past midnight now), AJ got notice that one of the girls in one of Miri's dance classes just got back positive results on a COVID test so she & Miri are going to have to scramble to get a rapid test done. On a Saturday morning. During a surge in local cases.

Would someone please just make it stop...?

Just A Super-Quickie...

 Hi, all... just a few words (and a silly pic) at 4:28am since I woke up & can't seem to fall back asleep...

The overall family situation remains unchanged; lots of stress, lots of worry, lots of love, lots of care. We're all dealing with the progression of dementia as best we can, and the Pipsqueak is showing us just how amazingly strong a young woman she's becoming.  Oh, it's affecting her, for sure -- but I'm constantly amazed at how she's able to stand up straight under the load (on top of the usual "stuff" that one deals with in middle school, hormones, and an ongoing pandemic <sigh>).

Along with some of our adoption group friends & an interested neighbor, Mom & I were able to attend the annual holiday show put on by Miri's dance studio (AJ was there as well, working backstage).  The studio's been in major flux for several months, since the building that's housed it for years is now being converted by its owner into an assisted living facility and the many businesses that were housed there got (semi-gently) booted out. The problem is that the new studio was supposed to be completed in August... September... December... January... and now the contractor is saying March.  Classes have been held at a local Catholic high school, the Sandy Spring Museum, and even a "pick your own" blueberry farm and yoga/spiritual center.  In any case, the show was a lot of fun, and included a number of the dance team's competitive numbers planned for this season... and they absolutely slayed it.  Our neighbor, who's lived across the street since we moved here in 1970, was absolutely floored by Miriam's skill and said "she dances well above her age" -- which fits right in with my idea that she's been "punching up" almost since birth.  One of our friends who's known Miri since she came home and who's attended a number of previous shows said she was really amazed at how much the Pipsqueak has matured as a dancer.  All this while the Pipsqueak is attending physical therapy twice a week to help heal her injured ankle...

 (Dude, you're kvelling again.) (You bet your sweet bippy I am!)

Anyway, we're all still super-tired, super-stressed, and super-sleep-deprived, but we're all hangin' in and managing to keep things from totally unraveling on even the worst of days.  I'm still planning to get back to blogging a little more regularly (and with more/better family content, plus increased focus on adoption-related issues in general), but right now I'm gonna try to get back to sleep so I'll leave you with this sample of my niece's happily weird sense of humor, drawn almost exactly a year ago, that I found while going through a stack of papers.

Y'all stay healthy out there, and have a great holiday season!