Finally getting to this part…
Christopher arrived! The condo felt full. The cats handled having “new” people well – not scared because they met Christopher before. Very curious about his stuff, but otherwise no biggie for them.
Christopher has gotten into the Cuenca groove. He has had his hair dyed blue twice and now has a short “normal colored” hair. He has a two bedroom, furnished apartment and a dog named “Miel” (Honey in Espanol).
Brady settled into Rioquinto Senior Facility. We visit with her once a week and, until recently, she stayed with us once a month for a long weekend. Never much of an exerciser, she has not done much to strengthen herself. The staff at Rioquinto are extremely attentive and spend a great deal of time visiting with her, trying to get her to do light exercises, attempting to get her to go out and spend time with others and in the fresh air, etc.
In August she was hospitalized for diverticulitis and a UTI. We visited with her a couple times a day, and Dra. Dupreeuw came several times. She spent a week on an IV and antibiotic drip which cleared the two infections. Because Brady did not like the food and wasn’t eating enough, the hospital staff arranged for the cook to meet with her to see what they could make that she would like. Imagine having the hospital cook come to you and offer to specially make food you like!
She was discharged with instructions that she needed to try to exercise to get her strength back. I would love to say that Brady is doing her best to help herself regain even a little of her strength, but I cannot. The nurses try coaxing her to sit up, do exercises (they help her stretch), go outside (two nurses are needed to move her as she does not offer any assistance to them), etc. She does virtually nothing to help herself and chooses only to stay in bed watching Netflix and napping. As a result, she is getting weaker and has been hallucinating. She does not want to eat or do anything.
We have been in contact with the nursing staff, the facility director, and Dra. Dupreeuw regularly and we will visit with her this Tuesday. Hopefully she will be alert enough to plan her next steps. 🤞🏼Fingers crossed.
To end on some positive notes…
Keri was able to spend three weeks with us and we showed her as much as she felt like exploring. There will be more next visit. We’ve recieved our permanent Visa and Cedula (ID) and so has Christopher. I am taking una clase de espanol again and enjoying it. Andy is still very active in the Pickleball community and weekly Trivia. Christopher is taking online courses in counseling, a dance class, as well as regularly walking Miel. I found a used Pfaff sewing machine and can now “make” stuff! etc. So lots of good and a few hiccups.
My next post will cover the many places and things we have seen so far this year!
brauner abroad 