Nan 1 – Alzheimer’s 0

Claire — Sat, 30 Jan 2016 12:23:00 +0000

Yesterday was a good day for my nan and I cannot tell you how grateful I am that I chose that day to visit her. Things seem to have deteriorated a lot since her diagnosis a few months ago to the point where she is accepting a lot more help (thankfully) but she is also fast becoming a shell of the nan I used to know and adore. Some days she struggles to even form a sentence and the hardest part is when she looks at me and her eyes look glazed and empty. It hurts to write these words as I feel like my nan is slipping away from me and there’s nothing I can do to help her come back. She no longer recognises herself in the mirror and at times I can see how frustrated she must be feeling as she cannot do some of the things she has always loved such as read novels and knit. I treasure the knitted jumpers and mittens she made for Chunk before he was born, as sadly these will be the last things she will ever have made for me. There’s been some really difficult times recently which have exacerbated my awareness of how much I of my nan I have already lost. Things have been pretty awful with my mother’s health, my own health and my sister no longer wants me in her life. At times like this I’ve always turned to my nan as a strong shoulder to lean on and I’ve always valued her advice and wisdom. So during this last couple of weeks when I’ve automatically reached for the phone I’ve had to stop myself and I’ve realised I have to deal with this on my own, and it bloody sucks. My mum is too unwell to deal with me dumping my fears and sadness onto her so I literally have no one. But when I start to feel low and sorry for myself I kick myself back into shape by reminding myself that nan is feeling the loneliest and most isolated she has ever felt with this cruel, cruel disease. She has nobody to turn to because she cannot even get the words out to ask for help or describe how it feels. She has lost her three-dimensional sight so finds it hard to walk around the house and even pick up a drink. I’ve lost the rock who listened to me day in, day out for months on end each time I had a bout of unipolar depression which has been on and off since I was 15 years old. I’ve lost the lady who would be able to tell me how to revive the flowers I killed or how to help my little boy when he would have various ailments. I’ve lost my nan who would buy me a magazine and chocolate every weekend as a child, and who continued to even when I was 25 years old. I’ve lost my nanny, my one and only nanny and it hurts so much. So yesterday was a beautiful blessing where I got to have a treasured hour of my nan back, who told me what the weather was like, who conversed with me about the family and who played with Chunk. I looked into her eyes and it was my nan and I want to treasure that small moment of time forever. Don’t ever take your grandparents for granted. Even at 31 years old I still want and need my nan and I always will. Sponsor my SkyDive for Alzheimer’s here. Follow me on Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest or Facebook

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Toy Review: Grandpa Pig’s Boat Construction Set

Claire — Tue, 26 Jan 2016 20:53:00 +0000

Chunk was sent Grandpa Pig’s Boat Construction Set this week to test out from the new Peppa Pig Construction Range. The boat is aimed at children above the age of 18 months and the set includes a large boat on wheels and a Grandpa Pig figurine. Chunk enjoyed assembling the boat all by himself whilst Mummy guided him using the (thankfully easy) instructions. Within ten minutes the boat was built and we were able to decorate it with the stickers that were included in the box. The boat itself appears quite light, but solid, and this was proven for the next couple of hours after putting it together when Chunk was zooming around the flat with it and banging it into walls and furniture occasionally. By building the boat himself it helped Chunk to practice his hand-eye coordination as well as concentration and dexterity, and since putting it together he has taken it apart a few times and created other objects with it, so I love the toy’s versatility! There are other sets in the construction range that will go well with this boat, including Peppa’s family car, some other character figurines and Grandpa Pig’s train, so I’m sure Chunk will be getting some of these for his upcoming birthday… Chunk was sent this product to test for the purpose of this review. No payment was received and all opinions are honest and my own. Follow me on Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest or Facebook

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Nan 1 – Alzheimer’s 0

Toy Review: Grandpa Pig’s Boat Construction Set