Gotta Laugh 2

Billy's sleep patterns are hit and miss. It seems that he sleeps all night for several days in a row, and then for some Alzheimer's reason, he wakes up in the middle of the night or very early morning. This morning, it was 3:15 when he woke up and told me it was time to get going. When he starts telling me it's time to get up, I know he's finished sleeping, and it doesn't matter what I say or do. He took his shower, and got dressed, and then he started insisting that I get up and get ready. I tried to ignore him, cajole him, plead with him to let me sleep....all to no avail. When I relented and opened my eyes, I noticed he had turned on many lights. I continued lying in bed, and he got frustrated with me.

At one point, he said, "If you don't get up, I'm calling Parkwood Hill." That is my school, and at 3:50 a.m., I really got tickled about his threat. I told him no one was there yet, and he said, "Kathy, you know what you need to do. Now, get out of bed, so you can get to school." For some reason this struck me as so funny, and I did get up at that point because I knew laughing would probably make him angry. I took my time getting ready, and he reminded me every 10 minutes or so of the time. That's his way of telling me to hurry up.

When I picked him up this afternoon, the ladies told me he had a good day. He was in good spirits when I got there, and he was looking forward to going home. I told him we were going to Shelley's because I had an awards dinner to attend, and he would stay at Shelley's until I returned. I left her house at 6:oo, and I didn't get back there until almost 9:00. Shelley said he sat down to eat, and he paced or stood the rest of the time. Bless Shelley and Andrew for dealing...She said he kept looking out the window and saying, "I didn't sign up for this." Those words have multiple meanings to me. He didn't sign up for this stupid disease. He doesn't deserve it, and unless God intervenes in some way, he will not be cured. He's right. He didn't sign up for this.

Tomorrow is his day to stay home with Catherine, and I pray it's a calm day for them. She's such a blessing. She can tease with him, and get him to do things I can't. He always gives her a hug and tells her thank you for putting up with him when she's getting ready to leave. Looking forward to Thursday and praying for a full night of sleep.