And baby completes the sandwich
It's been almost 3 years since I made my one and only post. Life has a way of getting busy and overwhelming you. My family is growing and changing in every way possible. After my first post, I got married and had a beautiful baby girl. My parents have continued to decline and our family continues to find ways to navigate this new normal. The birth of my daughter completes my position in the "sandwich generation". I am taking care of a 9-month old and my aging parents. They are similar in a lot of ways. One of the biggest similarities is that their skillsets are constantly changing. Every week my daughter, Lena, changes and I find myself saying, "Oh shit, I didn't know she could do that!?!". I use the same phrase with my parents, but typically it's about a decline in a skillset. My current goal is to keep ahead of both sets of
milestones, but for babies, there are so many resources to help you predict what your baby will do next or what your baby should be doing at this particular age. With cognitive decline, the resources are much fewer and milestones are very unpredictable. Both my parents are declining in very different ways. My mother is very easy-going and welcomes help; my father sees our help as infringing on his freedom and he's very angry with us. Every day is a walk along a tightrope. Throughout this blog my goal is help you balance as you walk this tightrope by sharing my experiences and my expertise. Welcome to life with me and my aging parents.
