Woke up this morning to a sudden dramatic change in the weather. It was actually COLD outside, even after I was wrapped up in a jacket, toque, muff for my hands and a blanket over my legs. Felt like an old invalid. It's my hands that get cold the most, all day long, even inside.
But I did graduate to real food today. The speech pathologist came by yesterday and watched me eat various solid foods. So now I get things like salad, veggies and meat that I have to chew. Certainly nice to step up from having everything minced to having real food.
The decisions are slowly coming together, not without considerable stress, and today we finalized the big one - a vehicle. You have no idea how much it costs to modify a van to be wheelchair accessible. And how difficult it is to find a van large enough to carry a wheelchair, but still comfortable for Mrs. F.G. to drive.
Moving ahead steadily if slowly.
You've been meeting all the challenges. You will learn more good things to help yourself.
ReplyDeleteAnother step on the journey home for some home cooking. I don't even want to think about the cost of modifying the van. There's a health care provider in town who's used a vehicle with hand controls for many years -- but then he's had a substantial income the entire time.
ReplyDeleteThere is a place in London that specializes in those wheelchair van conversions and that is where the wheelchair vans I drove were serviced. Been there a number of times. In my Airport Van driving days I remember watching a powered wheelchair fellow at Pearson International Airport approach his van. He had a remote that opened the van side door and extended out and down the lift inside. He then backed onto that lift and with the remote raised himself up then backed himself into the van. From there he was able to pull himself up and into the drivers seat. The remote tucked the lift back into the van and with special controls on his steering column he was able to back out of his spot and head off into the Toronto traffic. Amazing. The 'Town and Country' company I drove a wheelchair van for is now called 'One Care' based in Stratford and I think they sell their used vans after awhile. The one's I drove were full size vans loading from the back but I like the newer mini-van vans I've seen that load from the side door.
ReplyDeleteHope your van works out for you. How about using some hand warmers for your cold hands, they sell them in packs of ten here...I try to keep some in my pockets in the winter for my cold hands:)
ReplyDeleteReal food, a huge bonus. I get very cold fingers and wear fleece mitts most mornings, even now in our spring. A vehicle to suit, guess if Mrs F.G. is shorter , like I am , a small enough one for her to manage, and large enough for your wheelchair is a huge hurdle. When we change our current one that is manual ( and I cannot manage a clutch ) we need one I can drive comfortably. You will get there, you do sound positive.
ReplyDeleteEVERYTHING costs more as soon as it is for the disabled. A simple turntable, used by mechanics working on engines, suddenly costs 5x as much when it's used for someone with limited movement to stand on while being transferred from one seat to another. I enquired once how much a remote control for a TV would cost for a young boy who had poor hand control, £100 I was informed. I ended up doing a simple conversion on a remote that I purchased for £12!
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear you are making progress with both your abilities and your decisions.
Eating real food again must be a real treat , glad you are enjoying it.
ReplyDeleteIt sure was cold , not my kind of weather, but at least no snow yet.
A mobility van that Mrs. FG can drive sure will be nice to get you out and about to enjoy some more wonderful scenery.
Hello, having a mobility van that is comfortable for you and Mrs G to drive will be wonderful. I am not looking forward to the cold weather. We have had a weekend of rain here, I wish it would go away. Happy Sunday, enjoy your day and have a great new week!
ReplyDeleteGood to hear you are making progress in all areas. Yes the cold weather isn't nice but, wait two days and we will be into another hot spell. Take care, soon you will be home.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for sharing your journey with us.
ReplyDeleteSo many changes and decisions can be daunting, but you are handling each one a step at a time. That's the way to go. Soon you will be home and figuring out how it will all come together. I'm sure having real food again is a major step and reward for all your hard work. Here on the western front Wayne and I traveled to Vancouver to apply for our Canadian passports. We have a trip back to the States in a little over to weeks so that was the best way to get them in time. The next step will be to get our Nexus cards updated. - Margy
ReplyDeleteMany years ago, I drove a woman's van with a wheelchair ramp and found it to be pretty easy to drive and manage getting her up and down and strapped in. She was a quadriplegic but taught speech therapy full time. I am glad you are making such progress, though. Oh, and congratulations on graduating to solid food again! :-)
ReplyDeleteThe cold came in here as well, though most of the day is still mild, but at night!
ReplyDeleteI went to the national firefighters service this morning and did some photography during the ceremony, stopped by William's name on the wall.
Congratulations on getting to eat real food and glad to hear you found a vehicle.
ReplyDeleteWow! That is another huge step, to eat real food. Do your liquids have to be thickened? Hopefully you are able to drink without the thickening. Wheelchair accessible vans are definitely costly. SIL had MS from her early thirties. They went through 2 or more specially equipped vehicles before she passed in 2000.
ReplyDeleteLucky to get an equipped van. I always had to wheel my hubby out to the car and get him settled inside then fold up the wheel chair pick it up and pitch in in the back of my car. I had a low sport car. We were hilarious----but I did it!!!!
ReplyDeleteSo glad your going home day is rapidly arriving
MB