All the live-long day

A log of my morning to bedtime, for those who wonder what the days here are like:

8 a.m.: Get up and look in on Mom to make sure she's still breathing. (Seriously. I do this.) Tiptoe back out, make coffee, get the paper, and ready her meds.
8:15: Give Mom pain meds if her back is hurting her.
8:30: Boot up my work computer and log in. Check email and triage.
9:00: Get Mom up so she can take her morning meds. Have coffee and read the paper with her; give her a back or foot rub with coconut and lavendar oils
9:30: Make breakfast; make sure she takes her mid-morning meds; wash breakfast dishes
10:00: With Mom in bed for a nap, work until noon or 12:30.
12:30: Make lunch; wake Mom and have lunch with her. See if she needs pain meds; see if she wants to go for a drive.
1:00: If Mom wants to get out, go out. Otherwise, work some more.
2:00-5:00: Usually she's sleeping, so I work, checking in to see if she needs pain meds or water every hour or so. I'm able to keep a pretty normal work schedule this way.
5:30: Start dinner; give Mom coumadin
6:30-9: Have dinner with Mom; wash dishes; give her another back or foot rub; see if she's up for watching the news or a movie; if not, try to think up some other way to engage her mind. Like looking at old slides (see next post).
9-10: If Mom wants to go to bed, ready her bedtime meds. Remind her of what they are and what they are for. Help her get ready for bed. Remind her to put on her oxygen line.
10-midnight: Work if I need to catch up on work. Or prepare updated medication charts and caregiver coverage info for my siblings. Log the day's symptoms for the hospice nurse. Read if I don't need to work. Watch mindless TV.
3 a.m.: Wake Mom to see if her back hurts. If it does, give pain meds.
8 a.m.: Do it all over again!

If it's not a work day, or there's a break in my work, I can sneak out while Mom is sleeping to take care of errands, take a walk, or have lunch with a friend or sibling.