Teamwork

If you heard the podcast on Tuesday, you know that Ryan's mom has come to stay with us for a little bit while she recovers from surgery. She's doing really well in getting around on her own, but she does still need some help in some areas, so she came to stay with us.

Ryan and I knew she'd be coming about a week before she arrived, so we began to plan and prepare, but there are some things you can't know until you're in the situation. So for the last few days, we've worked together to roll as a team to give her the best care we can while she stays with us.

We've actually giggled over it a little, because suddenly our texts look like this:

Ryan: Can you give her the next round of medication?
Me: Sure! Can you feed her dinner?

Apparently we've become parents to his parent. :)

We've learned to work together with the strengths we each possess. He gets up early to get her first round of medication to her, morning blood pressure and sugar readings, and anything else she may need. After he leaves for work, I make her breakfast and help her get settled in for the morning. Throughout the day, I keep up with her laundry, measure out her snacks, prepare her meals and track the carbs, greet her visitors, and help her find things she may need. When Ryan comes home, he resumes taking care of the medical part of things, and together, we try to make her laugh, make her think, coax her to rest, and talk out the hard parts of this road she's on.

When it's time for bed, we pray with her and tuck her in, and then it's possible we may find the secret stash of cupcakes hidden in the closet and settle in with our DVR'd shows. (Okay so the cupcake thing only happened once. But it felt very parental of us. SHES IN BED! GET THE CUPCAKES) And no, it's not that we won't share. It's that we're trying to help her watch her sugar. By eating it for her, apparently.

Even as we're finding our groove as a caretaking team, we are just a portion of the greater team that makes this time run smoothly.

Ryan's sister stopped by the other night and while she was here, I sneaked out to run a couple miles on the treadmill. Ryan's aunt was here the next night, allowing me to go ahead and leave for the Bible study I needed to lead before Ryan made it back home from the gym. Ryan's grandpa came over yesterday afternoon to sit with her while Ryan and I rushed to the church to record announcements. Ryan's step-dad came over for a little bit yesterday morning so I didn't have to cancel an appointment I'd made before I knew she was coming to stay with us.

All these people are her team. They're her team of prayer warriors and practical helpers. She may be staying here for a bit, but we are by no means alone in this thing.

Ryan and I are grateful for a season of life that allows us to be able to give her a place to stay, and we are grateful for the teamwork we're learning with one another as we navigate something brand new for us.

Meanwhile, if you need us and can't find us, we're probably in the closet eating cupcakes.