Anne came home from Target with a packet of colored stickers, some Sharpies and some giant ziplocks. We began the sorting process. We went through Mom's cedar chest, the books, the crystal, vases and silverware and the paintings. The house is a mess, and I won't pretend it's an orderly mess, but everything has stickies on it now! This made Mom feel better because she is worried about people not getting things. There are heirloom items for all of the nieces, but boys are harder to "shop" for. The girls will be getting not only a piece of their Aunt Frances, but a piece of Grandma Lorna or Della.
Mom was very helpful in identifying the origin of the items in her cedar chest. We made sure to write where everything came from, because no one else will ever figure it out.
I am not sure yet what I'll be doing with full service silver, china and crystal... Alyson and I also did some more work in the yard and Mom's cousin Steven Call drove up and spent several hours with us. Mom enjoyed seeing him again. Uncle Garry also came by and stayed for a while.
We have an appointment tomorrow with the mortuary in Bakersfield. The booklet the hospice nurse gave us places her breathing patterns (occasionally stopped for 10-15 seconds at a time) under "one to two days to hours prior to death". I think I noticed this earlier, but Hillary pointed it out today.
Thu May 04 2006 22:51:
Today has been a very productive day. Rachel and I awoke early by Mom and Anne talking about Rachel. Don't worry, Anne is writing down all the conversations we have with Mom. I didn't get a lot of sleep because I stayed up late cleaning Rachel's room (but not as late as everyone else). The day began with a clean house.