Jenna & Mother & Archie

Visiting research associate Jenna Bott reports that Mother had an unusually high functioning day today, and was especially verbal.

Here's Jenna's report on their morning walk.

First of all, she wanted to go out, and I didn't have to coax her. Once out on the front steps she stopped me and said "Let's try this." she pointed to where she wanted me to stand, and said "Put your feet here." Once she had me positioned, she stood very close to me, and looking straight at me eye to eye, she said "I feel like we're....." and she reached forward and pulled my head to hers so that our foreheads were touching. We stood there for a minute. Then she laughed, and we continued on our walk.

Getting to the bottom of the steps, she said "Let's take a left." She said this at every corner as we went around the block. While we walked,  she talked to me about people passing by and when we passed the Morrison's we stopped and talked to John Morrison's wife. We also saw a little cairn terrier. I said "That dog looks like Archie." 

She didn't agree. I said "Archie was a good dog. I think he was a little off his nut, though." Mother immediately objected "Well, I don't!" and was so huffy that I apologized to her for my offense.

This entire morning, I felt Jean knew who I was. When she first saw me she said " I'm glad you're here." She related to me as my grandma, not as a person tolerating the company of a friendly stranger.