One of the ideas I had while at my parents' was to try to test Mom on various skills, to see what she's still capable of handling. From what I've been reading, listlessness and depression can greatly worsen symptoms of, well, just about any disease, so if she can still be useful to herself and others, so much the better.
The results were mixed. Mom could help me hold a wooden doll's bed as I dissembled it, but was not able to pack it back into its box for mailing. She can put ingredients into and stir spaghetti sauce (even correcting my measurements), but can't open cans, and I caught her breaking down the fresh tomatoes with her fingers -- which may just be her technique, who knows. She can't find the words for "lemon" or "face cream" but can sing along to the oldies. She can empty a dishwasher, but not replace the dishes.
My dad is so afraid she'll fall again that he's loathe to let her do anything, but I'll definitely let her give most things a try here, under my supervision of course. My housekeeping, frankly, isn't much better.
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