“This is supposed to be the time of my life – the nest is empty; but now Mom needs me.”

Had to move out of our house for four days because they were doing some renovations – Mom was not a happy camper. Staying in a hotel with minimal things was just too confusing for her… talk about being out of sorts!

Every morning Mom would call our room around 8 am. She didn’t know where she was and didn’t know what to do. I would go to her room and help her out, let her know the routine and then go and grab her some breakfast. After a while everything was fine, and Mom was back to her usual self and asking when we were going out to eat. It was the same thing every day.

I was hoping that getting away for a few days would be a nice change for Mom but I guess mixing things up did not sit well with her. She talked a lot about the cleaning staff and maintenance workers but I didn’t think anything about it – until we checked out. I was walking through the lobby with Mom and she saw a maintenance man. As we walked by him Mom said, “Thanks Joe, we are leaving now.” What? She knew his name? That’s when I realized she had been calling the front desk and having maintenance and cleaning staff at her room – probably one too many times.

But now we are home and things are back to usual – still afraid of the night and still asking if we are going out to eat. Some things never change.

What I Learned: Stick to the normal routine.