Going Through Clothes

March 19, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Went through an entire large dresser today, and was disappointed that I didn’t throw anything away! If that happens with my closet there won’t be room enough for everything. That means I’ll have to go through it all over again. Yuck.

My granddaughter is coming tomorrow night with her husband, and they are going to help. They will measure the furniture to see what if anything, will fit into the new apartment. And they are going to be doing a lot of work in my office, and about the art.

We’ll take all the help we can get.

In the meantime, dont forget about Adopt A Caregiver. Give the gift that lasts forever and costs nothing. Adopt A Caregiver, and tell them your friend Helene sent you.

Keep love and kisses in your life. Helene

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Memoir Workshop

March 18, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Our Anthem Authors Memoir Workshop was today, and I think it went over well. We did a good job, and hopefully those who came to listen will join our Anthem Authors and continue to learn.

This workshop will be up on our  www.anthenmauthors.com    website as soon as possible. Keep looking for it. I think those of you thinking about writing your memoirs will find it interesting. We had so much more information, but time was not available. Possibly we will continue to do this again in the future.

As you read last night, we are moving to an apartment in Irvine, California, probably mid May. We are so excited, but not looking forward to all the work involved. I think I will be spending my time clearing out stuff we cannot take to a small apartment, and actually packing.

Adopt A Caregiver is still my main priority, but it will have to be put on hold for the next few months. I will continue to write on my blog and keep you posted.

They are coming tomorrow to look at my computer, my internet and email go out much too often. We have replaced everything inside, now they will have to do something outside.

I have to go back to work for a little while, so talk to you tomorrow.

Keep love and kisses in your life. Helene

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Home Again

March 17, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Wow, we are home. In the five days we have been gone, we have managed to do a lot of different things.

Like, go to my granddaughter’s surprise birthday party. And that was great. Special!

We spent days looking at places to rent/buy in Orange County and on Friday afternoon, we rented an apartment. We do make decisions. We will probably move the middle of May or the beginning of June.  So much to do now. Go through the house and get rid of stuff, since we are downsizing quite a bit. Actually, a bit more than half.   Clean out drawers, cabinets, kitchen stuff, and closets. We did that once, now I see that we have to do it again.

And then, there is the matter of my office. What a lot of work that will be. My granddaughter and her husband are coming here late Thursday night, and Friday and Saturday and part of Sunday, we will all be working in my office. At least I will have help.

So friend, I am very tired, and have to unpack and get rid of the 100 or so emails that I won’t read, and have to get ready for our Anthem Authors Memoir Workshop tomorrow. I will have to work on that tomorrow morning.

I will talk to you tomorrow.

Give the gift that lasts forever and costs nothing. Adopt A Caregiver and tell them your friend Helene sent you.

Love and kisses Helene

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Have To Pack

March 11, 2009 By Leave a Comment

As usual I left my packing for the last minute. We are leaving for California in the morning, and not coming back until Monday afternoon.

I have no idea if I will have the time or strength to write, or even if I’ll know how to do it from a different city. I hope I can do it, even if I don’t write every night.

Our Memoir Workshop rehearsal went well today.  It is next Tuesday at 1pm. We will get it up on the www.anthemauthors.com website as soon as possible.

I saw an ad this morning from our local police department about protecting yourself from con artists. This applies to caregivers as well as seniors. Never give out pesonal information to anyone, keep your doors locked, your alarm on if you have one. Trust your instincts, if it’s too good to be true, it probably is. Pay attention in your neighborhood. Watch out for each other.

And give the gift that lasts forever and costs nothing. Adopt A Caregiver and tell them your friend Helene sent you.

Keep love and kisses in your life. Helene

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Thank You God

March 10, 2009 By Leave a Comment

I am not a religious person, I am a spiritual person, but in my book I kept saying, “Thank You God.”

I finally explained it by saying I’m so grateful for everything I have.

Especially today, we received good news about a diagnois that was getting a second opinion, and it’s been changed to a great diagnosis…Thank You God.

We all need good news sometimes, and there isn’t much around, but today, I am so grateful.

I’m proud of my Adopt A Caregiver program, and the good comments I get from friends and strangers alike. It’s such an easy thing to do. Listen to those around you, in every community there are caregivers. Offer to be their friend, send them an email. Be there for them. Think about standing in their shoes for a few hours, wouldn’t you want someone to support you in your time of need?

Give the gift that lasts forever and costs nothing. Adopt A Caregiver and tell them your friend Helene sent you.

Keep love and kisses in your life. Helene

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Grateful List

March 8, 2009 By Leave a Comment

I love doing grateful lists. They are short, easy, and meaningful.

I am grateful that I was able to finish so much paperwork, (with the help of my husband) today in my office. I was getting bogged down, and feeling a little bit brain dead, and he took over and finished it in record time. I also got done much more than I thought I would today, and I am grateful for that.

Tomorrow, I have my day laid out for me. I am grateful to be able to think how to plan my day. I can’t do that all the time, not when the Fibromyalgia kicks in.

I will designate part of the day in my office, read and watch tv. with my husband, and I plan on making a nice dinner. Something that will be a treat for both of us.

We are leaving on Wednesday for California..We will be gone until the following Monday. I am grateful that we both can drive half way. And I am grateful that the kids and grand kids want to see us. It’s going to be a great trip, and we are going to look for places to live. I am grateful that we are able to even think about that at our age.

Give the gift that lasts forever and costs nothing. Adopt A Caregiver, and tell them your friend Helene sent you.

Be grateful for all you have, for all you are able to do and make tomorrow a good day.

Keep love and kisses in your life. Helene

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What to Learn From Behind The Mask

March 7, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Is there anything to learn from my book, Behind The Mask? Yes, by standing in a new caregivers shoes for a few short hours, you will get the whole gamut of emotions I went through for seven years. According to the comments I get, it has changed some lives; it has shown caregivers that they are not alone in their thoughts and their feelings.

Does it matter? Yes. How can you Adopt A Caregiver, if you have no idea what that means. How can you have empathy, understanding, be non judgemental, how can you be a caregivers friend?

After you have read my book, or a different book on the same subject, only then can you know how a caregivers feels, and what she/he gos through every single day.

In your own community, there is a caregiver. Reach out, support that person. Give the gift that lasts forever, and costs nothing. Adopt A Caregiver and tell them your friend Helene sent you.

Keep love and kisses in your life. Helene

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Behind The Mask: Not Included

March 6, 2009 By Leave a Comment

I wrote something that I didn’t include in my book Behind The Mask. Obviously it was something I was thinking about, maybe even subconsciously. But it was there in my mind and I had to write it out. I didn’t include it in my book, but I will share it with all of you tonight. This is a fiction piece I wrote.

“The Last Dance by Helene Moore

Diana knew this would be an extraordinary night. She took a leisurely bath, filling the tub with scented oils. Vanilla and sweet almond oil mixed with lavender surrounded her with lazy luxury. It had been a long time since she felt so calm.

Lying back in the tub she went over the plans for the coming evening. Satisfied, she stepped out of the tub. Diana knew she was ready. It was time.

She dried and powdered her body with silken scent, then threw a short silk shirt over her naked body. She didn’t tie it; she let it flap around her as she walked across the soft carpet into the bedroom.

There on the bed was her husband, her best friend and lover for 40 wonderful year. Diana climbed into the bed. Tenderly she touched Stuart’s face. His eyes blinked once, she nodded in response. Reaching up she kissed his eyelids, her hands moving down his still body.

She rubbed her breasts along his stomach and reached downward and felt his erection. She looked deep into his eyes and he blinked at her, this time very slowly.

One last dance. Bittersweet. Loving and sensual. One last dance, she’d make it beautiful for both of them. After, when her heartbeat returned to normal, she looked again into Stu’s eyes. He blinked. It was time.

Diana lifted the silken pillow, gently placing it over her beloved’s face. Please God let it be quick.

She lay across his heart, holding the pillow tight. His agony was over. She let her tears drop onto his chest.

The last dance was finished.”

Because this was a fiction piece I wrote, I did not include it in the book. The book was entirely true journal entries.

Remember the caregiver, support the caregiver. Give the gift that lasts forever and costs nothing.

Adopt A Caregiver and tell them your friend Helene sent you.

Keep love and kisses in your life. Helene

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www.AnthemAuthors.com

March 5, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Our Anthem Authors website has just been updated  and there are some really good stories to read there. Please give us a try, and let me know how you liked it, and if I should keep you informed when it is updated. Our Memoir Workshop will be on the website too, sometime after our presentation on Mach 17th,

Tomorrow, the Henderson Senior Center will be coming to pick up the things I packed for them, and now my husband will be able to put his car back into the garage. Whew…Thank you guys, it’s quite a load. Hope you can use most of it, and sell what you can and make some money.

Working on paperwork again today, not my favorite thing to do. But I have to do it because it’s my office and no one can help me decide what to keep and what to throw away…

We sure picked an awful time to decide to move back to California…but I hope we can make it. I really miss the kids. And the grandkids.

I still want you to notice if there is a new caregiver in your community. Give the gift that lasts forever and costs nothing. Adopt A Caregiver, and tell them your friend Helene sent you.

Keep love and kisses in your life. Helene

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Behind The Mask

March 4, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Behind The Mask was written as a secret journal when my husband was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease in 1993. We wre strongly advised to keep this diagnosis a secret so he could keep his consulting jobs and his position on the Board Of Directors at Toys R Us.

I had no one to talk to; I didn’t want to burden my children, as they had small children of their own. I started a secret journal on my computer and knew that no one would ever see it.

Seven years later the doctor changed his diagnosis to Age Associated Memory Impairment. I don’t think anyone knew what was going on during those seven years. Howard and I thought Alzheimer’s was really happening.

I was frightened, angry, alone, depressed and worried. I was going to lose the man I loved even though he would still look like Howard, walk like Howard, his voice would be Howard’s and yet the one thing he prized the most, his mind would be gone.

I tried to smile and keep my fears away from him; he had his own fears and rightfully so.

When I was sure that Alzheimer’s wasn’t going to happen, I showed Howard my journal. With tears in his eyes he said, “This is beautiful, it’s you, it’s our love story and maybe it will help someone else. Publish it.”

It took me a long time but I finally said to myself why not. If reading my story and standing in my shoes for a few hours would help someone I was all for doing it. I self published the book last year, and I am still getting comments that make me cry.

After hearing some of these comments, I realized that I could do more. And so I started my Adopt A Caregiver journey. It starts in your own community, there is always a caregiver who feels alone and depressed, someone who needs a friend.

All it takes is an email. A few minutes of your time to help support someone who badly needs someone to talk to.

Give the gift that lasts forever and costs nothing. Adopt A Caregiver and tell them your friend Helene sent you.

Keep love and kisses in your life. Helene.

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