Due to the progression of my Mom’s disease it is difficult for her to easily move around and do some things for herself. One of those challenges is preparing food for herself. Therefore, I prepare all of her food or make sure she has something that is easily reheat-able in the microwave.
When I travel I try to make arrangements with my brother or nephew to come and stay with my Mom so that she doesn’t have to do too much. No matter what, it calls for a lot preparation on my part. I start by asking her what she would like to eat about 2 weeks advance. Doing so allows me to shop and prepare. The problem with that is she changes her mind or comes up with new stuff at the last minute and I end-up over-preparing (which isn’t so bad in the long run as we have food for a few days after I return).
I recently had a weekend trip planned so I began to prep in advance. I knew I had some food in the freezer that she could easily prepare and at first she agree to one of those dishes (red beans & rice), chicken salad from a local store, and sandwich meat for sandwiches. I’d also prepare some sausage biscuits for breakfast. Cool. I had a plan.
A few days later she stated she wanted a baked whole fish. Okay, so do you not want the red beans and rice? Yes, she still wants that. Fine. I picked up the chicken salad and the fish. Later that night she stated she wanted ribs from Whole Foods. Huh? What happened to the red beans? So we had a discussion and the red beans and the sandwiches were nixed. The next day I picked up the ribs and sausage from whole foods. So here’s what I prepped for her:
Grapes, sausage, baked fish (in the foil), and potato salad.
Porkchop, ribs, corn on the cob, and sausage biscuits. On the bottom: chicken salad, carrots, boiled potatoes, and a slice of sweet potato pie.
Cream soda, root beet, and milk in small jars (easier for her to manipulate).
Plastic utensils, paper plates, mugs, and chips on the counter.
When I returned on Sunday afternoon the pork chop was still there, a few ribs, one sausage link, a container of carrots, and some of the chicken salad. As stated, a lot of times I end up over-preparing.
