Road Trip to Dallas and Sustaining Elder Care – August 2025

My road trip to Dallas in August was over 3 days rather than 2 since the sister that visits my dad most frequently was taking a vacation. There was rain as I drove through Oklahoma on the drive down and then on the third day as I headed home….but the drive was dry on the ends (Texas and Missouri). It wasn’t as hot in Texas as I expected although the air quality was yellow the entire time I was in Dallas (and red in the later part of one day when I was, luckily, indoors).

The garden my sisters have maintained at the assisted living residence needs watering every day and we all take Dad out when we do that. He sits on the patio in the shade and enjoys the change of scene and outdoors in general. The house bought a new hose recently, so it was easier to maneuver without some of the plastic coming off the hose. There are peppers, tomatoes, and chives in a raised bed.

The sunflowers are at all stages of development. Next time I go, I will get some seeds to plant in my garden for next spring. I noticed that the miniature rose bush is surviving and there are some small Texas rock roses that my sister has managed to transplant successfully.

The temperature was pleasant enough that I decided to prompt Dad to do his PT in the patio chair. We were out long enough to see a lizard and katydid. On the last morning, I noticed there were lots of mosquitos, so we went back inside before finishing the round of PT…did the rest inside! I didn’t get any bites…and I hope he didn’t either.

The surprise at the residence was the staff finding out a company was coming to treat the kitchen for bugs…they quickly cleared the cabinets and asked if some of the things they weren’t using were ours. They were things we had brought from my parents’ house when they first moved to assisted living thinking it would help with the transition to have things they recognized. They did…but it’s been over 1.5 years now and my dad doesn’t remember any of them. My youngest sister packaged them up in reusable win bottle bags and took them home.

I enjoyed lunch with my youngest sister on the second day…splurged on a decadent dessert. I enjoyed the down time in the evenings – destressing with the usual Zentangle creation and reading and some exercise. The hotel breakfast was the same as usual: eggs with pepper, Cran raisins, walnuts, and a cinnamon raisin bagel.