It's been a while since dad has called me by name. He's been in the process of forgetting it for quite some time.
Our conversations used to go something like this:
Dad: "Now, you're Michelle?"
Me: "Yes."
Dad: "And I'm your dad?"
Me: "Yes, I'm your daughter Michelle."
Dad: "That's right, and who was your mom?"
We haven't had that particular conversation lately. Whenever I come into a room where he is, I always say "Hi Dad!" so he knows he's my dad. I'm not sure he always gets the connection, but his replies lately are, "Hi Babydoll", "Hey Love", "Hi Ladybug" or some other endearment, instead of my name.
My niece Claire called today to see if we could meet for lunch. She and her husband Dan are in town visiting his family for the holidays. As we were getting ready to go to the car, dad was standing in the path to the door, so Tanner said, "Excuse me Grandpa" as he tried to get around him. Then dad turned to me and asked, "Who told these kids they could call me Grandpa?" I told him it was because he was their grandpa, that he was my dad and they were my boys, so that made him their grandpa. To which he had one of his classic comebacks, "Oh, that's how it works." He is really good at covering up when he realizes he should have known the answer to the question he just asked by making a joke about it.
Then, tonight for dinner I made dad a salisbury steak with scalloped potatoes and gravy...he's actually been eating really well lately! As he was eating it he had already told me a couple of times, "This is good soup!" Then about two minutes after the last time he said, "This is really good soup. You're quite the cook Suzy." To which I just said thanks.
