Eye has not seen…

Ear has not heard…

About my bathroom.  And that is probably a good thing, it’s a personal space!  But, just this once, I will give you a tour.

On this edition of Cribbs I’m going to splain to you all what one of the huge problems is with ALS, and how most people have to adjust.

Our house, built in ’94, has a lovely master bathroom, with a big corner tub, his and her vanities, a glassed-in shower, which was upgraded by the previous owner, and a toilet, obviously.  Our previous house had a bidet, but ew, kinda.  All these things are great if you can walk by yourself.

Yes, it turns out that when you need help, a door on the shower and a three-inch difference to get in and out was a big problem for me.  I even asked at Hopkins, and they said people get electric shower chairs, roll over the toilet, do their business, then roll into the shower to clean up.  This is a problem because my toilet is in the corner.  And there’s a lip on the shower.

When I first was diagnosed, they were full bore on us moving or renovating.  We had just moved in, so that was out and renovations were far away.  We got the elevator in over the winter, and then I was one slip away from falling, and it was time to reno the bathroom.

We enlisted Joe for his management expertise, and he knew some guys who do great work. I’m going to share now, H&C Painting, LLC, are AMAZING!  Cesar showed us some of his past work to give us ideas, and worked with us for the best way to organize the bathroom both for my needs but also for Mel’s needs as my caretaker and the mom and Lady of the house.  Getting into the design details, and Joey helped, I think helped us have a little bit of say in this crazy situation.  More on that in a bit.

Demo took less than a day.  Down to the studs.  And then the real work of relocating the hvac, the shower, toilet, and sinks began.  We relocated to the girl’s room and were Ricky and Lucy!  Cesar and the guys were the best, with dropcloths, booties, kindness, and always a smile.  I can’t say enough good things!

They were also experts.  When the floor tile was too thin, they pointed out it might crack under a wheelchair, which I didn’t think about.  And they helped with some unforeseen items, which again was just brilliant!

I discovered that Grace’s bed is firmer than mine, and for a month I had a lot less pain. But I also had to shower in the kid’s bathroom, with the Nutcracker, in a tub.  There were near-death experiences, Reader-land!

But, very soon it was done, and such a high quality that I want them to have an overload of business. Seriously!

Now for the pictures!

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If you are wondering why I used the song in the title, it’s because a friend was talking to Melanie and me about heaven.  We have been overwhelmed with the elevator and bathroom, and the whole community of people who are supporting us.  He made the comment that if we are surprised by this, imagine what God has planned?  St Paul (so preachy) writes it, we cannot imagine the wonders prepared for us if we love Him.  That is a comforting thought.