As Grandmother Forgets, Family Stays Connected Through Song and Writing

It's important to stay connected, especially for families during the holidays.

For Lois Keller and her family in Studio City, it's their 11th year spending the holidays since her mother, Peggy, was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and her condition has significantly worsened since 2012. 

Through Lois' blog Peggy Days and her 10-year-old daughter Sunny's connection to her grandmother through song, the Keller's are capturing the memories shared with Peggy as the disease worsens. It's not getting any easier, and highlighting November as National Alzheimer's Disease Awareness Month, Lois' blog is a means to cope and to understand as well as to raise funds. 

Sunny's song "I Remember" with the ukulele was written for her grandmother, and was also featured Nov. 25 on NBC4. In the song, Sunny describes a magical trip they took to the Monterey Bay Aquarium and how much their time together meant. Then quickly in the song, Sunny acknowledges time passing and Alzheimer's taking over Peggy, noting, "she doesn't even recognize me."

"I had no idea she'd be in this catatonic state," Lois said in an interview with Patch. "Nothing else can help her. It's one of the reasons I decided to share my story." 

Through the Los Angeled Unified School District's "Reflections" program, Sunny's song won a state contest in 2012 in conjunction with the National PTA. The theme was "magic of the moment." 

Lois moved Peggy to Los Angeles from Chicago, where her brother lives, in her decision to have her mother closer to her. Posting on Peggy Days became more than just letting family know how she was doing and turned it into a way to express her feelings and thoughts dealing with Alzheimer's. 

Peggy resides at Marlin Manors in Sherman Oaks, which is a home setting of six residents and meals are cooked, Lois said.

"It's more affordable," she said. "They've been great with her."

Lois' latest blog posts expose just how much Peggy is slipping and it's heartbreaking, yet she continues asking questions and finding strength for her mother. Small gestures of responsiveness from Peggy, such as when Sunny plays her song, or when Lois gives her a kiss, might be interpreted as a hug. 

"You don't want to see the end," Lois added. "You don't want to imagine it. In the early stages, you're able to embrace it and deal with it."

Click here to see Lois' blog. For more information from the Alzheimer's Association, visit its website.