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Stuck in the Middle: The Sandwich Generation Survival Guide
45 Plays16 days ago
This week, the Fishes are serving up wisdom, laughs, and a big ol’ side of reality as they tackle what it means to be part of the Sandwich Generation — that squeezed-in-the-middle season of life where you're caring for aging parents while still raising (or launching) your own kids. Special guest and longtime friend Jane Mlenar joins the pod to share her candid, moving, and often hilarious experience navigating elder care, college kids in crisis, and the emotional load that comes with it all. Plus, we talk sourdough starters, Cuban sandwiches, and why jalapeños do not belong in your wine.
💛 Lynne’s Care Package Picks
When her in-laws needed support, Lynne sent love in the form of food — and she highly recommends both of these services:
- Spoonful of Comfort – Gourmet soup, rolls, and cookies delivered in a beautifully packaged box. It’s thoughtful, comforting, and ideal when someone’s going through a rough time.
- Southern Baked Pie Company – Delicious savory and sweet pies, including quiche and pot pies, that ship beautifully and taste homemade (without the cleanup).
Whether someone’s recovering, grieving, or just plain overwhelmed, these are two solid go-to’s for sending something that says “I’m here for you.”
🥪 What’s For Dinner: Cuban Sandwiches
Inspired by our conversation on sandwiches (literal and metaphorical), here’s a crowd-pleasing Cuban sandwich recipe to add to your meal plan this week.
Cuban Sandwich Recipe
Ingredients:
- 1 loaf Cuban bread (or French bread, if you must)
- Yellow mustard
- Sliced dill pickles
- Swiss cheese
- Sliced cooked ham
- Roast pork (leftover or store-bought works!)
- Butter for grilling
Instructions:
- Slice the bread lengthwise and spread mustard on both sides.
- Layer ham, roast pork, pickles, and Swiss cheese.
- Close the sandwich, brush the outside with butter, and grill it (panini-style if you can) until golden and melty.
- Press it hard — the flatter, the better.
- Slice, serve, and watch it disappear.
Perfect for a weeknight dinner that feels special but doesn’t require a full kitchen takeover.
Recommended
Transcript
Introduction to the Sandwich Generation
00:00:00
Speaker
While she's in assisted living. And then because I'm the only person in town, she calls me for everything. And then there's an expectation that we check in on her every day.
00:00:13
Speaker
So it's a lot. It's a lot. It's a lot. So when did you like realize like, OK, yeah, I'm part of this sandwich generation. My older one was a senior and like living his best life with his like fraternity brothers. And the other one, a younger one is a film student and He had to pass this foundation review to stay in the film school. It's like a rite of passage sort of thing and was stressing out. So I would be getting text messages from him like, I can't live on a $10 an hour job the rest of my life and expect to pay my adult bills. And then that meant that I needed to go and have dinner with him and
00:00:52
Speaker
you know, talk him off the ledge until this foundation review was over. And then at the same time, my mom is calling or and saying like, oh, the physical therapist isn't putting through my referrals. And I'm like, well, call somebody else like, you know, and that's when it sort of hit me like, yes, that's why this feels so hard right now.
00:01:14
Speaker
Welcome to Three Little Fishes. We're three sisters who grew up in the Midwest together, but have since spread across the country. i live in Los Angeles. I'm in Nashville. And I live in Philadelphia. We are all married with children, have all had careers, but now we stay at home with our families.
00:01:31
Speaker
Join us as we share secrets and stories about being women, wives, and mothers. We welcome you to laugh along, learn something new, reach out, and join our conversation.
00:01:45
Speaker
So let's jump in. What's up, fishes? What's up, fishes? Hello. What's happening? Any news to share? Well, I mean, the big news is our last child is graduating on Saturday and I get to see all my people this week. So you girls are coming. Mom and dad are coming. Our friend Todd is coming.
00:02:06
Speaker
Sabrina's boyfriend is here. So we're going have like a full house and it's going to be a lot of fun to see everybody. We're not bringing our families. It's just the sisters are traveling.
00:02:17
Speaker
So sadly, my people are sad that they're not coming, but they still have school. know. things so do So do my kids. So I have to take, I have to take the hit for everybody. Yeah. Shoot. Yay.
00:02:32
Speaker
Yay.
00:02:34
Speaker
it's It is rough, Nancy. All right,
Pop Culture and Health News
00:02:39
Speaker
y'all. Before we get into it, I just want to remind everybody to like, subscribe and invite your favorite fishes to jump into our conversation. Today, we're going to be talking about the sandwich generation, what's the buzz, and what's for dinner.
00:02:55
Speaker
Okay, what's the buzz, you all? Well, the first thing I want to mention is, I feel a little sad about it, President Biden announced that he has cancer. Yeah, i feel like that was a miss.
00:03:08
Speaker
I mean, it's in his phone now. I agree. Yeah. I mean, he was president just a few months ago. i know that they do physicals. Like, how did they miss that? I feel like. Yeah. i mean, were they not checking his prostate or. I mean, and that's a blood, that's a simple blood test.
00:03:27
Speaker
I mean, I don't totally know, but I will say, i feel like we know from our experience with our parents, like some of the older generation, they, you know,
00:03:38
Speaker
they don't pay attention to symptoms, right? You'd like my mom, no offense, mom, but you're the best at like, oh, I, you know, it's nothing, it's nothing, it's this or that, you know? So it's like, I think it's easy to kind of shake things off.
00:03:53
Speaker
the And I think this it's unfortunate. So I'm sorry, hopefully. Yeah, I was sad to hear that. um This is not pop culture, but I will tell you that I did restart my sourdough starter. So I am on day five.
00:04:08
Speaker
It's looking really happy. would like some of that if it works this time. It's working. What do you mean if it works? It's working great. want you to share it with me. So it's really happy right now. Day five. So stay tuned. All right. I'm happy for you. And other pop culture news. Christy Teagan. Christy Teagan. Yeah. Christy Teagan just came out saying that she is no longer sober, that she Um, has fallen off the wagon oh she is saying, what did she say?
00:04:44
Speaker
She said that she feels like she's a hundred percent better person sober and that she doesn't enjoy waking up on a Tuesday sick with a headache that she says, I just want to be one of those people that can go to a party and have a drink, but I can't.
00:04:59
Speaker
The one drink turns into eight. And so now she's committed to, again, to living a sober life. But I was sad to hear that she really struggles with this, but I thought it was super brave that she's owning it and saying, listen, this is my journey and maybe she can get some support from other people to, you know, get back on the track that she wants to be.
00:05:24
Speaker
You can do it, Christy. know you can. and can do it. Yeah.
Celebrity Sober Struggles and TikTok Trends
00:05:29
Speaker
All right, speaking of alcohol, for those who are not trying to live a sober life, um have you heard this challenge on TikTok if you're a wine drinker that you drink Sauvignon Blanc or Rosé that you slice a jalapeno pepper and if you slice a jalapeno pepper and put it in your wine, it's supposed to be amazing. Is it a jalapeno or jalapeno?
00:05:57
Speaker
Jalapeno. Jalapeno. No, jalapeno. I can't say How how do you say Jalapeno. Nancy, jalapeno.
00:06:08
Speaker
Anyway, don't know why you would want to put that in your wine. I can drink a glass of wine without having a problem. yeah But if I'm going to do that, I can't imagine i would enjoy that pepper in my wine. Okay. I would not. Linda, you also drink wine. i do. Would you do this? mean, i will give it a try.
00:06:31
Speaker
Maybe we can give it a try together since we'll be together in a couple of days and see how it goes. And then we'll report back. I'm in. All right. i will not try that. I will not.
00:06:43
Speaker
You are a no pepper girl. um Kathy, I love that you are very much. No, I'm not doing an Amazon challenge. Nope. Nope. I'm not doing a pepper. i mean, I had a little thing yesterday at school and there was like a little pepper. we were having um Chinese for lunch and they had this little red pepper and all I did was sniff it.
00:07:06
Speaker
And I had maybe just a teeny smidge of it. It caused me to have like an asthma attack right there at the table. And my friend was like, are you choking?
00:07:18
Speaker
She like literally was like, ah you Are you all right? And I, I honestly, it was so embarrassing. I was like, no, I'm going to be okay. But like, I can't do a No peppers for you. Why was it embarrassing? You were just having a coffee fit. Why is that embarrassing? Because everyone in the lunchroom was like staring at me because I was coughing so much. She's like, are you having emergency? 911.
00:07:44
Speaker
You're like my Johanna. We went to, we took Riley to see the LAFC Galaxy game. That's a soccer game and it's a very big rivalry. And after the game, I was dancing to some music and Johanna got in front of me, put her hand up and was like, stop, people are looking. And I was why like, nobody's looking. She's like, you're embarrassing me.
00:08:07
Speaker
Oh, gosh. You've crossed the threshold. Like, would say year ago, she would have been dancing with you, and now she's yeah she's there. she's She's hitting those teen years.
00:08:20
Speaker
Oh, yikes.
Reflecting on Memorable Experiences
00:08:22
Speaker
Yeah, that's It's brutal. so you So you all, and other news, did you guys do you all remember when we talked about KISS And Gene Simmons said that you could be a roadie for what was $12,500. And I was like, I had a very strong opinion about that. I would never do that.
00:08:43
Speaker
Well, the man who bought it, dip bought it with his son, his 13 year old son. And they just had the experience and they just had, they were just talking to about it. And they're like, listen, you just spent $12,500 for this kiss this experience. What was it like? He was like, it was worth every penny.
00:09:02
Speaker
My son is a big fan. And to be able to do this with him, it was life-changing. and Gene Simmons was very lovely. He's just like, listen, I had to retire. i have MS.
00:09:14
Speaker
So I'm just trying to leave my son with good memories, have some good experiences. I'm not going to die a rich man, but I'm going to die a man with lots of memories. oh No regrets. I love it. No regrets.
00:09:26
Speaker
So I thought that that was a, that's a good perspective. Great. Is that like a, just an evening experience? Is it just a one night thing? I mean, I don't know. i think that Gene Simmons had them. it think he probably ah has a show at night. I'm not sure, but you know, they have to come in and set up. And then I think he had dinner with them in his dressing room.
00:09:50
Speaker
They hung out. he got They got to play on the instruments. And I think he tried to give them a full experience. Yeah. um yeah You know, but if if you like Kiss or not, Gene Simmons is a master marketer.
00:10:05
Speaker
And I do think, like, he seems like a nice guy. i mean, you know. But, I mean, if this person was. I mean, you can be able to spend your money however you want. Exactly. And sounds like this guy it is really important to him. So, good for you.
00:10:21
Speaker
Yeah. I'm not doing it, but good for you.
Challenges of Caregiving Across Generations
00:10:23
Speaker
All right, you guys. So this pushes us to our next segment. Let's jump in to the sandwich generation. The term sandwich generation refers to young and middle-aged adults who are at the same time raising children and then supporting their aging parents.
00:10:41
Speaker
So in the U.S., about 25% of the population are a part of the sandwich generations. So, I mean, that's a quarter.
00:10:53
Speaker
Yeah, that's a lot. good chunk That's a good chunk of people. I just recently had my in-laws where my father-in-law in particular got sick. And so my husband had to go down to Florida. He didn't have to. He went down to Florida to take care of them.
00:11:09
Speaker
I manned the farm here. And um it just really got me thinking about how hard it is to sort of like
00:11:20
Speaker
support people who are medically need help and then also support the kids. Like they're coming home from school, we're going to, we have graduation this weekend. We have like a lot of balls in the air and it's taxing.
00:11:33
Speaker
So we invited a really good friend of ours, Jane Milner. She lives in Wisconsin. We all went to camp together, worked at camp, we're campers together. We've known her for a long time.
00:11:46
Speaker
And she is quintessential sandwich generation person, um helping her elderly mother, but then also supporting her two college-age sons.
00:12:00
Speaker
So we want to welcome Jane Melner to our show. Hi, Jane. Welcome to Three Little Fishes. We're happy you're here Thank you. girls.
00:12:11
Speaker
Hi. Welcome. So ah for our listeners, Jane is one of our camp friends. We all worked at Clearwater Camp for Girls in Monaco, Wisconsin, like 35 years ago together.
00:12:26
Speaker
just big bar didn't work with you, but I know you from there. Yeah, yeah you were a camper. here We won't tell the stories, but yeah yeah, you know, yeah. So anyway, Jane is here to talk to us about the sandwich generation.
00:12:44
Speaker
um So Jane, tell me a little bit about your caregiving responsibilities at your with your family now. Yeah. So I'm definitely like the meat and the cheese right now. i'm um I have my kids who are...
00:13:03
Speaker
um They're in, well, one's now as of Sunday out of college and one is in the middle. um And then I have my mom who is 94 as of last week. And she was totally independent until a year ago. She had a stroke. So,
00:13:23
Speaker
While she's in assisted living, um she appreciates that we check in on her like every day. um And so um there's a facility, they take good care of her.
00:13:37
Speaker
um But we're, my sister and i are the financial power of attorneys, and there is a lot of work to do around that. And then Because I'm the only person in town, she calls me for everything. And then there's an expectation that we check in on her every day.
00:13:58
Speaker
So it's a lot. It's a lot. And I'm I'm of the four of us, me and my three siblings. um I'm the only non-retired person, but I'm the only local person. So oh that's a lot it's a lot so when did you like realize like, okay, yeah, I'm part of this, the sandwich generation.
00:14:23
Speaker
You hear about it. And I think I'd heard that term and I never really thought about maybe even what it was or. um And then this fall, we had a couple of things. So my older one was a senior and like living his best life with his like fraternity brothers. and the other one um my younger one is a film student and He had to pass this foundation review to stay in the film school. It's like a rite of passage sort of thing and was stressing out. So I would be getting text messages from him like, I can't live on a $10 an hour job the rest of my life and expect to pay my adult bills. And then that meant that I needed to go and have dinner with him and, you know, talk him off the ledge until this foundation review was over
00:15:08
Speaker
Um, and he passed. Right. And then, at the same time, my mom is calling or, and saying like, oh, the physical therapist isn't putting through my referrals because they don't think I'm making enough progress.
00:15:22
Speaker
And like, and I'm like, well, call somebody else. Like, you know, that's when it sort of hit me like, yes, that's why this feels so hard right now.
00:15:33
Speaker
feels like you're being pulled in a lot of different directions, particularly emotionally. yeah so how do you feel like, what, how challenging is that? And then also if you're taking care of everybody else's emotional needs, how are you tending to yourself?
00:15:48
Speaker
Um, yeah, I don't, I don't do that very well. um I think probably Sean gets what's left over of me. So, and Sean, and just, just for people who don't know, Sean is your husband. and Yeah. Yep. He is. Yeah.
00:16:08
Speaker
He's been great. Like he's been so nice about all of that. We're supposed to be enjoying our empty nest, you know, and, um, you know, I get home at, 7 30 and i'm exhausted and so but we do like we make time to play tennis and uh that's probably the one thing that's saving me right now is like work tennis those are places where i can go to get away and not worry about those things um we are in a place where uh
00:16:43
Speaker
I'm getting better about telling my sister like or asking my sister in a in a telling way. Can you make this phone call? Can you do this? Can you do that? Because and even one of my brothers is helpful that way, too. Like they don't live here. And so but like they can still use the phone. I'm like, can you can you help me, please? Yeah, that's been helpful. So I just have to like figure it out. I have to kind of like name it to, ah to figure it out. And Sean's been good about helping me figure that out too.
00:17:16
Speaker
You know, he's like, you can't do everything for everybody. um It's not going to work, you know? And so if I can like name what it is, then he can help me like problem solve. But you're still carrying the mental load of that, like organization and yeah filtering it all out and organizing it and all that stuff. So it's a lot to manage. I like what you just said. i Once I name it, then i can then I can make progress. I can make a decision to help me and help the situation.
00:17:48
Speaker
And I was also just wondering what would happen if you saw your mom every other day? what what would that be like? Well, first of all, I have to say that like, I have a a woman who grew up next door to me who um she goes every Monday night to visit my mom. And um she also like decorates her apartment. If you follow me on social media, like she dressed my mom up for graduation because my mom couldn't go to William's graduation. And she like,
00:18:18
Speaker
dressed her up and got her hooked up on YouTube so she could watch William graduate. um And yeah, so like Monday nights when I play tennis, she goes and help and visits my mom and like helps her out. And then her mom goes on Wednesdays when I play tennis. So I'm not there like every night, but someone is there. And it's been, we've had people covering for a year, right? Like, so um I have a friend of mine from work who goes when, you know, like if I have something else,
00:18:47
Speaker
come up, she'll drop in there. And, you know, my mom has a lot of people who love her, right? So yeah so people are willing to step up and and visit her and help her. And do we have to? No. But at the end of the day, um she appreciates it when people.
00:19:04
Speaker
And um i think, you know, the people there, it's a good place. um you know and But the people who work there, like we've gone and there are bruises on her arm or um someone you know lifted her in a wrong way and ripped her clothes or um something was stolen from her room or You know, there seemed to always kind of be something happening.
00:19:33
Speaker
And I feel like that happens less when they know someone is coming at the end of the day. People are nicer to her when ah we're there.
00:19:43
Speaker
And so, um you know, do we have to show up every day? No. um But does it make a difference if we do? Yes. You know, so like...
00:19:56
Speaker
um And she's 94 she's been kind to people her whole life. I feel like She's owed that, you know, I also know that like when my dad was sick all those years ago, his one big thing and I was young, like I was in my early 20s and he kept saying to me, like, I don't want to go to a home. i don't want to go to a home, you know.
00:20:20
Speaker
And I was like, yeah, like you can stay on my futon, you know, like no big deal. But yeah. obviously then we could take care of him, but like now all these years later, like that's in my mind, like she doesn't want to just be dropped off at a home, you know, like, and left there.
00:20:39
Speaker
And so there's that part of me that feels like, yeah, I don't have to go every night and we do have people willing to help out. um But i do think it matters that, you know,
00:20:55
Speaker
She has someone at the end of the day to debrief her day with, or, know, I think it's great. You go, but I'm sure she really appreciates that. She sure does. You said that you have financial power of attorney, you and your sisters do. Yeah.
00:21:13
Speaker
So tell, will you tell us like, what kind of pressures are you feeling from being the power of attorney? Yeah, that's probably the most stressful part. She is out of money.
00:21:25
Speaker
um My dad's been gone, you know, like 33 years and she's lived a long time without him. And it costs $9,000 a month at this assisted living place. And so any savings wow yeah um is now gone.
00:21:42
Speaker
And so she has a house that she wants to go back to, she, uh, she ah She can't because she can't walk yet.
00:21:52
Speaker
um But so we're trying to keep the house, but she's out of money. So my siblings and I have been like gifting her money. So we had to meet with a lawyer to get like some documentation so that when we eventually do sell the house, we'll get that money back.
00:22:13
Speaker
But, um you know, to try to get her, I would say like the money piece, but it's also figuring out the resources like to get her um on. She's now she just started on Medicaid.
00:22:29
Speaker
um because you can be on Medicaid and have a house if your intent is to go back to the house. um So, but then they sort of make it so that you can't really afford to keep the house.
00:22:43
Speaker
So it's, it's all a mess. But then we hooked up with the ADRC. That's the Aging and Disability Resource Center. And so like, those are the people for free that will tell you who you need to talk to for everything.
00:22:58
Speaker
So if you were giving somebody advice who is at the front end of this, what would your advice be to get ahead of it financially? Well, we put all of her stuff in a trust.
00:23:10
Speaker
um That was um really smart on and her part. um And have have that trust in place. our Our problem with that was that it was one year before her stroke instead of five. That would have been helpful.
00:23:27
Speaker
um But then, but you don't know and that's going to happen. So the sooner the better, if you're 40, 50, whatever, put your stuff in a trust. um And then contact the ADRC if you run into anything um like this, where they can help you navigate that. Like they may not be the right person, but they can tell you who the right person is.
00:23:53
Speaker
and they're not gonna cost you right thousands of dollars in the and the process. Does the facility where your mom lives, do they have social workers there that are a good resource for you?
00:24:07
Speaker
to help connect you also with different services you may need, or do you find that they don't really help? Nope, ah they don't. um And what we found after her stroke. Well, that's disappointing.
00:24:19
Speaker
Yeah, yeah. What we found was like at the hospital, They were very helpful. The second hu hospital, not helpful. We, we essentially were like, what, what are you doing?
00:24:32
Speaker
Okay. And then we made all the phone calls ourselves, um, and to try to get her into like the next level rehab center. And then that social worker wasn't helpful.
00:24:43
Speaker
So we made the phone calls and Sean did all the visits to the places to figure out where we wanted her. And then we made those phone calls too. um And then, um you know, like we sort of did all that legwork ourselves. Once we knew what the legwork was, we sort of did that, you know. Yeah.
00:25:03
Speaker
So you are kind of, you are really fortunate in that you are in town with them. Yeah. You know, Darman and Renee, they live in Peoria. I'm in Nashville. Kathy's in Philly. Nancy's in l LA.
00:25:17
Speaker
And then my in-laws too are in Florida and, you know, Rich's sibling is in the Chicagoland area. At some point, you know, we have to get to them when they need us.
00:25:30
Speaker
How do you kind of manage that with your siblings? Like, yeah. Do you try to like ask them to come visit? you get on the phone? like How do you do that? like For us, if i like we went on spring break and I asked my siblings, like I sent a group text like, hey, we're going to be gone for a week. Can someone come down and hang with mom? and my brother and his wife came down and stayed with her um for that week. And I think, you know, it kind of depends. Like I'm thinking about um your parents and I would say like there are going to be times where they need you more than other times, right? Like, so sometimes my siblings will just like take turns calling on different days
00:26:14
Speaker
And then they
Coordinating Family Caregiving
00:26:15
Speaker
know I'm there. Right. So that's fine. And you guys might say like, OK, I'm going to call on these days. And then but then there might be other times where like maybe there's a medical emergency or maybe there's a bigger medical situation where someone should be here, be there with them.
00:26:31
Speaker
Then you take turns like kind of being there. But like, you know, otherwise just kind of like covering via phones. Right. Like you can kind of check in that way.
00:26:44
Speaker
Well, we do, in all fairness, we do we do have David. we have a We have a brother who lives relatively close to our parents. So I guess he could get to them first if there's an emergency. But Jane, yeah you know what I'm hearing and what I really am thinking about is that we probably need to start thinking about a plan because at some point things will go sideways and do go sideways.
00:27:10
Speaker
And how can you plan for it? Like you mentioned that you wish your mom had had a trust. Like, you know, I think our parents have had something set up, but I don't know all the ins and outs. Like, what would that look like when they go sideways? Like, what's the first response? Like, maybe I'm hearing that having a plan put in place the best you can would be helpful.
00:27:34
Speaker
Yeah. And having people know the plan is really important too, I think. My mom's plan was like, I'll just call Jane, you know? And ah which I mean, i did i I figured that was the plan, but like, you know, and then i was sort of like when she called,
00:27:53
Speaker
And then I was like, do I text my siblings? Like, what do I do with that? And then I was like, yeah, so mom fell. ah Maybe she had a stroke. I don't know. I'll let you know. and they were like, what?
00:28:06
Speaker
You know, and then it was just we didn't have a plan. You know, she might have had a plan. We didn't know. And so, yeah, if they have one, that'd be great. And then they should tell people what it is. yeah I'm curious about your relationships with your other siblings. Like, how is that?
00:28:23
Speaker
affected your family? Yeah. Is it stronger? Is it straining? Families are tricky, right? Like, um
00:28:32
Speaker
yeah, say, ah so um i would say my sister and i are probably closer. We talk more.
00:28:43
Speaker
um We've had to problem solve a lot. um i would say um it's really strained. um It's really hard because ah you're because people far away are dealing with this in a really different way.
00:29:04
Speaker
um Like they might feel guilty for not being here, but like it comes out in a different way. It doesn't come out as guilt. It comes out like frustration or whatever. And so, you know, it's whatever, it whatever it is, it is. And I guess like to save my own mental illness,
00:29:26
Speaker
health. I just sort of go like, I'm living in the moment and I go and I spend time with her and she's hilarious and, and awesome. And they're missing out and like too bad for them. And it's a little stressful, but she's not here forever. And I know that. And like,
00:29:45
Speaker
too bad. And um so I just like enjoy wherever I am right now. I'm talking to my camp friends and I get to talk to my camp friends. And then like later I'm going to go play tennis and then I'm going to go hang with my mom and then I'm going to hang with my family and like wherever I am, it's going to be good. Right. Like that's where I have to be. That's a good way to think about it. Very healthy.
00:30:10
Speaker
Yeah, otherwise I could like just sit in the corner and cry. i could do that too if I wanted, but that's not as fun, you know? Like it's way more fun to be present. But Jane, I was also thinking about something was processing in my head, like what you said about that you always want somebody to check in on her and it's just nice. And as a my is putting my social worker hat on, I always feel very strongly that way about a hospital. Like if anybody's in a hospital, I don't ever want them left alone for those reasons, even though there's confident people there. It just is better to have a caregiver there.
00:30:45
Speaker
So it would totally make sense to me why it's so important for you to have, lay eyes on her every single day. I think that's super smart and super caring. And she's lucky lucky to have you such a support team.
00:30:59
Speaker
You seem like have lot of weight on your shoulders, but you're handling it very well. You guys haven't met Mandy, but she is just like the sweetest, most fun. Jane gets her sense of humor, I think, in a large part for Mandy, her mom. so You know, she's a wonderful woman and she's lucky to have you looking after um She recruited a new piano student ah last week.
Concluding Thoughts and Engagement
00:31:27
Speaker
i Henry is a new CNA who gets her up in the morning and he plays the guitar and he saw her keyboard and her piano books and he was like, hey, I want to learn how to play piano. And she was like, okay, when does your shift So um now he stays after his shift end. And they work on the piano.
00:31:49
Speaker
So yeah she got a new student. oh I love that. That's so sweet. She's amazing. no She's just a great woman. yeah.
00:32:00
Speaker
yeah I hope she continues to get better and stronger so she can have the fullest life she can possibly have. Jane, thanks for coming on and sharing a little bit of what's going on in your life and helping us maybe think about some things that we could take away and take into our life.
00:32:19
Speaker
Yeah, you're welcome. It was so good to see our friend Jane. And I thought that she gave some really good information. and I thought a really smart thing what that she said was it's best to be present to that people that caregivers see that they that these loved ones are cared for. and if you are able to do that for them, that's the best. So that was that was a nugget that I really thought was important.
00:32:45
Speaker
Yeah. We just had something happen to my in-laws. And one way I tried to help support them was to send them some meals. And I did use two um companies that i felt like did a great job. And my in-laws told me that the food was very good. So Spoonful of Comfort does a variety of soups and cookies and things like that. And so that was great.
00:33:09
Speaker
And then the Southern Baking Pie Company, I sent little mini pot pies. um They have all different kinds of flavors. They have quiche. They have all kinds of things that you can send to whoever needs it. So I thought that was, I think it was helpful for them to not have to actually prepare something.
00:33:30
Speaker
And it was special. So we'll put those links at, ah in you know, in the show notes. um So that brings us to what's for dinner. You know, because we're talking about the sandwich generation, it's only appropriate to post a sandwich recipe for people. I love a Cuban sandwich. into my people My people love a Cuban.
00:33:52
Speaker
you know what else they love? They also love a Reuben. It's so delicious. So i if I'm going to really like do like a sandwich night, I kind of try to do more of like something we wouldn't have every day of the week.
00:34:05
Speaker
So I would do like a Cuban or like a Reuben and everybody would be excited about that. I don't normally do a sandwich night, but every once in a while in the winter in particular, I'll do grilled cheese and tomato soup.
00:34:17
Speaker
And I don't use American cheese. i you know, shake it up with like sharp cheddar and Munster or Havarti or something like that. So it's like kind of bougie.
00:34:29
Speaker
Yeah. It's delicious. Yeah. Sourdough bread. Yum. Sourdough and grilled cheese is awesome. I was going to say, whenever I think of a grilled cheese, I think of Kathy because whenever it gets a little cold and I'm with her, she's like, oh, let's have a grilled cheese and tomato soup. and You do. a to You put a ton of pepper on it, which is so funny to me, like black pepper, because you won't touch a jalapeno as we've discussed.
00:34:53
Speaker
Did I say it right now?
00:34:56
Speaker
in In the tomato soup, you mean? Right. Yeah. It's covered and it's like, it looks like a layer of black. It's so peppery. So it's so funny. It's kind of the same as like, you won't eat onions, but you'll eat onion rings. So it's so funny to me.
00:35:12
Speaker
Well, I don't know. Carson really likes pepper. So he and i usually eat grilled cheese and tomato soup together. So he likes me to pepper it up. Kathy, would you ever eat a Reuben sandwich? I don't know if I would.
00:35:29
Speaker
i think Peter does. Oh my gosh. you oh Good Reuben is delicious. So good. Doesn't it have like Swiss cheese in it? I don't like Swiss. It has Swiss cheese and it has sauerkraut and Thousand Island dressing. Yeah, I don't like sauerkraut.
00:35:44
Speaker
Yeah, no. Let's know. What's wrong with you? know You're German. You've got like German. Yeah. That's so sad. Sorry.
00:35:55
Speaker
We'll post a Cuban sandwich for everyone to enjoy. hey Delicious. Sounds good. Love a Cuban. We want to thank you for listening to our podcast and letting us sisters jump into your day. Please make sure to follow, rate, and review us.
00:36:11
Speaker
Have a wonderful Memorial Day weekend. Be safe. Sisters out.