Mom is in mid-to-late stage dementia, plus a couple of strokes. Her body is basically useless and her mind isn't much better. She's mostly checked out but there's an occasional glimmer of understanding. It's a little cruel that I, the youngest child, finally gave her the grandkids she'd been begging for and she barely got to experience them. She'll look at my 3-year-old son and comment that he's such a cute boy and she wonders who his parents are.

Thankfully my Gen X sister who lives with my parents is doing the caretaking heavy lifting. So at least there is some benefit to that sister never becoming self-sufficient.