It's been almost a month.

I could hardly believe it when I looked at my last posting.  In six more days it would have been a month.  I still don't feel like doing this but I am getting ashamed of myself.  I had good reason not to do it last month when I was so terribly busy baking and getting ready for Christmas.  Unfortunately the reason I haven't done it since we got home is that I really hurt myself and I don't even know how it happened.  I was sitting in my chair perfectly comfortable when all of a sudden I got the most horrific pain in the right side of the small of my back.  It was the worst pain I have ever had, childbirth and kidney stones included.  I was literally screaming and I can stand an awful lot of pain.  Dick came running and rubbed and massaged it until I could stop crying.  Unfortunately, it is still there.  I haven't left my chair for quite some time.  When I have to go to the bathroom, Dick helps me get to my walker, and sometimes he has to go with me all the way anyway.  I truly am having trouble walking.  I just decided that I am going to go back to the pain clinic and see if shooting more cortisone into the right lower back will help.  I got tremendous relief when I was having great difficulty on the left side and those shots would last me for six weeks.  Too bad it didn't last.  After a year or so, they stopped helping at all.  I haven't ever had it on the right side though, so maybe it will help.  I am going to make an appointment tomorrow.  But no more complaining here.

We did have a wonderful Christmas though.  We drove to Sue's early on the 24th and were so happy to be able to see and be with her WHOLE family.  It was so neat to be able to be with the great grandkids as there is nothing like Christmas when kids are there.  We truly enjoyed our short visit.  Short, because we left of the 27th and drove down the 101 to Nikki's and had our own Christmas with them.  Again, I got to see ALL of her family too, which meant two more great grandchildren.  It was great to be able to be with both families.  We left there on the on the 28th because we had to get home to set up for our New York New Years Eve party. 

The party itself was a great success as it always is.  Dick didn't take any pictures at all.  I was disappointed because I wanted pictures of all my friends.  They are dying off too fast, but many are in their eighties so what can you expect?  We had two die last year of our 24 total, so we were able to invite two more.  We invited the Pikes, Jim and Sue.  I am really surprised, to tell you the truth, because they had three other things they could have gone to, and also, once you are invited, it is for life, so you are expected back, year after year.  They have pretty well set down roots here and plan to be here for the rest of their lives.  One of the couple has to be in their 70's or 80's.  Jim is the same age as Dick, 76.  I am nine years older than Dick and Sue is nine years younger than Jim, so that makes her the youngest one of our group.  No, we didn't get any pictures taken, but all you have to do is look back to my last post and you will see some that we took last year.  The surroundings don't change from year to year.  The set up is just the same.  It's the only way we can get 24 people in here.  Even the Christmas tree is the same every year.  The food is still the same too, as we don't change our menu, everyone brings the same thing.  We did have one new dish this year.  Sue made a delicious corn cassarole, and everyone raved about it.  The only thing that changed was the circle time question.  This year it was "What time in your life did you consider yourself an adult, and why?   It was a fun question and we did get a lot of good answers, most of them funny enough to laugh at, so the tone was really light and fun, unlike it was last year when we were all in tears at the end.  As it was  last year, by 9:35 every last person was gone and all the furniture was in place (a lot had to be moved from the garage back in the house).  So all in all, it was a wonderful party and everyone is looking forward to next years.

I am really ready for my chair.  Sorry, no pictures.  I keep telling myself, and you, that at least I am going to learn how to take them.  I'll never learn how to transfer them.  I have a weird computer. 

Love to all...................................Darlene