thread for middle age to older Christian women.
Comments
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Hi everyone.
Hershey, thanks for asking about my HOA meeting. When we started the meeting the President said Nancy, I think you should lead this meeting. Nothing like giving me a little heads up on that. The two reps showed up promptly the last ten minutes of our closed session and I could see that the project manager was a very young gal and I imagine was a bit intimidated. The assistant branch manager did most of the talking for the company. I meet with the young gal on Tuesday to walk the neighborhood. I had emailed a few people to help get the word out that they needed to be at this meeting. That definitely helped and there was a respectable amount of homeowners that showed up. After the landscape company reps left at one point it looked like it was heading into a free for all and the president became a referee. Oh yes. The joys of it all. I remember the joke in teaching. Someone would say this job would be easy if it weren't for the parents………………and the students. I guess I could say the same thing. This position would be easy if it weren't for the homeowners!! I don't envy your neighbor being president of the HOA. I can't say too much publicly but I feel like I am here at this time for a reason. I have prayed that if I am to run for the position that I was appointed to this year then the Lord will make that clear to me. I have made more work for myself than others in this position in the past but I always seem to take the harder path for some reason.
I am so glad you got your new refrigerator now. I never opted for an ice maker and I only drink filtered water so I am okay with that. If you are used to one being a certain way that may be an adjustment. I am glad you like it overall.
Wheatfields, I know that the situation with your sister has got to be really difficult. Is this your only sibling? I do hope your PT is very helpful for all your concerns.
Carol, we are still praying for you. I know you mentioned you would be seeing your MD. I hope that doctor will offer some helpful advice for you while you wait on this motility test.
GB, praying for you as you deal with work and insurance. Both difficult things for sure.
Chris, I hope your deck will be finished for you in the near future. That was a shame that your guy fell. I hope you continue to do well on your chemo drug.
Teka, how are you doing? Have you had any of the flooding? This has been a wild summer. One former BCO sister who lived in Pa retired to TX a few years ago. They didn't like the winters in the North. I can't imagine living in Texas now. How is Teka doing? Cammie doesn't like the heat so well. I am debating about bringing up arthritis injections to my vet. It is very expensive and I am not sure how I would afford more expenses for her and me but her hind legs I know are giving her a lot of trouble. She has trouble jumping up on things now. It is hard to watch. I hope your flowers are looking as pretty as your pictures. Some of mine are having some trouble with the wild weather we have had from drought to flooding etc. Take care.
Have a good weekend dear sisters.
Love
Nancy
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Nancy, thank you. I'm looking forward to my video visit with my MO tomorrow. This is all getting beyond me. Last night was moderately rough, but the night before, I had NO coughing - just insomnia. I never thought I'd complain about weight loss, but this is getting ridiculous.
I slept about three hours this morning from 5 to 8 am. It was nice. I'm hoping to have a baked potato for lunch. I can eat about half of one with butter, sour cream and cheese. DH will eat the other half and the skin (which I love but can't eat right now.) I'm also going to roast some cauliflower.
I'm not low-carb or keto, but I have a really good recipe for cauliflower "potato salad." It's basically just cauliflower subbed for the potatoes. I made some and gave it to a friend (the one who brought me all the good food last week) and she loved it. She told me her wife (who is not low-carb) didn't realize it was cauliflower and asked her, "Why are you eating potato salad?" We got a laugh out of that.
Not much else going on here today. It's on the cooler side at around 69 F with rain predicted for the next hour. it was 118 in the desert yesterday while DH was visiting my dad.
I wish you all a blessed Sunday.
Love, hugs and prayers,
Carol
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Nancy, I love the "nature" photos, although I tend to freak out a bit when nature comes into my house. LOL
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Carol,
I continue to pray for you. I wish I could wave my Harry Potter wand and make all of this go away. I actually had a dear BCO friend send me a wand. LOL I have heard of cauliflower substitutes. I have never tried it but it sounds like a good thing and healthier than a potato. I can sympathize with you as insomnia seems to be an almost constant companion for me at times. I have had several visits to my favorite Butterfly House and I met a woman there a few days ago and she had just discovered the place. She said I was just here yesterday. I said it can become addicting. Anyway she asked me if I post pics on social media and I said no. I told her I made greeting cards from the photos and she was interested. I told her I didn't sell them. Then I got a prompt from the Lord saying get her info and send her some. So that is what I have been doing. I will post some of those on here soon. Things this week aren't so crazy.
Teka, I would love to have a pond. My three fountains keeps me busy enough. I bet the frogs love you and your pond. I used to see toads around my flowers but not this season. Cammie got a brand new bag of prescription food from Chewy so that always helps her to eat more.
Have a good day dears sisters.
Love,
Nancy
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Hello Everyone,
Thank you for the banners and pictures, I just love those! I'm reading and praying for you all and I too don't receive posts automatically anymore. My sister is still in their apartment, actually they are in independent living of a facility that has, assisted, memory and nursing care. Meant to care for your every need. That is why my BIL was so disappointed when they said well, she doesn't obey rules to have her in memory care. I think right now he is reluctant to insist and trying to see if it'll work out. She has a home health nurse coming several times a week to help with breathing exercises and balance issues. Right now it's so hot in AZ that he isn't golfing but I am sure he's wondering come fall and he wants to go out golfing if it'll be safe to leave her alone there for several hours. I do have a brother who lives in MT and we are thinking of flying down the last weekend in August, just a Friday to Monday thing to get together with our sister, I would love for him to see where they are and what the memory care place there looks like, I am reluctant for her to go there but it is a lovely building. Of course I like their green trees and flowers any time of year there and big windows to look out at them. I have an upcoming surgery on my right hand for trigger finger and thumb. I was hoping to wait and see if it was the Arimidex causing that but the right thumb especially is too critical in not being able to bend, to wait another year. That is scheduled for August 18. Thank you all for your prayers and for sharing about your lives here and your loved ones. Praying for you all.
Love, Wheatfields
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Wheatfields, we will be praying for your surgery on Aug. 18 and I hope that will take care of your trigger finger and thumb. How is your PT going? I sure don't understand how a facility like the one you are describing won't take your sister. It just doesn't make any sense if they advertise as a community with different levels of care. I do hope that it will work out for now with your BIL with her in the independent section of the community. I can certainly understand your reluctance for your sister to go into the memory care facility.
It is very, very late and I have to get to bed. The new account manager from our landscaping company is coming to my house tomorrow and I am going to walk the neighborhood with her so she can get an idea of what the crew deals with. She looks very young but seems very nice and easy to work with.
Have a good night everyone. I hope insomnia doesn't rule for any of us tonight!!
Love,
Nancy
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Wheatfields, we will pray for successful surgery and relief from thumb and finger dysfunction.
I'm perplexed with the facility's response to your BIL and sister's situation. Yes, some dementia and Alzheimers patients are compliant and docile, but many others are not. That isn't unusual behavior, and a skilled facility would not be surprised by a patient's disobedience or outbursts.
Nancy, I do hope your walk-and-talk with the account manager was productive. Are you still getting wildfire smoke or haze in your area?
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Hi ladies,
Not much has changed, but I am up .4 lbs in two days.
Below is the post from another page. I wrote it in Word so that I could copy and paste it. Our kids are coming down in August. I can't wait!
""I saw my MO yesterday and DH was part of the conversation. Basically, she doesn’t think any of my issues are related to breast cancer and suggested I take Prilosec (of the generic) for 14 days to see if that help with the coughing (in case it’s related to reflux.) She didn’t really comment on the weight loss, but I haven’t read her after-visit notes yet. (I did read them, but she didn't comment except that I had lost 10 pounds.)
I sort of felt a little bit brushed off, which has never happened with her before. DH thought she seemed preoccupied. I took the Prilosec this morning and will resume the Ibrance tomorrow. I have a dentist appointment today and didn’t want to risk having spasms and vomiting. I had another rough night last night although it started off with no coughing until around 1 or 2 am.
My weight was up another .2 pounds today, so that’s good. DH messaged my PCP doc to express his concerns and to see if she can see me earlier. She messaged back to send him his message through MY patient portal (rather than his), which we did. I also made a note that I gave her permission to talk with him about my medical details.
Motility study of esophagus is scheduled for September 11. I will keep trying to get an earlier appointment. The GI nurse said to keep trying – she used the “squeaky wheel” example. One funny thing was that when I was talking to the scheduler, she said it was for an “anal motility study.” I told her it was esophageal, and we laughed about the “other end” mix-up. Fortunately, the prep instructions they sent me DID say, “esophageal.” LOL
That’s about it for now. I’m still waking up, so forgive any omissions or typos. I’m writing this in Word and will copy and paste it into the comments section here.
Carol""
Thank you for the continued prayers. I'm hoping the Prilosec does something for the nighttime coughing. I also decided to start counting calories, just to see what my intake is. I will monitor it over the next few days or weeks. Today, I've had 755 calories, but it feels like a lot more. I can't "pack" any more food in. Add more healthy fats, maybe?
Nancy, how did the appointment with the landscape company go?
Wheatfields, I'm sorry for what your sister and BIL are going through. I, too, will pray for your upcoming surgery.
Love to all,
Carol
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Carol, I am very concerned about your health and relieved that your husband has contacted the PCP. Diets of 800 calories and less are considered semi-starvation diets and are not without their risks. Men and women, on average, need to consume between 1800 and 2500 calories per day to maintain body weight and provide the body with enough nutrients to run efficiently. Consuming 755 calories per day puts your body at real risk of malnuourishment. I'm praying that yourPCP is able to see you very soon.
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Hi dear sisters.
Hershey, my walk and talk with the new landscaping account manager went very well. She is much more experienced in business than I had figured. At one point I totally lost my train of thought. I laughed and said I turn 72 next week and this is what happens. I believe she replied I am 32 and have those issues too. So she is older that she looked on Zoom but still young but has some impressive credentials. We walked the neighborhood and it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be weather wise. I had an aerial view of our neighborhood which one of the board members had done for us and I showed her that. She took a picture or the map and I think that will be very helpful for her. Will this meeting translate into better service. We'll see.
Yes, the smoke is back. It is very strange but it comes and goes. When it is here we have a severe weather quality alert which lasts a few days. There is a haze that is obvious when the smoke is here.
I finally got my new window locks installed today. I had the same guy that tried to fix them before. It is a brand new design and I asked if they had experienced problems with them. He said not at all. He showed me the old lock and it was defective. He said it probably came from the factory that way and was just not noticed. That gave me some relief as I was concerned if my other locks would fail. It has been almost 3 months to the day that I had my windows installed. I think it is time to close this chapter for good!!!!!
How is that new fridge? Hopefully stocked with many frozen treats for the summer.😋
Carol, I too am very concerned about you. I am not sure when you said you consumed 755 calories if you were talking about a whole day. I drink a protein smoothie every morning for breakfast. I am spending a small fortune buying this from the diet I was on last year. It is jam packed with vitamins, minerals and supplements. I am not suggesting this particular one as it is for a detox diet which you certainly don't want but the health food stores have protein powders which I have also used in the past. Sept. 11 is a long time away to be waiting for someone to do something. I don't know if you have any GNC stores but that is where I would buy my protein powder. Also I have bought some from Whole Foods. I have dealt with GERD in the past and coughing can be associated with that. I would think your upper endoscopy would have shown evidence of that but trying Prilosec for 14 days may help. I am really sorry that you didn't feel like your MO was giving her full attention to you. My female neurologist has been like Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde in the past. I imagine both of those professions can be tough and easy to have an off day. I hope that it was just a one off with her as I found it was with my neurologist. I will be praying that Prilosec may be the solution for you. Have you tried sleeping at an angle with your upper body raised ? Lazy boy chair perhaps? I am glad to hear you have gained a little bit so that is going in the right direction. We will continue to pray for you. Is there such a thing as an anal motility study? Maybe the nurse had us mixed up. 🙄
Love,
Nancy
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Here are a few of my pics from my visit to the Butterfly House a few days ago.
Love,
Nancy
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Gorgeous photos, Nancy! The third one is just captivating.
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Thank you Hershey. I posted a couple hours ago to you and it went poof!!!!!!! That third pic is called a Paper Kite butterfly. It is one of my favorites but a huge challenge to photograph for me. I think it is the way it's wings lay that is the challenge. It reminds me of playing cards as some of the spots remind me of hearts. These were some of the ones I gifted to this lady I met at the Butterfly House on Friday. She had some really interesting stories of her husbands great grandfather playing in an Hispanic swing band in Chicago back in the day. They have a picture of this great grandfather posing with Eleanor Roosevelt. She told a story which she didn't know if it was really true and it was Al Capone gave the great grandfather a $10 bill because he liked the music.
Off to bed. I hope this post doesn't go poof again.
Love,
Nancy
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Good morning all. I’ll keep this short since I’m on my phone. I ended up back in Urgent Care yesterday due to vomiting. Got fluids and other meds and felt better.
will call my PCP this am.
Thank you for your prayers. Please pray for my husband. He just came into the den where I’m trying to sleep and was in tears because he can’t help me.More later when I get up and am at my computer.
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Nancy, the Paper Kite butterfly reminds me of Cinderella in her ball gown dress with its voluminous full skirt. The photo is stunning, and your photography skills are truly amazing.
Carol, please keep us posted. We are praying for you and your husband.
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Oh Carol. I will be fervently praying for you. I teared up reading about your husband. I will pray for him too. I hope you can reach your pcp and get another perspective on this. When I was going through multiple physical challenges in 1990 my good friend who was a nurse suggested I go to Mayo Clinic. My parents took me to the one in MN and I did get some help which solved one of the big problems. I think there is a Mayo Clinic out West. This is just a thought.
Hershey, thank you so much. I have actually been considering producing another butterfly calendar. I made one in 2018 and sold them and gave the money to benefit the homeless in my home town. It was a tremendous amount of work and I am no sales person. I had no idea what I was doing but I just did it. I didn't figure I would ever consider it again but my passion is butterflies and flowers so who knows. I would probably only have them printed and give them away so it would be a very small scale production but still a tremendous amount of work. We'll see. Thanks for your encouragement. BTW I made a birthday card a few days ago with that photo for Ellen that used to be on this thread. You might remember her popping in from time to time. Have a good day.
Love,
Nancy
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Hi All. Sorry for the absence. I apparently don't post well when I don't receive any notices!
Carol, I will continue to pray for you and your many challenges. I understand your concerns about your DH. Mine doesn't handle my suffering well at all either and I fear for him. He needs to be able to help me. That is why I am so glad he has a good hobby and has added friends to his circle. BTW I have been on Prilosec for seven years and cannot go off it at all. This is against all recommendations but is what I need. MY MO is fine with that as she monitors my blood work. It keeps me sane and eating!
Nancy, I always love your butterfly pictures. They are peaceful. I am also glad your windows saga can finally end.
GB, how is work going? Are your insurance needs resolving? So many needs on top of everything else.
They are finally working on our deck again. One of the guys fell and broke a leg (not from our deck) and it put things behind as he was in charge of our deck work too. I am pretty sure it will be done in time for winter… lol I am getting ready to head out to see my onc. It will be the first visit after restarting my Verzenio. I think it is all going fine with my meds. Hopefully I will get some answers to my spine issues too.
I am sure there are some of us not posting like me and I am sorry I missed you. I am so thankful God has put us together.
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Chris, seven years? Wow! Are you on the prescription strength "Om…" - whatever that name is? I'm only on day 3 of the ORC om…
DH and I have a video visit with MY PCP tomorrow. Am managing to eat more today but have decided to stop the Ibrance (I did let my MO know) until we get this swallowing/coughing thing resolved. I was given a ink to an article about the potential side effects of Ibrance. Here is an excerpt:
include shortness of breath,
tiredness, coughing that lasts weeks or months and weight loss that gets
progressively worse.Boy does that sound familiar!
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Nothing has changed with work and insurance. But my benefits people at work are investigating my complaint about the co-pays being processed incorrectly. At least there's that.
Lots of appointments. Had my yearly MRI yesterday. Results appointment on Monday with zoladex shot right after (really getting tired of those). It occurred to me I could look up my MRI results but maybe I should wait until my appointment., just in case the weekend gets ruined. Have to see the eye doctor again next week because my new glasses still aren't right. I told them they were off when I picked them up, but the optical person insisted I give it time. This is why I resist getting my prescription updated....its never right the first time.
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gb, how frustrating with the continued insurance issues. I always "look" as soon as my test results get posted to my portal. I'm sorry about your glasses prescription being off. I hate it when they don't listen to us.
I slept better last night, according to my FitBit. I still ended up on the couch in the den, but I'm getting used to it and even though I was coughing, I was still able to sleep.
I managed to eat almost 1,400 calories yesterday and my weight was up a bit this morning. I will see my PCP for a video visit at noon today and will discuss all of this with her.
Oh, here's a praise report. Since stopping the Ibrance, my blood work has improved - namely my white cell count and my ANC. Both have been low since I started Ibrance, putting me at risk for infection. I'm happy with that and may not wear a mask when I go the grocery store today.
Love to all,
Carol
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Ahh yes, Omeprazole ... My husband's PCP prescribed Omeprazole for his GERD. His symptoms included coughing and burping (never acid reflux). At the time, my husband was doing intermittent fasting. Turns out, that eating plan was a trigger. His digestive system couldn't handle the volume of food eaten during a limited window of time. Once he divided his meals into small quantities throughout the day, his symptoms stopped and he quit taking Omeprazole with his doctor's approval. That was almost a year ago. I'm not suggesting that small meals and snacks will work for anyone else, but it was helpful for my husband.
GB, I will pray for good test results and an uneventful injection on Monday.
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Carol, I am sorry you have to stop Ibrance. I didn't know of this side effect but you may be right.
I am on a regular strength of Prilosec but get is as a prescription as it is cheaper. I can get three months for about $5. That is a win!
I just read the note about losing Sadieservant. So sad when we lose one of our own. She was a kind and thoughtful friend here.
You are all in my daily prayers. May God send us peace.
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Thank you, Chris. My PCP offered me a prescription of the Pepcid, but will try the OTC one first. Who would have thought the prescription would be cheaper.
Am hoping for a better night's sleep tonight.
Love to all,
Carol
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Chris, I am glad your deck will eventually be done. Glad to hear that your Verzenio is going well. I pray that that will continue. Thank you for your nice comments. I can't tell you how I feel when I just sit in the Butterfly House and watch them flit through the air. It is awe and wonder I think. It is the miracle of their life cycle as well. It is the wonder of God's magnificent creation and creativity.
GB, I am glad to hear that your benefits people at work are investigating you copay issues. That sounds promising. We will be praying that your shot goes well this time around. I hope you can get your glasses where you need them. I remember my Dad having such issues with his new glasses back in the day.
Carol, I too was on GERD meds for years. I was on Ranitidine which is Zantac. You don't hear much about it anymore because I think they may have taken it off the market as they felt it caused cancer. Once in a great while I will have to buy some OTC Omeprazole for heart burn. All those years I took the GERD med I never felt like I had it. My gastro was only basing it on the results of my upper endoscopy. I hope your Ibrance is not the culprit here. Hershey brought up a good point about the intermittent fasting. I hope things went well with your PCP visit. I can't scroll forward as I will lose my post and I just read it. My night time drugs are kicking in so my mind is a little dulled right now. I really am praying that this med will stop your coughing. I am glad to hear you got to eat more. That is a good sign.
I had a sort of fall last night at Home Depot while looking at drawer pulls for my cabinet project coming up in a couple of weeks. I have to wear my knee stabilizing brace everyday. This is going on 4 mos now. I am supposed to avoid doing too much squatting. I was looking way down low and was squatting. When I went to get up I knew I didn't have enough strength to get up and nothing to grab onto. So I tried to get up and I fell backwards and in a very awkward almost spill I somehow never actually fell and ended upright. I don't think anyone saw me as it was so hot and past dinner time. I imagine the surveillance video person that would watch that would get a kick out of watching me almost fall. Anyway this morning it wasn't so funny. I hurt the back of my bad knee and it was very tight and painful and I felt unstable and painful to walk. This is how I felt initially when I injured it and then I couldn't walk at all. So I am praying this will simply go away.
I am getting email notifications now so I hope this continues and I hope you all who have that option are getting them as well.
Have a good night dear sisters.
Love
Nancy
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Carol, Pepcid doesn't help me at all. It works differently than Prilosec. Hope it helps you though.
Nancy, praying for your knee. I am sure that was scary.
Hershey, I only eat small meals but it doesn't help my Gerd. I can't handle a large meals anymore, but it is a good thought.
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Good MRI and easy Zoladex shot. Whew. Now I'm going to need that eye appointment, and a to go well.
MRI put me into another low back spasm. Ow! Taking a road trip here soon, so hoping that eases quickly.
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GB, enjoy your road trip! It is good to be able to look forward to good things.
Nancy, how are you doing? How was the HOA landscape walk-through? We had a whopper of a storm last night and had to tie down construction materials. This needs to get finished!
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I’ve been off the threads for a few days so I’m catching up now.
Nancy, I’m so sorry you fell. That is SO scary. How is your pain now?
I had a rough night with no sleep the night before last. Last night was better and I slept from around 10 pm to 2 am (according to my FitBit) and was then able to sleep again at around 5 am. Groggy today.
Kids are coming down this week. I can’t wait!
Love and prayers,
Carol
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Hi everyone,
My almost fall has landed me into terrible pain. The cane I bought four months ago and never used I am now using. It is so hard to take care of my flowers and yard like this. I am seeing my surgeon next week and will probably get a cortisone shot and then it looks like PT will be in my near future. It was interesting that I talked to a lady I hadn't seen in a year walking by my house. She had just been through knee surgery and we have the same surgeon. She said if you have a cortisone shot you have to wait for 90 days to have surgery. I wasn't thrilled to hear that. Her parents took her dog for 6 months during and after her surgery. She had arthroscopic surgery and is 30 years younger than I. I turn 72 on Thursday and was planning to have this week be my staycation. I may be staying but not like I had planned for sure.
GB I hope you have a wonderful road trip. Glad that things went well for you with your MRI and shot.
Chris, we have had bad storms with damage so many times this summer. We have been fortunate that we have not been hit hard as other surrounding communities. I hope your deck can be finished as I am sure that was very disappointing with your worker being injured.
Carol, I hope you have a wonderful time with your kids coming to visit. I do hope you will get some answers and solutions soon. I can sympathize with the no sleep. My issues are nothing like yours but I can so relate on feeling like a zombie when you don't have enough sleep.
Take care dear sisters.
Love,
Nancy
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