Tag Archives: gait

Still Being Poked, but Optimistic

Day by Day with a Movement Disorder Posted on September 7, 2011 by 4

Well, I was hoping to wait until I had something definite to add, but it looks like that’s not going to happen any time soon. Since I’ve written last I’ve had two more sets of liver enzyme tests with varying results, but still high. I’ve been to the Endocrinologist, and he’s run all the thyroid tests again and done an ultrasound of my thyroid.  He is satisfied that all is normal there. The liver biopsy results came back normal. So far so good.

But, I asked at my last Gastro visit if muscle atrophy could cause the liver enzyme numbers to be high, based on some information I found on the internet. So he added a Creatine Kinase test to the orders for the liver function panel, and the CK numbers were elevated. I’m not sure yet what that means, as I’m having a routine colonoscopy this week and won’t see my Gastro again until the followup appointment for that.

I’ve decided that the variation in AST and ALT numbers I keep getting is determined by how much walking I’ve done prior to the test. When I had to walk a long way to the lab the numbers have been higher than when it was close by. I really do think all the abnormal numbers have something to do with whatever is making my walking so labored and oddly gaited.

I have a feeling I won’t get any answers until I see the Neuromuscular Movement Disorder Specialist at UAB in October. But at least we’ve ruled out several things that could have caused this weakness.

I’ve finally reached a point that I’m no longer worried about them finding some horrible something wrong with me, and I’m very thankful for that. I am not as weak as I was back in March when this all started, and I’m VERY thankful for that. I feel good enough to have made a dent in the backlog of work that accumulated when I was so very weak, and that helps my outlook, too.

I’m thankful to God that most of the scariest possibilities have been ruled out, and I’m no longer anxious about the final results of all this testing.

Just Learned about WalkAide for Foot Drop!!

Day by Day with a Movement Disorder Posted on July 28, 2008 by  

I don’t have Peripheral Neuropathy any more, and our daughter who was hospitalized with horrible Neuropathy problems a couple of years ago, including foot drop, is doing much better now. You can read all about her problems resulting from Gastric Bypass Surgery, if this is of interest to you.

But when I read a new post on PLM today about this device called a WalkAide, I was excited by the possibilities!

One member on PLM is currently using it and has only good things to say about how it has improved her gait to a more natural one, and thus made her less likely to fall. She has written about it before and it didn’t register just how revolutionary this small device is, but today I decided to research it.

Someone else on PLM was advised to get this device, but their insurance would not cover it. Since it costs in the $5,000 range it’s understandable that she didn’t rush out and buy it on her own.

So what does the WalkAide do? It’s a small device that is strapped on just below the kneecap that senses the wearer’s foot movement and delivers the correct electrical signal (which the brain may or may not be sending correctly, but is not being received correctly) to the correct muscles to allow the foot to pick up the toes correctly as the foot lifts during walking.

Who can this WalkAide help? ANYONE with a Movement Disorder that causes the foot to drop down when it is lifted would be a possible candidate for this system!

Praise GOD from Whom All BLESSINGS Flow!!!

Day by Day with a Movement Disorder Posted on June 14, 2008 by  

I can’t praise God enough for how I’ve been lately. I really am doing great, and it’s wonderful to be able to say that. Some days I don’t have any abnormal movements at all, and on others I have only tolerable ones. I have been on cloud nine now for a couple of weeks, and it looks like I’m here to stay.

I have noticed that as I become more active and expend more muscle effort that the medicine wears off sooner in the evenings. The Movement Disorder doctor said to call him back in two weeks, and he would discuss raising the daytime dose maybe a half pill at that time. Sounds good to me. He just doesn’t want me to zombie out on the Primidone, and I don’t want that, either. He mentioned physical therapy to help with the slow walking, but that just does not seem necessary to me. I know how to be safe, and as I feel better I am naturally increasing my physical activity. I’m so used to listening to what my body is telling me that I can judge pretty well when it’s time to quit.

My house certainly appreciates the extra attention I have been able to give it lately! There’s plenty more to do, though. I have about two years of clutter to wade through. When you feel as bad as I have and as unsteady as I have it’s just easier and safer to ignore a lot. Hubby has kept us in good meals and clean clothes, but the “stuff” has piled up.

We celebrated our 44th Wedding Anniversary yesterday. I wrote a long post about it on our Yesterday’s Memories blog, so I won’t repeat that here. The fantastic thing is that even though I was exhausted at night from all we did during the day the last two days, I feel fine today. My muscles are definitely adjusting to more activity.

So I leave this post with a positive outlook and a heart full of thanksgiving!!

Praise God from who all blessings flow! Whooopppieeeeeeeeee!!!

Primidone is HELPING!!

Day by Day with a Movement Disorder Posted on June 4, 2008 by 2

I’ve been trying to get to this post for several days now, and other things just kept getting in the way. Also, it looks like I have good news, and I didn’t want to celebrate too soon. The Primidone seems to be helping!!

I finally got in touch with Dr. Watts’ UAB Neurology team, and he sent in a prescription for Primidone on Friday a week ago. I took my first dose Friday night, and was pretty well looped all day Saturday, and almost as drugged feeling all day Sunday. But I was NOT jerking, and my hand was still! My walking was very odd, like I was on a boat or a dock. When I stood still I kind of wobbled, instead of shaking, as if it were slowing the speed of the movements down and increasing the amplitude, if that makes any sense. That lasted for several days, but then by about Wednesday I was only noticing the good effects. As long as the dose was in me, I did not shake, wobble, or tremor at all. Ignoring the slow walking, I was back to NORMAL! Even my handwriting improved. I was not depressed, but trying not to celebrate too soon, because the next step was to add a morning dose, and I wasn’t sure what was going to happen then.

I started taking a second dose in the morning as well on Monday. I do get a little woozy feeling for just a little while about an hour or two after I take it, but other than that, it seems to be helping a lot. I have a slight mouth twitch today, the third day I have had two doses, which I did not have Monday or Tuesday. But that is the only symptom other than the slow walking that I have! I do have to be more careful with steps – it’s like I can’t tell where my feet are.

I am not depressed at all with the Primidone, the way I was with the Clonazepam, and I am very hopeful that this medicine will work for me. I am still doing research on this medicine, but its brand name is Mysoline, and its primary use is in controlling seizures. They assured me that there were no signs of seizures from my tests, so this is what they call an off label use of the drug.

This medicine has a very long half life, and that means there is still plenty of the drug in my system when it is time to take the next dose. Actually, when I was taking just the one pill, I took it at 7:00PM and it did not completely wear off until four or five o’clock the next afternoon. I am also on the lowest dose, so there is room to go if I get used to the medicine and need to up the dosage.

Did you see me doing the happy dance????

I am so thankful to God for his tender mercies!!!!!!!!!!

Had a New EEG Test Yesterday

Day by Day with a Movement Disorder Posted on April 17, 2008 by 4

I had my second EEG test yesterday, but my reactions to it were considerably different from the one I had two years ago. Back then, my Neurologist was trying to decide if I had Parkinson’s or not. My only symptom at that time was a very labored, slow walk, that he called Bradykinesia. I did not have any problems with the EEG test at all.

Things have changed a good bit since then. Now I have lots of tremors, jerks, and facial tics, that only get worse if I am in a stressful situation, or cannot get my mind “somewhere else”. I have discovered that when I am deeply concentrating on something, such as writing here on the computer, that the movements are quieted down considerably.

But put me in a situation that is the least stressful, or in one where I am just sitting with nothing actively going on, and I turn into the hurky jerky girl. Church is the usual place that happens. The only way to stop it that I have found is to go into a meditative state, finding some minute crack or spot on the wall to give my total attention to. It spaces me out, I don’t hear the sermon, but at least I am not bothering all the people who sit behind us.

And now I know that it happens during EEG tests, too. With nothing to occupy my concentration, following her directions to do fast open mouth breathing for 3 minutes to make me hyperventilate, and some very uncomfortable series of strobe lights that made me feel even more stressed, there just wasn’t any way to stop the jerks. The harder I tried to be still, as she had asked, the more I moved. She finally gave up and said at least it would let the doctors see what my brain was doing while my body was doing its own thing. She did tell me to open my mouth and stop pressing my lips together, so my mouth trembled and pulled to the left the whole time, too.

It took 45 minutes to complete the test, and I was exhausted the rest of the day.

The funny part was my hair!! They do not use the scull cap method, so each of these electrodes was stuck to my scalp with something like KY jelly. And there were lots of electrodes – maybe in the 20’s? When she was through and told me to look in the mirror, I looked like something from a Monty Python movie. I smoothed my hair down as best I could, but would have loved to have walked out just as I was, so hubby could get a kick out of it. If he had been the only one in the waiting room I would have, but it was a very busy place.

We were set to drive some distance to a family funeral after the test, so I had anticipated the hair goo and planned to stop at any franchise hair salon along the way and get my hair washed. So that was easily enough taken care of. I am glad I knew to expect that, as it could have been a real problem if we had been running short on time. I didn’t appreciate having to pay $12 just to get it washed and blown dry with no styling, but there wasn’t anything else to do. I had also brought a complete change of clothes and shoes, so I would not have to take the test in good clothes.

We did get into a situation of some very expensive parking at UAB, though, that just added to the very expensive day. We parked in the closest parking deck to the Sparks Clinic at UAB, but they would not validate his ticket, since we had not used the “right” deck. Of course, they had not told me that I should park in any particular one when they called to tell me the appointment time. So, instead of costing $4.50 to park, it cost us $15.00!!! We were not at all happy about that!! UAB will be hearing from me about that today!!

When we did get to Cleveland, the little town in north Alabama where the funeral was going to be, we ate at a very nice looking local restaurant. Not surprisingly, considering the way the rest of the day had been, their prices were high. So, we took the lunch special of the day. The vegetables were great, but the meat was lousy. The waitress seemed genuinely shocked when hubby complained about it.

I really was worn out by the time the graveside funeral was over, so we begged off on eating at the church with the family and headed straight home. This was my sister in law’s side of the family, so I really didn’t know that many people there anyway, and I am not comfortable in unfamiliar social situations. I have always been that way, but it’s gotten worse now that I jerk and twitch so much.

So we had a full day, one that I am glad to have over with. I have an appointment with Dr. Watt’s team in May, with an MRI to be schedules before then, so I will have to wait that long to find out the results of the EEG. Should be very revealing, since I displayed the full range of all my jerks, tics, smirks, and shakes while the brain’s electrical activity was being graphed.

I am optimistic that all these tests are going to show more than they did two years ago, and that they will be able to decide what is wrong with me with more certainty. Of course, I know there is no such thing medically in life as a certainty, but I can rely on God to get me through it all. Patience, Rosemary, Patience.

I Have Been to THE Appointment

Day by Day with a Movement Disorder Posted on April 5, 2008 by 8

Well, we went Thursday to see Dr. Watts, the head of Neurology at the University of Alabama in Birmingham, who has a great reputation as a Movement Disorder Specialist.

We were both very impressed with how personable he is. One of the other doctors on his staff did all of the preliminary questioning and testing. He was very easy to be with, too. Most of the tests were ones I have been asked to do many times in the last couple of years. A few were different. They both had me make big smiles with my teeth showing several times, which is not something I remember being asked to do by anyone else, and Dr. Watts had me repeat a few of the tests the assistant had already done.

They also gave me the impression that my family history of neurological problems is an important clue – mother with Senile Parkinson’s or Alzheimer’s – uncle with ALS – aunt with depression, drug addiction, alcoholism – grandfather was senile, possibly Alzheimer’s? Until they asked lots of probing questions I had never connected my Grandfather’s behavior and my Aunt’s behavior as being pertinent. That’s why doctors ask things over and over, isn’t it.

Of course, they asked me a million questions about what my symptoms were like, and when and how they started, many questions asked several times. Some I could answer, and some I really couldn’t. He was very interested in knowing about anti-depression and tranquilizer drugs I have taken in the past. I have been on several for short periods of time because of the stress of caring for our parents and our daughters, but I couldn’t tell him much about which ones I have taken. I should be able to get that information from my Primary and from our Pharmacist, plus I rounded up a bunch of prescription bottles of them that I had kept – just in case.

Dr. Watts sat down right in front of me, looked me in the eye, smiled, and talked with me. I had no sense of him being in a hurry to move on to the next patient. That is so rare in doctors these days, and certainly not what I expected out of such a highly renowned specialist.

OK, so now to what happened. I put on quite a show of jerks, tremors, and facial tics the whole time, partly because I was so nervous about what they would find or not find. There is a big part of my mind that is just sure this has all been a psychological problem, but at least he never said that. At least not yet.

I gave a pint of blood in the lab (OK, so I’m exaggerating – but it was maybe 8 vials full), looking for some clue as to what is going on. He talked to me about the possibility of some kind of antibody/autoimmune problem where my own body is causing the problems. He also seemed to think it might be symptoms caused from one of the medicines I have taken in the past.

He has also ordered an MRI at UAB. He says their MRI equipment is different from others I have been in, in that it is more powerful and may see something that the others did not. Plus, it’s been 2 years since I had a brain MRI, and whatever is going on might show up now that hadn’t progressed enough to show back then. They will call me with that appointment, so I don’t know when that will be.

He talked with his assistant, Dr. D, about lots of things it might be, with all kinds of medical jargon. Dr. D was jotting down notes the whole time and seemed to be making a list of possible diagnoses as they discussed my symptoms. Every once in awhile Dr. Watts would ask me to do something or ask more questions. It was exactly like watching a real live “HOUSE” team in action. When he was through talking back and forth with Dr. D, Dr. Watts gave us a layman’s explanation of some of the possibilities. I am not going to list them, since obviously they can’t all be it, and maybe even none of them are “it”. I did come home and get busy Googling every term I could remember hearing them discussing. You knew I would do that, didn’t you. LOL!

He did put me on a titrating dose schedule of Clonazepam, to see if that would calm down the jerks and tics. He said I would be sleepy with it at first, but that this would wear off as my body adjusted to it. I am to take 1/2 tablet at night for a week, then morning and night, and work up to 1 full and 2 halves a day. I have an appointment to see someone else in the practice in May to go over the findings. He said that Dr. D and Dr. Watts would be in on the conference with us at that time.

At this point about all I do know is that it is looking less and less likely that I have Parkinson’s, but that I do have some type of Movement Disorder as yet to be named.

We’ve not told family or friends about all this yet. They know I had the appointment but not why I had it. We decided there was no point in making anyone else worry about all this. We will wait until we actually know something to tell them. I can write it all here, which helps me process it all, because nobody I know personally reads this blog.

Week One of my Experiment

Day by Day with a Movement Disorder Posted on February 2, 2008 by 2

OK folks, I’ve been off of all my Parkinson’s meds for exactly a week now. I am definitely having more facial tics, but not enough to be the sole reason that I would go back on the meds. Walking is perhaps a little slower and more labored, but nothing like it was back when I was originally diagnosed. So, it remains to be seen just how much this changes this next week. My hand and legs tremors are more pronounced, but again not to a point that I feel compelled to go back on the meds.

And why, you may ask, am I doing this to myself? I am a scientist by nature, with a lifetime of dealing with challenges by using the scientific method. That means isolating the cause and effect relationship by changing only one thing at a time, and using a control as a comparison point. Obviously I can’t do this experiment with all the steps in place, but I can try.

It would be so much easier if I had some way to accurately quantify the amount of Bradykinesia (slow movement), tics (involuntary facial muscle twitches), and tremors I have, with their locations, but this is all, by its very nature, subjective.

I’ll continue with my experiment on me for a while longer, but I will try to live each day to the fullest, too, and not make this diagnosis all I am about.

So today we went on our Date Day as usual, and I had a wonderful time with my hubby. We just enjoy being in each other’s company. I know we are in the house together for days at a time, but he’s doing his thing and I’m doing mine. On Fridays, we spend the day together – really together.

Went Off PD Meds Temporarily

Day by Day with a Movement Disorder Posted on December 23, 2007 by  

I had my last PD medicine around 3:00PM Friday, so I have been without now for about 48 hours. I don’t know how much of those meds are still in my system, but I suspect there’s not much left.

So, how am I doing? Well, my right foot particularly, and the left to some extent, are shaking some, particularly when I stand in one place for more than just a few seconds. The wobbling foot and knee make my whole body rock rhythmically. It’s nowhere near as bad as it looked in Dr. S’s office Wednesday, but I was very nervous then, so the exaggerated gait was not overly surprising.

My right hand takes a notion to tremble off and on all day long, but I can usually stop it temporarily by thinking about it. Usually, I just start to jerk somewhere else, when I get one tremor stopped by relaxing and concentrating on just that one area. The facial and tongue tics seem to be worse, too, with me off the PD meds. Generally, I see an increase in jerkiness that moves from place to place as I consciously try to stop it elsewhere.

We haven’t told anyone in the family about this possible change in diagnosis, and don’t intend to, until it has been confirmed, and hopefully, we have a name for what is wrong with me.

I am going back on my Zelepar and Requip at 3:00PM today, and will stay one them at least until all the holidays are over with, and I am dismissed from PT. I probably will try going without again in February, just to see how I am doing then.

I wrote once before that having a neurological disease is like being in a clinical trial of ONE. It becomes very difficult to manage all the possible variables, and come to any kind of conclusion about the level of disability and what improves or aggravates the symptoms.

This is a Hard Post to Write

Day by Day with a Movement Disorder Posted on December 20, 2007 by 11

I saw my Neurologist yesterday, and it turns out I did have good reason to be apprehensive about the appointment.

First of all, he agreed that I did not have any business having the epidurals on my cervical vertebrae. So, I called my Orthopedist to let them know that they could schedule the Physical Therapy, but not the epidurals. They called back later, and have already faxed the prescription to the PT I used last time, which is close to home. So, hopefully, I will be getting some relief from the neck pain and stiffness soon. Holidays, of course, will be in the way of a regular schedule, so who knows when I will actually start the sessions. It could easily be the beginning of next year.

He also took me off of the Levadopa/Carbidopa plus Lodosyn meds that the ER doc had added to my treatment, since it didn’t seem to be helping much at all. Taking too much of these meds can cause dyskinesia, which is involuntary movements. That may be why I had such an odd tremor develop of late, plus all the facial and tongue tics I have been experiencing.

But the news from the exam that has me so upset right now is that he is no longer sure I have Parkinson’s. He watched me walk, and I was so nervous by then that he got to see me at my worst. Both legs bobbing up and down like I was trying to walk across the floor of one of those carnival blow up bounce machines, and having to hold out my arms to the sides to keep my balance. Turning around and coming back towards him was just as bad. He had me take off my socks and shoes, and he did all the usual hitting with the hammer. He scraped the bottom of each foot, and also suddenly pushed both feet straight up several times, in a slapping kind of motion.

I have had the foot scrape thing done many times before, and I know what that was testing me for – the Babinski effect. That’s a test I failed some years ago when I was seeing a different Neurologist for migraine headaches. As far as I know I have not failed it since then. It has to do with the way your toes curl or straighten out when a hard object is scraped from the heel towards the toes. The normal reflex is to curl the toes inward. If the toes spread out, with the big toe stretching upward, it’s a sign of a lower extremity nerve problem. I don’t know if I passed it this time or not. He didn’t say, and I was too upset to ask. I have tried to look up what the sudden slapping of my feet upward meant, as I have never had that done to me before, but I haven’t been able to come up with the right search terms yet to find out what that was all about. He did move my arms around, while I kept them relaxed, and said he did not feel any cog wheeling. That’s something he would expect to find if I had Parkinson’s, and he has said in the past that he did feel it. It has something to do with the tremors, but that’s about all I know about cog wheeling.

They have made an appointment for me with the Chair of the Neurology Department at the University of Alabama in Birmingham. He is the Movement Disorder Specialist in this area, and is supposed to be my best chance of finding out what is wrong with me. Parkinson’s effects people in so many different ways, it may yet turn out to be the PD that my Neuro had initially diagnosed.

But for now, he has listed my diagnosis as the Peripheral Neuropathy plus Gait Debility. I’m back to that “not knowing” stage, and it is extremely upsetting for me, and for my dear sweet hubby. Of course, as you might expect with the chair of the department, I can’t get an appointment until the end of April. That’s going to be a long, long wait that is not going to be easy.

I felt such relief when my Neuro put a name to what was happening to me – even if it was that I had Parkinson’s. Now I am in limbo again, and I hate it.

Hubby has asked that I stop reading and researching about Parkinson’s for awhile, just to be sure that I have not been subconsciously absorbing the symptoms that I was reading about. That’s a fair request, so I have said a temporary goodbye to my Parkie friends on PatientsLikeMe, and will not be doing any PD research for awhile. I am going to continue to try to find out more about Peripheral Neuropathy, though, because there is no doubt that I have that. Unlike Parkinson’s, there are definitive tests for PN, which I most definitely have.

I don’t know how to adequately explain how I am feeling about all this right now. It’s almost as if I found out I was adopted, or something like that. It’s like my identity has been ripped to shreds, if that makes sense. I have developed some really close friendships with some wonderful PWP over the last year. Now, with one sentence, my Neuro has put the nature of that relationship in limbo.

This NOT KNOWING stage I am in again is very hard to deal with. I am vacillating between being scared of something worse than Parkinson’s, and being relieved that it could be something less progressive in nature than PD.

God is forever trying to teach me patience, and reliance on Him, rather than my own abilities. Looks like He is working on that big time right now. We haven’t actually said anything out loud, but I think hubby and I are going to keep this turn of events to ourselves for now. I can’t see any good reason to add this uncertainty to our children’s lives. They have enough to worry about on their own. So, I will pour out my feelings here on my blog, since no one who knows me personally ever reads it.

Neck Pain and Tremors Causing Problems

Day by Day with a Movement Disorder Posted on December 9, 2007 by 2

I’m having two main problems from the Parkinson’s right now – my very stiff and painful neck, and the much increased tremors, particularly in my right foot.

I’m sleeping with a very soft neck pillow, the kind that look like a C, and I keep it behind my neck while I sit at the computer, too. That helps me get to sleep and cuts down on the pain of just holding my head up. As the day goes on, the pain is getting worse and worse.

I am waiting to hear from my Orthopedist now about a standing MRI appointment. Hubby has Jury Duty next week, so that means I will have to wait longer to get it done. Can’t be helped, but it’s frustrating. He had to ask for a deferral back when we were taking care of Daddy, so he can’t very well ask for another one because he is taking care of me. There is absolutely no way I could drive myself to the big city, as long as it’s been since I’ve driven at all, even though I am no longer having the sudden sleep attacks. Maybe, if he is lucky, he won’t have to serve for long, and I can get it done toward the end of this week. I sure hope so. The Methacarbamol and Mobic aren’t helping enough to warrant taking the pills, so I quit taking them.

I’ve tried to continue with as much exercise as possible, but DH hurt his back again several weeks ago, and his sciatic nerve is acting up. He hasn’t felt like going to the track, so I haven’t been getting enough exercise lately. I am still working out in the yard the best I can, but it makes my neck hurt worse.

I’m also having considerably more problems due to tremors. For the first year of PD I didn’t have any tremors at all. I was beginning to have small ones on Sundays mostly, while we were listening to the sermon. I finally decided that it was the uncomfortable pews, being too still too long, and being cold, all working together to stress my muscles. But that was a very mild nuisance tremor.

Since I had the steroid interaction that sent me to the ER, however, the tremor in my right leg and foot have been so strong that it makes walking and standing much more difficult. It still comes and goes, but when I get the least bit tired, as I do when I walk very much, that leg starts dancing a jig all on its own. I am having more problems with balance because of it, and I am beginning to experience what is called freezing. When I stand up, I have to kind of wait before I can get that pesky right foot to make up its mind to move where I want it to, it’s so busy moving where it wants to.

One thing’s for sure, I look like I have Parkinson’s now, where I didn’t until recently. Even my lips, tongue, and eyebrows are beginning to quiver. We had our portraits made the other day to give to our children for Christmas, and it was all I could do to hold the poses long enough to get a good picture. My face behaved, but not my leg. It took every bit of will power I had to make my leg be still. If I hold my breath and really concentrate, I can stop the tremors momentarily, thank goodness. I had to do that to get the X-rays on my neck done a couple of weeks ago, too.

So, things have been a little difficult lately, but I am still managing OK. I’ve been listing a lot on eBay, and we have had some good sales there. I’ve also been concentrating on trying to help as many people as I can on my Plush Memories blog. I’ve managed to find several lost lovies for people, and some of my blog readers there have found a few more. And, there have been a few times that we had the lovey they were looking for in stock, so I’ve made a few sales, and made some folks very happy all at the same time. That’s what makes selling the plush toys so much fun.

We are still going to Estate Sales, but this time of year there usually aren’t as many on a given Friday. That’s OK, because I really can’t manage more than a few anyway, as I tire out and hurt too much to go to very many. So, we have been doing a little bit of Estate Sale hunting and a little bit of Christmas shopping on Fridays. The only thing we absolutely have to go to stores for is all the Stocking Stuffer odds and ends that we give our children and grandchildren every year. And this year, we have been buying things for their stockings all year long, which is a blessing.

Thank goodness for Internet shopping! I’ve been buying most of our gifts online for years, but this year it has been a blessing. The black pair of Skechers came the other day, and I wore them to get our portraits made. They feel wonderful, and they do improve may stability much more than the Sunday shoes I have been wearing. Our daughters wear the same size shoes I do, so looks like they will be getting some hand me down shoes.

So, I keep going, making changes as I must.