Beau & Teka

Beau loves to play in the pool. Teka wants to be wherever Beau is, but her legs are way shorter than his so she doesn't stay in as long as he does. We took Buttons and Beau for a walk this evening after it cooled off a bit. Compared to Guam, our temperatures in the morning are very cold now, but it gets up to the mid to high 80s in the afternoon. It is kind of strange weather for this time of the year around here. Usually as soon as school starts, it gets really hot. We didn't have very many days over 100 this summer. It rained several times in August. Jim felt well enough to go to sacrament today. He hasn't been for two weeks. Hopefully the Cymbalta is going to be helpful. He has only been taking it for four days and it is supposed to work faster than similar meds. We even went to a missionary farewell this evening.

59 and holding

Dylan has already shared the first cold of the school year before school even started. Since I don't feel very well and Jim's foot keeps him housebound for the most part, it has been a quiet evening. I did make it out to the grocery store. My new favorite snack is Nutella. Dylan got his hair cut for school so Jadyn had to keep up with him. She has a short bob that will be easier for her to take care of herself. Ryder is growing so fast. He is getting three molars at once inspite of the fact that all he has in front are his two bottom teeth. Nevertheless, all of our grandchildren have fantastic smiles.

Jim is officially a senior citizen

Today is Jim's 65th birthday. He went to the chiropractor to see if there was something he could do to alleviate some of the pain in his foot. It is really hard to imagine that is is now covered by Medicare. That means he finally has double insurance coverage again and finally able to get back some of the money he has been paying into the system all these years. Katy and Ryder came to visit and we got some cute pictures. Ryder climbed into Beau's kennel to check it out. He was able to turn around inside and come out head first so it must be plenty big enough for Beau.

Painful foot saga

After a long flight back home from Guam, Jim started having trouble with numbness and pain in his feet. The right foot is way worse than the left. His primary doctor treated him for a fungus which did improve, but the pain remained. The neurologist did a nerve conduction study that showed minimal nerve damage. He has been to the pain clinic in Hood River. They ordered an MRI and a bone scan. He has several bulging discs in the lumbar and lumbosacral area so they did an epidural steroid injection and a nerve block. What we have learned from all this is that he does not have a sympathetic nerve disorder which is a good thing, but they don't know what is causing the pain. We still maintain that is coming from the bulging discs. In order to start him on a new medicine called Cymbalta, he has had to stop taking both antidepressants to wash them out of his system. He should be able to start the new one by the end of this week. We truly hope that this gives him some relief. Fortunately he has no pain when sleeping. It has been a really rough summer and we have not done much except massage his sore foot and figure out ways to distract from the pain. Walking sometimes makes it better. Beau has been good little pal for him. Mom has also spent time at our house while I have been at work to keep Jim company. Hopefully, the solution is near. He is going to see a chiropractor again to see if he can relieve some of the pressure on the nerves in his back.

Happy Birthday Marie

It has been a long time since I have posted. I had to wish Marie a fantastic birthday.

She is my most favorite daughter-in-law and not just because she is my only daughter-in-law. She is so devoted to her family and such a wonderful mom.