Update on Mom the Alzheimer's, getting home from the hospital and of course hurting my back again, and so forth....

You are all such a blessing, and know you are so loved and appreciated... Mom and I had "hell" getting into the house last night. They did not officially discharge her till like 6PM! And I had to get her into the house by myself, so with her having having both back and front, I chose the back, with two lower steps, and using her walker, we very SLOWLY and with a few "choice" words, LOL, made it into the house, and finally to her bed. Hospice DID come by last night around 7PM, I was so shocked, I did not expect a nurse by, plus they had a courier bring some stronger pain medication for her, and now all of her medications will come via courier.... so that will be easier... of course now Hospice has taken over for the doctors etc as far as the dementia, and anything "to do" with that diagnosis, etc for now.... so I am hoping it will "settle" down a little... I really did a huge NO NO though - I injured my LOWER back, which already needs surgery, between all of the walking yesterday back and forth, our hospital is laid out so stupid, and you have to walk what seems like a mile just to get to patient's rooms, but then getting Mom in the house, I did a real number on my lower back and my neck.... I got her settled in and came home very early this morning to do some stuff done here, that I have to do and then I will head back over there, because her Social Worker, Aid, and so on will be coming sometimes after 8AM I gather... so it will be another day of hell I think, just being up on my feet, and getting stuff in order and so on... but now the Ensure, pads, Depends, and any and all "medical stuff" she needs, they will automatically bring us. and I no longer have to be picking those things up, including I gather most of her "meds" ... not sure if it is all of them yet, but ones that go along with the hospice diagnosis they will get and have brought to me... which is some help... then they have a list of people I can have either come "sit" with Mom in the week, night, day, etc for a few hours, some volunteer, some I will have to pay, but I can still go with ""Home Instead" which is a "sitter service" BUT they will have someone there, and I don't have to worry over if I get sick, or need to be away, and someone HAS to be with Mom, even though it means paying for them, they are bonded and so forth, I've met with one of the main case workers already.... and it is MUCH less although not cheap, than putting her in a nursing home, which means about at the lowest 3,000.00 a MONTH for room and board.... so hopefully we can keep her at home, where she REALLY wants to be, and hydrated, and well enough to avoid the hospital again... I can't say how much I appreciate all of your thoughts and prayers... and I need to get busy getting things done here, etc... but I will post when I can... Love to all of your guys and gals, Rhia Steele "All things Autoimmune"

The Latest Addition of my Saturday Newspaper All Things from Chronic Pain to AAI illnesses, Lupus, and so much more.... great stories today!

Latest Saturday Addition of My Newspaper "Life with Chronic Pain and AAASD's"'' LOTS of great articles from Arthritis, to AI illnesses, including Lupus Awareness Month coming up, Chronic Pain Patients speaking out about the medications they need for a quality of life and even so much more! Check it out, please forward it, and sign up to get the updates daily!  Thanks to all of you, Rhia Steele "All things Autoimmune"​



http://paper.li/ravishingrhia/1438808814?edition_id=1522ce40-0766-11e6-8e8c-0cc47a0d15fd

Latest Addition on Saturday of "All Things Autoimmune""

Latest Saturday Addition of Rhia's Newspaper "All Things Autoimmune" - Chronic Pain, Health, Laws, the CDC, technology and so much more... feel free to subscribe to have it come to you daily via email!

http://paper.li/ravishingrhia/1438808814#!headlines

DOES IT EVER END????

Now as if things are not screwed up enough!!!! MOM TOOK ALL HE MEDICATION MORNING MEDICATIONS THAT WERE SUPPOSED TO BE THROUGH FRIDAY! all of them already! THEN ONLY TOOK "PARTS" OF THE BEDTIME MEDS... WHEN I asked her why she just looked at me and said well it is so simple I really do not know why I can't "get it"????? Then she DID NOT TELL ME that her legs and ankles were VERY SWOLLEN... now this is since Sunday - well she did NOT take her LASIX all week last week, because she did not take ANY meds last week... and SHE said Well they were "worse" they are better now... BULL, SHE is playing with "fire"... the entire reason for being SO CAREFUL about swelling is TOO much FLUID can cause that "heart valve" to act up and then she is facing open HEART SURGERY!!! So, I MADE HER TAKE ANOTHER LASIX and watched her and then increased it over the next 5 days to 2 every other day, which is what her heart doctor wanted her to do in the 1st place!!!!! 

Then "THEY ARE BACK!!!!!!!!!!!" I was in the back yard a few days ago, and in the back forty lot over some of the "weeds" I saw lots of what I thought were those damned "May Flies" which I hate swarming... BUT NO, THANK goodness I went back today and looked, because earlier I was out there with the weed eater trying to knock down some of the tall weeks before the city freaks and wants me to pay to have someone come and mow it with a tractor... 

BUT I stopped and decided I had enough room to spray weed killer as usual and should knock it down enough, it is all weeds and no grass... BUT, I LOOKED BACK AT THAT OLD BUS again a bit later AND IT'S THOSE DAMNED HONEY BEES!!!! WE "RAN" THEM OFF WE THOUGHT' They built in the neighbors walls... and he almost never got rid of them and NOW THEY BUILT OR ARE BUILDING BACK IN THE DAMNED OLD PIECE OF BUS ON MY BACK FORTY!!! I have been wanting to get someone to haul it and a bunch of old dead trees and tree limbs out, but finding the money is not easy... SO CRAP I have to do something... I just hope I can find someone who will come and "move that damned hive".... what a mess... 

Bub's is better, and I still never "found" what bit or stung him, and he is still not all the way over it, but all of it is looking much better, and I can tell he feels much better... what a damned nightmare... I do not honestly know what to do about Mom... and then I find out something about my car lease that I am really pissed about, but I will "save" that story until I do some research..... anyway, things suck even worse, and I am worn out.... and sick and tired of it all..... does it ever end!!!????

Dealing with Eldery Parents who have Alzheimer's or Dementia, when you, yourself are dealing with Chronic Pain and Illness...

 posted this on my FB page, and I will put it here also... I will be doing some work on my blog, my book, my new newspaper I have began, as well as some other things around my home, and some thinking about life... and how to deal with some really tough issues.... I maybe "away" from FB for a couple of days. 


There are some things I really need to get to working on as far as this new newspaper I am staring. I can customize is a great deal and it could really help me with my blog, as well as with my books , and my next book...plus lots of my advocacy work...getting information out there that would really benefit many people and help make what I want to happen possible ( I Hope)...I have also had some new ideas for my 3rd book unfold in my mind over this past couple of weeks, and although I jotted some of it down, I would like to start writing on it, in the beginnings of the book itself.... There are also some "personal matters" that honestly came up this morning, mainly to do with all of this mess with my Mother, and at this moment I am totally at my wits end, I have no clue where to go or what to do, other than leave her alone, and allow her to figure out "all is NOT RIGHT in her world".... she really hurt me earlier... calls me well before she is usually even out of bed, wanting to know "why I had not called or been by"...

well for one I was there two days in a row, just yesterday for one, and besides she is usually never even out of bed until after noon time... anyway, she asked me what I was doing, and then she told me I was a "blabber mouth", and I should NOT be telling my own kids what is going on... well I tried to tell her the kids are NOT stupid, and they "hear and see" and then she says they are never here nor never call so how do they know anything? So, I hung up... well I called back about 30 minutes later, and began to tell her to NEVER call me a "blabber mouth" again... that it for one hurt my feelings, and for two was NOT the truth, so then she began to tell me that losing her credit cards, not being able to work her stove, put her car in gear, not pay a bill correctly, not take her meds correctly, not know why the alarm clock blinked etc "meant nothing" and why do I even "care"... it is in the past... 

and when I said MOM jut yesterday I WENT TO GET YOUR MEDS AND GO TO THE STORE BECAUSE YOU DID NOT FEEL LIKE IT... so it not in the PAST it is right now... and she made some snide remark oh well, when we get there or if we do, we will handle it then... well WE ARE THERE! And she cannot continue to live alone, and if I tell the doctors about the car incident and and a couple of other things, they will tell her she cannot drive NOT live alone! As I told her and "building you a room" takes more than a few days.... she began to tell me I was full of crap, and nothing was wrong with her.... so I hung up with Okay, I will not "bother" you again, I am NOT calling, I will NOT come over there, and "if" you need me, then call, otherwise, I refuse to be hurt and used like a doormat and then laughed at when I told her that her calling me a "blabber mouth" hurt my feelings... and she said "she never even called me this morning"..... 

so, I have LOTS of things I want to do and get done, and I honestly right now am so totally sick and tired of this crap.... that she may wind up in a nursing home, if she does not want to listen to me.... I don't know what else to do.... but I need to get some rest myself, and do some thinking about several things... so if you do not see me here much, I am okay, just "out of touch" for a few days....

Eldery parents,caretakers,your own illnesses,surgery,family matters, Humana and insurance,doctors offices and issues, and more...

 Life is not always  BED OF ROSES... but I would settle for a few soft petals for now...




I am so excited - My NEW CORDLESS Weed Eater Came in yesterday! No more trying to pull those heavy cords around the yard, and I can take this out into the "back forty" also. Plus it is really almost lighter in weight than the corded one, and certainly lighter than the "gas" one. I can't weed eat for any long length of time, but I did discover, as long as I take it slow, and take breaks fairly quickly in between, then I can do lots with it. I can't start my darned lawnmower, because I do not have enough strength in my arms anymore to pull it quickly enough for it to start. It sucks, because I just put almost everything new on it last summer. I put the new pull cord device on it, a new air filter, changed the oil, a new spark plug, and fixed the "baffle" on it that deflects the grass. So, I am hoping my neighbor who used to mow the lawn will still do so, and he can see if i did a good job in the "overhaul" I guess when it plays out on me, I may have to get one that is "push button" for starting or something. I no longer can pull the cord quickly enough to start those kind. Anyway, right now I hope "nothing else" breaks or needs replacing around here. 

I've got the surgery to pay for, a doctors visit tomorrow that will have to be paid in full right now by me... he is my PCP and the ONLY doctor NOT on my "preferred provider list"... Hopefully since Aetna bought Humana, (they are on Aetna's plan) finally it will come together and they also will be on Humana's also... it is so odd, Humana used to carry them as a preferred provider for years.... anyway, I am having HELL with the surgeon's assistant that is doing my neck surgery. I go through hell with them on insurance every time... I FOUND THEM AND CALLED NOW 3 TIMES to make sure his clinic is on the "preferred provider list"... and I have seen it and they told me AGAIN ON THE PHONE YESTERDAY, that they are on Humana's "preferred providers list".... BUT the doctors office said the insurance said that they are not... well the issue is they have it listed under their "clinic name" which Humana tells me that means "the doctor" is covered... and I even got a special number on the phone yesterday as a confirmation that he is a preferred provider that I faxed to the doctors office... anyway, I have a 750.00 deductible on any "non preferred" provider then the insurance will pay 60% of the bill anyway, and then I pay 40%... so if it comes down to it, once that 750 is met, I would owe 40% of whatever, office visits, etc... and sometimes that 40% is actually "cheaper" than the co-pay which now is 20.00 for a PCP and a specialist is 45.00 in co-pay.... anyway, between that, trying to get Mom all figured out as far as her medications, and so forth, making sure I have someone to get me back and forth to the surgery next week on my neck and I think my son will be able to, he has to check with his work, then I will be in a neck brace for about 4 to 6 weeks...

 I will be able to drive after a week or so, but being in that neck brace makes it a bit more difficult, plus my pain pump has to be refilled around the 18th or so.... gosh always something... I won't be able to bend over, so I will have to get "creative" in changing the dogs paper and feeding/watering them... the little one is so full of "pee and vinegar" as the old saying goes, LOL, I will have to be extra careful with him after surgery so he does not trip me, or make me do something to "injure" my neck for the first couple of weeks... anyway we have all of that going on, and some others things, with family going on... I think all of us are more stressed out than we can almost handle... keep your thoughts and prayers with all of us right now.... I know my family will appreciate it for sure... 


My daughter and her family are under a great amount of stress due to jobs issues... things are so up in the air with the oil and has industry, and her husband, my son-in-law has worked with that type of thing now for over 10 years... yet with the extreme drop in oil and gas prices, of course it is taking a toll on so many of the companies that have anything to do with oil and gas right now... It is wonderful for us when we go to the gas station, but a nightmare for so many who may lose their jobs, and so forth. Talk about a double edged sword... so I have her and her family in my heart and am concerned for them, as I know this is a difficult time for them also. He does not really know from one day to the next if he will have a job with the company or not, and after having that security, benefits, insurance and so forth for over 10 years, that is difficult to deal with.

Dealing with an Elderly Parent who also appears to have either Demenia or Alzheimer's when YOU are in Chronic Pain and have Chronic Illnesses.....

I took my Mom, (we have not been in almost a year due to both her and I being ill, so this was supposed to be an incredible trip!

Mom has been showing so MANY signs of either Dementia or Alzheimer's now for 2 years or so to me. Yet, the last 6 months have gotten terrible. I could write a book on just what I have been through due to her "diminishing" ability to "think, not be confused, not to almost burn the house down, to not be able to pay her bills, or even read her mail" and the list goes on and on... and remember I AM ALONE NOW, I AM CHRONICALLY ILL WITH SEVERAL AUTOIMMUNE ILLNESSES MYSELF, AND LIVE WITH HORRIBLE CHRONIC PAIN... so to have to also deal with some of these things with her some days is more than I can handle almost...

So, this is a bit about our overnight trip to the Casino at Winstar in OK....

(From Friday evening after getting home)
TOO WORN OUT, TO EXPLAIN all the HELL at the Casino the past two days, but yesterday ALL OF THE MACHINES WERE DOWN MOST OF THE DAY! TODAY MOM LOST ANOTHER credit card! I JUST HAD TO CALL ONE IN LAST WEEK SHE LOST here in town. So, today, she "discovers" she lost another one! Then she misplaced her cane about 10 TIMES at least... other than that, and HORRID nightmare traffic going especially but coming back also ROAD CONSTRUCTION EVERYWHERE!!! But, other that those things all in all, it was a GOOD TWO DAYS!!!! LOL!!! Oh and my kitchen was still standing when I got home. LOL... The pups were in the kitchen with their quilts, food, blankets, toys, water, etc... and actually I still had a house standing.... LOL!!!! More over the weekend, I am totally wiped OUT! But, I came home with only 20.00 LESS THAN what I went with... so I guess that is a good thing .....

(Today Saturday morning I continue)  .......
Those issues, and that we had not really gotten to play much at all on Thursday, (can you imagine how much money the Casino lost?) Their "main server" went down for some weird reason that does everything for all of the slot machines! In fact I sat down and played, and was going to switch machines, and it would not print me a ticket with my money on it... so then I began to notice ALL of the machines were "blinking" and people we saying the same thing I did!!!! So they really had one heck of a mess. And of course the day we decide to go of all times!!!!! I am so totally worn out today thought... Mom "lost" can her cane 5 times. Once I had to go and ask about it. And "lost and found" brought it to me, someone had turned it in... the other times "I" finally found it, once she could try and recall which machines she had been at. It was a nightmare... then when she found out her credit card was GONE... I just went nuts almost. Thank Goodness it was a "credit" card and not a debit card for her checking account. They may have been much worse. I had to get home first, find an old statement of hers, so I could even find where to call to cancel it... and then bring her information home and call them. Then she could not decide to eat at the Casino (we did not eat breakfast at first like usual) and just played thinking we would play an hour or two, then eat and leave. This was like 6:30AM or so... so by about 10AM, even I started getting hungry. The night before she would not even eat down in the Casino like we usually do. She wanted to get something and take it to the room... which was fine with me, but just weird. We went up "early" about 7:00PM to the room, and had gotten some really good fish and fries, much, much more than either of us could eat... we should have ordered just one and split it. So, I turned on the TV and was watching a movie... the next thing I know she is in the bed, with the extra blanket, already asleep by about 8:30PM or so. I could not believe it, and she never woke up at all, and usually she is up and down several times a night.. I finally decided to lay down also, so I changed and got in bed, and I woke up by 5AM on Friday and HOPED the slot machines were okay... But. I was already drinking a cup of coffee, I had made their in the room (which sucks) but I needed something... and was almost dressed by the time she was up moving, ready and packing. Like I said it was just strange everything she did. Heck, when we were going to the Casino, she sat and spent like an hour almost going back and forth through her purse. I thought maybe she lost something... but she was just "confused" I think about everything... then she kept saying we should be there already, and I said YES, if we had not been in stop and go traffic for about 35 or 40 miles or more off and on, we would have been there in about 2 hours... it took almost 3 and a half or more hours to just get there this time! Anyway, I parked and again she began going through her purse, and taking stuff in and out... and I finally asked her Mom have you forgotten something? She just said I cannot get it all organized, and then she had her "Players club card" in her hand, or lap and started saying she "lost it"... I looked down and said Mom it is right there in your lap..... anyway, I knew then it was not going to be a incredibly exciting trip... and one time about 2PM on Thursday, I told her to "SIT" and do NOT move from a certain spot... I was headed to get some tea, and go to the restroom, which was a long ways down, and then I told her I was going to try and check in to the room... so DO NOT MOVE! I get back and she is GONE! So, I thought gosh knows where the hell she is now... so I started looking, and finally spotted her rambling around, and I said WHY DID you MOVE??? She said well you were taking a long time... and I said I TOLD YOU, it is a MILE almost to walk from where we were to the HOTEL to check in! So, yes by the time I got there, got something to drink and went to the restroom it took a while, but why the hell you did not STAY where i said to... and she just looked at me... LOL! Anyway, it was okay and I had a wonderful time JUST BEING AWAY FOR A DAY OR SO AND A NIGHT, from the house, dogs, and just "Life".. BUT, I FEEL Mom will not be going back there again... if we do go to one, we may have to go to one of the smaller ones, who has already grown huge also... but she even said it, I just don't think I can go through this again, OR put YOU through all of it... and I told her Mom, it is fine, I did not mind and We BOTH needed to be away for a day and night... I told her I have my OFF days also... BUT now she really sees what I have been seeing for several years, and really bad the past 6 months... she goes to our PCP on the 22nd, and I am going to have a huge discussion with him... this is not just "old age", this is definitely more than that... I just PRAY it is not Alzheimer's.... Dementia is severe and bad enough, but the other, I watched my Grandfather go through that, and I surely do NOT want anyone to have to deal with Alzheimer's it is a horrid illness for sure..

Pain News Network Articles and Information

NO "Epidemic" of Overdoses.... see the article below... great example and reasoning...


http://www.painnewsnetwork.org/stories/2015/6/12/there-is-no-epidemic-of-painkiller-overdoses#.Vp5PM_Y_Lh8.facebook=

here is another article from The Pain News Network talking about "urine tests"... and I agree they add 100's of dollars to a patients bill, and many of the times patients take them, due to metabolism, or NOT DOING the correct TEST (which I know for a fact had happened to a friend of mine) those "pee" tests can be NOT right! I usually wonder why the hell they bother giving me one... my pain pump gives me medications all the time, I take pain pills along with the medication in the pump, plus muscle relaxers, diazepam.... and so forth. I certainly do not NEED anything else, and would not dare even drink since now the pump is in (new new one and running) and I am almost back up to my dose before it had a motor stall. So, I know they check to make sure you are "taking" the medications... and of course if you have other substances that should NOT be in your system... the "reasons" somewhat make sense... BUT as I said, there are some of these medications that WILL NOT SHOW properly if they don't do a "special" test at the lab they are sent to. I can relate to the story in another article about the young woman who "fears" her appts at her pain doctor's. It used to be that way for me... and still is at times... we have such a horrible time getting the medication that goes into my pump.. and it is NOT expensive... that is the weird thing... it is actually much less expensive that most oral medications. But, you always go in with the fear that you won't get your medications, or something has changed (like now my pain doctor has a new rule you must have your medications in a "lock box" or safe" ) Which is a very good idea, if you have anyone else in your home... or have company over etc. But, I am not sure where a man standing in the waiting room got this idea, but he was asking about the lock box, and he was under the impression he needed to have his wife take a photo of her and the lock box and bring to the doctors office for her chart... I did NOT read it like that... but did understand the doctors are trying to get the CDC off their backs, so they TELL patients that, so patients are more aware of "protecting" their medications. NOT leaving them out for anyone else to get hold of... and keeping them in a safe place, especially as I said, if you have others in your home or people that visit, it is a good idea to lock your meds up. One time years back, I had a medication that was a nasal spray for migraines. I had picked up a brand new bottle from the pharmacy, but it was one of those HOT TX SUMMER days... and I guess I did it at lunch time and left it in my car by accident when I went back to work... Well the entire bottle, "siphoned" it's way out of the container, and into the other bottle it was in... plus it was such a tiny amount of liquid it has almost already vaporized by that evening when I got home... I had mortal HELL getting a replacement. I mean it was evident, when I took the bottle in and showed my doctor, then the pharmacist what had happened... but believe me, after that, I was much more careful about where I left my medications. I am so diligent about where my scripts go, that I take them to the pharmacy immediately, and if I don't need them that day, have them on hold for when I do... that way, I don't misplace it and have hell... no matter whether a pain medication or whatever type of medication it is... I try to turn those scripts in immediately. Plus my pain medications are from a specialty pharmacy... so I don't do anything but request my meds when they are due from my doctor, and they take care of the rest. There are times though that they "delay" getting the script to the pharmacy, and I am on pins and needles, if I happen to be running low of meds... so I totally relate to sometimes being "fearful" of seeing your pain specialist...


http://www.painnewsnetwork.org/stories?category=Opinion

Above is a link to another article "Why I am Afraid of going to my Pain Doctor Appts"


http://www.painnewsnetwork.org/stories/2015/9/20/cdc-opioid-guidelines-would-institutionalize-malpractice#at_pco=smlrebh-1.0&at_si=569e5754f5ee1daa&at_ab=per-2&at_pos=0&at_tot=5

A Happy New year as we Welcome in 2016 - and New Pain pump is now in

WISHING YOU AND YOURS A VERY HAPPY, SAFE, HEALTHY AND PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR! MAY 2016 BRING PEACE, HOPE, FAITH, AND LOVE TO OUR NATION AND TO OUR WORLD!!! MY HOPE IS FOR ALL OF US WHO HAVE SUFFERED THROUGH SO MUCH FROM PAIN AND ILLNESSES, TO LOSS OF LOVED ONES, HOMES, MOTHER'S NATURE'S WRATH AT TIMES, AND MORE... MAY WE FIND A RENEWED PLACE IN OUR LIVES FOR THE COMING YEAR. LET'S PUT 2015 BEHIND AND LOOK FORWARD TO SOMETHING THAT SHALL BE SO MUCH BETTER, FULL AND OVERFLOWING WITH GOODNESS, AND LOVE...

RHIA

p.s. New Pain pump is new... surgery went well... I am hurting like hell today, but I am okay... have a call in to my doctor before he also is out for the holidays to check to see about my medications orally until I see him after the 1st of the year next week, when he will up the meds back closer to what I was used to....

CDC OPENS COMMENTS From the PUBLIC ABOUT OPIOID MEDICATIONS AND CHRONIC PAIN!!!!! PLEASE READ AND GET YOUR COMMENTS IN! WE HAVE A VOICE!!!!

http://nationalpainreport.com/cdc-re-opens-door-for-public-comment-on-opioid-prescribing-guideline-amid-scrutiny-and-criticism-8828673.html

CDC Re-Opens Door for Public Comment on Opioid Prescribing Guideline Amid Scrutiny and Criticism

Posted on December 11, 2015 in Consumer, Pain Medication, Government with 11 Comments

Under mounting criticism from patients, physicians and industry, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced it has opened a second period for public comment on its Guidelines for Prescribing Opioids for Chronic Pain, the agency made public in a notice in the Federal Register.
CDC’s draft guidelines will be available on Monday, December 14, 2015, at http://www.Regulations.gov for review and comment. The public comment period opens December 14, 2015 and closes January 13, 2016.

see the link about with the rest of the information!!!!!


Here is another link about this that came out this morning!


Will CDC Start Listening to Chronic Pain Patients? — Pain News Network

"Thankfulness" during a World in Chaos, those who do not Value Human Life, and things Life throws our way, chornic illness/pain, yet finding what truly matters most....

As the holiday to be "thankful" grows near, may you find many reasons to be thankful for, from family, friends, to all the beauty life bestows upon us. I realize for many of us, this holiday comes with a very mixed time of emotions. When our world around is so full of hate, terror, harsh, and those that will harm innocent people, trying to look past those actions are very difficult. With the events so fresh in our hearts and minds of those who want to take our freedom away, to scare us so badly, we fear going out and enjoying life... May all of us find that special place within the depths of our souls, to "go forward" and be in reverence of what we do have.... 



 


As the miles physically are far between us, within our hearts the warmth and joy of family and friends keep us close to one another. As I said on my other page, this is a holiday of thankfulness although with the events that have taken place lately, along with those out there who would rather do us harm than even live themselves, it is difficult to find those reasons why we are truly thankful. I also know that myself and my family included, have experienced some life changing events for 2015. Many of which, we not only unexpected, but turned our lives somewhat into chaos. I certainly know it has for myself and my own family. Thus with those things again, trying to truly find things we are grateful for, can be difficult. We are human, and we at times reach a crossroads that is not what we planned. So, as we come together, whether physically, or mentally and emotionally, may we find those things that bless us, give us reasons to be so thankful for today, tomorrow, and the future ahead of us. May you and your find the peace, love, hope, and faith that shall sustain us... May you be safe, and healthy, and enjoy your family and friends... With Love, and Happy Thanksgiving, Rhia