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I had Ron take this picture of my hands side by side.  They feel so much better than before, but some people have said they look worse.  Yep, they look disgusting, but at least they still work enough to let me do some of the things I enjoy doing.
I went to see Dr. VanDellen for my 4 month checkup.  Appt. at 8:30.  Arrived at 8:10, and was out by 8:50.  Everything seems good for the moment.  She didn't have my blood results, went out to check on them.  I told her the only thing I had saw that was high was my Hemocrit Level.  I will try and post my recent blood tests soon.
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It probably wasn't a smart thing to have this appointment the day after Thanksgiving, but I did, and it's over.  Ron drove me down there.  My appointment was at 8.  Had two injections in the top of my right foot.  Owww!  The needle stick is not what hurts, it's the medicine that is shot it.  And this time, my joints are black and blue, and it's painful to walk. Super sore all day, but hopefully by tomorrow the burning won't be so bad.
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Bad Day - I hurt and I'm super tired.  My left shoulder and my back.  Didn't really get a chance to lay back down on the couch or in bed.  
Good Day - Kayden and Kinslie came over to spend the night.  They are getting so big.
​Kayden is going to be 7 soon, and Kins is already going to be 5
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I don't know why I even went to see Dr. Guertin for my 4 months followup today.  My appointment was at 10:30, and I arrived ten minutes early.  I wasn't called back until 10:45, and sat in that room for at least 30 minutes.  I heard the Dr., and what sounded like a friend faintly talk about matters other than health.  I forgot to bring my cell phone in with me so I couldn't check the time.  The Dr. came in, asked how I was feeling, checked her notes about my issues, and read through my MRI results.  Didn't have the most recent one with contrast, so she stepped out for a few minutes to have someone find it and print it.  Everything is good. Cyst gone.  I want to import them here, but don't have time right now...
Anyway, I didn't get out of that office until 11:40!  An Hour and ten minutes, and I didn't take up more than 20 minutes of the Dr.'s time.  Plus had to pay $.  It was 11:fricken 40, and I was supposed to pick Logan up from school at 11:45, and I'm at least 40 minutes away.  I got there at 12:10.  Took the expressway.  I hate it when Dr.'s do that to their patients.  Our time is valuable too.
Hopefully I don't have to go back there. Ron went to see Dr. Zieger today for his yearly checkup for his hips.    
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I prayed to God for guidance today, and  I opened the Bible to the book of 2 Peter.
It's been a long time since I've read a passage in the Bible.  2 Peter is 3 verses long and covers a page and a half.  I cried after I read it.   This entire election year has been exhausting and depressing, and now that it is so close, I'm scared.
I wrote this on facebook, and I'm pretty much aware of family and friends who disagree my views and beliefs.      
For the first time in my life I am questioning my Christianity. I question my Christianity because many who call themselves Christians these days say, do, act and follow a completely opposite belief system that I do. I know this because the majority of “Christians” that I see and hear are voting for Trump in this election. 
I can not wrap my head and heart around this because Trump does not even believe in God. He lies and mocks all religions, and yet this is who they choose. 
I believe in God, I believe in Jesus, and I believe in the Word of God. I try to pray every day, and today is no exception. Today I turned to God to ask for direction about the way I have been feeling toward Christians. 
I opened the Bible, and there I read II Peter. I felt scared for a moment, but then I found a certain peace in knowing that God knows what we are going through. My conscience is clear in voting for Hillary. The reasons I would Never Ever vote for Trump are:
1. He reportedly asked national security advisers why the United States can’t use nuclear weapons, and refuses to rule out using nuclear weapons against ISIS. He described global warming as a hoax perpetrated by the Chinese. He hired the editor of the white-
nationalist website Breitbart as his campaign chief, and has said Christy, Gingrich, and Giuliani could get top jobs in a Trump White House! HE SCARES THE CRAP OUT OF ME!
2. He questions the legitimacy of our elections and democracy. He urged his supporters to beat up protestors at his rallies, urges his supporters to patrol polling places to combat “Election Fraud”. He Endorses Torture, Refused to condemn anti-Semitic attacks on journalists, and he said “I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody and I wouldn’t lose voters”. And on more than one occasion has called His Voter’s Stupid. I AM NOT STUPID, IGNORANT, nor DEPLORABLE!
3. He has called our military a Disaster, but yet has praised North Korean dictator Kim Jon-un. He has tried to set up an investment partnership with Maummar Qaddafi, and has REPEATEDLY done business with figures linked to organized crime. He has hired a suspicious number of advisers who have done work on behalf of Vladimir Putin. He has said that if he were to become President, he would want Russia and the US to become closer, and he believes he would “get along very well” with Vladimir Putin! HE IS A TYRANT READY TO RULE!
4. He doesn’t pay his bills, Lies about donating money to charities and veterans, and does not pay hard working Americans when they do work for him. He stiffs them then says “Bring me to court.” He has been a plaintiff in at least 1,900 lawsuits and a defendant in 1,450 more! He has filed for corporate bankruptcy 4 times, said “I wish for a housing market crash”, he has not paid taxes in who knows how many years, and will not release his tax returns.
HE DOES NOT CARE ABOUT ANYONE, and DOES NOT CARE WHO HE HURTS!
5. He said he would force the military to commit war crimes. He said veterans who suffer from PTSD aren’t “Strong” and “Can’t Handle it”. He said McCain wasn’t a war hero because he was captured. He made fun of and Mocked a reporter’s physical disability, advocated withholding free public education from insufficiently studious kids, and has called poor people “morons”. He has continually sexually assaulted women, and has said “You have to treat women like shit”, and “Women should be punished for having an abortion”! HE IS A VIAL, DEHUMANIZING, BIGOT, RACIST, LIAR. HE is the Vicious Snake he Warns us About!
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Barometric pressure is 30.07 today.  I'm hurting this morning.  Knees too, and my knees are usually the last body part that hurts...makes no sense.  
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Well, it's that time again.  This appointment with Dr. Frascone at 8:15 today marks my 1 year anniversary of coming to his office.  Received 2 shots in my right foot again.  Ow!  My foot burns, aches, and is difficult to walk on, but at least by tomorrow it will hopefully feel a lot better. Stopped at the pharmacy on my way home to pick up my Arava, Neurontin, and Humira.  My Humira was not ready.  Grrrr.  For some reason it wasn't even ordered, so now it won't be ready to pick up until probably Monday.  
Mailed Ty's DNA to 23andme today.  
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So happy to be able to say that I was able to cancel the appointment for injections in my right hip.  The pain in gone, and I feel so much better.  I can now sleep on my sides without any discomfort.  I don't know what the last year was all about with the cysts, and exploding bursa's on my hips, but hopefully that pain will never come back again, and all I have to deal with is my rheumatoid pain.
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I got up at 5:30 am today.  Hurting pretty bad this morning.  Both shoulders.  Who knows why, but I'm not complaining because at least the pain in my lower back and hips is not acting up anymore.

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My name is Karen.  I was diagnosed with Rheumatoid in the fall of 1990 when I was almost 22 years old.