Thanks to www.flylady.net, I've been wearing shoes all the time. This may not seem like a big deal to most grownups, but I really love going barefoot, especially in the summer. The transition to continuous daytime shoe-wearing has taken a long time. Now, however, it's my new norm, so to be without shoes during the day is unusual.

I went upstairs to try on a new pair of slacks and someone called me from downstairs. I started down in my sock feet. About halfway down, I slammed my heel onto the hard edge of a light saber handle. The force of the blow rang through my body and I cried out so loud, the children all came running. I plopped down from the blinding, ringing pain spreading an internal alarm.

"What happened, Mama! What's wrong?"

"I...stepped...light...saber."

"Take it upstairs!" the oldest daughter ordered her brother.

"Okay," he said humbly. He picked up the light saber from under my legs where I was sitting, swung it around and whacked me in the face.

"AAAAA!" I shouted, my hands flying from my foot to my face.

"I'm sorry, Mama," he said softly, carrying the light saber out of sight. The others gathered around and quietly watched me, waiting to see what would happen next. The pain lessened, so I slowly got up and walked on down to the kitchen, still in sock feet. My son came back down and put on some high-heeled shoes he's been using for dressup. I stood with one hand on the counter, trying to remember what my original errand was that compelled me to take to the stairs shoe-less, when my son clopped around the corner in those shoes and bang! He clopped down hard on the outside of my unprotected foot, ramming the heel somewhere down onto the tendons and bone.

Today I bought a pair of short leather boots. I couldn't find adequately stylish steel-toed boots, so I'm settling for ankle-high boots. Either way, I need maximum coverage, because you just never know.