I sure hope you manage to get at least some of your files back, desertgrandma. I know some files (like family pictures) are too painful to lose. Haven't you given any of these to relatives? You might get them back this way.
Having said all of the above, me with my three hard drives, I often forget or neglect to backup. I have lost some files this way, and I have lost others by not synchronizing my backups correctly (you lose track if you backup in a lot of places, and in that respect an online places would prove really useful)