Wordless Wednesday

Warning: This is a rant.

Do you know what TMJ is?

Let me back up.

Today, I am overwhelmingly insensed with our healthcare insurance company and/or our particular insurance plan. Previously, I was under the impression it was a good plan - I was told by others both in and outside the university that "university insurance is great!". Well, in this case, I am sorry to tell you, THEY WERE WRONG.

I have had TMJ since I was in Junior High. The very short explanation is that the TMJ (temperomandibular Joint) connects the upper and lower jaw. Occasionally (due to MANY different causes) the joint can become inflamed, can move out of track, can be painful, and become almost completely useless. And yes, if you plan on eating (or talking, or yawning, or sneezing, or swallowing, or doing anything else with your mouth aside from humming) so if it is rendered unusable you have a hefty problem on your hands - er - in your mouth.

About six months ago the stomach flu ran through our family. I got it, of course, and among my numerous trips to the loo I noticed my jaw began to get worse and words. Surely, I thought, this was only a temporary effect of all my up-chucking. But months went by and it's only gotten worse. So, because I've finally gotten to the point where I can no longer do normal human things (why did I let it get here? keep reading - everything comes down to money eventually I'm afraid) I made some phone calls this morning to see about getting it looked at.

Who do you go to for TMJ? I haven't a clue. So, I called my new dentist. After all, dentists do mouths, why not jaws too? they referred me to an oral surgeon, but before calling them I gave a call to my insurance company to see who their preferred provider was.

And do you want to know what they told me? The words coming out of that woman's mouth were enough to bring me to tears. Literally. "Under your plan, Blue Cross Blue Shield Nebraska will not cover any visit, procedure, or any other thing having to do with the Temperomandibular Joint (TMJ)." Here I am, sucking my breakfast from a straw and you're sitting in your pretty little office telling me you don't DO TMJ?

Now here's my beef: Insurance companies cover ALL SORTS of practically unnecessary procedures (some are called "elective"), infant circumcision, to name one. They also cover treatment for drug abuse, alcohal abuse, and eating disorders. They cover counseling therapy, and sports medicine, physical therapy, and bariatrics - but not TMJ? That seems absolutely senseless.

I have got to know why. Why on EARTH do they function this way? It's as though they're saying "you know, a lot of people have problems with their Jaws, and assisting them is expensive, so we're just going to tell them all NO. On the other hand, we'll gladly assist people who have spent their lives ruining their bodies with harmful chemicals and substances. We'll gladly give them all the financial assistance they need to finish their lives on hover-rounds with attached oxygen tanks. "

How can a problem this painful not be covered - at all?

I am beyond angry, I am incensed. I put this visit off long enough because we've been (quite frankly) breaking even month-to-month and my deepest fear is that my time as a stay-at-home mom will quickly come to an end with any unexpected expenditure. Well, here's that expense. The consultation alone will run $135 out of pocket. And that's BEFORE any treatment. Potential treatments range from temporary muscle relaxants to arthroscopic surgery. Ugh.

To make matters worse (Hey, I warned you this was a rant) I had to cancel our YMCA membership today. I cried right there at their desk as I signed the cancellation form. Between the medical procedures Levi's had done recently, and the out-of-pocket visits I'll need to make here shortly, the $75 simply isn't there.

I had to remind myself as I drove away that we are blessed not to be in debt. We have to make choices - no matter how difficult - about where we put our money. While the Y was absolutely great, it is definitely an "extra". We've made similarly difficult decisions in the past regarding other "extras" (internet, TV, cell service, appliances, new clothes, eating out, vacationing, you name it) but for some reason this one was the hardest yet.

Writing is therapeutic sometimes. I think this time it only made me more frustrated.

supermarket showdown

I wouldn't consider my self much of a braggart. I usually keep my small victories to myself. But this one... This one I had to share. Not because it's overly interesting to read about (in fact, unless you find yourself in a place of shear boredom, you may want to move along) but more just so that I can realize the true gravity of what I accomplished. Putting things in writing tends to do that well for me. So, here I go.

As I discussed in this post, I use a strategy called "ad matching" when I go grocery shopping. I scour the weekly grocery ads, circle the good deals on things I already need for the week and then pack my ads with me to my local grocer. My grocer will give me the lowest advertised price, so long as I can prove it. After looking at this weeks ads, I knew this would be a GREAT trip.

I'm short on interesting things to do - can you tell?

Anyway.

Here, in no particular order, are the best deals I found this week, which brought my grocery total to $71.12 (I left out the not-so-interesting, but if you're honestly the type that wants to know that I spent $1.36 on a 6-pack of raisin boxes, I can give you more detail)

• 4 boxes of store brand cereal, $1.00 each
• 8 cans generic pasta sauce, $0.48 each (which I will later spice up, but this is cheaper than raw ingredients people!)
• 5 pounds of grapes, $0.99 per pound
• 16 yogurts (6oz cups), $0.25 each
• 2 24-oz Cottage cheese containers, $1.68 (should have bought more, may go back)
• 2 dozen eggs, $0.48 each
• 2lbs colby jack block cheese, $2.99 per pound
• 2.5lbs shredded cheese (including parmesan!) $0.99/8-oz bag

I'll spare you the rest, but suffice it to say we're good on a number of staples for a while. Reminds me of the time (not even 4 months ago) I bought 25 lbs of ground turkey in one-pound rolls for $1 per pound. I wondered if it was a mistake. It most certainly was not. We've gone through half of it already in everything from burgers to casaroles, lasagna to meatballs, and more.

There were a handful of ad-matches I had planned to use but didn't in the end. Hy-vee, for example, advertised skippy peanut butter for $1.00 per 16oz jar, but none of their PB is all natural (read: no sugar) so I passed it up. I think there were a couple more, but it's somewhat of a blur at this point.

Hope your weekly trip is as successful as mine was - I'm darn proud.

Now, the real challenge: Not going to the store again until next Thursday.

I'm stocked.

Bring it.

Today I will...

• kiss my husband good bye at 2:30am and hopefully welcome him home before 7:00pm
• wake to a babbling Levi at ten to six
• keep a rather cranky Levi awake until a reasonable napping hour by walking barefooted outside - and subsequently landing in bird poop
• sweep
• mop
• use the majority of my alloted blogging time doing the previous two
• attack my grocery list - identify deals - ad match and SHOP (before lunch, ideally)
• play catch up with the laundry - is it me, or is this a daily affair?
• paint (yeah right, who am I kidding, this is likely dead LAST on my list)
• nurse a baby
• feed a baby
• feed a husband
• put them both to bed before 8pm
• make a meal to deliver to friends tomorrow - dessert included :)
• try to figure out what food is giving Levi loose poop - a common theme in his short life
• wait ONE more day before my new camera arrives at Best Buy (a topic yet to be blogged about)
• reminisce about the wonderful lunch I shared yesterday with friends and their babies after play group.
• wish I could do the same today - totally dragging - it's amazing how long the morning feels when hubby leaves before dawn. I literally count the minutes until morning nap
• probably have to find a second cup of coffee (very rare for me) see previous note on "dragging"
• try desperately to keep up with my running toddler
• continue to wonder why said toddler hasn't gained any weight in a month when he was gaining just fine before he started walking - wait - maybe that's the reason. Hmm...
• enjoy the mid 80's until the high 90's prevail tomorrow
• look for the following at Home Depot (if I ever get there, and don't worry hubby, I probably won't so we can go together Saturday): Closet door pulls, a drill bit to cut pull-holes in closet doors, a piece of molding to cover the closet door track, and a brushed silver door knob
• meet with the photographer who took all of Levi's pictures over the past year and possibly order a few to remember the year by
• show Levi his new touch-and-feel-flashcards
• remind myself over and over (and over) that, although at the end of the day I may have precious little to show for my efforts, my investment in this hurricane of toddler energy will pay off 100-fold - and then some.

Wordless Wednesday

(click on it for an up close view - honey, I thought you would get a kick out of this!)

photo-less

Some of you may have noticed the suspicious lack of photos in my last few posts

Truth be told, my camera is no more.

Nobody dropped it, no one gave it a bath, it didn't get buried in the back yard nor did it take a trip down the slide. It wasn't accidentally broiled, or frozen, or tumble dried but I'll assure you there are things in my home which have been. No. It simply quit working.

About three years ago I did insurmountable research before purchasing my cannon powershot S20 IS. It was HUGE, HEAVY, and blurred almost every shot I took one-handed. But in its day, it was the KING of cameras. If that doesn't show you how fast technology changes, I don't know what does.

So I'm looking for a new camera. I'm intrigued by canon's newest powershot series, although they cost more than I have. Jonathan has quite generously donated $100 of his saved-up spending money (birthday and Christmas gifts from family members) and I'm at least somewhat determined to stay under that limit.

Where's my spending money you ask? well, remember, I purchased Ruby. And that was all I had.

I'm also looking at Nikon's coolpix line, which looks less expensive. I am not very particular about our next camera, but I DO expect the following:

accepts SD cards (we already have them, and my computer has a slot for them)

takes video

has excellent stability (can handle a little shaking while shooting)

in the $100 range

(preferably) is rechargeable

is slim and lightweight

Currently checking out e-bay and overstock.com (both of which are thoroughly overwhelming) and also costco's website, although things are more expensive there.

So, your suggestions would be much appreciated.

A fear of flying

...which, really, I do not have.

What I do have is a fear of flying with a 14 month old.

Alone.

Levi and I are trekking to the Pacific Northwest in August sans daddy. Usually I consider myself quite confident when it comes to caring for my infant alone. I do it on a daily basis. What I cannot fathom is caring for him, alone, on an airplane. Let me explain

Last Christmas we all flew to the PNW together. All three of us. To say that wrangling a 7-month old Levi was difficult would be marginalizing our efforts. At a mere 7 months he wanted to be all.over.the.place. Unlike his 3-month-old flight, he was not content to sit and nurse. No sir. I know this because I was bitten - several times. He would not be bothered by *new* toys, snacks, or cell phones. This boy wanted to be down, on the ground, motoring around.

So, you may begin to see my dilema. Now faced with taking the trip alone, not being able to pass a wiggly child back and forth sounds like an all too new level of restraint.

But I do have a couple of things going for me.

First, on the way there anyhow, I chose an evening flight. If I'm lucky Levi will pass out nursing in my arms for at least our first leg to Denver. If I'm SUPER lucky, he'll pass out again for the second leg.

Second, I plan to make use of my dear friend Ben. You know, that pink bottle of snooze juice? After running it by Levi's Ped. I've got the go ahead to give it a try. We've tried it once to make sure he doesn't "ramp up" and while it didn't send him off to la la land, it also didn't send him doing laps around the basement. At the very least he may have become a little more relaxed. Relaxed is all I'm going for.

So what advice do you have?

Aside from new, engaging toys, snacks, and our dear friend Ben, what can you suggest?