I'm going to save it......for now

As if the 29 letters Monday weren't enough............another 60 today!!!!! The only comfort I have right now is knowing it cost these jerks $39.16 to mail this crap to me. F them!

Another day in paradise

I have another fight with my insurance company today about Taylor's "unapproved diagnosis". I've pretty much determined that our coverage is minimally useful at best. It covers the basic well-child check ups...... and I think that is about it. I paid more for medical care last year, than I made for the year last year. Same with 2008. I'm not impressed by any means. After my informative-and-not-helpful-at-all conversation with the insurance company, I called the billing lady at Taylor's PT's office to talk to her about what was going on and to see where we stood and what to do. She basically confirmed my feelings about my insurance company not knowing ANYTHING and not covering anything and basically being being junk in general, and then calmed me back down by informing me that this would in no way harm Taylor: she will still continue to get her OT/PT and if the insurance co doesn't pay, then that's that. The PT group will basically eat the loss. If it weren't for this group and Shriners Hospital, I don't even know, nor do I want to think about, were Taylor would be right now. I, and Taylor, are so fortunate these 2 companies exist and are willing and able to help her. I am eternally grateful.

When it pours.....

Last night when I got the mail it was a surprisingly huge wad of envelopes. Roughly 30 letters. I open a huge envelope from SHC. It contains this really nice golden certificate thanking us again for our fundraising and letting us know they have put us in "the golden book" of donors. I'm so excited about it and I run right upstairs and frame it and then proceed to get to the other 29 envelopes. 2 bills, a couple junk mail things and then 20 envelopes are left which are frighteningly all the same size.....and all from our insurance company. Do you hear the jaws theme playing.....du dut du dut....
anyway, so I grab one and open it up and Jeremy sees the stack and starts opening one, you have got to be shitting me. These idiots sent us 19 letters informing us that they were billing Taylor's physical therapist for her services because they over paid them. Hello!?!?! Taylor's therapy is $160 bucks each visit and she usually has one each week. These friggin morons didn't start paying anything until a couple months ago and they only paid like $110 of it. So all the while the PT's company has been eating the loss. Now these assholes want the little bit they did pay back because "Taylor's diagnosis is an unapproved condition" I respond with, "Unapproved condition, seriously?" While I really feel like screaming: GO F YOURSELF! "Yeah, I'm sorry but we're not going to be able to cover these services" You have got to be kidding me.....
this is awesome!
They don't and won't cover her prosthetics, or anything that goes with them, ie visiting the ortho for the rx for the prosthetic, the suspension sleeves, the socks that go on her arm....nothing. And now they won't cover her physical therapy!?!?! If it weren't for her PT, she'd still be walking like an 80 year old pirate, and her arms would still be glued to her sides, and her balance would still likely be totally out of wack. Her PT has worked on so much more than just making sure she could use her prosthetic and do things without it.

The gov't has given us the FO
The state has given us the FO
and now our insurance company

what the hell is wrong with people?

Prosthetics are cosmetic, no pre-existing conditions, how 'bout FO to that!

If I ever hear prosthetics are cosmetic again, the idiot who says it to me will likely get punched in the face.

And so now, on top of the BS with them billing the therapist, that also messed up our deductable so we'll likely be paying a bunch more money for other visits that were previously covered and either the therapy group has to eat the entirety of the bills or we won't be able to have her come as often, if at all. Super! I'm so irritated right now......there are no words.

Time for some much needed rambling...

I finally have a couple months off from the neverending birthdays. My goodness there are a ton of them in December and January. Not to mention the 4 thousands Christmas's and New Years Eve...ahhhh. Anyway, if you have checked out my slide show below, you'll see the kids faces all banged up. Ashtyn had a cavity that needed to be filled....she did great up until the ride home when she fell asleep and chewed her poor lip almost off! Then the next night Taylor was chasing Ashtyn around the living room and slipped on a blanket that was on the floor...SMASH...right into the coffee table. Ripped her poor lip and gums. I think her Daddy (and I) cried as much as she did. So that week, I had the privilege of a dental visit and 2 trips to the doctors office...ugh! And because of the first dr's visit I get to go down to Shriners again in 4 weeks....which is awesome.... and scary. Its awesome because I obviously love having any reason to go there, the scary part is that Taylor needs to get her feet looked at. She walks "funny" and has some pretty bad flat footedness(?) so her pedi wants an ortho to check her out. I know at least if she does need some sort of help with her feet then SHC is where I want her to be. This past weekend we went up to Newport/Brownington, VT. And when I say "we" I mean a ton of us. Jeremy, me, the girls, Ron, Sue, Justin, Crystal, Mack, Shawn, Greg...and 3 dogs... all fighting for sleeping space at camp. It worked out well even though it was cramped. We also found out the f-350 won't stand up to being t-boned by a mac....I was right there and I still don't know how exactly it happened..... sometime around midnight Mack ran full bore into our truck. The truck never stood a chance. He kind of killed our door. And this was after he rolled Jeremy's death quad....while we weren't even there...... which is why I don't leave my keys to ANYTHING, EVER. Mack is fine and Jeremy is surprisingly calm......I cetainly wouldn't be..... but boys will be boys I guess. Friday night (which is why we weren't at camp when the ATV was in a one- manned collision)Jeremy and I were at East Side for the Vermont Railroad's Christmas/New Years/Retirement dinner. Awesome food, 4 courses of it, and an open bar (thank goodness....their drinks are pricey) and no kids allowed at the meal..... oh man. I honestly think that was the first time since our honeymoon that we had dinner at a restaraunt without at least one of the kids. Those 4 hours were definitely a VERY MUCH needed break.~~~~Thanks Ron and Sue~~~~~
That pretty much sums up the excitement of the last few weeks.



On another SHC note:

MARK YOUR CALENDERS!!!! I have set the date for SHrINE ON SPRINGFIELD 2010. Its going to be Saturday June 5. It will be at the Toonerville Trail in Springfield, VT, registration starts at 9:30 and the walk will start at 10. Its going to be the full trail this year, so get ready!

My Dad (Unique Signs) said he is going to purchase the tshirts again and Roland Irish III (Sunrise Graphics) is donating the stickers and silk screening supplies (and his shop space so I can ink the shirts again.) Huge thanks go out to both of you!!!!!

I'm still in the process of figuring out the post-walk party, food, etc. I've got a bunch of ideas/plans.... its just a matter of time and pulling it together. I'm sure it will work out no matter and I know that at least as far as last year's participants went, they'd all have been there whether we had the party after or not.

TABS FOR TAYLOR is going well. We've collected around 162,000 tabs to date and more are being gathered up almost daily. Taylor's PT/OT brought in 2 bags full from a co-worker last week and she brought one of my jugs to the office/daycare in hopes that others will get involved. Our Parents As Teachers home visitor is rallying troops in her circle to start saving them and I'm hoping to talk with her supervisor and the other groups at her office building to see if I could put up another community drop box there. The Old #4 Fire & Hose Ladies Auxiliary in Charlestown (who started Tabs For Taylor) voted at their last meeting to put up a community drop box for tabs. Hopefully soon we will be overwhelmed with tabs.

I'm out of blog time...Taylor just told me nap time is over.

Photos of the month(s)

I have been so busy I can't even see straight. You'd think with less kids to take care off and no money to go out to do anything I'd have all the time in the world.....nope! Here's a tidbit of pics of the 3-4 weeks. Bump after bruise, gash after bite, a little snow, a little camp, a ton to talk about, and no time yet to do it. Maybe nap time will be kind today. I'll be keeping my fingers crossed.

ATVs to be allowed on state land: Times Argus Online

Awesome good news!!!!! (as long as it really happens)

ATVs to be allowed on state land: Times Argus Online

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U.S. snowboarder Pearce remains hospitalized

U.S. snowboarder Pearce remains hospitalized

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Finally! The holidays (and year) are almost over.

I'm such a crank this time of year. The craziness of too many people at the stores, the people who forgot how to drive when it snows, or even "dusts" a few flakes, the wrapping like theirs no tomorrow, then the opening like theirs no tomorrow..... if it weren't for my girls, I'd be done with all of it. I just feel like I don't have time to breathe, let alone do anything else. It makes me nuts. And then the fighting with random family members about how I don't want 15 Christmas's.....I want my girls to have one. Santa comes one time a year....not every day of December. Grrr. Enough ranting....well, maybe......

As 2009 comes to an end...

1) Where did you begin 2009?

At Camp. We missed the ball drop yet again. We started the night at Marge and Louis' house.....for some foolish reason we left to go back to camp (apparently at 11:50ish) to fire up the generator to power the TV so we could see it and shout our "Happy New Year" and then go to bed. Needless to say, we got to camp, found out it was already 10 after 12....so we just went to bed.

2) What was your status by Valentine' Day.

married

3) Were you in school (anytime this year)?

no

4) How did you earn your money?

watching kids, cleaning, plowing, mowing, etc

5) Did you have to go to the hospital?

Yes and Sort of. Ashtyn needed to see the Doc for an "issue" with bubble bath soap and her pedi was on vacation, so I took her to Urgent Care (its really slow as death care in my book) and Shriners Hospital is a "hospital" and we went there 6 times I think. Oh yeah....I got to go to the ER because I'm a moron and put my hand through the door. Yippee that was fun. I ended up gashing my other hand a few weeks ago too (because I'm great like that...who cuts their hand open on a can of peas????....I do) I needed stitches for that one too but I said to hell with it....bandaids and medical tape.

6) Did you have any encounters with the police?

Yes. Only one time this year. Again, those stupid jerks from BF tried to break in to my neighbors house. I caught them in the act and called my ever so useless PD...big shocker, they didn't find them. I love paying taxes for stupidity.

7) Where did you go on vacation?

Orleans, Vermont.....to our camp

8) What did you purchase that was over $1000?

Kubota L3400, backhoe and brush hog

9) Did you know anybody who got married?

Justin and Crystal, Jason and Crystal, Leslie and Rob

10) Did you have any new additions to your family?

Nope

11) Did you know anybody who passed away?

Emily Brown and ( I didn't know him, but he was Jeremy's uncle) Travis Honeycutt

12) Did you move anywhere?

not yet

13) What concerts/shows did you go to?

Ashtyn's Preschool's Christmahanakwanzika Concert

14) Are you registered to vote?

yes.

15) Who did you want to win Big Brother?

I don't watch it

16) Where do you live now?

New Hampshire....still

17) Describe your birthday?

My birthday was "forgotten" by my awesome hubby. All his friends remembered though. That was a bad day :(

18) What's one thing you thought you'd never do but did in 2009?

3 things: Host a fundraiser. Enroll Ashtyn in preschool. Put my house up for sale.

19) What has been your favorite moment?

When Ryan's court stuff was over and heard he wasn't going to jail. When I heard Shriners Hospital wasn't closing Springfield.

20) What's something you learned about yourself?

I'm still a very negative person.......and I can inspire people to help do great things.

21) What was your best month?

I think they were all kind of equal. Everyone had their ups and downs.

22) What music will you remember 2009 by?

none

23) Who has been your best drinking buddy?

Ashtyn and Taylor.....we get to be sober together...yippee

24) Made new friends?

Jen, Jen and Lisa

25) New or old best friend?

I still have no idea what I am supposed to say to that...

26) Favorite Night out?

Ummmmm When I have one, I'll let you know.

Ashtyn's Preschool's Winter Concert

I apologize for the random shakiness and occasional blurriness.....It was almost as much a challenge for me to video the performance as it was for the little ones to get on stage in front of 500 people to sing.



Ashtyn was not very impressed by being on the very end of the stage. Jeremy and I thought for sure she was going to fall off at any given moment....she even tried to weasel in a few places away from the end.....but her classmate wasn't allowing any of that.

Here's my Christmas Card.....

.....this is it. I'm not mailing any :(
I'm officially out of time.....big shocker there, right?!

Guess who

After looking at some pics the other day and having a total ball when people guessed wrong....I'm sharing some pics with others......Can you figure out who is who?


Me




















Jeremy















Julie (ha ha that was a trick photo)



















Taylor














Ashtyn













Ashtyn

Santa Claus is comin' to town

Today was Get-ready-for-Christmas day at our house. Ashtyn went to the salon this morning with Grammy and Grampa to get her hair and nails done....something Mommy would never ever do......and then Jeremy and I took the girls to get our Christmas tree at Bishop's Farm in Springfield, VT, which is where we've been going since Ashtyn's first Christmas. After that we went to visit with the Claus's. Ashtyn obviously loved the visit but Taylor had other thoughts about it. Santa and the Mrs. thought maybe it was a little too chaotic at their visiting venue, so they made a special surprise visit to our house after their other visit was over......Taylor still wasn't happy.....


...but we did finally get her to come out to the kitchen for a minute...


and Miss Ashtyn got to tell Santa 8,000 more things she wanted for Christmas and even show off dancing for him and Mrs Claus.....


....but she still doesn't want her picture taken.



And now its time for music and tree trimming.