Catching up - My health

I have to say that since I started a new oral pill last September, things have been much better colitis-wise in my world. I am still hyper vigilant about what could happen when I am out and about but I have actually been able to go eat at a couple restaurants without having to drive home in a mad dash to get to the bathroom.

I hope this trend continues. It would be so nice to live a more normal life and not have the burden of this disease the major factor in all my trips outside of the house.

The time spent with dad however uses up all my free time. I am feeling overwhelmed and like I don't have a life of my own anymore. I try to frame it as positive as I can but it  isn't easy.

I am behind  at school because I can't be there after schools or weekends to get caught up or, gasp, plan ahead.

It uses up all my brain energy so that when I get home from dad's I am often in a zombie state, without the ability to make big decisions, or organize, or remember where I put things.

My second mammogram shows the abnormalities are still there but haven't changed in size or shape. They don't feel it is something to be concerned about but I still think I should get a biopsy. Maybe paranoid, but I don't want to be surprised and find out that it is too late.

My filling in January broke in mid Feb. I had it refilled and it broke again a few days later.

I ended up having to go get the tooth pulled. I felt instantly old, with this weird gap on my lower jaw. A bridge or a crown were not viable possibilities. Add to that the tooth was a hot mess and roots were crooked and I had to pay $700 for sedation and it was NOT covered by any health plan. Boo!!

woosh there goes the $

In the busyness of this past first week of school came a phone call from DS1 down the in US.

He came out to head to campus and one of his tires were slashed.  Hopefully just random and not because he has out of country plates on his vehicle.

Thankful for CAA membership that is compatible in the US.  He called. They came and towed him to a repair shop that has been very good to him during his year down there.  The tires on his vehicle are a pain to match and all four had to be replaced. We had figured this on our end so it didn't come as new info surprise to us.  DS2 has the same Jeep and I had to do this in the spring for him.

Insurance won't cover this. We made some initial calls and our insurance up here said no.

So DS1 now has four brand new tires that hopefully will be slash safe.


The cost to mama $657 US

Big dental summer

I certainly feel like I spent a  lot of time at the dentist this summer. Between myself and DS1 we were there six times. And the kitty went twice (to a different dentist lol )

DS needed 2 wisdom teeth pulled out, a couple fillings and some serious scaling and cleaning. He hadn't been to the dentist is years. Bad mother for sure.  All the staff there found him so funny and so charming. Said he made their summer. I am assuming it wasn't just financially lol

I went for my check up and cleaning and had to go back for 2 fillings. I also have trouble with a tooth that was filled then root canalled and now needs a crown. I am waiting on word from our health plans to see how much is covered.

DS is 21 so he had been phased out of our health plans. We had to provide documentation to both health plans. I had to pay each visit outright. The dentist office then sent off the claim directly to DH's (has to go through his first) and then I sent the balance off to mine. We are just starting to get those second cheques from my provider.

It did prompt me to sign up for online claims and direct deposit refunds so that was a good thing.

Between DS, myself and the kitty, I plopped down $2461 on my VISA. Can't wait for those last couple copays to come back and get that card back to zero where it belongs.

Week 2 of holidays - appointments and paperwork oh my

In a sharp contrast to week 1 of holidays, week 2 was much busier, with more appointments and a ton of money put out.

Last Friday I finally upgraded my old IPhone4. It had been failing for over a year. The little round home button only worked sometimes. Texts were getting lost. The battery was draining at ridiculous rates.I had upgraded my IOS as much as it would let me but most of my apps needed a higher IOS to work (banking, fitbit, WW, news etc) It served me well though. Not one crack or scratch on it.

They finally reduced the 'cost' of a 2 year plan to $0 for a 5S so off I went. They tried to talk me into a 6S but that was $268 and I was not willing to pay that. I ended up paying just under $100 in total. $25 for the activation fee and the rest for a vehicle charger and an otter box. I used $50 from my VISA reward points to pay off half of the fees, and the other $50 I had saved up so the device didn't cost me anything. We shall see how much it changes my bill. My old plan was grandfathered in as long as I had the old device. They transferred all my contacts and pictures for me so that was a bonus.

DS1 came home from camping Sunday with tooth  news. He had a massive toothache which turned out to be  infected wisdom teeth on the top and bottom of his left jaw. It had been a long time since I had  him at the dentist. Bad me. Our actual dentist wasn't at the clinic anymore. He had retired. I know getting through on the phone is tough so I went in person at 8 AM Monday morning and got DS an apt for Tuesday to get things checked out...and booked myself in for a long overdue checkup and cleaning as well. DS needs three additional appointments to take care of the mess in his mouth. Good times.

Better still was the fact that he was no longer covered under DH's health care plan. Once you are 21 you age out unless you send in documentation that the kid is in college. I did it for my plan but DH did not for his. So I sent DH off to his HR rep on Tuesday to get DS added back in. The HR was new and didn't know............. much. I had to go in to explain what needed to be done and gave him the paperwork he needed to send off for proof.  Even though DS was covered under my plan, he has to go through DH's first, as DH's birthday comes first in the calendar year. My plan will refuse to cover until DS is re-added to DH's plan.

So I paid $176 outright and we have to wait til the plan is fixed and then we can start the paperwork. First to DH's plan and when that cheque comes back with whatever % of coverage, then I submit the rest to my plan. It is time consuming.

On Tuesday, DS and I headed to the dentist and then off to the city to get his passport renewed. I prefer going in person in case there are any problems on the form. We can fix them immediately. They do dozens a day there so they are well versed in what is needed. That cost $160 plus $22 for passport pics. I paid half and DS paid half.  Assuming he doesn't lose it or have it stolen, his next renewal is when he is 31 so I think he can handle that on his own then :-)

Wednesday was a double dentist day. Our cat is very sick and needed two teeth extracted. For those who aren't pet parents or who don't like cats, this will not be an expense that makes sense to you. For us, she has been part of our family for 10 years this fall and while I didn't like paying the cost, I did. We go on frugal for gas and groceries and any and all extra money went to this cost. Just under $700.  The next morning she was already her old self, happy and purring and rolling on our laps.  My dentist appointment and cleaning was $159. Not great news - 2 cavities, so back I go on the 26th to get those taken care of. I paid up front for it and the dentist office sent it straight off to my insurance, which will cover all of it. Hopefully that cheque arrives soon.

Last Sunday I had all the children home. It was great. I cooked DS's favourite meal and baked muffins and cookies for them both to take back with them for work. DS1's 'mother in law' won't take any $ for keeping him there, so I send things like laundry soap, TP, cookies and muffins and meals ready to go in the crock pot.

There was little reading this week. Lots more 'running around' and taking care of forms. I spent little time on my patio but we did have a fire one night and I got to relax there, watching it.  I walked though colitis was not very cooperative.  I watched what I ate. I lost weight. It was a very different week than week 1, but it was a good week.

Package Policy

I honestly think I keep forgetting that it is March.  I have been surprised on more than one occasion in the past week that it is March.  Example: I had in my day plan that we had a presentation on March 9. So the morning of March 9 when one of my coworkers mentions it, in my head I am thinking "nooo that's not til the 9th of ...........oh dear lord it IS the 9th of March.

Same thing applies to my yearly package policy for two of our vehicles. I know it's due in March. I save for it for March. and each year I am surprised when it comes... in March.

For those unfamiliar with SK vehicle insurance, there are two levels. The first level is for our 'plates'...our yearly vehicle insurance renewal. For DS1 and myself, our vehicles are valued at about $1100 each for this insurance. It covers a bunch of basic coverage, with mid level deductibles.

Most people (ok well most people "I" know), also get an extended policy. It covers a bit more deeply, with lower deductibles.

When I opened mine last week I knew it was for two vehicles and would be high, but I still blinked.

It came to $636

$284 was for mine and $352 was for DS1's, which is technically my vehicle too.

DS1's is higher as he is in the US and needs higher coverage and liability. We have a 5 million third party and a 2 million family security.  In comparison, mine up here is a 2 and a 2 million.

I paid it all at once. Plopped it on my visa to get the few reward points and came home and immediately transferred money from my account to pay it off.

I could have paid it monthly - $109.18  down payment plus $54.59 monthly (Total of $764.26)
or 3 times a year - $254.40 + 200.80 + 200.80 plus 2 $10 installment fees (Total of  $676)

Definitely makes financial sense to pay it all at once IF you can save ahead properly.

The lady handling this said that I could have also did it all online through my online banking.    I really don't mind stopping in to pay this. It's not out of my way and has good hours of being open. Even Saturdays. This way too, they know my face when I have issues I need to deal with. I have found this helpful on multiple occasions.

 I pointed out to the lady that the more people who do this online, the fewer people the business will need to employ. The way her eyes opened, it showed that this had never occurred to her before.

It's good to have that off my to do list for another year.