And Boom... it starts

There was more of a spring in my step heading to work today, than yesterday. Not sure why. Perhaps the nerf gun war
I finished doing some room tidying and filling in documents for the district.

At 9:20 there is a page for another staff meeting. This time we aren't all gathering in the library. Three groups of staff, three admin, three different rooms. Same message.

We are all instructed to download an app and test it. Then we are told to finalize our paperwork, get our stuff together, and go. Preferably within the hour.

Pause would begin early. No nerf gun war. No last visits. Just get whatever you think you are going to need for online learning. Get your laptop and cord. And get out.

We were forbidden from entering the school - until at least May 1.

I threw a few resources I thought I would need in a box, got my marks binder (yes I do it old fashioned first before putting in online), a few books and I left.

It was really bizarre driving away from the school. Disconnected. Unreal. Confusing.

I drove home and just sat. For over an hour. It was a real 'what the hell just happened?"

DS called about  PM. He and the other boy did their check outs and left by noon. It is starting to become real to him. All this time he was of the 'it's no big deal' mindset. Now, with borders closing it's becoming real. All Canadians lose their healthcare (if something happens to them while down there) if they are not back in the country by Friday Midnight. A caravan of boys started together and will split around Nashville, some heading towards NY, NJ and Ontario others heading up to the west to Michigan, Minnesota and Canada.

I let DS2 know he needed to clear out of the house tomorrow so it's safe for the 14 day self isolation required by law.

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

Boom!

It's like an old episode of Unsolved Mysteries

Tuesday.... noon... a woman decides to better use her noon time for errands when her tire blows.

Thousands of miles away.....(and three days) her oldest son is driving and boom! his tire blows.

coincidence??? or another unsolved mystery??


Long story short I ran errands on Tuesday at noon and my tire light comes on to say it's low.  I run to the gas station to put air in it. When I unscrew the air cap, WHOOSH!! it goes flying across the parking lot to parts unknown, while the little brass valve flies out and lands a couple feet away. As I ran to grab it, my tire donates all it's air to the atmosphere.

I had to get DH to run over and swap vehicles to handle this or I would have been late for afternoon classes.  He took it to get fixed and $135 later it's apparently better.

The same thing happened to another of my tires the night before we were to drive down to see DS last fall.

DS2's tire blew yesterday in the same manner. I am glad it happened while he was still in his college town and not starting the 17 hour drive home to Canada.

His bill was $110 US.

I know I have an Emergency Fund but it's really my TFSA. I need to start a real emergency slush fund that is accessible easily for things like this.

Definitely not flying

It's getting close to family weekend down for DS's hockey team. This will be our third trip down.

The past two years we have flown. Last year, I bought our tickets on August 16th for $547 each. Family weekend was at the end of October.

This year, it's at the end of September and what a dif the price is. I have been tracking prices since May and they are astonishing. They started out at just under $1000 each, which I was significantly more than last year. I thought they would drop. Nope. They maxed out at $1800 each for the same flight (about 6 weeks ago)  at the same time of day with the same airline. Over 3 x the price per ticket compared to last year.

The one month earlier is part of it. But should it be THAT much different?

We are even leaving on a Thurs and returning on a Monday. No Fri, Sat or Sun flights.

As of this morning, the best flight time is not listed anymore. The less optimal time is $1100 per ticket with 2 stops and crazy lay overs.

So drive we shall. 17 hours. x 2

I am very concerned about colitis needs across the long stretches without a small town (bathroom). It pretty much means I can't eat or drink during the journey.

We will add one extra  hotel night on the way down but will be powering home the last day. I will be exhausted going back to work the next day.

It will be interesting to see what gas costs for the journey. Certainly less than the $2000+ the tickets would be.  But we did have to take an extra day off work.

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.

AWOL

It all started with report cards...that magical mystical time where I disappear to the school for hours marking things, most of which I had to beg to get handed in.  Then we had 2 nights of parent teacher interviews. Then I turtled for a whole weekend, exhausted and slept and slept with small doses of Netflix.

In the meantime.... my VISA was hacked.  I had been about to log in to check the balance. DH had taken my vehicle in to the shop for some very expensive repairs that had something to do with the spark plug kit and all it's wires. Honestly, my SUV had heard that my tax refund was in and thought it would spend a little of it. But I digress.... So I am about to log in when the house phone rings. It is one of those robot calls along the lines of "This is VISA's security department". I hung up before they finished. I get one of those a week from 'BMO'.

I log in and my balance is exactly what it should be. It isn't until I expand the details when I see that there is an interesting charge for $1.79 US at some service station in Barlow, Ohio. The change was made and then immediately voided. A test charge.

Well I'll be darned, that might have been an actual call from VISA. I phone and go through all the motions of getting the card cancelled. I had two charges that had been put on it and I wanted to be sure they would go through if I cancelled it.  I had also prepaid the vehicle repairs on it and wanted to be sure that payment would go through. They assured me they would.  That was on the 25th. I am still waiting for my new VISA to come. I assume that when it does and I activate it, I will see all those things go through when I check in online.

I use this VISA for very few things. The same things each month, pretty much. Netflix. WW when I was on it. Amazon if I shop there. The shop where I got my repairs done (not each month but a trusted source) They all get immediately paid off. It makes me wonder at what point it was compromised, if they were all known places.

I had to explain to my  husband what a test charge was. He thought that since it was refunded at the vendor that my card wasn't really hacked.

Waiting for all the money pieces to fall together.

Money is whipping in and out of my accounts like crazy and to be honest, I will be happy when both boys are settled in to school. Then I know the tuitions are paid and I can get back to whatever my new budget will be.

DS2's tuition was paid yesterday. The RESP money is in, so as soon as it shows up on my MasterCard, I can take care of that.

DS1's tuition is still pre-scholarship so we are waiting for that to be applied. I forget how long that took last year. The online College account says the 20th of August but I know full well it was in September before it actually was applied. So we are waiting to see how much that is, and if any of his accommodations are covered.

DS1's MC bills for his travel down are finally posted. He stayed in a hotel last Wed night and the charge just showed up on the MC today. So that is all paid. What a difference in gas prices between the countries. A fill here was about $50 and down there it is high $20.  It does annoy me that it takes that many days for the charges to show up on the card.

My laptop is still in the shop. I stopped by yesterday and talked to the guy. It made it to their bench Friday.  The Trojan is deeply embedded in my system and they are having trouble wiping it out. So it will be another couple days.

Funny thing - I noticed the weird popups (Trojan) when I was ordering shirts for DS1 from Holister.ca (Abercrombie and Fitch). Hey, $10 Tee shirts!  And good quality ones too. He has one and loves it. Anyhoo, that is when this popped up.

Enter my school laptop that I brought home with me last week. DS2, who hates clothing shopping, said he liked his brother's shirt and since they were cheap, could he get a couple since he needs new shirts anyways.

I never even 'thought' and went to my school laptop to the webpage and after picking a couple, I went to start the check out process and the SAME popup came up. Coincidence???? I think not.

I shut it down and restarted it. Apparently the school has better virus protectors because it is gone. I checked with the techie at school.

I called the company to tell them what happened from their webpage on two different occasions. They could not have cared less.

The money for DS2's hail damaged car came through. I put that in  a savings account. It will be there when we decide what his new to him vehicle will be and find one we can afford.

And that's the money poo.

It's payday today so it feels like a brand new start to things. 

July Change

I was excited to be saving change this month for my RRSP snowflake goal.

Alas, it was not to be.

The change went towards paying for my vehicle repair.

This month I had:

• 1 roll of toonies - $50
• 1 roll of loonies - $25
• 1 roll of quarters - $10
• 1 roll of dimes - $5
• 1 roll of nickels - $2

for a grand total of $92

There goes the vehicle

DS2 phoned from his camp last night.

A massive hail and wind storm went through last night. They had a group of little Scouters out and got them to safety just in time. So much damage done up there though. Trees uprooted. Tarps and tents torn. Windows smashed. And vehicles.

DS's vehicle is  badly damaged, as were many of the other leaders' vehicles. Windshield. Roof. Hood. Side panels.  Everyone is fine, but we now begin the journey of how much damage his car has.

The earliest we could get into the claim center is Aug 4. Tons of storms last night. Kerrobert, SK, I am thinking of you.

It will either be fixable and I will pay the deductible and it will take time for all the body work to get done, or it will be written off. If that is the case, we will get paid out a sum and then we have to decide if we want to buy it buy to fix or if we begin the hunt for a new vehicle.  If we are looking for a new vehicle, then I will be out a few thousand, as the payout for a write off is never as high as the cost of a new to him, safe vehicle.

But everyone is fine so I will take it as it comes. Annoys me though after all the money we put into this darn vehicle to get fixed over the winter. lol

Vehicle repairs

For awhile now my vehicle has been making some odd noises in the front end. Crunching noises I called them. Like something was almost broke in two.

I took it to the repair shop last Friday and I was right. There was a problem with the suspension in the front; sway bar, bearings etc.

They had the parts in stock so I settled in at the dealership to get  the vehicle fixed.

This SUV has been pretty darn good repair-wise. I bought it new in 2009. Since then I have replaced the tires and had oil changes and that is pretty much it.

Repairs cost $599.85.  Labour was over half of it.

Unexpected costs, but it sure is nice to not hear that sound when I drive it.

I am syphoning $ from different budget lines to get this paid off before the end of July, as I will NOT have a balance on my CC.

I know I should have a budget line for vehicle repairs. I should have a lot of budget lines for different things.

Bottoms up!

Very bad pun. and perhaps TMI to follow.

I am writing to you from my hotel room in the city.

I am alone.

I am nervous.

I am STARVING!

Last Friday I got the ominous envelope in my mail. Colonoscopy time!

I suppose having only a week's notice is better than knowing for a month or two. Less time to dread it.

I am nervous because the last time I had mine (Dec 2012), I learned that sedation in this hospital meant CONSCIOUS sedation (awake for the procedure with the video feed a foot from your face) as opposed to asleep sedation like I had the first time where I went night night.

Not knowing what conscious sedation really meant was a bit of a shock and I admit to crying in front of my specialist and her 14 year old (ok probably 24) intern/resident.

I feel more informed this time.

After the IV fiasco earlier this year (the bruising and sore hand lasted a month and they never got the IV in.  I am really anxious about the IV this time.  I know to ask for the O2 through the nasal hook up thingie as I had a bit of  a panic attack when they tried to smother me provide O2 through the face mask. I know I will be incredibly nauseous after the procedure and to ask for something ahead of time.

The cost is....pardon the pun....a pain in the ass.

A hotel room is required because the prep drink from hell they make you take requires a bathroom immediately close by. Driving 90 min is just not going to work.  Hotels are expensive! And all I am doing is watching TV and running to the bathroom, and then hopefully sleeping.

I can't drive. Sedative prohibits it, so I can't drive myself down.  DH did. Fuel costs.

DH can't get all of tomorrow off work, so he had to drive home, work tomorrow morning, then drive back to get me. More fuel costs.

Since I am at the hotel alone I will have to take a cab in the morning to the hospital. No clue what that will cost. Haven't taken a cab in years. Added to that, the bridge which connects directly to where the hospital is, is under construction, so the cab will have to take a longer route.

DH will have to pay for parking when he arrives tomorrow afternoon. My how parking costs here! If there is even a spot available (They are under construction so at least half the parking spaces are out of commission).

I will have some answers tomorrow. How bad is my colon?  What is our next step for medication? She was talking Remicade or Humira since the steroids aren't getting me fully into remission.

So this is definitely unplanned, unfun, but necessary expenses.  I could think of better ways to spend my cash.

My expenses last time were $280.99. Click here for the whole sordid story.

This time:
Hotel (right now quoted at $159 plus tax and 'hospitality fees'. That is with the hospital discount.)
Prep drink: $25
Juice, ginger ale, water $15
Cab: TBA
Fuel Costs Thurs: $48
Fuel Costs Fri:
Parking Costs Fri:

Curious - For those outside of Canada.....what is the approximate cost of having a colonoscopy?

Survived Prom

Well it was definitely a different experience for prom with DS1 than DS2 for prom, but we are through to the other side.

DS1 was definitely a social butterfly and considered 'popular', for those who find that classification important.

DS2 has a small group of friends, but is definitely not popular and considered weird and different by the 'popular' crew.

DS2 seems to be ok with who he is, and has no patience for dramatic and superficial people but there are a few things he says here and there that make me wonder how he feels about where he fell into the social groupings.

I was somewhere in the middle, in high school. I think.

DS2 wasn't going to go to prom but a friend had broken up with her boyfriend and asked him to be her escort. It was good for both of them. She got  her escort without worrying about dating and all that goes with it, and he got to be a white knight.

Don't get me wrong. He could have cheerfully missed the whole thing and been seemingly content with it all.

He stayed until about 12:30 AM (It goes until 3 AM). He did the pre prom pics with his escort, the grand march, danced with her, with his mama and a few in the middle where his escort and another girl dragged him up. He hung out with his friends and won one of the prizes (hello toaster oven) and then they were ready to go.

Then we came home, he changed and went to meet his friends at a house (with parents home) and they had a fire and enjoyed each other's company.

He looked great in his suit. I am sure glad I didn't have a girl. Listening to some of the other moms talking about the dress cost, alterations, shoes, practice hair sesson, picture hair session, prom hair session, make up, gel nails, TOE gel nails,  pics... it was staggering. More than one mom quoted numbers in the $1800 to $2000 range as I .......overlistened to conversations. And these are not kids of doctors or lawyers or those kinds of big income jobs. Sheesh. DS can wear his suit again for weddings or funerals. Those girls will never wear their dresses again.

We are just nicely back from the facility where we cleaned up and took down decorations and such.  The next big event is at the end of June for the actual graduation. Cap and gown.

The Car. Again. update

So we got DS2's car back yesterday from his millionth trip to the dealer/repair.

They replaced the transmission with a refurbished one from SGI (sask govt insurance). It comes with a lower price and a year's warranty.

They replaced the rear lower control arms again. Less than two months after they did it the first time. Zero charge for that.

The total for the bill was just over $3700.

The policy covered all but $300. (deductible plus some things like transmission fluids etc)

I certainly have gotten my value out of that policy that I regretted buying. This car has cost more than it's purchase price now, in 13 months.  A good part of it from not being fixed properly when we take it in and our concerns not being taken seriously.

I have zero confidence in the sales staff who assured us this car was in mint condition, and the repair staff who aren't able to fix things properly. 

I know that I will never buy another vehicle from this dealer again, or one that needs to go them for repairs.

DS left for the weekend to his scout camp so hopefully when he actually gets home and drives it, it is all as it should be. properly. 

The $300 comes out of my backpay.

I am sure glad I have it.

One third of the way through 2015

Hard to believe it's already May. It never ceases to amaze me how fast the months (or years) seem to fly by as one gets older.

The first third of the year has gone by and I would have to say that it has had a lot of rough patches. I thought I would do a quick glance at how things have gone.

Health

Well it could be worse, but it definitely hasn't been great. I finished off 2014 recovering from a big cold and flu and went pretty much straight into my neck being out and locked, which threw off about 2 weeks of my January.  Chiro visit and two ER visits.  I had about a month of decent health before my colitis symptoms started coming back until it hit full flare. This past week marked 2 months of my flare in all it's glory. I was off work for almost a month (including one week of non school over Easter). The steroids are reversing/keeping the symptoms at bay, but the side effects of the steroids are not fun: dry mouth, numb lips, chest pains, increasing bruising, tight joints and muscles, esp the knees, swollen /puffy face and feet and super dry skin. Oh and increased appetite. Good times :-)

I am hoping for a much better spring. It's finally nice outside and I want to be out walking and doing things.

Murphy and money

Murphy  has been a royal pain the ass this year, especially around vehicles. Oh the things I could have done with the cash I have had to put out for vehicles and mechanic inspections. At least I can say I am getting the value back on the warranty I was kicking myself for buying.

College costs continue to stress me out. Aside from going back in time and putting more money away, there isn't much that can be done but keep on keepin' on. I really wish DS1 had been eligible for Canada student loans, even to help out a bit. I have three years left with DS1 and 2-4 with DS2 so I need to find my stride and figure things out and keep myself as stress free as I can to avoid bringing Mr. Colitis back.

The backpay and income tax refund will definitely help. I appreciate those two amounts so much.

It could be worse. I could have never saw the light with budgeting and money and been up to my tonsils in stress and debt.

Family
Being sick has kept me from a few family functions. I don't like that, especially on missed moments with my great nieces and nephews. They are super fun and I would like to be doing things with them.

I am glad I gave DS2 that trip. I just see so much more maturity and confidence in him and that makes me smile to my soul. I miss DS1 so darn much. By the time he gets home in June, it will be 6 months since I've seen him. That is far far too long. I need to plan a trip down to him next Feb or March to break that up a bit. He needs it and so do I. He is really homesick at this point, especially with hockey done.

Goals

I have a couple of my 2015 goals in progress. My TFSA goal of $2000 is getting closer. I have the grad money saved and have started doling it out for a few things.  My summer planned spending money is close as well.  Still, a lot of goals not started.

It will be interesting to see what my second part of the year shows at the end of August.

The car heard me talking

I really should know better than to talk about windfall money coming in. Appliances, vehicles and such hear you when you do.  Murphy hears.

Last week DS2 took his car in AGAIN to a mechanic to have it checked for the same things we went  in for in Feb/March. Estimate from them for a transmission and everything else $6600.

That's more than we paid for a car we were told was in pristine condition.

So back we went to where we bought it (and where we have this warranty through), info in hand. The ladies in the parts department were pissed.  I was really calm and really well prepared with my info and didn't swear or anything. DS said I had a bit of 'that tone you get when you are trying to be nice  and sound nice but you're angry". Not sure if other people heard that too.

So back this car goes tomorrow to where we bought it so THEY can inspect it and see what is wrong and then they have to submit that info to the policy people to see what they cover.

I just want it to , be fixed, properly, and not have to go back. I am sure they want to see me, as much as I want to be there.

Between the policy and myself, we have spent $3000 on this car in less than a year.

le sigh

Holy Medical Bills Batman

I remember when I was getting ready to pay DS1's first semester tuition and fees last August.

I remember being overwhelmed by all the different fees.

I remember being more than a little OMG at the required health insurance fees of $1050 US per semester.

Soooo different than our world up here in Canada.


Well I am seeing it in a different light now.

DS got hurt in February during a game.  Ended up missing the rest of the season from the injury unfortunately.  He got one xray and one MRI.

The bill came yesterday. Just under $4000 US

I about died. Up here, we'd wait for a while before getting the procedure done but the cost would be covered.

I can now see why having good health care coverage in the US is such a critical thing. I can't imagine what folks do who aren't able to get it.

Meanwhile on the college front...

....DS2 gets an email from his soon to be college saying they have received his criminal record check and everything looks good.

The only thing they have to wait for are his official high school transcripts after this semester, which will come in July.

But to hold his spot, he needs a deposit of $500, which will stay in his account and then be applied against his tuition come the end of August.

oh goodie. $500


so that had to be taken care of.

So at the dealer...

(sorry for the delay. It was report card week, and my colitis came back in full flare. sigh)

So at the dealer the total came to $2002.30.  The policy covered $1070.60.

I had to pay the balance of $929.70. That covered:

• the deductible of $250
• the taxes
• the struts (apparently it is hard to get a policy to cover struts)
• shop supplies

At least the car was done. and safe. with no more issues....

(mhm, you see where this is going)