The J6 Journey: January 2021

Uh oh, the first gallbladder health crisis bill came in. And insurance paid little on it. $285 for just the consultation! And the insurance only covered $47.92 of it. That's totally opposite of how my things get covered. Which makes me wonder, is Jared out of network when he goes to St. Francis? Is that why we paid upfront for the ER? So, I'm in panic mode. And the rest of the family doesn't like it. What they think is a blessing "oh we know someone!" becomes a curse when it actually comes time to pay for it. This is why I carefully chose where I go for health care. I make sure insurance will cover it. I knew we didn't have dental insurance, so that didn't matter. Although I guess I could have gone to a cheaper clinic in that particular case. But overall, it's why I chose the poor man's hospital system over our suburban hospital system. And, well, I am peeved. And scared. Because now, we are dealing with a potential back surgery for Jared, too. On top of me thinking I'll need my cyst removed this year. On top of all the monies we still owe hospitals and doctors and ourselves from my stuff 18 months ago. This ain't good. We don't have retirement. We don't have savings. HSA isn't free money. It's our money, that is not taxed. And it's limited on how much we put in there. Between co pays and then paying on surgeries, it will take years and years to pay all of this off. So yes, I have the right to panic. I can't just find "magic money" somewhere. And it proves to me what I had feared, we didn't do enough research in the beginning because it was an emergency. And it wouldn't have been in an emergency if he had been seen in August or November. So, I'm mad. I'm irate. And apparently, it's not ok with some to be that way given the circumstances.

Yes, Jared was able to get x-rays done and see the spine specialist, that IS a miracle. But, one of his discs is completely gone, which is causing all the pain. How it deteriorated so much in just one year, I have no idea. He started on steroids for the weekend, but the possibility is great he will need to have some kind of spine surgery to fuse the bones together or whatever they do. It's not uncommon these days. It doesn't always resolve everything. But we are both expecting that it will happen in a few months time at most. That's scary. Not to mention my own depression and weight gain and extra pain and not knowing who to turn to. Even when a connection with a "friend" is made and promises of "we'll take care of her" are made, it's no guarantee it will work out. There is no such thing as a free lunch. Everybody wants to get paid. I still have to jump through hoops. And I still can't afford the $1,000 psychiatrist on the northside to get a simple assessment done for ADD. So I'm left with little hope. That's where it's at.

It's been an odd scheduled day with Grandpa Bible class and then I talked with my sister for awhile, and then all the texting this afternoon. I barely got school done with the kids and had them correct their math and science today. I didn't do school with Abishai. I did take a shower. I have a mountain of paperwork I said I would start tackling tomorrow. I didn't get my passport. I did get the discount on my very expensive medication because I knew to ask for it. The recycling bin was full. I did get a lot of DVD's the kids can watch in the days ahead. Or I might save them for spring break week if I need to count those days towards our official attendance. Keturah will be gone for some of that week, so we'll see. That's not until March. Steady on through February. I did write up our schedule for February and the next couple of weeks. I need to work my plan. Stressing over money isn't part of the plan. But it doesn't get fixed by itself. I still have to do the research and decide what to pay for first, if at all, since we need the HSA money for the up front co pays. Which reminds me, I need to at least call IU Health and explain why I never increased their payment again. Yup, I will do that when I get the paperwork straightened out. More phone calls, more appointments. More names to remember. More co pays. More starting over with new doctors. It sucks.

It sucks to be ill. It's not fair to be this ill and barely be 40 and to be this broke all the time, no matter how hard we try to cut costs. I realized this week that we never had bought Keturah a comforter. To be fair, Gary and Leah have gifted all 3 boys now their original themed comforters. But we had never put it on Keturah's Christmas list. Well, just as I had thought that, a reminder email came up that said I still had Kohl's Cash to spend, and thankfully, it was enough to cover a comforter, a new set of sheets, and new dishclothes for the kitchen. Total bill was $140 (full retail), $60 on sale, and I only paid the $8 in shipping costs. But this kind of savings takes time and energy and patience and figuring. And knowing what you need/want. I also just used most of my Young Living points because I was looking up something and noticed that they were set to expire. I didn't take the time to look through everything but randomly selected some fun and interesting things to try and some old fan favorites. The items that are eligible for points is limited though, and it's never the newest things, so their reward program kind of sucks. But, it's there. And I used it. Because I was in a mood to. But it all stresses me out. I'm the one who figures it all out. And I don't like it when something is out of my control and out of my experience. I can't control where and how Jared does things. But he barely understands how the healthcare system works. Gary and Leah haven't had to use anything but the suburban network because they aren't poor and they had decent insurance and a great salary and so the co pays didn't matter as much. And we were in that system before we left for Canada. But I discovered more ways of taking care of healthcare needs when dealing with my poor parents who also had to use the poor man's network.

And I guess I'm worried that we will become the "he's the bread winner so he gets top notch care while everyone else in the family doesn't" will happen because that's what I grew up with. Only my dad had some kind of health insurance and had all the treatments he needed because he was the bread winner. We never went to the doctor, dentist, or eye doctor (I did once in 3rd grade and then not again until high school). I went with the cheaper hospital and a student doctor botched up my arm. I have to jump through different hoops to get the right referrals in order to get a better psychiatrist now because this one isn't cutting it. I've had good luck with most doctors in the poor network. I don't have to have Christians that we know personally work on me and my healthcare. It doesn't put me that much more at ease. I want competent doctors with a good bedside manner and that doesn't always mean that they are Christians. It's not Jared's fault he needs healthcare right now, just as it wasn't my fault the last 12 years that I needed it. But there's a way to do it cheaply but competently that doesn't rely on someone else's personal network.

I'm just so worried and stressed and no one understands. And I'm not going to sugar coat it. It's not in my nature. And I'm ok with that. I wish others were more accepting of that. Our health is super important. And it's been very scary lately. And it's ok to have a meltdown over it at least weekly. Really. It's ok. Pain is relative to you. Don't say things like, "It could be worse." From your perspective, maybe, but from the person living it, it is worse. Say, "I'm sorry it's been hard. How can I help?" Don't find the silver lining for me or try to put a positive spin on it. That's never comforting. Never. It only serves one purpose: to make you feel better (not the person in pain) and it invalidates the person in pain. Call it like it is. Pain sucks. Finances suck. Navigating the healthcare system sucks. Watching your husband cry out like a child because he's in so much pain for over a month, sucks. Not having the help you need, sucks. Having a child not want anything to do with you, sucks. This life sucks. No matter what you do or who you are, Christian, not Christian, a person who prays or doesn't pray. It doesn't matter. This world sucks big time.

Definitely me most nights. Most definitely.

Someone went to bed with damp hair. He said he wanted it to go down but we didn't try to do anything with it. It eventually laid flat on it's own. I love my kids' bedheads!

I'm not sure if Justin asked for help, but I turned around and saw this. Abishai was helping Justin put away the load of dishes from the dishwasher. Way to go! I could try to have him to a bit more of it, too. I don't want him climbing up with the breakable dishes, but he could do some of the dishes that go in the lower cabinets.

The easiest way to do Bible class. #comfortable #homeschooler

My sister Stefanie was doing some online research of our family (and found some discrepancies with what we know, but neither of us have time to scrutinize them) and found this photo. It's when my Granddaddy Howell was given an award for being with NortheasternUniversity for 25 years. I've never known exactly what he did, but it was some kind of science, I think teaching chemistry and physics. I'm not sure if it was research or not with it. I know that he was a genius and stayed with the same job throughout his life. He was very shy and quiet, too. His infamous three sneezes in a row sneeze we called the "Granddaddy sneeze." My Nana was more talkative and the artsy/creativeness comes from her. She loved to paint things with trichem and stencils. And my beautiful chest was made for her. My siblings didn't get as many of those things as I did for whatever reason. I was they had. I mean my Nana tried, but I guess I was the first grandchild. I treasure those homemade things above anything else. She was on the shorter side, too. David and Valeska (Hadyn) Howell

Uh oh! Abishai was playing pretend that a storm trooper was in Daddy's closet and just happened to find this Lego set Jared bought and squirreled away right after Christmas. Yes, I swear we have gotten one box from Lego every single month for the last 6 months! And direct from Lego.com mind you. Anyway, it was pretty excited to find it. It was just a "just because" purchase.

While I pouted, the kids made funny faces with their vegetables. Sweet! This is Keturah's plate. Keturah gave hers a "double chin" or what I call a "butt chin" and Jared called it a "cleft" chin and made it look like Grandpa Johnson.

And this is Abishai's plate. He even said there was a "pee and poo hole" where that little nub of green pepper is. Boys!

Scarcity mindset. That's what I have.

It was a horrendous night. Just as bad if not worse than the nights of the gallbladder attack. And there was nothing I could do to help. Jared even used CBD and the CBD cream from Young Living with essential oils. (That particular product is worth it's weight in gold, I tell ya! I don't like all the products from YL and some are not even as good as others out on the market, like their deodarant and toothpaste for example, but sometimes, I find a "must have" and this is one of those.) He thinks the big steroid dose he was told to take as soon as he got it was the culprit. Time will tell because he just took the 2nd biggest dose at supper time. Steriods can be pretty nasty. But he and I are convinced that surgery is eminent. The doctor was impressed that we had already tried everything else on our own terms, like the chiropractor, massage, acupuncture, physical therapy, etc. It's steroids and then surgery. But since the x-ray showed that the disc is pretty much gone, there's nothing else can be done. The steroids will bring down the inflammation but the disc won't regrow. It sucks! And maybe we'll hit our deductible. I don't know how that all works. But I did get some EOB's today and my ultrasound also was more expensive out of pocket than it was last year, so maybe something changed in our insurance plan. I didn't have surgeries last year, so I don't think we hit our deductible last year. We did the year before that at the end of 2019. I'm mentally planning for getting my cyst removed and my other ovary cleaned up, and polyps removed if needed before the end of the year. Might as well.

After updating the family on Jared, a friend who fell out of a doorway on the second floor where the deck had been that they just took off, and other friends that had tackled a DUI driver and a young man who had yet another seizure, well, I was done being on my phone. So, Abishai and I (and Keturah) cleaned up and put away a couple of boxes of toys to take to the shed and got out the box of kitchen and doll stuff Abishai wanted out so he could have a restaurant and have picnics. I cleared off all his car stuff from the Lego table so it was more ready for his TMNT Legos next weekened. I'll put his big tray of Legos away next weekend as well. That doesn't sound like a lot of work, but when pieces of things don't get put away in the right bins, it takes 30 minutes to find the piece! After that was naptime because we had woken up later and started working later. Well, Jared had already gone back to bed a couple of times.

I'm not sure if Jared just has more restraint during the day so he doesn't scare the kids or his pain is just different or it was the steroids or what, but he isn't screaming out in pain during the day. Only at night is he breaking down crying. It's scary. Because I'm helpless to help him. If he falls, I can't help him. I would wake up Justin. I almost did last night. I need to warn Justin about that though. Jared doesn't believe Justin would help, and sure, Justin would hesitate, but he's not as stubborn as the others and would try anyway. But there's literally nothing we can do. Going to the ER won't help. They won't give him any more pain medications or a different kind. One friend said that's because if they plan on doing surgery soon, they don't want you to be on high doses of pain meds a) because you'll need them for after and b) I think for the same reason you shouldn't take blood thinning medications like ibuprofen before a surgery. Jared did text the doctor and he said no to more meds. It's ridiculous. Ludicrous. My mom was on vicodin for ages during her cancer treatments and both of my parents were on straight up morphine at the end of their lives. This is an acute situation. Of course he's not going to get addicted.

And then back surgery? Scarier than gallbladder surgery by 1,000%! Oh my word! I wasn't expecting that at all. Who knows what the recovery for that will be. I won't be able to get him into the house. How long will he be out of commission? I can't do this single parenting gig. I'm tired. I'm moody. I have my own appointments. And some might call it selfish to think like this but my good friend who has battled MS for 25 years messaged me and asked me if I was feeling out of sorts with the role reversal. And I totally am. I know I am. That's why it's scary. If he can't take care of himself, how will he take care of me? And vice versa? I've come to rely on him so much for so many things, like carrying groceries. Sure I can take Justin with me or I can do it myself, but I'm exhausted afterwards. Even him doing the smaller, mundane tasks like bath time for Abishai or cutting up his own salad vegetables saves me energy, pain, and grumpiness. While we would love to persevere like the generations before us, we just don't have the constitution (I've been watching too many BBC historical dramas: "my constitution" basically means "my body's ability to do things, like my constitution doesn't like the cold weather) to do it. Acute changes in roles brings chaos. ADD people can't function well with chaos. So, of course I'm all out of sorts and I'm going to revert to my "all emotions come out as anger" stage.

So, I put the phone down and worked on the boxes. Then took a nap. Or tried to. It's hard with a teen yelling into his headset during video game time. And the other ones coming in to ask questions. That post from Instagram yesterday really sums it up: Revenge Bedtime Procrastination, which is when your life is finally yours again. And you can control what you do and you're not interrupted. Of course it backfires when it's really late, which is anything past 1 for me. If I'm in bed by 1, I'm good. I can function well enough, I'm not falling asleep during read alouds, and I can control my responses. Last night I went to bed by 1 because I had binge watched a show called Dickensian from 9:30 until 12:30. Yes, three hrs of being unproductive. Well, I knew I couldn't read or touch paperwork or do anything for IAHE. I had to shut my brain off completely, or rather distract it. It's an ADD thing, too. And while I understand this ADD thing now, Justin understands it, and Jared understands it, others like Gary and Leah can't fathom it and just think I'm behaving poorly. Social media and "keeping of with the Jones" would also call my behavior bad. 3 hrs of binge watching? But if that's what it takes to calm down and switch gears, so what? So what I haven't touched the tax paperwork today. I still have tomorrow to commit to it. It's early yet, so I'll probably read my devotionals. I need to spread out the papers and it will take more than a few minutes because I have to put bills away properly, too. That will be a good snowy Sunday 1-2 hr afternoon project. I won't nap again because I'll be sleeping on the couch tonight and I napped today.

Meanwhile, as you will be able to tell, the kids did their own things. Keturah listened to music and did her dot to dots. Abishai found a way to get the penny down so he could unluck his bedroom door. And he played and played with the pretend food stuff today, and even went "camping!" And he and Daddy built another new Lego build, another car! Justin also worked on sorting his Legos and he actually remembered that he needed to do his science test. He had done the wrong test yesterday. I'm glad he remembered because I was sure we didn't have any leftover homework today.

Here are the pics and videos of the FUN things they did.

Oh goodness me. This is what we woke up to TODAY. Abishai is SUCH a problem solver! I think we can safely say the show "Stinky and Dirty" really helped him with that. They would have a problem and then say, "What if....." with three different solutions and then pick the best one. And that's what this kid does. He saw the net on the shelf near the back door where the dog towels are usually draped over it. But the dog towels were in the wash, so the net was exposed. And I'm not sure why he thought about using it to get the penny and nickel down from on top of the photo frame, but he did. We use the coins to open up the locked doors in this hallway. Well, he managed to get the coins down and somehow flipped them right into the net, too! This is after he closes all the doors in the morning while the rest of us are sleeping and turns on all the lights, including the hallway one, because he doesn't want to wait for us in the dark, but he knows we don't like the lights. So intuitive!

No, that's not Abishai. That's 4 year old Justin. On the old couch and in Beech Grove, not Charlottetown. Skinny, but long guy.

Steroids. Either you love them or hate them. I didn't know it would start out with a stronger dose and decrease like this. We are hoping that since Jared took them earlier this evening, they don't affect his sleep. Either way, last night was one of the worst nights in our marriage because he nearly collapsed and I didn't know what to do. The pain looked like it was worse than one of my labor and deliveries. Sigh. We might be looking at surgery in the next couple of weeks to fuse some vertebrae together. Not nice. Not fair. Not good.

Jared always seems to cheer up and forget a bit of the pain when this little guy wants his attention. Abishai had talked about having a restuarant for several days and begged for me to get the pretend food and fridge/stove combo from the garage. I think he plays with this more than Keturah ever did. I wish we had kept the big kitchen set I had bought for Keturah but was in the basement of the Charlottetown house and never used. Abishai has always loved playing with the kitchen sets at church. His restaurant is only open from 9am to 1pm. And he gave Daddy pretend play money to use. He also had the cashier register right there ready to use. Creative play is the best play!

While I was resting, Abishai dragged all of this into the fireside room. Sigh. I just cleared this all out again so I could have a toy free zone! But wherever he sees floor space, it's his play space. He started out with a picnic, which turned into camping, which turned into glamping. Silly goose. I was busy watching a dumb video but he was trying to get me to say what I wanted for "breakfast" so he could make it for me. I eventually gave in and played for a minute. I was just so tired. He's my last one to play pretend with. Jared and I want to milk it for all it's worth.

And THIS is why Justin is loved and needed in the 1st grade room. He came in and reluctantly sat down to play with Abishai, but you could tell he was enjoying himself. Of course, the boys were being boys and teased each other instead of how girls play house, which is typically more gentle, but hey, they were interacting!

Taking turns cooking on the stove. Abishai didn't want Socks to come into the space, so he said, "Go away." And Socks thought it meant "get closer." Abishai does get mad at Socks and is now hitting and pushing him harder so we have to watch him and scold him for that.

Somebody is making a really big and odd sandwhich!

Somebody still has fun with pretend things! He might be 15, but, he is easily entertained. The ADD is great for this and for helping with the kids.

Wrestling match as usual.

Boys Wrestling

Who went outside? Oh, Daddy and Abishai went outside to put the windshield wipers up before the snow flies. 30 degrees, no socks, shoes, or coat, but hey, it was only for a minute and then Jared didn't have to do all the reaching. Abishai loves to jump in and help.

The only thing that helps me block out Justin's game screaming is this album. It's so "zen." Peaceful. Reminds me of the music when I got massages. It's the antithesis of his first album, Ad Alta, which I also love for times to get things done. I did tag him in a post about it, and he said thank you. I'll get to meet him again someday, whenever I can use my Michael W. Smith concert tickets again, which is looking more towards a 40th anniversary tour than a 35th anniversary tour. Sigh.

The ground was bare. This was what it looked like after 15 minutes of quick paced snowfall.

A big old storm they say? 12 inches isn't that big for the east coast, but whatever. We probably will get rain on the backside and then all the snow will melt.

Middle children often get overlooked. Here's the story. Justin and Benaiah both got their Cars and Transformers bedding when they were transitioned to the bunk beds that are now outside as a treehouse. I know that because we needed the crib for Keturah. But Keturah was transitioned to a big girl bed in Canada and grandparents weren't around to purchase the themed bedding as they had done for Benaiah and Justin. I didn't realize this until now when we transitioned Abishai to the big boy bed and I asked for bedding for him. Keturah has always been surrounded by big stuffed animals and has used smaller lap blankets. Well, she was complaining about being cold once again and it dawned on me that she never got a themed set of bedding! And lo and behold, I had a ton of Kohls' Cash I had to use up this week that I had gotten back when I returned all those clothes to Kohls'. So, for $140 (original retail price) of a comforter, a set of sheets and some new washclothes for the kitchen (ours are 20 years old), I paid only $8 and that was for shipping. And then when I posted this for the family to see, Shauna said they got Everly the same exact comforter! Cool! It's got some pretty brown tones, too and I think it's meant to go with more of a pastel beach theme. The bed sheets will be the same color as the darker of the turquoises. I didn't want to get her straight up Frozen sheets because she is 12. Thankfully, she's taking it all in stride that she was forgotten, once again. Whoops! And now she can take this to college, too.

Socks approves! I wish I had found a solid darker turquoise because Socks has left muddy paw prints on Keturah's sheets this week and I'm afraid he'll do it on the comforter, too. Keturah said she'll make sure he stays off of it until he's completely dry. We all are doing our best with wiping his feet well, but the mud can be so hard to get off. Oh, on another random note, at 4 am when Jared was having the most trouble, we went out to the living room and found the dog on the couch looking at us like, "What? This is my bed, right?" Um, no, that's why I try to keep toys up there at night. Goofy boy.

If only that ninja warrior gym was closer to us! I would have gladly supported them for this little guy's skills and interests. He's going to like karate, too, though. But he can totally do the pull your legs to one side move to jump over things. Check out the video below.

Another blurry photo of the "blur" that is Abishai.

Another week, another Lego build. We can't help it. It's like an addiction now. And it's one on one time. And it's so cool. It took Abishai a lot longer to focus tonight and I think that's because his brain had been going pretty quickly all day with the coins and the net and the pretend play. And there were a ton of the tiniest of Lego pieces to use. Smaller sets can be just as complicated and take just as long as the bigger ones.

MacLeran car.

He's tall enough to be on his knees and still be at a decent height to play. He's getting there. Actually, Keturah is getting there as well. We've accomplished a TON of music learning this year. Justin's in book 2, which I hardly ever got to with any of my students, and Keturah is working quickly through book 1B. I'm pretty impressed. Justin could go faster if he practice more. Keturah practices every day and does the songs several times through. So sometimes, if I'm tired of hearing it and she's perfected it, I'll do two "lessons" with her in a week. I am having them read the material and try to figure it out on their own first, just like I do with math, and then come along and help if needed. Definitely could kick this up a notch with actual scales and perfected the details of each song. I'm pretty pleased with their progress.

Justin, just being a typical teen, in his computer chair, chilling, with his phone. And then I played the part of annoying sister and laid in his bed and farted. I even sounded like Keturah when I said, "Sorry," very sarcastically. Oh boy. Like mother, like daughter.

And 2 hrs later, we got quick a bit. I think it's slowed down now, but could pick up again by morning.

Puppy loves the snow! He loves to eat it. I wonder if he doesn't drink much water because it's room temperature. He seems to be so thirsty when he eats the snow. I could always freshen up his water more often or put ice cubes in. He pees often enough, so somehow he gets enough.

He was outside for 5 minutes. The snow stays right on top of the fur and never reaches his skin. That's why he has so much fur and is meant for the colder weather. It's an amazing thing God created.

He even had snowflakes on his eyelashes. Poor doggie.

Jared, Abishai and I stayed home from church today. It was wet and snowy and I just didn't want to get all geared up and clean off my car and all that. Jared of course was still hurting and again almost collapsed when he tried to stand up. He was able to hobble around the rest of the day though. He thinks it's the steroids. I think it's his sleeping positions that makes him worse overnight because that's what happens to me. But whatever. The doctor will send in a request for an MRI tomorrow, so hopefully that will happen tomorrow or Tuesday. Jared's afraid that surgery won't be an option because of his scoliosis or something, but I'm hoping that yes, surgery would be as soon as possible. Leah was able to obtain some crutches for him in the meantime. I'll be on the couch again tonight. I need some sleep. And not the stay up until 3 am kind.

So, we listened and watch the Indian Creek service from home. I missed most of the worship, but heard the sermon, which, well, was on commitment to a local body of believers, and introduced more formally that they are going to start everyone on the same page and scratch the term "member" and everyone has to sign a recommitment form or something. Oh boy, since I was so tired, I couldn't really process all of that. I printed off the group discussion guide and hopefully will meet with the ladies' Bible study this week. Leah took the middle kids to church. And then there was the parent dedication piece where each family said their pledge individually on a video and then randomly switched the video back and forth to the different families for the final cut. It was a good way to do it and see their faces up close, actually.

After that, Jared went to lay down, and so did I. Abishai and I did a little bit of his Bible video and lesson from the website. And then he went on his tablet and I napped, before lunch. Lunch and dinner were leftovers today. And because of attitudes, I made the kids stay off of their electronics for the afternoon. They did not like that at all. Instead, we watched a 1 hr documentary on Darwin by Creation Ministries It was ok. I dusted the living room while I listened because I discovered that the Hot Wheels garage was really dusty! And then when I went up to the DVD's and VHS tapes, I decided to arrange them back into their original positions I put them in years ago. I put the adult super hero movies back on the adult shelf, too. And I discovered some noisemakers way on top of the bookshelf that had been hidden there by Jared when Abishai used them annoyingly. I also discovered some misplaced library DVD's I forgot to look for because I guess I've just been renewing them and no one else wanted them? Hm,....anyway, the living room looks pretty decent for guests now, if we even get to have a party, which all depends on Jared and a surgery and when and recovery. I warned Abishai that we might have to move the party if Daddy isn't feeling good. And lots of kids have had to postpone their birthday parties because of Covid, too, so it's ok. We'll get it done at some point.

And then I tackled the stacks of paperwork on my desk. I realized that I really needed to restart some medical folders for the 5 of us because there's no more room in the files in the current bankers box. And there's no room in the smaller file box either. So, I ordered another large size plastic bankers box and will set that up with more of the current stuff and put the taxes I think in the smaller file box. And I will keep HSA receipts and bills and EOB's that all go together in each person's personal medical file, and then just print out the HSA ledger from the bank website at the end of the year. IF there is an audit and I need to double check, I'll just go to the med files to find it. But it's pretty straight forward in the ledger. The pharmacy ones might be the only questionable ones because it's Kroger, which is also the grocery store. But I think that the HSA card does stop you if you are buying OTC stuff that is not covered by the HSA, so I'm not too worried. So that's what I have to do tonight. I have to take the huge tax folder I put all the HSA receipts in and divy it up between the medical files. And then I have a separate folder for current bills that I'm paying myself back on or that I'm waiting for the EOB or actual bill to come in, or I still have yet to pay off. So, my desk looks so much neater already! And then these files will go in the new box on Wednesday when it comes. Woot! Woot! I'll just stick it next to my desk where I just eliminated some things because I need to access it often.

I also forgot but then saw that I had an accordion file of all of Benaiah's stuff except his medical file from years and years ago. Again, that's in another easy to access box behind me. He wanted his files, like his taxes, so there it is, ready to hand over. And I have a folder started for Justin and will get one for Keturah and Abishai as needed. Things like PSAT results or accommodations for testing or special awards. So, I accomplished what I set out to do, organize the papers so when I go to do taxes, I can pull the right stuff. I'm pretty impressed I got it done because I was tired and out of sorts earlier. I had a lot of "ADD" moments today. And that's all because of sleep deprivation. So, to bed I go, like I say every night but never do, right?

Youth group was canceled, so we just hung out and did whatever after supper. I got Keturah into latch hooking, Justin was in his room doing whatever, and Abishai was playing Lego with Daddy. I sat in Daddy's chair and my right hand got really cold and I had to move my desk space heater so I could thaw it out. It's still really cold and there might be more snow tonight. Or not. I might take the kids to the sledding hill for a bit tomorrow right after lunch. I didn't take them today because I knew it would have been busy. So, we'll see.

Time to get up! Grandma will be here in 45 minutes to pick you up and she can't get in the driveway! But the dog, Mom, he's so cute!

The temperature was right at or above freezing or the drizzly rain and thundersnow shower made these divots in the snow overnight.

It's still very hard to live this out. So very hard.

Might be a record for Indiana, but for PEI, this is just a dusting and not worthy of a newscast.

So very wet still out there and drizzly. But he wanted to throw snow at me while I was behind the glass door. He laughed and laughed.

Child labor. I've done my fair share. And yes, it might become a skating rink, but I also didn't want to slosh through it if I was taking them to youth group later. Thankfully, I didn't have to go out because youth group was canceled.

Boys wrestling, tripping each other, and farting. But they love each other so much!

Bummers

At the end of the day when the snow picked up for a second. Pretty melty out there.

Looks clearer on the sidewalk and driveway now, yeah! At least those two didn't have to shovel all the PEI snow for those 4 years. Benaiah did the majority of it.

Learning how to latch hook! My Dad loved to do this and I saved a couple of kits for us to do. I have a horse one somewhere, too. The DC on Keturah's sweatshirt is throwing me off in the photo.