Healthcare adventure

So being the momma's girl she is Blythe seems to have caught my sinus troubles as of late. She has had a fever for 4 days today. It got up to 102.3 axillary which is so very close to my freak out limit! Now last might we spent most of the night fighting with fitful sleep and when she finally gave in to full sleep at 3a.m. she began sweating profusely she did not truly stop sweating until 3 the next afternoon. So with the fitful sleep in the night I assumed that she was not getting over her problems because the sinus issue had developed her an ear infection. I made an appointment with the pediatrician and we went (with Blythe still sleeping at every turn) at 2:30 in the afternoon. He found nothing that stood out (as was my observation- short of the fitful sleep that night) and was willing to send us home with close contact until she decided to "exhibit lethargy" he offered her a sucker with no real arousal. So with his "limited abilities/resources" he decided to send us to the emergency room at children's medical. ER! What we can't do something else. Oh the out-of-pocket!!! So after trying to find a clinic that would/could do blood work and other simple testing we succumb to the idea of emergency room visit. Ugh... It was as horrible as I remember it to be in a small town. It was actually much worse because you were like on a conveyor belt only they exhibited themselves as pressurized rooms! We proceeded to spend the next 4 hours waiting for them to help make our baby better. Only one of us went with her and the other of us was stuck in the waiting room with the older two. After an hour Mark decides to take the kids to goof off for a while. Me all the while hoping to get done so I can take my baby, who began to start crying anytime someone unfamiliar opened the door, to cuddle in the comfort of my own home. Those stretchers and hospital chairs really aren't comfy even with a child sleeping on you. The doctor came in after an hour and a half to decide that she was going to do a flu swab and take a urine sample. 30 minutes later we get the tests done. 45 minutes of waiting for the test results for the doctor (who I actually liked a lot) to say keep her fluid intake up and keep a close eye on her. One long miserable story later... my husband hates health care, my daughter is not keen on stethoscopes (or strangers for that matter) and the diagnosis we came home with was mild dehydration! Oh did I mention it cost us $95.00 to find that out! We knew that or we would not have been pushing water as much as we have been! My husband came to some excruciating realizations... damned if you do damned if you don't! We paid $20.00 for our PCP to tell us to go to the ER... His eye opening comparison was if I take my car to the mechanic and he says he can't fix whatever is wrong with the car (even if it is because he can't tell) here is the kicker... YOU DON"T PAY HIM! People actually wonder what is wrong with health care??? Also when we reviewed our health care coverage he wanted to take some of that expense away because we pay almost $4,000 a year for our coverage. but the lesser option which is $700.00 less a year does not allow for an abundance of cash flow to make it an option. We have difficulty as it is paying the copay for the most part let alone having a deductible or paying more out of pocket to free up cash flow. I honestly don't see how relatively healthy families could even consider not expecting more from health care.

Girl Scouts

Although i love the program in recent years I have decided that feminism has taken the organization we are under to an extreme. Our family wrestles with this to the point of not participating anymore. My husband cannot be an active member in the troop as he is male. It was important to us to give our daughter the experience that our son has had in scouts which is virtually impossible by all the rules set forth in recent decisions. He has been told he should not be outdoor trained by a council representative because it is harder for them to find a place to put him. Men have to be in a separate area (with a restroom) for him to participate in a "camp out" by camp out i do not mean "pitch a tent" i mean attend camp at one of the girl scout campgrounds or an approved campground facility. When I found that out I was thinking- are you kidding, come on, what a waste of my time- really! I have since decided to consider camping as a girl scout as "wimpy" camping (or more choice words of derogatory grammar)! He is not allowed to be a first aid-CPR certified number in our troop because of his gender. Nothing about this seems practical as in a typical situation... you are trying to find ways a father can be active in a daughter's life and the one thing that they can do (and with less bellyaching than most of the mom's I come in contact with) and well I might add you take away from them! Augh! Sensibility is lacking here-does anyone else see that- Hello!

Schools these days

So we have recently resorted to doing a lot of research about school. We have a child, Thorsten, who exhibits both adhd(inactive) and gifted personality traits making it very hard to deal with his academic needs. He has been tested for GT and received our notification that it was not educationally appropriate for placement. I know, first question what does that mean? That is not an answer! So we decided to follow up on seeing a Psychiatrist... Not a pretty site either. Thorsten was very upset about this, offended by the idea of taking medication, frustrated about something being wrong with him. How hard it is to explain. He so smart but he struggles with his focus and the apathy of teachers. He is the kid who wants to be able to reinvent the wheel everytime he learns something. I think that is great except in conventional learning. I honestly think that public schools should compete for our children. They see no threat in homeschooled children which I think is wrong. The best schools should get our money and the job of providing our family an educational experience. Not put the kid in a district that does not want to work with the family on providing for a kid who expects so much out of his education.

This is Eliese Toryn, 8 years old, at the playground near the Estes park area in Colorado. She is a girly-girl and a tom boy all rolled into one! Loves a dress and a tent at the same time! She is head strong and independent, just like her mother!

Thorsten, soon to be 12 years old, from a summer trip to Colorado. Thorsten loves school and being a boy scout and legos. He has the biggest collection of any kid I know.

This is Blythe Rhianna, she just turned 1 year old. Blythe is such a happy baby we are totally blessed to have such a sweet baby to keep life interesting! She is a momma's girl and loves to be outside, full of curiosity, happiness, and cuddles!

Meet the family

Mark, Natasha, Thorsten, Eliese, and Blythe Winter 2009. This is the most recent family picture we have. It is a year old now will have to get some more photos soon.