I contemplated on whether or not to share this with all of you. I didn't want this blog to become a political forum. However, this goes beyond politics. It reaches far deeper into the hearts of every American citizen and especially those with children with special needs. That is the reason I chose to post this entry.
It has been a long time since I have addressed the Wilson's Disease part of my family. I have not mentioned it because things have been going very well. My daughter is healthy and growing like a weed. She turned 10 this year and is blossoming into a beautiful young lady. We had issues with our insurance a long time ago when we were trying to get a diagnosis. Years later we had issues with her medication. It took an act of Congress to finally find a pharmacy that would file it for us and even mail it to our doorstep! Things were going FANTASTIC! But then....the Affordable Healthcare Act (a.k.a. "Obamacare") kicked in.
When I first heard about Obamacare I have to admit that I was skeptical. I felt like it sounded too good to be true. However, being the incurable optimist that I am, I just kept telling myself that things would get worked out. I felt like the media was blowing things out of proportion. I thought that all the stories I heard were the exception. NOW...I can testify to you all that the stories you hear on the news about people losing their coverage and having to change doctors and such is true! It's happening to me!! I want to shout out my story from the rooftops! I want everyone to know that it's just a matter of time before we ALL receive the dreaded letter in the mail from the insurance company.
First of all, our premiums are going up. In order to receive ALMOST the same coverage, we will have to pay almost $400 MORE a month! Our deductible is higher. Another change is that we have a copay for prescription drugs. However, that is just a drop in the bucket. We are self-employed. My husband has two employees and our income is very flexible from month to month due to the economy. That's the way it has always been. Although we probably qualify for subsidies, we are unable to do anything because all I keep getting is error messages in the website and I do NOT trust it! I refuse to put my trust in something that is not even functional!
Secondly, I was informed that I no longer can use the pharmacy that I had been using to get my specialty medication. Well...the problem is that the new pharmacy does not carry my daughter's prescription! I was horrified when I found out! How could that be? I called the insurance company and they told me that all I needed to do was call the new pharmacy and get them to do a "override" so that I could use another pharmacy. When I called them, they told me to call my insurance company for the override because they were not authorized. WHAT!! Now I was in a tennis match between the pharmacy and the insurance company. What was I to do?! All I could do was call the insurance company again and talk and plead my case. I decided that you get more bees with honey, so I was super sweet when I talked to the representative. The outcome? We are now waiting. I am at their mercy. My daughter only has about 2 weeks worth of medicine before she runs out. If something doesn't happen soon, we might have to pay for her medicine out of pocket. Very scary. It makes me wonder how many other families out there are going through the same thing we are?!
Lastly, I am sick and tired of people making excuses for lies and unkept promises made by the current administration. When are people going to wake up?! There is a great change happening to our country. We are going to see many outcomes come out of these changes....some of which I thought I would never see in my lifetime. There will come a day when we will see loved ones on a list waiting to get life-saving procedures. There are already those who cannot afford healthcare. What are they going to do? Will they be able to go to the ER of a hospital and get treatment? Or will the hospital just have to say, "Sorry...we can't see you today. Come back tomorrow." Worse yet, there are doctors that are deciding to have early retirements. There are doctors that are going to decide to take cash only patients. There are others who will decide not to go to medical school. What kind of incentive do they have? My own son is pursuing a career in the medical field. I hope and pray that he doesn't change his mind. We need great minds like his.
My dear family and friends, what our country needs....what we all need...is prayers. We need to pray for our country. I already see my country being ripped apart. There are those who are bleeding it dry. We owe so much money that I can't even count the zeroes anymore. When will it stop? What can we do to stop it?
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Update to follow..........
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Saturday, November 9, 2013
Wednesday, July 24, 2013
What Defines a Good Teacher?
I am very excited to announce that I will be teaching Biology and Spanish to High School students starting next month for the 2013/2014 school year! It's surreal to think that I will have a hand in molding the minds of these young men and young women. I know many of the students on my roll. They are very smart and will definitely keep me on my toes. The biggest question on my mind is this: what defines a good teacher, and can I live up to my own expectations?
To me, teaching is a passion. I have taught kids as young as preschool all the way up to adults. I have given workshops to large groups and have enjoyed seeing those lightbulbs go off as people understand different concepts. The biggest compliment for a teacher is seeing her students succeed. That is always the ultimate goal. That is the reason that I take this job very seriously.
So, what defines a good teacher? A good teacher will be patient, kind, knowledgable, flexible, and humble. A good teacher will create an environment where the students feel like they can ask any question without judgment. A good teacher will know that she doesn't always have all the answers, but will go out of her way to find them. A good teacher will be prepared. A good teacher will rejoice in the success of her students, and lift up those who may be struggling. A good teacher will try to be a good role model. A good teacher will admit when she is wrong. A good teacher will seek out new ways to teach and reach out to her students. A good teacher will do all of this and say to herself, "What more can I do?"
All I know is that I will be kneeling in prayer more often this upcoming school year. There will be fourteen more names on my mind each night that I will add to the four that I love very dearly. I know that with Heavenly Father's help I can be a good teacher.
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Have you hugged a teacher today?
She just might need it!
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To me, teaching is a passion. I have taught kids as young as preschool all the way up to adults. I have given workshops to large groups and have enjoyed seeing those lightbulbs go off as people understand different concepts. The biggest compliment for a teacher is seeing her students succeed. That is always the ultimate goal. That is the reason that I take this job very seriously.
So, what defines a good teacher? A good teacher will be patient, kind, knowledgable, flexible, and humble. A good teacher will create an environment where the students feel like they can ask any question without judgment. A good teacher will know that she doesn't always have all the answers, but will go out of her way to find them. A good teacher will be prepared. A good teacher will rejoice in the success of her students, and lift up those who may be struggling. A good teacher will try to be a good role model. A good teacher will admit when she is wrong. A good teacher will seek out new ways to teach and reach out to her students. A good teacher will do all of this and say to herself, "What more can I do?"
All I know is that I will be kneeling in prayer more often this upcoming school year. There will be fourteen more names on my mind each night that I will add to the four that I love very dearly. I know that with Heavenly Father's help I can be a good teacher.
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Have you hugged a teacher today?
She just might need it!
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Friday, June 7, 2013
Mommy Tantrums
We've all seen them...the tantrums that kids have when they don't get their way. Perhaps you have seen a child who starts to cry at the sound of the word "NO" or "not now". We are all born with these tendancies and eventually outgrow them as we get older....Or do we?
As a mother, I can say that I've had my fair share of tantrums. I have lost my temper on numerous occasions and have said things I later regretted. However, I have learned to accept the fact that I am just human. I am allowed to make mistakes once in a while. I learn from those mistakes and hopefully grow from them.
Recently I have come to accept that some of the traits I strongly dislike in my children are traits that I personally need to work on myself! Traits such as stubborness, being unorganized, and procrastination are things I struggle with. It's not a surprise that I see these same traits in my children.
What is my first instinct when my kids don't do what I ask them to do? Well...it's usually to yell or sometimes pull them by their hair and force them to do it. (Just being honest.) However, I stop myself (usually) and think to myself, "Is this the best way to handle this situation? Or is this going to make things worse?" Just the other day I saw my oldest physically forcing his younger brother to do what he wanted. It was like a lightbulb went on inside my head. I realized that in order to teach my kids how to control those urges, I must first learn to control those myself. What a brilliant idea!!!
Next time I am about to lose it I am going to shut myself in my room and scream into my pillow. I will shed a few tears. I will basically give myself a mommy time-out. I will then compose myself and resume my motherly duties. Yep! That's what I'll do. (I'll let ya'll know how that works out for me.)
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Need a little time-out?
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As a mother, I can say that I've had my fair share of tantrums. I have lost my temper on numerous occasions and have said things I later regretted. However, I have learned to accept the fact that I am just human. I am allowed to make mistakes once in a while. I learn from those mistakes and hopefully grow from them.
Recently I have come to accept that some of the traits I strongly dislike in my children are traits that I personally need to work on myself! Traits such as stubborness, being unorganized, and procrastination are things I struggle with. It's not a surprise that I see these same traits in my children.
What is my first instinct when my kids don't do what I ask them to do? Well...it's usually to yell or sometimes pull them by their hair and force them to do it. (Just being honest.) However, I stop myself (usually) and think to myself, "Is this the best way to handle this situation? Or is this going to make things worse?" Just the other day I saw my oldest physically forcing his younger brother to do what he wanted. It was like a lightbulb went on inside my head. I realized that in order to teach my kids how to control those urges, I must first learn to control those myself. What a brilliant idea!!!
Next time I am about to lose it I am going to shut myself in my room and scream into my pillow. I will shed a few tears. I will basically give myself a mommy time-out. I will then compose myself and resume my motherly duties. Yep! That's what I'll do. (I'll let ya'll know how that works out for me.)
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Need a little time-out?
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