Day 13

Good evening everybody. Today went pretty well. It was interesting, as most days are though. This morning I had my alarm set so that I could get Lex up and get her to the bus stop. I remember it going off, and I remember just laying my head down for another minute. I think what happenned was I was sure I set the snooze to go off in 15 more minutes and then next thing I knew it was 8:25 and Erin was asking me if I got Lex up. So I jumped up, turned Lex's light on. It was already light by that point and she looked up at me like "huh? what's going on?" I was like "Lex get up and get dressed quick. I will get your breakfast on the table. I overslept, so when you're ready to go I will drop you off.

So by the time I got back from dropping Lex off at school, when I got home Erin had gotten Zoe up and was getting ready for work. Zoe was scheduled to go to the new baby sitter we have for her. That is going well. The new sitter, being very much like a grandma, loves having Zoe there. She told Erin that Zoe is the most well behaved, sweetest girl that she has. I think she said a few other complimenting words but I don't remember exactly what Erin told me. After the melt down with the original baby sitter, it is nice to hear good things. We knew that Zoe was not a problem child, but it is still nice to hear the care giver tell you how much they really like having them there.

So tonight for dinner I made stew and 5 cheese bread. It was good. I am definitely a meat and vegi's guy. Can't get any more meat and vegi's than beef stew loaded with carrots, corn, cellery and potatos.

This afternoon, Lex had a good swim lesson. She is definitely one of, if not THE best swimmer in the class. The funny thing is, she's the most wild of the group as well. The instructor would splash the kids randomly during the lesson, and Lex would keep splashing back over and over until the instructor would say "alright lets go back to the wall and do the next exercise." I didn't say anything to her during the lesson, but mentioned to Erin through a text what she was doing. When we left, I talked to her a little bit and Erin talked to her when we got home. Basically what we told her was that although it is fun to splash, that when she is at a lesson, she needs to pay attention 100%. I know she is young and it is so hard to stay focused and so easy to play around.

So to close this out, last topic of discussion is health care. Are you a supporter of there being a universal health care program? Do you have health care currently? I have been a supporter of Obama since day 1. I know there are people out there, some of them are friends of ours, whom think Obama is the worst. Oh well. I will not argue with you if you are one of the people who believes that. We are all entitled to our oppinion. The reason I wanted to talk about health care today is mainly because of my own health. Erin and I were insured by the state of Iowa through medicaid when I was no longer employed by schwans. We were still employed with them up until after I was with my current employer for a few months. Then we received a letter from DHS saying that Lex and Zoe are still insured, but Erin and I are not anymore because we make too much money. Too much money? I wish I felt that way too! Wouldn't we all like to feel and believe that we make too much money? Some day! Some day!

So, the important thing is that the girls are still insured. That's very important and very good. So, with Erin and I not having health care currently, that is a little stresser at least on my end. I'm sure Erin feels it too, but I don't know what she thinks about it. I had the option when I first started with my employer, to get health benefits through them but I decided not to for 2 reasons. Reason number 1: We had health insurance through the state. Reason number 2: We have enough trouble trying to pay all the bills with both our paychecks combined, and then take away a decent chunk per month to pay the premiums from my employer? So those are the reasons why I didn't go for it. So, health wise, I have been slightly concerned and wanting "to" go and get checked out extensively. When I first had my gall bladder taken out, I had the worst stomach issues. After eating, my stomach would randomly twist and turn and I would end up in the bathroom (no details needed there). Well, lately the past week or so, I am a lot more tired. I'm sure that could be nothing, but still. Lately even if I hadn't eaten anything yet, I some time feel like crap. My stomach twists and of course, back in the rest room again. It has made me wonder if maybe there isn't an underlying issue. Hopefully I am fine, and just over doing it in my head. All the same, plese keep us in your prayers just to be on the safe side. :)

It's stressful enough not being about to cover all the bills. I like to be able to pay whatever we can, even if it is not that much. As far as bills go, take the energy bill for instance. I don't know why, but that bill is our worst one. It is the bill that is so far out of control, it is not even funny. It is reassuring for us to hear that all across Iowa, there are many thousands, I don't know the exact number, but there are like 85,000 people having trouble paying their electric bill. What can we do? I have no idea.

My goal at least by the time I reach my one year mark here on this blog, I want to go completely off the grid. What I mean by "off the grid," is I want to have solar and wind power be our only source of electricity for our house. I want to get away from the electric company, who is the only one in this area I believe. It will happen. I have faith that it will. It's just like my dream of being a full time author, I know that will happen as long as I keep working on it and never give up. Hense, I am here on the blog writing every day no matter how much or how little I feel like writing. I try to write as much as I possibly can, but some days I am happy to just have a page written.

So in closing, today's lesson is this. If you think you feel like something might be wrong with you, try your hardest to get checked out by your doctor. I know it might be difficult, such as with Erin and I not having health care currently, but if you are able to then get looked at. It could be something serious and it is best to catch things near the early stages rather than when it is too late. I hope that I will not be eating my own words in the near future! Again, please pray for us as far as that goes. So there you have it. I will write more for you tomorrow.

Thanks for being here.

CB