05/13/2011

Hi everyone,

Before I go any further let me just say this – if you are one of the lucky people in this world who have dental insurance, please stop and take a moment to thank God, your higher power, your boss, someone.  Because believe me, it is a blessing and it’s one that so many people do not have, myself included.

I wrote in my last entry (or maybe the one before?) about my toothache and how I had to my tooth pulled.  Well last Saturday I’ll be darned if one of my other teeth didn’t start hurting.  I had already made plans to go to the country to see my family so I took Bonnie and Kayla and off we went.  It was not hurting as bad as the last one but it was hurting and it got worse. 

It turned out to be a really bad weekend.  Partially because my family and I just didn’t see eye to eye on several things.  I got mad at my sister.  She got mad at me.  I was really annoyed by my niece.  I was really shocked and angry to hear some things about my great niece.  It was just all around yucky.  Not at all the way I had hoped it would be.  And all of this was on top of the tooth ache which at times became excruciatingly painful.

Let me just say one more thing – I am a fanatic about keeping my teeth clean.  I always have been.  It’s not unusual for me to brush 5 or 6 times a day.  I floss.  I have no idea why I would have a problem with 2 separate teeth in the space of 3 weeks.  So I just kept popping Ibuprofren and Monday morning I called the agency that you need to get a referral to the dental clinic.  The pain was manageable as long as I didn’t go too long between pain pills and occasionally I would put an ice pack on my face.  Last time I had gone to a regular dentist who charged $250 and I am still paying my friend Debbie back for that.  I didn’t want to add to my tab. 

To make a long story short, I called over and over and left messages.  I have yet to get a return call.  I finally got a hold of someone at another agency.  She gave me yet another number.  The recording on this phone said I needed to speak to a worker and have a phone interview and the approval process can take several weeks.  It also said you could not leave a message or hold, you just had to keep calling back no matter how many times it takes.   The dental school I tried had a 4 week waiting list and was almost as expensive as the regular dentist.    It was crazy.  So what happened?  On Thursday my tooth stopped hurting.   I consider it a reprieve from God, giving me time to get on the list at the clinic and be seen.  I’m not sure why it stopped hurting, I know teeth die so maybe it died.  I also wonder if I might not have had an abcess and it is cleared up.  I was very diligent about keeping my mouth extra clean and rinsing with peroxide for the past week.  I don’t know but I’m just going to forge ahead and hope to get into the clinic before it, or any other tooth, acts up again. 

That was a lot of tooth talk huh?  LOL.  As for my family, I’m still miffed.  My sister and I have exchanged an email, each telling the other why we were upset.  They weren’t mean or nasty emails (like they would have been years ago haha), just very matter of fact.  I won’t even go into it because it’s all pretty silly and petty but I am still a little mad and need some time to get over it.

On the home front, Dustin still does not have a job.  This certainly has made it hard on Aimee and I financially.  I am trying to not let my resentment show because frankly it’s a waste of energy.  It is what it is.

We are prepping for Makayla’s 5th birthday which is May 25th.  I can’t believe she will be 5!  And then 2 months later, Leah will turn 1.  What joy they give me!  I am so so lucky.   Aimee and I went to KMart today to pick up Makayla’s gifts.  Aimee was smart and did a layaway 3 months ago.  The only bad part was we had to go to a specific KMart, in MD, and we had to go through DC to get there.  Even though I only live about 10 mins away from DC, I still get confused going into it.  I just don’t go there often enough to really know my way around.  We mapquested it and the directions were wrong.  We got so lost!  And everyone had a different opinion on how to get there including the employees when we called the store.  I finally found a DC cab driver who very kindly has us follow him as far as he was going, and then gave us perfect directions for the rest of the way. I do love riding around DC in the daytime though it is so congested.  It’s a very interesting city with so much history and beautiful architecture.  It was extra crowded today as there were thousands of police in from all over the country for police week. 

We’ve had beautiful weather all week but of course it is supposed to be gray and drizzly all weekend.  I don’t mind much as I have no plans.  Makayla is going to a birthday party tomorrow at an indoor ice skating rink.  I think it’s kind of silly to have it there as I’m sure most, if not all, of the kids don’t know how to ice skate.  But I’m sure they will have fun and that’s what’s important.  We’re having a bowling party for Makayla’s big day.  I think that will be a lot of fun.  I used to love to bowl, was even in a league when I was younger.  My mother also loved it and I spent a lot of happy times at our local bowling alley.

Well I don’t have much else.  I’m gonna try to catch up with you guys for a while before going to bed.  Hope you have a nice weekend and those of you going through some rough times, please know you are in my thoughts.  I have one dear fav who just lost her mother today so I’m saying extra prayers for her and her family.  Love and hugs to all!