I know it’s early to be thinking about Christmas but this is the time I always start thinking about cards. I love getting Christmas cards and was thinking I would make a sign like the one on the left to hold the cards I receive this year. Although Each year the number of cards we receive reduces. I think only one of my siblings sends a card to us each year(hint hint to all you others). Is it really that hard to put something in the mail? I know the season gets super busy. Last year was the first and only year that we didn’t send any cards. It was silly really we just didn’t think ahead in time to get one together. I used to make handmade cards and my husband would write a family letter. That was really time consuming. Now we take a family photo upload them to our big box store and print out a bunch of cards. They even come with envelopes. It usually only cost around $11 dollars to print 30 cards. It really isn’t too hard. So no excuses this year. If you want a card from us this year send me a message with your address but know that if I send you one I expect one in return. It doesn’t have to be fancy it can be a note that just says Hi. The virtual cards or emailed cards don’t count. I can’t hang that on the wall and look at it everyday. Let’s see if I can fill my sign this year. I’ll post in December the finished product.
Category Archives: Rantings
Health care rantings
Posted onI have just recieved a statement in the mail that has really made me angry. Before I tell you what has made me angry let me give you an understanding where I’m coming from. 71/2 years ago we had great insurance through Corey’s work. It payed for pretty much everything 100%. We had eye coverage and dental coverage. It was a really great plan. He worked for a really big company and I guess because of that they got good deals on insurance. Well after a little while Corey lost his job and we were with nothing. We had to move back in with my parents and had no insurance whatsoever. Our oldest was 5 months old at the time and unfortunately was sick a lot. The doctors were great to give me discounts and free samples to help us out. After about a year Corey found another job but with a small company that had no benefits. We had to get insurance on our own and paid about $300 a month for the bare minimum. Finally he found a job with benefits. It looked promising. It had eye coverage, dental, and health. We had a pretty high deductible but it was do able. Every year since things have gone down hill. First we lost the eye coverage. Then the dental insurance went up. Then they switched dental on us all together and it covers practically nothing. Every year they would take more and more out of Corey’s pay check for insurance. Just recently they switched our health plan to another insurance company. I thought maybe things are looking up. Boy was I wrong. Our deductible is now $2500. No way can we reach that in one year. This is where the statement I recieved comes in. I took Sophia in for her 15 month well baby check (previously covered 100% on our other plan). I recieved the statement today and none of it is covered. All of it goes to the deductible $300 dollars worth. Can you say puke. I haven’t felt this way since Corey was out of work. It seems I can’t take my baby in for shots anymore. I guess I’ll have to start to take her into the health department like I did with Preston when we had nothing. It’s almost not even worth putting all that money in every month for insurance when maybe we could be putting it into saviings and do much more with it. I know, I know, but what if something huge happens like a broken bone, cancer or some dormant disease laying hidden somewhere. I’m tired of this what if stuff. I want the things I need covered now. This is why I’m with the president in health care reform. Something needs to change with the health care system. Especially when those of us who have insurance can’t afford health care despite the insurance. I’ve been there with 100% coverage, nothing, and a little something. I say nothing was probably better than a little something. That is totally and utterly wrong.
Karin’s Rantings II
Posted on“All Natural”
I recently received an email from my little sister about how she has been able to lose all her baby fat. I guess people have been asking her “what is your secret”. If you know my sister she eats very healthy and exercises regularly. She is also taking a supplement that she says helps. My bet is that my sister lost her weight because of diet and exercise and not because of the supplement. Whether or not this supplement helps is not what I’m about to rant about but it is the way that this supplement was presented that makes me a little wary.
I’m sure all of you have heard from time to time the term “All Natural” pertaining to food, vitamins, creams, and many other things. It bothers me that we take that phrase and immediately think “oh that must be good for me”. Well someone could sell you a tape worm in a pill form (which has happened) and call it “all natural” and they wouldn’t be lying about it. Would you take it then if you knew it was a tape worm? Most of us would pass. I have a bachelors degree in community health from BYU and one of the subjects we talked about in my training was how dangerous supplements and herbal remedies can be.
Number one warning about supplements and herbal remedies is that they aren’t required by the FDA to pass any kind of test to be considered safe or healthy for you. In fact the supplement is presumed safe and put onto the shelves for the consumers to use. If the FDA receives many reports about adverse reactions to a supplement only then will they warn the public.
Another problem with supplements is there is no way to know if it does what it says it will do. I remember back in 2002 my parents were taking echinacea to prevent them from getting colds. They even convinced me to take it a couple of times. Echinacea was a popular supplement that people took because it claimed it could prevent and treat colds. In 2005 a study was published in the New England Journal of Medicine. It concluded that echinacea did not have any effect on colds. Those given echinacea and those given a placebo had the same effect. Meaning essentially taking echinacea is the same as taking a sugar pill.
There are also dangerous herbs out there that can actually cause kidney failure, liver problems, and even death. I’m not saying all herbs are bad, you just need to know what is in a supplement and know what the risks are. Don’t just take something because it says “All Natural”. Do your research. Make sure your research isn’t biased. If you are getting your information from the company that is selling or producing or in anyway connected with the supplement, that information will most likely be biased. Do the research yourself before you try any supplement. Don’t just take your friend’s advise. Also once you’ve done your research then discuss it with your doctor. Just be smart about taking supplements. Don’t be duped by the “All Natural” phrase.
Karin’s Rantings
Posted onThis section is just a place for me to ask questions. Get things off my chest. And just rant. I don’t expect anyone to reply or for there to be any sort of solution. But any comments are welcome.
Who Am I?
The age old question Who Am I? I thought maybe I knew me but somewhere along the way I’ve lost the me in me. If that makes sense. Who knows when it happened maybe when I got married or after the first child. Doesn’t matter when it did all that matters is that it did.  If you ask me my favorite color I couldn’t answer. I know what it used to be. Ask me what I like to do. I usually say sew or scrap book. I really don’t enjoy doing those things it’s just something I do because I feel there is a need for it. I used to love to ski, play tennis, sing, or hang out with my friends. After kids those seem to go to the wayside.
So how do you reclaim the me in me? I’ve read in parenting magazines that you are supposed to set aside some alone time. Alone what? When is that supposed to happen at 5:30 in the morning before my kids are awake and I’m a zombie, or maybe after the kids go to sleep and I’m exhausted. Or do I count the brief half hour I get to run to the store without my kids while my husband takes a turn.
How is it that I have forgotten who I am but my husband keeps discovering who he is? Since we have gotten married he has discovered that he likes to cook, hike, garden, and fish. Which of course he always seems to find time for.
Even if I was able to find time for something, what would it be? If I don’t know who I am how do I know what I would like to do with my alone time? Also to do some things it cost money. Where is that supposed to come from. I know we don’t have a tree out back just waiting for me to unload all it’s gold. We are still trying to pay off student loans. We can’t afford a membership to a gym, club, or choir or something else I may or may not enjoy. So for the moment I’m stuck trying to figure out where I went and how I should be found.