I love how you struggle through something and then you find a solution. Back when I had my hysterectomy, Buster’s job didn’t offer health insurance and I didn’t qualify for Medicaid. So, we paid a large sum of money (over $10,000) for my surgery, and it would have been more if the Dr. and Hospital hadn’t deducted some form the amount do to some complications during the surgery.
Anyway, now I hear about this HSA (health savings account). The idea is, you purchase a high-deductible insurance plan (HDHP) that gives you a low-cost premium. Then you put some or even all the money you save on premiums into a tax-free health savings account in your own name. The money you put in is yours, not an insurance company’s. This is also good for you come tax time because, an HSA’s above-the-line deductibility REDUCES your adjusted gross income, effectively reducing your tax burden each year.
When a health problem comes along, you simply use your HSA to pay any qualified expenses that your high-deductible insurance doesn’t cover. The money is withdrawn tax-free and making payment couldn’t be easier, you just hand the provider your HSA debit card.
Most covered expenses include dental bills, over-the-counter medicines, prescription drugs, eye care, hearing aids, and many other health-related items and services that the HDHP doesn’t pay. And, if you don’t use all the money you put in, you can either use it later on in life for long-term care or medicare deductibles or you can withdraw it from the account (there is a penalty if you are under 65, though).
I miss my son each and every day…Six years ago (this November) his young life was snuffed out because of the carelessness of someone else. Although I believe God allowed this to happen, I still feel like Eli went to heaven much much too early.
I often wonder what he would look like now, had he been able to age here on earth. How tall would he be, would he have lost all his pre-adolescent chub, would his voice be rich and deep by now?? And then I wonder about the “character” things. Would he still be polite and kind and generous, I’d like to believe he would be.
Today he would have been 16. August 15, 1994 9:27 PM. 9 lbs 4 oz, 19 inches long.
One of the happiest days of my life was when that “little man” came into my life. All I ever wanted was to be a good wife and a good mom. That was more important to me than anything else. I wanted to prove to God and everyone (and myself) that with His help, I could break the cycle of abuse I went through as a child and that against the world’s odds (not GOD”S) I could rise above all that. I don’t really know if I was all that good at it, but I do know that I tried my best! And I know that Eli could have never doubted my love for him as I told him and showed him each and every day that I saw him that I loved him. And I know I broke the cycle of abuse in my family because never once have I ever abused my kids in any way.
A lot has happened in these short 6 years that I would have never imagined would, but I am so thankful that God has allowed me and my family to hang on by His grace to what we know to be true and used it for our good. I hope that when Eli looks down, he can see our love for God and for him and that we miss him and love him, but we are still marching forward and serving God the best way we know how.
Every year, since he went to heaven, we go and plant flowers at my sons grave site. We take “the girl” (my daughter) out of school and we go with my mother-in-law, my husbands grandma, his sister and some cousins of his and we all go down to the cemetery to plant flowers. Several other family members are buried in this same cemetery so, we visit all of the grave sites and put flowers on all of them.
We don’t visit Eli’s grave very often because it makes us sad to be there and because we know it’s only his earthly body there. He (his soul, his spirit, all that made him him) is in heaven where we will join him someday when we are done with this earthly life.
Why God chose to take my son home at the tender age of 10, I may never know, but I trust that He has a reason and that He is in control. Nothing happens in my life that doesn’t have His stamp of approval on it. Anyway, I thought I would share these photos with you …
In the first one, you can actually see all four of us!! (Eli’s picture is engraved in the stone) =)
We have faith that our son is in heaven with his Saviour, Jesus Christ…Do you know where you are going when you die?? You can!! Leave me a comment if you don’t know or to tell me why you do!!
today i write for me….not because i have a deadline or a certain meme i want to link up with, but for me. this week i haven’t joined in on the weekly memes i usually do and i did that on purpose. i needed a break, i needed to be free from my “obligations”, if you will. and before i get comments and e-mails saying i don’t have to link up every week….i know that, really i do…but today i blog because i want to, because i need to, for myself…
i find that blogging gets my thoughts out of my head where they can be dangerous and gloomy and threatening and it puts them out somewhere where i can look at them in a different way and deal with them in a healthier way….it kind of separates them from me. it probably doesn’t make sense to some, but it works for me!! =)
believe it or not, and some of you will not, and that’s OK. but, believe it or not, i have a good heart (as good as a sinful, but saved by grace, human being can have anyway). i think all people should be treated equally, regardless of race, sex, sexual orientation, wealth and anything else that can separate one group of people from another. that’s not to say i agree with everything a particular group does or doesn’t do, but they should be treated with respect and dignity. they should be prayed for and loved just like anyone else.
i try my very hardest to find the good in everyone, no matter how long or hard i have to look. and up until recently, i thought that everyone possessed at least some good in them. i felt that God makes people and God would never make something that didn’t have at least some redeeming value in it, right? i have recently realized that some people have taken the good God gave them and either destroyed it completely or buried it so deep that it can’t get out anymore. i have found that some people have let the devil take over their lives and given him the place that God should have had. they lie, steal, cheat, manipulate, cast blame, and just in general are not nice people. they are selfish and bitter and lash out to hurt others. and as a part of that, they don’t see this in themselves but seem to project it onto others and claim to see it in their lives. it is so very sad to me that they can’t even see that they are like this. the devil has tricked them into thinking they are right and anyone who isn’t like them is wrong or bad.
people who “suffer” in this way often blame it on something that happened to them in their childhood and/or a condition they have. someone molested them or beat them or hurt them in some other way. or they suffer from a mental disorder. that is a cop-out!! i can say that because i had a very tough childhood and i am also diagnosed with and documented to have bipolar disorder and borderline personality disorder (among other things). my parents were separated and/or divorced either just before i was born or just after, i am not sure which but i know they were not together when i was taken from my mother at 18 months old for neglect because then i was placed in my father’s care for several years after that and was taken from him for physical and sexual abuse. from there i went to a “foster” home and the woman who took care of me there ended up adopting me. at 17 i left home after enduring years and years of physical and emotional abuse.
i am NOT in a any way shape or form saying i was a perfect child or teen(or that i am perfect now, for that matter, because i wasn’t, am not,and never will be while i am here on this earth)!!! i was naughty just like everyone else. and because of everything i went through as a child, i did have a lot of issues to deal with through counseling and therapy and such. and i did have to have therapy and medications and counseling and things like that for the “mental issues” i have. and yes, i got rude with my parents just like EVERY child does at one time or another. i didn’t do what i was told to do from time to time, just like EVERY other child does!! i lied to my parents occasionally, just like EVERY other child does (for the most part). i am ashamed to say it, but i did have a problem with stealing as a child and a teen but i have admitted it, repented and asked for forgiveness for it, which is all i can do now. BUT, considering where i came from and what i went through, it could have been a lot worse. i didn’t drink and party and and sleep around and do drugs, or any of those kinds of things. although, i did not have a good grasp on the difference between right and wrong, lies and truth, good and bad. i had been taught by example that lies were OK, that in a lot of cases bad was good and wrong was right. and i thought that the way i was brought up was normal. it was hard to keep everything straight.
then through some good relationships i slowly learned that lying is wrong and that i don’t have to lie to make and keep friends, in fact that is a good way to LOSE friends!! i learned that lesson the hard way in high school, unfortunately. but i learned it nonetheless. and i am so thankful i did, because now i have so many healthy relationships. i learned that there are people who will love me unconditionally, faults and all. that i don’t have to be perfect to be loved. i learned that everything good in my life comes from God and that He has allowed everything that has happened for a reason. i have learned that God doesn’t make mistakes and He is always in control, even though i may not always understand. i learned that with God’s help i can be different than those that hurt me, so i don’t have to repeat that cycle. i learned that i can forgive those who hurt me and not let that hurt and pain define who i am. i can CHOOSE to let my past hurt me and prevent me from doing God’s will for my life by being bitter and mad and depressed and feeling sorry for myself or i can allow God’s love and grace to wash all that away and I can live my life for Him. that is what i choose!! because being bitter and depressed and feeling sorry for myself only hurts me, it only makes my life miserable, and it gives satan reason to rejoice because i can’t effectively live my life for God if i live that way! and personally, i don’t want to give satan glory, i want to give God glory!!!
thanks for stopping by, sorry you didn’t find my “normal” posts this week about random things like weight loss and recipes, but fear not, i will likely be back in the swing of things next week!! thanks for “listening” to my ramblings. please vote on my new poll and let me know what you think…
When Buster lost his job with the USPS, we also lost our life insurance. It worried me, because we had lost our son in an auto-accident just before that and had we not had life insurance on him, we would have been looking at $10,00 of debt or there-about. We didn’t have life insurance for several years after that until I found term life insurance through our car/home insurance company.
I cannot tell you how good it feels to know that if something were to happen to one of us, the other or our daughter wouldn’t have to worry about funeral costs, and they can be expensive!! I even found a whole life insurance plan for my daughter that is good as long as she pays the premium. Even if she marries and/or gets life insurance of her own, as long as she pays the premium she keeps her coverage, and I think it doubles when she hits 25 years old.
It may seem like a small thing to some, but I think it’s very important!
The director here at camp is building his mom and dad a house here. They live down state, but are thinking about selling their house and moving up here full-time. So they are building a VERY nice home for them to live in. In the basement of this home will be “prophet rooms” to house guest speakers and Preachers when they come to camp.
The house they are building is a log home. The interior is all wood also. Wood floors, ceilings, walls. That’s a lot of wood folks!! But is is gorgeous. I think it would be totally appropriate to get some nice log furniture to top it all off. Maybe that would be over-kill, I don’t know. But it would be a great look!!
As most of you know, my hubby and I live and work full-time at a Christian camp. We have several youth summer camps, but also cater to adult retreats and winter camps, as well. Well, the camp director’s wife has a “part time” job with the USPS, but as recently been working full-time as her boss is dying of cancer. So, I have been cooking meals for her so that she has less to worry about in the evenings when she finally gets home from work. Simple, but yummy meals. Last night we had Tacos!! Oh, how I love Tacos!!
Tacos
What you need:
2-3 lbs ground beef ( I used venison burger because I have a lot of it I have to use up)
1-2 packages store bought taco seasoning (use your favorite brand and as much as you like)
flour or corn tortilla shells, whatever size you prefer ( if you are feeding 8, plan on using at least 16)
hard shells if anyone likes them ( I LUV them)
your favorite salsa
lettuce
tomato
onion
sour cream
cheese (I use a taco blend, but whatever you like is fine)
You can omit any of the items above or substitute with others, make ‘em how you like ‘em!!
What to do:
brown your ground beef til no longer pink, drain excess fat, make taco meat according to package directions
either warm your soft shells in the microwave or “fry” them in oil or butter in a pan or on a griddle
put meat in center of taco shell
add your “toppings” of choice
roll up and eat!! I don’t recommend rolling hard shells, it’s messy!!
As most of you know, my hubby and I live and work full-time at a Christian camp. We have several youth summer camps, but also cater to adult retreats and winter camps, as well. Well, the camp director’s wife has a “part time” job with the USPS, but as recently been working full-time as her boss is dying of cancer. So, I have been cooking meals for her so that she has less to worry about in the evenings when she finally gets home from work. Simple, but yummy meals. Last night we had Sloppy Joe sandwiches, Tater Tots and carrot sticks with Ranch dressing. Oh, and cookies for dessert!! Here is how I make Sloppy Joe sandwiches for 8!!
Sloppy Joe Sandwiches
What you need:
3 lbs ground beef
16 “hamburger” buns
shredded cheese or sliced, whichever you prefer, if any
2 small cans Slo ppy Joe mix, I used “Manwich” brand
brown sugar to add to Sloppy Joe mix to sweeten just a bit (that’s how we like it, you can omit this)
mustard, ketchup, bbq sauce, whatever, if anything you put on your bun to serve
What to do:
brown you r ground beef til no longer pink, drain excess fat
Stir in Sloppy Joe mix
add brown sugar to taste
prepare buns with cheese and or mustard, ketchup, etc.
serve with carrots and dip, tater tots, chips or whatever you like!!
Laura hosts Menu Planning Monday for us every Monday. This is a great way to get ideas to add to your menu and to share your ideas with others, as well. So if you are sick of the same old thing for supper, join us and get some new ideas to spice up your meals!! This will also save you money on going out when you just can’t decide what to have AND when you shop, because you’ll know exactly what to get when you go!!!
I am so glad my husband thought enough to take out life insurance policies on not only the two of us, but also our children through his job a few years back. Even though we hate to think anything would happen to them, I would recommend taking policies out on your kids!! When my son was killed in an auto-accident 5 years ago, I was glad we had enough money to have a nice funeral and burial for him. When my husband lost his job, we lost our policies. We recently got an instant life insurance quote from the people who insure our home and vehicle. We got a really good deal on policies for all three of us through Auto-Owners. We are not insured for more than what it would cost for a funeral and burial, but at least we have that!!!!
My friends call me Jo...I am a thirty-something wife to Buster. He is the second-best thing that ever happened to me. The first was my salvation at 11 years old. I am a mother of three. Pumpkin_Seed is 13 (going on 25 lol). She is beautiful, opinionated, head-strong, smart and loves God. My son, Lil' Buster went to heaven when he was 10 (car accident in 2004). He was all boy but adorable, tender-hearted and loved God. And one sweet baby we never got to meet is waiting for us in heaven with Lil' Buster.
A few words to describe me: Christian. Bipolar. Passionate. Determined. Thankful. I am so thankful for my Father up above who leads and guides me through this sin-sick world. I am just trying to live a life pleasing to Him. My blog is a mix of the inner most workings of my Bipolar mind, recipes, random stuff and a few reviews thrown in.
