Appointments Galore and a Realization

I finally sent out all of our Christmas cards today - yay!! I usually try to get them out a bit earlier than this, but last week was a little hairy... Ben had his stitches, but then he pulled out 2 of the stitches 2 days later, so we had to take him back to the doctor... It all ended up fine, the gash had already healed enough that he didn't need to have it restitched thank goodness. Then Nina had a well-child visit last Friday, which turned into a sick-child visit because we found out she had an ear infection and her reactive airway coughiness was acting up again so no immunizations for her, but back on the nebulizer and Xopenex she went. We have to take her back into the doctor this week when she gets better for her immunizations. And on top of that I had a dentist visit, I had to have 2 fillings which I was happy were not root canals because the cavities were apparently really deep - I've never had a root canal, but they don't sound fun. Oh, and then I had to take Ben back to the doctor today to have the last stitch removed and Adrian has his dentist visit for fillings on Wednesday. I am so sick of doctors, dentists, co-pays, and especially waiting rooms at the moment. I really think I just need to expect a couple of doctors visits a week for the next few months and then when we have a non-sick week it can be a pleasant surprise.:)

Oh, I have to write about a realization that struck me while I was waiting for my dentist appointment. I AM OLD. Let me explain. I was listening to the Eclipse audio-book on my i-Pod so I must have been in a teenage sensitive frame of mind (the main character in that book is full of teen drama) when I noticed this... There was a young woman there waiting for her appointment for a filling with her boyfriend - I'm guessing they were maybe 17? and he had to have skipped school to take her to the dentist appointment. Anyways, they were very teenage mushy-ish, holding hands as she talked about how frightened she was of having this filling done. I thought they were very cute actually, kinda like Lloyd Dobler and Diane Court sitting on the plane in the last scene of Say Anything. Cute. Then she and I were called back at the same time to see different dentists and the boyfriend asked if he could come hold her hand during the filling. They said yes and we all pretty much walked back together with the dental assistant - me to a cubical right next to the mushy teenagers.

I had my fillings done trying to block out the whole experience by listening to Eclipse turned up very loud. I have a huge dentist phobia and have totally looked into sedation dentistry, but haven't found a practice that does that within our DMO and I'm sure that's pretty expensive without insurance. My dentist is really nice and everything, but there is just something to me about the sound and vibration of the drill that is nerve-racking. So after I finish up with my fillings and half of my face is completely numb (I could not actually feel the i-Pod headphone in my ear anymore, but I knew it was there cause I could still hear Bella ranting :)) and I'm all shaky from being stressed out, who do I see come out of the cubical next to mine, but the mushy teenagers. He held her hand and talked to the front desk person and paid her copay for her and led her carefully out the door. Then it's my turn and I'm still all shaky as I write my check and try in vain to make my mouth work to answer the simple receptionist's questions like "Can you tell me your check number?" I couldn't make my mouth form the numbers to save my life!:) Okay, so at this point the teenagers weren't quite so cute anymore... They were completely annoying because I was totally jealous!:) I remember being young... I had a high school boyfriend when I was that age who would have doted on me like that and I know that when we just met Adrian would have been just as cute with me and put all teenage boyfriends to shame with his thoughtfulness... But now I'm old. I'm a mom. And I just don't have time or the need (even though I was a bit jealous:)) for that level of mushiness anymore. There's no way that Adrian could come with me to a simple filling appointment no matter how phobic I am because that would mean some serious child care arrangements and taking off time from work etc. etc. You just suck it up and take care of things.

So it was at the dentist office that I truly came to the realization that I'm old. Oh well, there are a lot of benefits to being old having left that season of teenagerhood behind long ago. And believe me I would never want to be 17 again - high school sucked - but every once in a while wouldn't it be nice to feel like the world revolved around you for just a moment like it felt when you were 17?? Maybe that's part of why I love those darn Twilight books so much!:)

Wall:2, Ben:0

This evening Ben tripped and fell into the corner of our wall... again. Two years ago he did the same thing, but then it was chasing Sophie and this time it was chasing Nina. It happened when I was on the phone with Adrian and he was just about to say when he was coming home from work then bang, Ben hit the wall and I walked over to see what had happened and immediately told Adrian amidst Ben's screams that I thought he should come home right away because someone was going to need to take Ben to get stitches. So yep, I called Ben's pediatrician and they directed us to the same pediatric urgent care clinic that we've been having the insurance issues with, but I know they can't deny us benefits for stitches, so off Adrian and Ben went. Adrian says he was a real trooper and didn't make a big fuss at all. He got 3 stitches and much to his delight a Sponge Bob bandaid and then on the way home a hot fudge sundae. So the score sits at the wall:2 and Ben:0, let's hope the match ends with this one!

'Tis the Season

I think I should move my whiny post down and do a happy post about some seasonal happenings around our home. About a week ago we put up our tree and we all had a fun time trimming it. Here's a couple pics:

(Our Nina has started doing the silliest little smile whenever you say cheese, isn't it funny?!)

Also, over the weekend we made lots of caramels to give to our neighbors for Christmas. It was my first time ever making candy, but I really enjoyed it! I got my recipe from Cami (thanks!!) and it worked out great - well after the first batch... The first batch of anything doesn't really count, right?! I've come to the conclusion that I really enjoy cooking, much more than baking and candy making is more of a cooking type of thing. I was surprised by how satisfying it was to watch the candy bubbling away in the pot. And it made the house smell yummy. Bonus. Sophie even got involved and became a master at wrapping the little caramels in wax-paper. She is hoping that making caramels will be an annual event, though Adrian thinks candy making is a lot more work than giving hot cocoa mixes to the neighbors!:)

Now I just have to really get on mailing out the Christmas cards. We got our first card in the mail today and I thought - "Oh shoot, I knew I was forgetting to do something!" We have most of the stuff all ready, we have our cards and I bought Christmas stamps, but now it's time to sit down and write the newsletter. It seems like this time of year is so busy, but I love all the traditions and rituals of the season, like Christmas cards. It's so nice to keep in touch with friends and family and feel the Christmas spirit through all the small little things that make this time of year wonderful.

Just Gotta Vent...

This is a whiny post - I just want to let you know ahead of time in case you wish not to read on during this season of cheer.:)

So back in October I took Nina to an urgent care pediatric clinic because her breathing had gotten so bad, and it was a Saturday so I couldn't take her to her ped. Well ends up our insurance has decided not to cover this trip to the clinic because they didn't deem it as an urgent medical need. I guess the doctor coded Nina's visit for "wheezing" even though he told me she had croup and prescribed steroids and Xeopenex. Apparently our insurance company does not accept "wheezing" for urgent care visits. I'm just sick over this. I mean we have the means to pay for the visit, it's just that it's going to add just a little more financial stress right now, which with Christmas is just not fun.

The main reason I'm sick over it is that I've now talked to 2 different people at our insurance company and both were immediately defensive and would not even listen to what I was saying - both cut me off constantly. Oh, they were so rude! I tried to ask why all of our visits to this same clinic for the same symptoms with Nina have been covered in the past and they said that it did not matter, what mattered was that the doctor had "coded" the visit for "wheezing" and that is not covered for urgent care treatment. One of the insurance reps even said to me, " There is a big difference between blunt force trauma and a headache and it looks like what you took your child in for was a 'head-ache'". I said, "No, I took my child in because she was having a hard time breathing." Yeah, but that didn't matter. I really just can't believe that this is how we treat each other as human beings. I know insurance companies are known for denying benefits, but I've never had a situation like this were I know my benefits should cover this visit and I have no recourse. I just have to pay. I'm going to try to have the clinic resubmit the records, but it sounds like from both ends, the clinic and the insurance company, we just need to pay.

Isn't it a bummer that this is the way things work. I think I'm going to rent that new Michael Moore documentary Sicko about our crazy health care system, just to help me feel better because I totally know that insurance denials are a huge problem, I'm sure everyone has a story... And most of them are of course much worse than my one time clinic visit costs... It's very sad. Thanks for listening to my whiny-ness. Now I need to put on some Christmas music and change my focus to all the positive things going on in my life.

December's Trip Down Art History Lane

So my pick for this month's art history pic is Madonna and Child with Angels by Fra Filippo Lippi, c. 1455. This is a High Southern Renaissance piece that I studied in my Southern Renaissance class at BYU with Dr. Bule. I loved this class, I think it was probably one of my favorite subjects, second to Northern Baroque. I just loved studying about all the works that are so famous and finding out why they are so important. We studied Leonardo, Michelangelo, Raphael, Botticelli etc. etc. in the class, but I remember this particular piece by a much lesser known artist, Lippi. I just remember thinking how delicate and innocent the piece seemed and also comical. If you look at the arrangement you start to really wonder why the angels are carrying around the baby Jesus and why Mary doesn't just stop praying and pick him up.:) I also love love whenever an artist has one character in the painting look full center at the viewer (see the little angel looking at you). I don't know why, but that is just something that draws me in and it feels like the actual painter is looking at me across the centuries... I know that sounds all weird, but I like having fun with art!:)

Also if you've ever wanted to read about a 15th century soap opera, just Wikipedia Fra Filippo Lippi. Man, if half the rumors about this painter are true there should be a movie made about this guy. In synopsis, his parents died when he was very young so he was sent to live in a monastery, but as a Friar he was more known for drawing all over his books rather than studying. He left the monastery to be a painter and was well liked and patronised by the Medici family so he was "in" as far as the Florentine art scene was concerned. Well, he was never released from his monastic vows, going by "Fra" or Friar all his life, but he was said to have had a tryst resulting in a illegitimate child with the young woman who sat as model for Mary in this picture.... Wow, isn't that crazy! I'm sure much of it isn't true, but the stories are quite mini-series-ish.:)

I forgot one of the things that I like best about this painting and that is that you can totally see the influence of Leonardo Da Vinci in the background landscape. Of course it is not executed as well as Leonardo (no one really compares to Leonardo), but that rocky landscape didn't come out of no where. I love it when you can see influences in art and see how the art scene in Italy really effected how everyone painted. I wish I could have been a fly on the wall during a big Medici party with Raphael, Michelangelo, Lippi, Leonardo, and Botticelli in attendance. To me it is just wild that these amazing and influential painters were all contemporaries - that knew each other and had rivalries and friendships. Neat stuff.

Going Medieval All Over Thanksgiving Again

Today was fun for us! We started out with a very relaxy morning, then we went to McDonald's for a no-effort lunch that included very yummy pumpkin pie shakes for all. We figured we should at least have a form of pumpkin pie today!:) After lunch we played a very long game of Monopoly. The game went so long that we had to put it on hold so we could all get ready and go out to Medieval Times.This was our 3rd year of going to Medieval Times on Thanksgiving and it has turned out to be a tradition that everyone in the family looks forward too. This year our friend Julia went with us and it was so fun to have her there. Thankfully she was very willing to "sword" fight with Ben and Sophie using the Medieval Times ribbon flags as play swords. It was very cute to watch Ben sparring especially as he did some hilarious slow motion moves. The dinner and show was loads o' fun as you would expect. We shouted, cheered, and waved our flags like crazy people for our red and yellow knight. Ben did get scared when ever the mist and the wizard came out, but other than that everyone enjoyed it all. Even Nina got very into the whole thing clapping and waving her flag, I don't think she ever cried at all even though most of the show was past her bed time. One thing to say is that I so wish they had a show only price for picky kids, I think Ben and Sophie only drank the Pepsi and ate the garlic bread and a little of the soup - Nina probably ate more than either of them. Adrian and I thought the food was delicious. After the show we wandered around the store part and took advantage of some photo ops with a knight and the princess. Julia and I were hoping to get a picture with the green knight - he was cute with fun hair - but he walked off before we could so we got a picture with a coat of armor instead. It was a great night and the kids are already asking if we have to wait all the way till next Thanksgiving to go back.
After we went home we finished the impossibly long Monopoly game - I won, but Sophie wasn't going to give up until her last property was mortgaged and her last dollar was spent even though I had about 9 hotels all over the board. I did feel kind of bad seen how badly she wanted to win - she's very competitive just like her Dad! I'm guessing a rematch will happen sometime this weekend. It's so fun that we can really play board games as a family now. I can't wait till future holidays filled with long Risk and Settlers of Catan games. Hope everyone had a lovely Thanksgiving filled with lots o' love and good family times!

I made those Deceptively Delicious brownies...

Quick update on a few more recipes. If you are wondering if anything else at all is going on in my life... well yes, but nothing very interesting. Maybe seeing Beowulf last night with Adrian on our date-night was interesting, but it was also horribly icky and violent for a computer animated movie so I wouldn't recommend it at all. So other than that... just the same ol' same ol' hardly blog-worthy stuff and a few new Deceptively Delicious recipes tried. So here's the reviews:

Mashed Potatoes - Hey this is just in time for anyone cooking on Thanksgiving (which doesn't include me - we're going out, but more on that later this week). These potatoes were yummy! I doubled the recipe so I made it with 2 1/2 lbs russet potatoes, 1 cup cauliflower puree, 4 tablespoons trans-fat free margarine, and about 3/4 cup buttermilk. They were good. I couldn't taste the cauliflower and the kids gobbled it up.

Brownies - Alright I'm going to give you the honest truth on these - they tasted like "health food" brownies. They did not taste like your average Betty Crocker mix or my favorite Ghiradelli mix brownies. They were more chewy or maybe the word is spongey and you could tell the chocolate flavor was hiding something and oh it was - 1/2 cup carrot and 1/2 cup spinach puree. It also barely had any flour in it, just 3/4 cup oat flour. Oh, and barely any fat too, just 2 tablespoons trans-fat free tub margarine. I was amazed that they tasted good at all and they did taste okay. On Oprah they said they were "Last Meal Brownies" like you could have one of these brownies and be ready for the firing squad - well that wasn't quite my opinion. I'd much rather have a Mrs. Field's brownie with loads of butter or vegetable oil and sugar in it for my last dessert... Okay, but having said all that we did enjoy them for dessert tonight and the kids loved them. Sophie wants to take one in her lunch box tomorrow and asked that it not have powdered sugar on top, just ah-natural, so that tells you how much she liked it.

As a side note to be fair these brownies only have 133 calories and 3 grams of fiber in each serving, plus a healthy dose of antioxidants also from those hidden veggies. If kids love them how can you argue that it's not a great recipe all around?!!