Happy 69th Anniversary!

 

Happy 69th wedding anniversary to George and Barbara Bush!  Wow!  That is a long time!  They were married on January 6, 1945.  Barbara Bush says that she married the first man she ever kissed.  

 They hold the record for the longest presidential marriage by a long shot!  Second place goes to John and Abigail Adams who were married for 54 years.

In order for Aaron and I to be married for 69 years, I will need to live to be 102 years old and Aaron 103!

A pricy start to a second term

  Isn't our national debt over 17 trillion dollars?  If our country is in that much debt, why are we spending millions and millions of dollars on a party for the president's second term?

When a middle class family has a mortgage,  car loans and credit card debt, do they go out and spend more money on a giant sweet sixteen for their daughter or huge 50th anniversary bash for their parents?  No, people in debt watch their spending.  They make cuts like no vacations or weekly dinners out.  They certainly don't charge a party on their already debt riddled credit cards.

I think that having a simple inauguration without all of the hoopla would have been appropriate in this current economy.  While Americans are staring at their paychecks wondering why even more money has come out in 2013 than in 2012, the government is throwing a lavish party.

Whether the inauguration was for a Republican or Democrat, it just makes sense for the administration to restrain themselves and keep the celebration modest.

Sanctity of Life Sunday

We live in a time when it has become necessary to have a day dedicated to the preservation of human life.  A day designed to convince people in this country to value the lives of babies, the elderly and the poor.  

I have shared that in my own life, I struggled with the decision to continue a pregnancy.  You can read the whole story in this blog post (click here).  So I fully understand that the decision to continue a pregnancy is not always easy.  I can relate and empathize with those that are in a difficult situation.  

Many of you, like me, may have heard a message in church this morning reminding you that life is precious.  You may have also heard verses like

Psalm 139:13

"For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb."

We had a church member share her testimony about her decision to have a baby even when the pregnancy was unexpected.  My hope is that there was someone in that sermon this morning who will remember hearing this testimony if he or she is faced with a similar decision.

I read this Article where a pastor shares why he hates preaching on  Sanctity of Life Sunday.  He hates that we live in a country where people have to be reminded that an unexpected pregnancy is a human life. That a child with a disability is still precious in the Lord's sight.  Society paints a different picture.  Look at the example set by our own President:

When the highest political office in our country thinks of an unborn child as a punishment, one can understand why we need a Sanctity of Life Sunday.  I pray that one day Sanctity of Life Sunday will no longer be necessary 

Can't Live WIth Them Can't Live Without Them

The word insurance is curse word around our house.   It makes both my husband and me cringe.   It is the no win situation.  

We are both super excited that my husband found a job- but as always, the medical benefits are a sticking point.  The company he works for only covers his medical benefits.  

So what are our choices?

1. We could just have coverage for him and the rest of the family goes without medical insurance.  We would not have any insurance cost but we would have to pay out of pocket for medical expenses for Sydney, Lucas, Ella and me.  My cancer visits and mammograms are expensive.  If my cancer were to return, we would have to pay out of pocket for surgery and radiation and/or chemo.  Ella has a milk allergy which requires her to drink prescription formula.  The formula alone costs $969.70 per month.

2. We could pay to add the four of us to Aaron's medical plan.  The cost for that is $1560 per month.  But if my cancer returned, it would be covered.

Aaron's old plan covers us until the end of February.  Even though Aaron will be working his new job on March 1st when this runs out, we won't be able to join his new plan.  There is a minimum 90 day waiting period for the new insurance to kick in.  

So our insurance cost looks like this...

March 1st pay COBRA at at rate of $1700 per month

April 1st pay COBRA at at rate of $1700 per month

May 1st Aaron will be covered and we will pay $1560 every month for the rest of the family to be covered.

For our family to have medical, it costs almost as much as our mortgage.  Does anyone else find this to be ridiculous?

I wish there was a simple solution.  Any ideas?