I'm so glad when Andrew comes home!

Andrew is home!!! This is a week or two late but it is still exciting. Andrew was serving his mission in Mexico and on February 8th he arrived back to the US!!!

Unfortunately Lori and I weren't able to be at the airport when he got home. It was tough to get up to Utah during the middle of the week. But thanks to modern technology my sister took her ipad and we were able to skype with them and see him as he came through customs at the airport! It was really cool to see him and we are very grateful for modern technology. For pictures of him at the airport go to Laura's blog.

We were able to leave on February 9th after work to get up to Utah to see Andrew. We drove all night and got in at about 4am. So we didn't get to see him until we woke up at about 11am on February 10th. But it was so good to see him, he just seems so happy and you can still see that he wants to work as a missionary.

That Friday we ended up talking and then we went and played some racquetball which was a lot of fun. Lori didn't go but I was out there with my cane ready to get anything that came my way! We then watched a movie or two with him.

The next day we had a lot going on, we first went to the temple with all the family that was there which took a few hours. Then we got ready and went to the BYU basketball game, BYU ended up slaughtering the other team but it was a lot of fun to all go to the game. See pictures below.

On Sunday we relaxed in the morning because we had church at 2pm, Andrew's talk was amazing. You could tell he loved his mission and loves the Gospel. He gave a very powerful talk and it energized everyone to be a better person. I am really glad we made it up for his talk. If you want a copy we have a recording of it!! That night we played some games and enjoyed each others company again!

On Monday we drove home and were completely exhausted from the trip. But it was worth it!!

Welcome home Andrew!!

Our seats...not too bad.

All of us that were there, and some kid in the background.

Andrew using an iPad...so exciting!!

Playing Battle of the Sexes! The girls creamed the boys! Also this confirms that Dad still likes ice cream!

Camille TRYING to think of an answer to the question.

Navigating the Healthcare System

I’ve wanted to do this blog for awhile as I feel like we’ve gotten a lot better at dealing with the multitude of doctor’s offices and appointments and tests and everything medical! It’s mainly just things we’ve learned along the way or things I’d wished I had known. It’s probably basic stuff to most of you but hopefully it can help someone.

1. Be your own advocate – Growing up I was often embarrassed when my Mom asked a lot of questions or was so straightforward with doctors or other service providers. What I didn’t realize at the time was that the only way to get what you need, whether from a doctor or at the grocery store, is to ask! You are the only person around you 100% of the time and no one has your best interest at heart better than you. Speak up and be honest and straightforward about what you need and expect.

2. Don’t be afraid to ask questions – Asking a lot of questions is part of being your own advocate. The only way to learn something you don’t know is to ask and the good doctors will welcome your questions. Any doctor that acts irritated when you ask questions is not the right doctor. If a mechanic was telling you that you needed to have expensive tests run on your car wouldn’t you ask everything you could about why?

3. Take someone with you to appointments to take notes or be a second set of ears – This isn’t something you will need 100% of the time for the basic appointments (a yearly physical, for example) but if you have an appointment that you are nervous about or will be getting information out of the norm it’s a good idea to have someone to help you, even if it’s just for support. There have been so many instances where the doctor will say something to Jared and he doesn’t remember later but because I was there and heard it/wrote it down we still have the information.

4. Don’t be afraid to get a second (or third) opinion – I used to think that any reputable doctor would know exactly the type of ailment I had and the precise treatment to help. This isn’t to say that the doctor doesn’t know what he/she is talking about because doctors have a lot of schooling and experience but different doctors have different backgrounds and ways of doing things. One doctor might not know about a new type of treatment that another doctor knows about. We saw physical therapists in 3 different states before one told us about this new type of electrotherapy treatment that could drastically help Jared. It never hurts to ask

5. NEVER EVER EVER go without medical insurance – Obviously it isn’t always possible to have amazing insurance but you should ALWAYS have some form of insurance to help cover emergencies. Before Jared was admitted to the hospital we thought he was totally healthy and well. If he didn’t have insurance during his whole hospital stay and follow-up doctor’s appointments we’d be in for well over $250,000 of medical bills. I cannot stress enough how important it is to have medical insurance. Accidents happen and medical emergencies occur all of the time to people not expecting them. If you do have to go without insurance for a time, make sure it’s no longer than 63 days or your next insurance company might not cover a medical condition because it could be deemed a pre-existing condition.
a. Not only is it important to have insurance but it’s equally important to know what your insurance covers. Although insurance plans are often boring to read and confusing, knowing what they say can save you from spending money unnecessarily. For example, when Jared was admitted to the hospital his insurance didn’t cover private hospital rooms, which we didn’t find out until after he had been in a private hospital room for about a week and a half! Luckily the hospital didn’t charge us for that because we didn’t ask to be moved there but that could have been a lot of money.

6. A good attitude goes a long way – Being a Psych major has made me aware of what a powerful influence our minds have on us and those around us. I believe a positive mental attitude can make the difference between recovery and continued illness. I realize that willing yourself to get better is not going to cure everything but being positive and happy affects your complete outlook on life and the situation you’re facing. Jared is the absolute best example of having a good attitude in the face of adversity and it has made a huge difference in both of our lives. It’s normal and natural to have those days or weeks where you recognize that things are tough and realize the magnitude of what you are dealing with and feel blue. However, allowing yourself to dwell on the negative will never help you get better.

7. Just because a doctor orders a test/procedure for you doesn’t mean you have to have it – When Jared was in the hospital they would wake him up before 6am every morning to take his blood just to have it on record. When they couldn’t give him a reason for the blood tests other than to track different levels (unrelated to his health issues) he told them he didn’t want that anymore and they stopped. If there’s a serious reason your doctor wants you to have a test then you should definitely do it. Just ask the doctor for the reason behind the test/procedure and if it’s really necessary. Most doctors will be straightforward with their reasoning and you can make an educated decision.

8. Medical Records – I could probably write a book on medical records but I’ll just mention a few points:
a. The hospital/doctor’s office keeps track of everything they do and those records are yours. It is a good idea to get copies of your medical records after every procedure so you can keep them organized but at the very least you should request them if you are moving or switching doctors. Call your doctor’s office/hospital and ask how you can request medical records. Usually it’s just a form you fill out and submit to a medical records department but either way it should be an easy process.
b. Create and manage your medical history. Compiling your entire medical history might seem daunting but it could really help your doctor with any health issue that might come up. There are different types of software designed to create a medical history or you can create your own. I created a spreadsheet for Jared dating back to his birth. Jared and I were blessed to be born to extremely organized moms who kept great records so I was able to go back and compile all of that info. If you want any tips or to see the spreadsheet I made I’d be more than happy to share. After creating it you need to maintain it with any new medical info.
c. File! I am hugely into filing for everything anyway so the medical records are no different. I keep our medical records in a separate file box from the rest of our paperwork so I can easily access the information for a doctor’s appointment or to reference it for any reason. If you aren’t a big filer then find some way to keep those records organized so you can find something if needed.

9. Designate someone to speak on your behalf – Due to HIPAA and other regulations hospitals and doctor’s offices are often not allowed to speak to anyone besides the patient regarding anything medical. Most hospitals and doctor’s offices have a form you can fill out designating someone to request records or information on behalf of the patient. It’s a good idea to have someone you trust listed that can speak for you in case you are unable to request them for some reason.

10. Bills/Explanations of Benefit – After any procedure/doctor’s visit/etc. your doctor will send a bill to the insurance company listing everything they did for you. The insurance company will then decide what is covered by your plan and for how much and then pay the doctor for whatever portion is covered. The doctor will then bill you for the remaining amount. Somewhere in that process the insurance company will send you something called the Explanation of Benefits (EOB) listing all of this information (the procedure, how much they were billed for, how much they covered, and how much you should expect to pay). This process can get confusing when you have a lot of appointments and due to imperfections in coding and human error there are times you could get billed for the wrong amount or the insurance company won’t cover something you think should be covered. Because of this it is very important to compare the EOB with your bill as well as understand what is covered by your insurance. I keep a spreadsheet listing the info from our EOBs and before I pay a bill I always compare it to the EOB to make sure we aren’t being billed for something we shouldn’t be. It also helps to keep track of the EOBs and Bills so you know what bills are outstanding.

11. Flex spending – Many large businesses will offer something called a Flex spending plan which is basically pre-tax money you set aside for medical expenses. Your benefits administrator can explain more but if your company has a flex spending plan I would recommend contributing to it because it can save you money. The only downside to it is if you put money into it that you don’t end up using by the end of the year you lose the money. So just try to calculate what you think you’ll actually spend in medical expenses and be a little conservative.

This kind of turned into a book but hopefully it was helpful to someone! If you have any questions related to this I'd be more than happy to attempt an answer! :)

80s

This last weekend Jared and I went to a friend's surprise 30th bday party at a rollerink. It was an '80s party and we were supposed to dress up which I was SO excited for. I went to Savers and found most of our entire costumes for less than $25 bucks! I asked my lovely sister where to find leggings and she had the genius idea of cutting up a men's sweater and using the sleeves (smart right?). I thought the costumes came out pretty well and I had a fun time trying to tease my hair (even if it didn't turn out as big as I had planned). We even attempted a "flock of seagulls" hairdo for Jared but his hair was too short, haha.

This weekend we also had some friends (the Crocketts) visit for the weekend and had a blast (even though we didn't take any pictures). Saturday the boys went golfing and Robyn and I were able to get pedicures with hot stone massages (SO nice!) and then after the party we all played games. Spencer and Robyn have awesome games that they always show us how to play and we played lots of those this weekend, which was a lot of fun. We were bummed when they had to go but had a great weekend with them!

Stormy Christmas

This year we had Christmas in Hemet at Steven and Christina's house. It was a lot of fun to have the whole family together for the first time in 2 years! We enjoyed hanging out and playing games and chatting and the boys were able to play golf while the girls saw a movie which was fun!

We tried to get family pictures but they didn't turn out the best. We were originally going to take them by this barn but we got there and saw a No Trespassing sign so we thought we should go somewhere else. We went to a park but it was tough because we didn't do the pictures early enough so the lighting was weird and we were just taking them with Jared and my camera on a tripod with a remote control. It was fun to take them but we will probably go with a professional next time. We are going to work on fixing them up in Photoshop but this is the best one so far.

Christmas morning was fun with the little boys. It's so much more exciting when you get to see their reactions to their presents from Santa!

I couldn't resist including this pic cause it's funny

Bryson was cracking us up because he was just driving through all of the presents with his new 4-wheeler

The lighting's not the best and our colors clash but I wanted to put this in too

Merry Christmas!!!!

The Return of the Jakie

I'm finally posting about Jake getting home from his mission! He served in the Joao Pessoa, Brazil mission and returned on December 9th. We had his flight itinerary about 4 months before he was coming home so I was able to plan it so I could meet him in San Francisco and fly the rest of the way to Chico on the same flight as him! I was so nervous that our flights would be changed or something would happen and we would miss each other but luckily it worked out! The only bummer about the whole thing was that Jared wasn't able to come because when I bought the plane tickets I didn't yet have a job and we were trying to save money.

I got to San Fran about 2 hours before our flight to Chico was supposed to leave and I was there when Jake's flight landed and knew it had landed because Jared was following it online and let me know. I couldn't be at his gate when he got off of the plane because of the way the airport is set up and security procedures so I went to our gate and waited. I was anxiously waiting for an hour and the whole time I was thinking about what I would do when I saw him. Would I run up to him or sneak up behind him and tap him on the shoulder or just wait for him to notice me? In the meantime our flight starts boarding and then they announce that due to weight issues they need some people to take a later flight. During all of this Jake still isn't showing up and I'm getting more and more frantic and calling my mom and asking if I should wait for him or what I should do. I finally decided to walk to the security check point to see if he was stuck there or anything and on my way back he comes up and surprises me!! I was so bummed that I wasn't able to see the surprise on his face when he saw me but happy to see him and relieved to make our flight. It turns out he had to completely go out to baggage claim, get his bags, and re-check into the flight and then he went through a different security gate than the one at which I was watching for him. As I was walking back to our gate he saw me and surprised me that way. Then they almost weren't going to let him on the flight because of the weight issues and because he was the last to check in but luckily it worked out.

Jake and I waiting to get off the plane in Chico

Our little plane and Jake in California for the first time in 2 years

I love this picture because of how emotional Katherine is, it just tugs at my heartstrings a little bit :)

Jake and his best buddy Ben

Everyone at Jake's homecoming

First time driving in 2 years

Katherine's reaction to Jake's driving, haha

Everyone except Jared after Jake was released

They're so cute!

It is so great to have him home and we are so proud of him and how faithfully he served the people of Brazil!