"Lower Income Moms" October 2007 Support - Page 18

[Aura_Kitten]

Originally Posted by s_kristina

Aura_Kitten Have you checked to see what kind of reception the Go Phones from Cingular/AT&T have? We couldn't afford the deposit on a cell phone either, but really needed one when we were living in a hotel for far too long. We ended up with dh picking out a Go Phone online and getting a monthly plan on it. The money comes out of the bank account monthly, but you can also buy a card to refill the minutes on it. We had cell phones with BellSouth that became Cingular then didn't renew the contract. A couple years later we ended up with the Go Phone and it has worked really well for us. It's really a must for dh now with work although I still wish we could get by on less minutes, but I think we are on the cheapest monthly plan they have.

...
OK come to think of it I don't remember if mine was a GoPhone or a tracfone (at the time only one type was available in my area at all), I just remember it was the tiny little one that you pay for the card to charge the minutes on.... and that it had terrible service. And I remember I couldn't get a refund on it either.

Thanks for the input though. But the $ is already spent.


Lanky ~ major congrats on the Yard Sale!! I didn't see your post before. -- good for you!

sandy ~ on expedited food stamps and medi-caid, call the office and put pressure on them, let them know you need the stuff NOW not two weeks from now. Sometimes it takes a LOT of pressuring for them to cave and actually do their job. But there's no reason why you shouldn't get help when you need it!


OK ~ off to work on one of two fun yet incredibly long midterms that are due this coming week..............







OH btw anyone have any ideas for Hallowe'en costumes - ?? For myself not my kids, they're set but I'm out of ideas. I know I want to be a male.... something I was going to be Captain Jack Sparrow but never pulled together the stuff, and anyway that seems really cliche. Any ideas???

[2Sweeties1Angel]

OH btw anyone have any ideas for Hallowe'en costumes - ?? For myself not my kids, they're set but I'm out of ideas. I know I want to be a male.... something

I dressed up as the sea captain from the Simpsons one year. I found an old navy blazer at the thrift shop, found a captain hat somewhere, and wore black or tan pants--I don't remember which. I completed the look by gluing cotton balls to my face (I don't recommend that) and I think I may have had a corncob pipe.

Then another time I dressed up as a male viking. I found some cheap faux fur and hot glued it together to make a furry toga looking thing. I had a plastic viking hat with horns and faux fur boots. Then I took a long, curly Halloween wig and made it into a beard with some elastic. I wore flesh colored long johns underneath.

One guy in high school work a long black trench coat and had it up over his head. He put an alligator head on top and I guess he was looking out through the buttonholes or something. It was hilarious. And probably cheap. He worked at a reptile ranch so he got the head from an alligator that had died--he cleaned it and did some taxidermy work on it.

I have to dress up for Halloween at work this year and don't know what I'm going to be. Since I'm working in the nursing home, I think dressing the Grim Reaper would be funny but wildly innapropriate

[Aura_Kitten]

Originally Posted by 2Sweeties1Angel

I dressed up as the sea captain from the Simpsons one year. I found an old navy blazer at the thrift shop, found a captain hat somewhere, and wore black or tan pants--I don't remember which. I completed the look by gluing cotton balls to my face (I don't recommend that) and I think I may have had a corncob pipe.

Then another time I dressed up as a male viking. I found some cheap faux fur and hot glued it together to make a furry toga looking thing. I had a plastic viking hat with horns and faux fur boots. Then I took a long, curly Halloween wig and made it into a beard with some elastic. I wore flesh colored long johns underneath.

One guy in high school work a long black trench coat and had it up over his head. He put an alligator head on top and I guess he was looking out through the buttonholes or something. It was hilarious. And probably cheap. He worked at a reptile ranch so he got the head from an alligator that had died--he cleaned it and did some taxidermy work on it.

I have to dress up for Halloween at work this year and don't know what I'm going to be. Since I'm working in the nursing home, I think dressing the Grim Reaper would be funny but wildly innapropriate

OMG incidentally I'm dressing up for work too, and Hallowe'en ALSO happens to fall on the day of my Death and Dying class. The Grim Reaper is a fabulous idea!

Thanks.
What great ideas.

[DBZ]

I'm grateful today becuase I checked my card balances and found a whopping $7 in my child support acct. $7 in the tank is way better then fumes!

We also had a Halloween themed potluck at church. It was great. I love it when $5 pays for you and your 3 kids to "eat out" with friends.

I also found a farmers market and found my wic checks just before the market closed. I was able to buy some nice fresh veggies. Got some interesting veggie that the lady said would be good in my chicken soup.


My goals for November are to get winter coats for the older two, winterize the house, and make a decision about where to have this baby. I also need to sew slings and start making cloth bags for xmas presents.


To those of you with thyroid issues. I feel for you. I hope you guys feel better or continue too.


Aura - I think it's awesome you are doing that Nano thing. I've always wanted to be a writer, but I'm just not good at it.

[nolonger]

I just wanted to make my presence known, because I think I might belong here before too long if I don't belong here already.

I'm grateful for all the skills and education I have accumulated during my life that I take completely for granted until I run across someone who doesn't have them.

I'm most grateful for having the ability to read for pleasure and information. I'm glad that I enjoy writing (even though I'm not very good at it and take way too much time doing it) because no matter how broke I am, I will always have an endless source of entertainment for myself.

I'm glad that I have a sewing machine and some rudimentary knowledge of how to sew, since I can always learn more and can at least clothe my littlest one mindfully and perhaps eventually make items for sale.

I'm grateful that even though I work four jobs, none of which pays more than minimum and the "big one" which pays far less, none of them are corporate or fast-food related and all of them have some sort of a point beyond having the life sucked out of me for a paycheck.

I'm grateful that I have enough savings and that I have learned enough about frugal living and managing money that I have been able to get this far in my mothering journey and my oldest is able to attend community college and my youngest (in utero) has been able to have fresh, locally grown, organic produce and all the material objects we need for a safe and successful UC so I probably won't need a MediCal hospital birth.

I'm grateful for a lot of things, I just know where the economy is taking for us as a family and as a country and I want to learn more about mindful living and frugality from the rest of you.

My goal for November is to cut back on the hours I spend working outside of the home so I can eat and sleep better and take better care of my belly bean.

[Belleweather]

I haven't been posting much because we were doing okay -- we actually got through an entire pay period with money left over in the account at the end! -- but now, I don't know how much longer that's going to last.

Firstly, DH broke TWO teeth in the last month. He's ignoring them, but I know they need to get fixed. There's only one dentist in our area who accepts Medicaid and he is frighteningly incompetent. But our other option is to pay out of pocket, and I can't imagine how we'd afford TWO crowns!

Second, I am just not coping well with life right now. It's like I have PPD, but three months too early. Work is hugely stressful, being the primary wage earner bites, and working opposite shifts from DH is completely wearing me out to the point where I can't even manage to feed and care for DS in the evenings. I feel like the worst mama in the world and I'm spending all my time crying, and basically... the best solution is for DH to quit his job so he can be home with me in the evenings before I get to the point where my mental health is so bad that I can't be left alone.

I'm trying to find some way to make that work financially, but the numbers are mean and unyeilding. DH quitting means we lose $1000/month in income and another $550 because we'd have to get health care through my work where it's expensive instead of his where it's all but free. All this at the same time that we're losing our food stamps and WIC, plus most of my income when I go on maternity leave.
Unfortunately, if I don't find something to help manage this stress and depression it's going to get to the point where it's something we HAVE to do regardless of whether we can afford it or not, because I just won't be safe to be left alone again. I'm also scared that if things are this bad NOW, how bad they might be after the baby actually arrives...

[sandygirl]

Originally Posted by Belleweather

Firstly, DH broke TWO teeth in the last month. He's ignoring them, but I know they need to get fixed. There's only one dentist in our area who accepts Medicaid and he is frighteningly incompetent. But our other option is to pay out of pocket, and I can't imagine how we'd afford TWO crowns!

All this at the same time that we're losing our food stamps and WIC, plus most of my income when I go on maternity leave.

Is there a dental school anywhre near you? They worked great for me.

just out of curiousity - WHY will you be losing your foodstamps and WIC? I would htink that is your DH is losing/quitting his job, they would be increased, no?

[Aura_Kitten]

Belleweather ~~ There really is such a thing as prepartum depression ~ I had it with both of my little ones.


I have no real advice to offer you, but just remember to not let it get to the point where you're completely broken. ETA - which of course is completely unhelpful ... what I mean is... don't feel bad about asking someone to be with you or help you out, if that's what you need! In my experience there is always SOMEONE who will step in, you just have to reach out and ask. Don't take "no" or "you can do it, you're strong enough" for an answer. If you really need help find someone to help you. You deserve better than to be crying all the time, you're worth more than that.

[2Sweeties1Angel]

Belleweather ~~ There really is such a thing as prepartum depression ~ I had it with both of my little ones.

I had it with my last pregnancy and it carried over into PPD. If you want to take meds now, at least consider them for after the birth. Zoloft is safe while nursing. I'm taking Wellbutrin which is an L3, but I'm not having any problems with it.

[DBZ]

Belleweather - There are things you can take for depression when you are pregnant. It sounds like you need to pay a lot of attention to that now.

[Aura_Kitten]

Originally Posted by 2Sweeties1Angel

I had it with my last pregnancy and it carried over into PPD. If you want to take meds now, at least consider them for after the birth. Zoloft is safe while nursing. I'm taking Wellbutrin which is an L3, but I'm not having any problems with it.

That too, definitely.

It just sounds like you (belleweather) are in need of social support more than anything... s

[Belleweather]

I hate to be a stereotype, but I'm terrified of taking psych meds. Completely out of my mind scared of them. Not so much because I'm scared they'll change the essential 'me'-ness of me. I think because I've had such negative and weird reactions to common medicines (ie. cough syrup makes me hallucinate, birth control pills give me suicidal ideation and narcolepsy) and for some reason I'm scared psych meds will be worse than normal meds. But I think it's really time to talk to my provider about doing something for the depression and anxiety.

Luckily, just talking about how bad things were getting have helped some. Plus, DH got his boss to look the other way and let him make a minor change to his hours -- he's now working 5:30-9:30 rather than 5-9. It makes a HUGE difference... we're no longer swapping DS between cars in the parking lot anymore.

Originally Posted by sandygirl

Is there a dental school anywhre near you? They worked great for me.

just out of curiousity - WHY will you be losing your foodstamps and WIC? I would htink that is your DH is losing/quitting his job, they would be increased, no?

Because I make WAY too much to qualify without DH's income. We would have lost them before now, but the system here is weird... we had a medicaid review, and I dutifully reported our change in income to both programs but we continued receiving food stamps and WIC until the end of our 'pre-qualification period', when they'd look at our income again and disqualify us. It was great to help us dig ourselves out of the hole we were in, but all good things must come to an end.

[sandygirl]

I had a sucess tonight - I got a shopping bag full of venison for FREE from a local hunter.

Yummy!!!

[LankyLizards]

ouch. I just got a $46 water bill, which is due in 2 days. I have to pay it with my rent. Such short notice.I finally got the rent money together (sorta) but now I have to find this money. I bet I could pay it a little late, but not much.

Yay! Halloween's almost here. I can't wait to dress dd up in her little tiger costume and take her around for a little bit of trick or treating.

Hugs to everyone. I hope the week's starting off good for everyone.

[ian'smommaya]

Originally Posted by Belleweather

cough syrup makes me hallucinate

OMG it isnt only me!!!

cough cough back to your usually schedule low income mom talk.

[janerose]

Belleweather -- It sounds like talking to your provider about getting some medication is a good idea. Congrats about your DH being able to adjust his hours too. That's great!

LankyLizards -- I would call & ask why the bill comes right on the due date. Is that normal? Our TV/net carrier does that to us & it drives me batty! What good is a bill showing up so late there isn't even anyway you could possibly mail it to them without it being late?

-------

As for us, we got the septic open this weekend & it is FULL. Ummm...OK so it was a brand new septic we just had installed 2 years ago when we moved into this house. I can't believe it's filled already, but apparently washing machines really fill septics up....and I'm sure the big ole' tub of water from my bath several nights a week isn't helping either. Anyway, it'll be about $200 with the tax to get it pumped out tomorrow. On the plus side DH has a good payday coming up on Friday so I shouldn't have to tap into the savings to pay for it.

My other exciting news is that DH is taking the girls to the ILs for this weekend. I will have from Friday afternoon to Sunday evening ALL ALONE! I'm so excited I actually feel kind of guilty. Now I'm trying to really keep on top of the housework this week & get some of my extra projects done so I don't feel like I have to be working on them over the weekend.

Gotta go pay some bills & get to bed at a decent hour....have a good night everyone!

[eilonwy]

cough syrup actually makes a lot of people hallucinate. in fact, kids have been using it for years deliberately to induce hallucinations (it nearly always does in high doses). there was even an episode of south park about it....

as to the birth control, screwing with hormonal balances does strange things to people. you're not alone there, either... you probably just have a more sensitive physiology than most, but i (and many, many other women I know) have had similiar issues with hormonal birth control.

you'd probably have better luck with SSRIs, but i'd stay away from the tricyclics and other more interesting, newer antidepressants (trazodone, remeron, cymbalta).

[sandygirl]

Originally Posted by janerose

I can't believe it's filled already, but apparently washing machines really fill septics up....and I'm sure the big ole' tub of water from my bath several nights a week isn't helping either.

Don't know if it's doable were you are or not - but washing and bath water are both what my dad used to call "grey water" - safe to run out on the ground to water plants with, etc. My point is - it DOESN't have to go in the septic.

[sandygirl]

I {and my parent's caregiver} cleaned the garage in prep for a yard sale in 2 weeks. I hope we do really well at it, because the stuff I've got listed on craiglist just isn't moving at all.

I guess I overdid it because I'm so exhausted now that I can't keep my eyes open at all - My doc told me to take it easy when I got out of the hospital a month ago {thyroid issues} but geez! DD is super cranky teething too - I resorted to a bottle of juice for her, and bed. I just can't handle her right now - gramma is watching her though.

tomorrow I have to go with my father {who has altimerz} to his doc, and tote along DD. I have no idea how I'm going to do this since gramma is using my wheelchair {hers died} and I know after today there is no way I can walk that much, let alone manage DD.

[LankyLizards]

Yay janerose, thank goodness it's not a fortune!

I think my water bill will come this close to it's due date every month. I'm supposed to just add it into my rent and pay it to the office on the first. This month may be a little late for the water though. I was not expecting it to be that much. I have always had a septic tank, I guess and this is sewer, so it's more expensive. Plus, the garbage is added in too (lovely, big, smelly dumpster....dd says "P.U.!!" every time we bring our garbage out to it). This was my first month having to pay it, so I'll be better prepared next time.

sandygirl- I hope you get some rest and feel better. Yard sales can be super exhausting (I think I'm still recovering from mine....) but are such a great way to make a quick buck or two. I think we might have another this Saturday. Which will give me a chance to pay dd's grandpa back for the money he is loaning me for my rent. Have I mentioned how much he rocks? Cause he sooo does.

Good night, lovely, low-income mamas!