Fall/Winter Parents Using Public Assistance-Support Only! - Page 3

[elephantine]

Originally Posted by heidirk

does anyone know how long I can hold off vaxing before WIC starts to get curious? When I recert they ask for his vaccination record, and I tell them we're delaying vaxes- but it's been a two and a half year delay!

You can tell them that you don't vax for religious reasons... it can be your own personal "religion" and they aren't allowed to question you about it. Just on this statement, we have no trouble from WIC, food stamps, daycare or public schools... and everyone I've had to talk to say that I am the first case of this they have *ever* heard of.

[heidirk]

The daycare where I worked when DS1 was born told me that I could only claim a medical exemption, which I can technically, because my psoriasis is an immune related genetic disease.

from a religious point of veiw, I do beleive God made the body to function best when we leave it well alone, so maybe that counts.

[elephantine]

Originally Posted by heidirk

The daycare where I worked when DS1 was born told me that I could only claim a medical exemption, which I can technically, because my psoriasis is an immune related genetic disease.

from a religious point of veiw, I do beleive God made the body to function best when we leave it well alone, so maybe that counts.

IME the daycares don't usually have any experience, so they really don't know. Just ask them if they follow state laws for vaccinations and if they say "yes" you have them. You don't need to volunteer *any* information at all about your religious exemption. Simply state "we don't vaccinate for religious reasons." and you don't need or want to explain a thing. Just write a letter saying you object to the procedure for your child due to religious beliefs, sign and date.

[bmcneal]

Originally Posted by mammal_mama

I think the amount you get varies based on your income and family-size, as well as the guidelines for your state. I didn't know states varied from county to county! Is it possible that your income was different in that other county -- or that that county has a higher cost of living, and that was taken into account?

I sure think they should adjust the guidelines in Tennessee, too!

They did adjust it I think last month. It went from $80 something to where it is now, around $130.

When we got them in the other county, we didn't have any bills to pay, no gas, water, electricity, just a phone and rent. I don't know if there was much, if any, difference in what we were making, DH does the financial stuff, as I'd mess it up (and have when I tried ), but there might have been.

I was going through the papers they sent us when we first got FS to get together the paperwork I need to take to our appointment on MOnday, and I think in their records they have DH making more than he actually does, somewhere between 3 and 4 *hundred* more a month. And that we have almost $500 in "assets" somewhere, and we don't. That might be why it's lower. I'm not upset, about it, really, just curious. (I am a bit perturbed that they didn't pay *any* attention to the information I filled out on the paperwork, that would have been nice after spending an hour filling it out.):

[Satori]

Starting to feel a bit of panic

I just got my PEL grant from school today which means hey we got money to pay bills! Bad news is I have no clue how were going to pay the bills come January (basics are covered by welfare, its that all important car payment of $175 + $62 for insurance and gas that puts me under stress coming up with money for, there's no public transportation and with 2 SN kids I NEED a car I've realized for those 2am ER visits and such, just wish I could buy one outright), I've taken pretty much all the online classes I can and now I need to start taking classes in campus and I just can't afford it with school being an hour from here and moving closer is just not an option. Kids desperately need new clothes and winter coats (reminds me I need to check ebay for down coats!) and other expenses and I'm terrified to spend a penny afraid were not going to have the money next year and at the same time its burning a hole in my pocket

[mammal_mama]

Originally Posted by heidirk

I hope you can your dental issues taken care of, mamalmama. I'm terrified to take DS1 for his first dental appointment (which is why I haven't shceduled it) because I know he's going to freak out.

Just for the record, I never would have taken my 3yo this young if she hadn't shown signs of visible decay just before her 2nd birthday. Like you, I knew she would freak at that age, she was very shy around strange adults. So I just brushed her teeth with Xylitol and prayed it wouldn't spread to her permanent teeth... I waited like a whole year before I finally made an appointment.

And the dentist said that so far her permanent teeth look fine -- and he didn't even berate me for postponing it so long, he said he understood because 2yo's have a hard time with the dentist. She was almost 3 by the time she went, and much more outgoing -- she actually enjoyed her checkup.

heidirk, you don't mention whether your son has any decay -- if his teeth look okay, there's no reason why you can't wait and do the dentist when he's older. Dd1 never saw a dentist 'til she was 5, and she had absolutely no decay.

does anyone know how long I can hold off vaxing before WIC starts to get curious? When I recert they ask for his vaccination record, and I tell them we're delaying vaxes- but it's been a two and a half year delay!

In Missouri, I've just said we don't vaccinate, and the WIC nurse never pushed the issue. And about the expemptions, I think there are only 2 states that don't allow religious exemption -- Mississippi and I can't remember the other. But school/daycare officials in most states think you "have" to vaccinate to enroll your child.

We homeschool, but if I wanted to enroll my children in school here, all I'd have to do is get a couple of religious-exemption cards from our local health department, and fill them in. The school nurse should have them, too -- but it's recommended that you get the new ones from the health department, 'cause lots of schools still have the old ones which ask you to specify your religion.

We no longer have to specify our religion here -- just state "religious exemption" and no one has a right to any more information.

I really NEED to see a dermatologist, but I don't know how that'd work with medicaid? The other option is some really expensive stuff I can only buy over the internet, and I can't do that just now. My psoriasis is driving me BONKERS!!!

That must be rough. I hope you get some relief soon!

[mammal_mama]

And to Satori!

[barky586]

heidirk, if the determetologist does not take Medicaid (most specialists do not), a regular general practitioner can treat this. I didn't know what I had the one time it flared up on my scalp and went to a regular dr. who prescribed something that took care of it.

[Satori]

Well mama's, I made a decision, I'm gonna suck it up and spend the money and get what we need. I can't believe I'm going to spend $500 or so in the next 24 hours..


---------
Got a wee bit side tracked writing my post... it feels like xmas here! its going to be cold tomorrow and we have to go out and no jackets to I start digging though the boxes yet to be unpacked (been here 6 months, still have like 20 boxes to unpack) and found a warm 2T lands end jacket that was older dd's that I saved and it now fits my 2 yr old perfectly! Found a bigger down parka that will be a little big but will also fit her this winter and the next 2 winters found an old 2T xmas dress thats super cute, found my xmas pictures dress a wore 2 years ago that will still work great for pics, so all I gotta do is buy a dress for my 8 yr old! We haven't done a family pic in 2 years, I'm excited to do it again! (finally using the $10 olan mills thing, hoping the pics are much better then last time) found warm winter clothes for me too There's still 2-3 bins of clothes outside I can go though, going to do that in the morning before we leave and see how much else will fit the 2 yr old

[heidirk]

Satori-I'm glad you found what you needed! I was going to suggest you try a shepherd's closet or some such- clothing bank- YK. I need to go for myself and DS1.

mammalmama- He does not have any decay, or even a hint of bad breath, thank goodness. One side of my family has stellar teeth, and the other, terrible teeth.

I'm planning on homeschooling, so I won't have to deal with vax exemptions for a while.


barky586- unfortunately, most GP's don't even recognize my type of psoriasis, and they are notorious for prescribing the same meds to all psoriasis patients regardless, because they don't know what else to do. It took a trip to the National Psoriasis Foundation Convention in order to get the lesion on my nipple diagnosed, because neither the dermatologist nor the OB knew what it was or wanted to accept responsibility for treating it. Sorry for the vehement post there, I hate doctors. It is a measure of how desperate I am that I'm considering going at all.

[happyhats]

Does anyone know how having life insurance will affect getting food stamps and other aide? I'm HOPING we will be in a position to no longer need aide come beginning or middle of next year, but in February we wanted to purchase some whole life insurance for hub and do the Gerber plan for our then two month old daughter. My father told me that years and years ago he and my mother weren't able to recieve aide because he had life insurance but I believe his was term and thus able to be cashed out. While waiting a few months later would be feasible as I cannot really afford to live without the food stamps until we are on our feet, I'd really love to be able to have these necessities.

In other news, we applied for our heating assistance today. It seemed to go well, but hubs needs to bring more paperwork into the office later this week.

[Devaskyla]

Hi everyone. I guess we belong on this thread. H & I have both been on SFI since just after I was pregnant with ds2. Would have been just before, but I was technically on student loans, even though I wasn't given the amount I needed because I maxed out my loans, so they wouldn't cover us that month. We're both on it due to medical reasons. H has genetic back problems that are getting worse as he ages as well as IBS. I have severe issues with depression. A lot of the time, I think that I could work if I just sucked it up, but the fact is that when I was working before I had kids, I'd go to work, come home & collapse for the night, then go to work. I just wasn't capable of doing anything else. H gets mad at me & points out that some days just managing to do the dishes is beyond me, how could I possibly manage a job, but I can't hep feeling like I *should*. Then he tells me I am working, I'm raising the kids & that's more important than anything else.

I'm not sure what we're going to do come January 1, though. Our rent is going up again & they're going to start charging us for electricity. We're already getting extra assistance to help us pay our rent, otherwise we wouldn't be able to afford food most months, but I don't think they're going to increase it for us. We had applied for subsidized housing last year, but for some reason, they claimed I hadn't sent in some bit of info that they asked for & they suspended our file. It's been suspended most of the year & we were never told. Went down to update some info & finally found out, so we had to reapply. The only good thing is that we won't have to start over at the bottom of the list, just where they suspended us at.

[mammal_mama]

Welcome, Devaskyla!

[loveandmore]

MylittleWarrior-yeah I realized what you meant after my posting.

[Pumpkin_Pie]

How are all you mamas doing? I went to our local food shelf today for the first time in a VERY long time. My foodstamps were cut nearly in half, so my cupboards are getting pretty bare, and I have been keeping the heat off as much as I can to save a bit there.

I was afraid that they would turn me away at the food shelf, because we already receive food stamps, but the woman there told me that I could make up to $2200 a month and still go once a month for groceries. I make just over $1000, and receive $170 a month in foodstamps, so I am well under their limit. She definitely made me feel much better about going.

I was so excited to see what they had! It was definitely much less food than they used to give (many more hungry folks these days. ), but it was fabulous! We got two boxes of Annie's organic mac and cheese, a loaf of organic crusty bread, a box of whole grain pasta, two cans of salmon, a ton of beans and canned tomato products (Chili!), and a few other odds and ends. I was so excited! I think I may save the Vanilla Hot Cocoa for Christmas time though. I hate that we are poor enough that I even say that, but it looks so super yummy, and I want to wait until I have the Christmas tree up and can sit in the evening with a big warm blanket and a purring kitty on my lap and a sleeping toddler beside me.

[Nursingnaturalmom]

Oh Kim, I"m so glad you decided to go to the food shelf. The very thing of having food in ouir cupboards, somehow makes the rest of being poor more bearable.
That scenario with the hot chocolate sounds HEAVENLY and right out of a book. LOL

Mostly Lurking
Chandi :

[Pumpkin_Pie]

Originally Posted by Nursingnaturalmom

Oh Kim, I"m so glad you decided to go to the food shelf. The very thing of having food in ouir cupboards, somehow makes the rest of being poor more bearable.
That scenario with the hot chocolate sounds HEAVENLY and right out of a book. LOL

Mostly Lurking
Chandi :

Me too. I was feeling so badly about going, but the woman who helped me really encouraged me to come monthly from now on. She said she works full time but falls within the income guidelines, and is having a hard time putting food on the table for her family, so she comes every month as well.

I am actually going back on Friday to pick up a Thanksgiving turkey that I signed up for today. : That will feed us for a long time! I am planning to roast it right away and pull the meat off and freeze it, as I don't do Thanksgiving at my house, but can definitely use the meat.

Our foodshelf allows people to go a third time every three months, so I may go again at the end of this month. November seems to be a time of year that a lot of folks donate to the local pantries, so I don't feel like I am making the shelves quite so bare for other folks. I can't wait until I am in a position to give back. I would love to donate a bag of groceries every week someday.

[damona]

hey mamas!

i'm still around, i just don't have my own computer anymore . i dunno what happened to it, but apparently it just up and died and i can't do a darn thing about it.

so anyway... i see some familiar faces around here, and a bunch of new ones so hi to everyone.

i have a question for y'all... how are you managing christmas stuff? presents for the kids, tree, all that stuff? i have a dinky tabletop tree that just has lights and garland on it (dh says it looks naked, but i like it), but i have no idea how i'm going to have anything to put under it! i signed up for the local charity christmas stuff, but there are over 500 families signed up already and i'm not counting on much there. my kids never get a ton of stuff, 2 gifts each from mom and dad and 1 each from santa, and usually 1 game or something for the whole family, but i don't think we can even manage that much this year. any ideas?

thanksgiving isn't a problem, we go to my MIL's house and she sends everything home because she is always dieting (the woman is tiny, but ), but christmas is going to be pretty bare bones this year.

my parents are filing bankruptcy and losing 2 of their 3 houses as well as their business, so i hate like hell to ask them for help, since they are scrambling just to cover the house payment. my mom still helps me with rent, and i just don't feel right even thinking about asking for more.

dh applied at wal-mart (ugh) again, several weeks ago, but we haven't heard anything from them yet. i still have my fingers crossed for that, but i'm starting to lose hope. we are pretty much surviving on food stamps and the generosity of friends. i hate this. i keep hoping that it'll turn around at some point, but nothing ever goes right for us!

the kids' school called me the other day and i got fussed at for not sending them in full winter gear (it really wasn't even that cold) and then they sent home a bunch of coats and hats and stuff. i only kept what we absolutely needed and sent the rest back with a note saying thanks, but we don't really need all of this, please keep it for someone who really does need it! it felt weird, having the school take up a collection for us, and not really that great.

anyway. sorry for the novel! i'll try to check in a lil more often!

[mammal_mama]

Damona, I'm so sorry to hear about your computer!

I'm happy for all the mamas who are stocking up on food! Dh just reapplied for food stamps 2 weeks ago (he'd heard about the changing guidelines) -- amd we just found out we now qualify for $127 a month. A real blessing, especially now that it's getting colder out, so the girls and I will be needing to ride the bus more to get out and go places.

With the rising cost of food, we were hard-pressed to set aside bus fares, and were feeling stuck-at-home more. So food stamps gives us that little bit of wiggle-room, and it feels great! :

[Nursingnaturalmom]

christmas. Well. We have sat the kids (okay the older ones mainly) and was real honest with them. I have been wanting to be simple this year anyway, and it turns out we have no choice this year. I have some stocking stuffers that I put away from last years 90% off clearance at target and places like that. We are planning on baking alot and the kids said that was fine. We can have cookies and watch the parade on TV.

I have heard that some salvation army's have something called Toy Shop (at least a couple do here) call your nearest one and sign up for that. Also, starting December 1 Toys for Tots in most areas will be starting their sign ups. We aren't doing that because I think there are more people in worse spots than we are.

Take Care
Chandi