Day #29- Home

I know... I know... I skipped a day. But I think you can forgive me. We were a little busy with settling in and such.

I hope you aren't sick of reading my blog yet, because I feel there will still be a lot to share with you as we work through recovery, both physically and emotionally, and all the bills that are sure to pile up. AND, you don't want to miss the transcript (as best I can remember) with my phone call to a certain Dr.'s office today. SO... on with the post!

Yesterday was a pretty good day. I did report on portions of it on Saturday's post that I finished on Sunday. Today (Monday) has been a pretty good day.  The whole family slept in. No one moved until around 8am when the phone rang. Good thing it did too...my day was disappearing and I had lots planned for today! We got the herd up and fed them breakfast. Jenni Simmons stopped by to go for a walk with my wife. They made all the way around the block- Wahoo- go Babe!

When my wife returned I handed off little missy and took all 5 older kids out back and we chopped the weeds (Okay, so at this point I realize that I should be better about taking pictures before and after) in the back yard and on the side. I tell you, the workforce that was taking care of our yard rocked it! The weeds were getting thick, but here in our town, if you aren't pulling the weeds everyday they become a forrest in no time. I have to say that considering the ages of my workforce things went pretty smoothly. It was while I was chopping weeds that I got the return phone call from the Dr.'s office. I had called and asked to speak to the doctor but was told that he was out of the office until next Monday. I then asked to talked to the billing department. The lady over billing did not answer so I left a message. I simply told her that I needed to have my account frozen until I talked with the doctor and then IF we paid it would be if we had any money left AFTER we took care of the the bill from being in the ICU for three weeks.

So, when the billing lady called back, I was wondering how it would go done. I kept my voice firm, but not rude (at least I didn't think I was). It went something like this:

Me: Hello?

Her: Is this John Hughes?

Me: Yes it is.

Her: Okay, ummm... I got your message and I need to clarify some information.

Me: Okay.

Her: So on your account I see you, your son *** and another son ***. And there is no balance. I do see that you have another account connected to yours. Ummm... is it for (my wife)?

Me: Yes. That is the one I am talking about. I want that account frozen until after I talk with Dr. ***** and we  figure out what is going to happen. We will have to decide if and when I will be paying the balance.

Her: Okay. We just sent a bill to you...

Me: I know. That is why I am calling.

Her: You did get the message that he is out of the office until Monday, correct?

Me: Yes I did. Would please have him call me when he returns?

Her: Yes. I will.

Me: Also, I need to ask about the $xxx I already paid on this account. It doesn't show the full $xxx payment on her account.

Her: Let me check... I will need to check a different view... Ok. I see that $xxx was applied to her balance and $xxx was applied to some new charges that are now on the account.

Me: Are those for ****** (my baby)?

Her: Yes.

Me: Okay. Well, again, I want the account frozen until I talk with the doctor.

Her: Okay.

Me: Have a nice day... (click)

So... I guess we will have to wait a week to see how this is all going to go down. My wife and I have talked a lot about what we want to do with regards to retaining a lawyer. We have both decided to wait and see what the full financial burden is clear and then make that decision. We have had lots of input from people, and we appreciate all your insight and thoughts. We will obviously keep you posted on what status of that decision.

The rest of the day was filled with chores, kids, and anger management practice.

Chores:
-Watered the garden and continued to water
-I washed the baby's dirty clothes
-Helped my wife get the new clothes for my youngest son out of the shed and washed
-Kept the house semi-cleaned up

Kids:
-Spent some good quality time with my littlest boy
-Enjoyed a walk with the family
-watched Gnomeo and Juliet (well, the first half anyways)

Anger Management:
-Had to really focus on the kids so I didn't yell all day long
-Feelings of anger that sit just below the surface and trying to repress said feelings
-Learning that my kids mean more than anything else and learning to apologize when I make a mistake

A big thanks to the McFarlane family for taking the kids to lunch at the school and then to the park to play. It was a nice break to have the house quiet for our babies nap for a little while. We also had Kathy Holyoak stop by for a quick hello. And Heather Parsons, amazing crafty queen that she is, brought us a plate of muffins (that made for a tasty lunch, by the way) with a Welcome Home banner and little paper house on top. It was very thoughtful.

After lunch my wife and I (and the baby) ran some errands and then we just hung out until dinner arrived. The Nolan Johnson family brought us a very tasty meal, a gift for the baby and a nice card for my wife and I (thanks for everything Johnson family...we love you people to pieces!).

After dinner, we took a nice walk together as a family and then popped in our movie. We paused it half way through for an ice cream cone break (thanks again Johnson family) and then decided to finish the movie tomorrow so all the little ones who had crashed could finish it as well.

I guess that about wraps up our day. Kent Johnson did swing by to check on us and ask about dinner for tomorrow night. It is very overwhelming to have some many people still want to help out. I mean, aren't people just sick to death of hearing about and dealing with the John Hughes family yet? Apparently not, and thanks for that.

Well, I guess we will see what tomorrow brings us. But now it is VERY late (12:50am)  and I am exhausted.

Later...