Giving at Christmas

For the past three years we have adopted a foster child for Christmas and given them presents and necessities they have needed/requested. We try to get a child that is the same age as Wyatt so that he could feel a connection to the child and can help pick out toys for him/her. Each year we talk to him about how he is very lucky to have a mom and dad and family who love him very much and can be there for him. We talk about why the kids are in foster care and how this will make them happy because they will know that someone cares for them and is thinking of them. Well while we were shopping for our foster child today Wyatt decided to throw a royal fit! After he had picked out the toys for the little boy we headed to the clothes and shoe department when the fit throwing started. He kicked off his shoes and was just generally being a brat! The highlight was when he started yelling that he wanted to be a foster child and get presents! Yes, that's what he said! I talked to him in a hushed voice so that everyone couldn't hear the tone in which I was talking to him and then he said that he didn't want a mom and dad so he could get presents. Oy vey! Who's child is this, anyone? At this point he was about to become a foster child.
On Sunday he was happier about the situation and had turned around his attitude about being a foster child and not having a mom and dad. We packed up the presents and clothes for the foster child and Wyatt wanted to make sure that he had fruit snacks to eat, so we threw a couple of packages in for good measure. Here's to hoping that next year will go even better!

Our adjusted balance is now $0.00

Two weeks ago Mike and I received a bill from Mercy Hospital. We were extremely perplexed about getting this because we haven't been to the hospital since Wyatt was born and wondered why were getting a bill. Well that's exactly what the bill was for, yep, a bill for when I had him. It was a bill for his stay in the hospital, TWO YEARS AGO! So I did what any normal person would do, I called the hospital and talked to them. They didn't have an answer for me and were just as perplexed as I was about why it was coming 2 years late.
After talking to them I of course called my mom (who works in hospital admissions and deals with insurance paperwork) and she said, "I don't think so!". She gave me some more advice about who to talk to and what to ask for when talking to them. Then I was back to the phones and making more calls.
I finally ended up getting a number to a hospital in Wichita that has taking over billing for Mercy Hospital. After talking to a very rude billing agent who told me that it was my fault!! Can you believe that, my fault?! I was livid to say the least. She said I should have called the hospital when I didn't get another bill from the hospital for Wyatt. I told her that I teach fourth grade and don't get paid to do her job. Trust me when I say this is the edited version of my conversation. Needless to say I ask for her boss' name and number and I talk to her instead.
When I talked to the boss she gave me little more information and said she would look into the situation. Well that was last Tuesday and I didn't hear from her all week. So on Friday I called her and left her a message telling her to call me back. I called her again this morning and of course she was unable to be reached. The secretary asked me if I wanted to leave her a voicemail and I said yes but would also like her to take a message for the boss and give it to her as well. The message was that I would be calling her until I got ahold of her or she called me back and that I was tired of waiting.
I got a call back in only an hour and our account has been adjusted to a balance of $0.00!! So very happy!!