March Madness

1. Go Alma Mater!
2. It's snowing. To the extent that we will need to check tomorrow morning for a snow day. And even if it warms up for Scooter's party, it will probably be too muddy to send the kids outside. At least 10 kids inside for 2 hours!
3. Scooter turns 6 very soon. Getting ready for his party has served as a major distraction to the fact that he is not such a little boy anymore.
4. Most of the parent bloggers I read are people I personally know. (Hi, Toronto moms!) But I've been reading Amalah for several years now, from even before the move up north. Her older son has definite sensory processing issues, and so I can identify with a lot she's going through. Being the opinionated person I am, I also have a strong reaction to many of the comments over there. The worst are of the category of an early one from yesterday (see previous link), where the commenter basically said Amalah was causing these issues because of her anxiety. Definitely the mark of someone who has just no idea--and is a jack-ass. But I also get frustrated with the commenters who give anecdotes about the child they knew who had all sorts of problems and is now perfectly fine. Trillian and I made the decision early on that we would pursue those therapies that were suggested, available, and non-invasive. Although we have no way of knowing for sure, both of us feel confident that OT, in particular, has made a huge difference for him.
5. Which reminds me of a conversation Lisa b and I had some time ago about OT. Both of us are so scientifically minded and have been faced with putting kids into OT without knowing if it would help or if improvement would come on its own. We joked about having identical twins with the same developmental delays and then being able to put one into OT and let the other one alone. (For those who don't know me--this is my brand of science-geek humor. I would never actually do that.)
6. So I was moving forward on this foot-surgery thing. Even went so far as to get a second opinion (which matched the first one almost identically). Then I looked more closely at my insurance plan. They have a very specific paragraph on foot surgery, including a dollar limit on what they'll pay in a year, if it is not due to a fracture or dislocation. Which is less than a third of what the procedure would cost me. I'm going to call to clarify, but I just can't justify that expense right now. The podiatrist thinks, and I agree, that this is their attempt to keep people from getting what is technically elective surgery. (As in, there is nothing that says I absolutely must have this surgery right now.) He also asked if there was a knee or hip clause--and there isn't. Sucks that my pain is in the foot and not another joint, which would be covered. Maybe if I had Trillian back the car over my foot...
7. But if I don't get the surgery next month, I'll probably be heading back to the fertility clinic (which, if I read the insurance properly, will be partially covered). I've now met with a different fertility doctor in Big City, who is definitely an improvement over the first asshole I saw. Still debating some things--this doctor, as have others, would like me to get a hysterosalpingogram to check my uterus' shape, as a possible key to the two miscarriages. If there were a structural issue, they could operate on it, but I already know that I wouldn't do that. So now I'm debating whether I should do this or just push forward with the three remaining vials (which I have also decided will mark the limit of my attempts).
8. And then there's the paper I'm delivering in 8 days. I'm hoping for notes from my supervisor soon. Not that I'll be able to do any major rewrites at this point, but at least I should have an idea of where it sucks before I deliver it to an audience.
9. Gah! A houseful of kids in two days. Definitely March Madness!