Glad the week is over

I'm almost 2 weeks post wisdom-teeth removal, and it's getting better day by day. I wish I could make my blog title show up on the picture I picked to add more pizazz. Cest la vie. (oh, and that picture is from last year in case you are wondering....) My poor little picky-eater Ava. She's anemic...at least that's what we think. We are waiting for lab results. Her hemoglobin is really low. She had blood drawn yesterday, and we'll get the results on Monday. This is the MOST obnoxious thing: my pediatrician's office REFUSES to do a finger stick in the office because my insurance company is contracted with a lab for all lab work. OK. So, you are telling me that I have to take my baby to a lab, hold her down while a tech sticks a needle in her arm to draw blood to tell me whether she has a low hemoglobin. And THEN when you find out it is low, you are going to send me back to hold my baby down again for another needle stick to run more tests? Ummm...I do not think so. My former pediatrician did this right in her office...with my same insurance. (Unfortunately, she's like an hour from me, so the travel got to be a bit much.) You see, all that is needed for the first test is a finger stick, a drop of blood, and putting it in a small machine for a quick-read result. My sister did it for me (yay Auntie Jill!) and it took about 30 seconds. I CANNOT believe that the pediatrician can't just stick the kids finger for a drop of blood and include it in the regular office visit charge. I'm not dumb - I do work for insurance companies, so I KNOW that they are not going to deny a claim because you stuck a kids finger for a blood sample. It's all in how you code it. If it's coded as a well check-up, and you happen to do this procedure as part of the well check-up, it will be paid. But, unfortunately, this doc likes to nickel and dime. A few months back I got a $6.00 bill for a urine bag that my insurance apparently wouldn't cover. $6.00 for a urine bag? and you billed me after I spent maybe $150 in co-pays in a 3 week period? You are kidding me. (Please know that I do like and trust the doctors, which is why I put up with their billing insanity...for now. I also have siblings and parents who can provide medical advice, so I don't rely on the peds alone....) We still haven't decided what to do about the Awana drama this past week. We did get an e-mail saying that parents CANNOT take their kids out of the room and then bring them back. Ummm...hello? Isn't that they whole reason why parents have to stay within shouting distance of the Cubbies activities to begin with? (We aren't allowed to leave the building during Cubbies.) Do you really want a kid in the room yelling "STOP SINGING YOU ARE HURTING MY EARS!"