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Just Kate

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Posts posted by Just Kate

    Cost of braces (teens)

    in The Chat Board

    Posted

    About $5,500 for each kid (dd is in braces now, ds got his off about 2 years ago). This includes retainers and all appointments. 
     

    We are so lucky that our insurance paid $2,000 toward each kid’s braces. So we only had to pay $3,500 out of pocket for each. 

    Children's Ministry Check-In/Out System

    in The Chat Board

    Posted

    47 minutes ago, mom2scouts said:

    I never take my purse to church and probably wouldn't be able to produce an ID and when we went to church with lots of kids, one of us might drop off and the other pick up, so a picture would be useless. Our large church has used the computer check in with printed stickers for years and hasn't lost a child yet. The child wears one sticker and the parent takes the other and produces the matching sticker during pickup. How likely is it for the parent to lose the sticker in the hour or two at church? Even the really large churches around us use these types of systems.

    I'm not really sure why you're worried about children getting separated in the lobby. Aren't the parents responsible for their children in the lobby? A check out system at the exit would be a nightmare at my church. We have multiple services and people are leaving while others are coming in for the next service at the same time, plus we have multiple doors. We have greeters at the outside door and they would probably notice a young child wandering alone out into the parking lot.

    We might be able to help you more if we knew more about your church. How large is it? How many children? Does the lobby door open directly into the parking lot? Are there people at or near the door who could make sure young children aren't wandering out the door alone?

    I attend a church with about 1,500 regular attenders. This is exactly the system we use. I have also works at the registration desk, helping to check kids in or sign up new families, for several years. We haven’t lost a kid yet!

    Anyone opting out of the Child Tax Credit monthly payments?

    in The Chat Board

    Posted

    24 minutes ago, Toocrazy!! said:

    Ok. I don’t have kids in this age bracket, so I’m not in the loop. But why does everyone feel they need to opt out? What will be the tax ramifications in April if you take this? Is it not a credit? Why would you owe it back? 

    For my family…the tax credit is based on income. Dh was unemployed for 9 months in 2020 and they will base what we receive for the child tax credit on 2020 income. Dh is back to work now (in the oil & gas industry) and I actually got a raise this year (first raise I’ve received in over five years!). So, thankfully, our income looks different this year than it did in 2020. However, opting out is a pain, so we will just stash the money in our savings account and have it available if we end up owing a portion of it back when we file our 2021 taxes. 

    Anyone opting out of the Child Tax Credit monthly payments?

    in The Chat Board

    Posted

    5 hours ago, Sneezyone said:

    If you get 1/2 of $500 but are only entitled to 1/2 of $250 for most of the year, you’ll essentially collect the whole amount before tax time. DD will be 17 in October but we decided to take the advance anyway. I believe the credit is prorated for the months prior to aging out so that’s only two months for us. We’re using it to pay for DHs apartment. He has to move while his ship undergoes repairs.

    For 2021, children who are 17 on Dec 31, 2021 qualify for the tax credit! I have a 17 year old this year and was expecting to get nothing for him, so I’m pretty excited. I haven’t read anything about the credit being prorated based on age though. Of course all of this depends on your income as well. 

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    Anyone opting out of the Child Tax Credit monthly payments?

    in The Chat Board

    Posted

    I’m also not opting out. However, since dh was unemployed for most of 2020 (which is the year they base the advance tax credit on), I am just going to put the money in a savings account, earmarked for taxes if necessary. This way we will have the money next spring if we do end up owing. 
     

    I originally went online with the intent to opt out, but it was a pain so I decided that it is probably for us to just take the advance money and save it. 

    • Like 2

    Favorite baby book

    in The Chat Board

    Posted · Edited by Just Kate

    8 hours ago, vonfirmath said:

    Babies by 

    Gyo Fujikawa
     
    Assuming you'll buy them new books by the time they are about 9 months old 🙂

      (They need Sandra Boynton by the time they are 9 months old. Moo Baa La La LA, Doggies, Pajama Time, Hippos Go Beserk, and Snuggle Puppy were all favorites here.)

    Yes…Snuggle Puppy!!! I completely forgot about that book until reading about it here. That was a fave at my house (too many) years ago. Also Sandra Boynton’s  Belly Button Book.

    (This thread is making me want to dig up my old board books that I’ve saved for “some day” and read them again. Memories!!!)

    • Like 1

    Would you buy couches on overstock?

    in The Chat Board

    Posted

    I would! I bought a sofa from Costco a few years back and because we don’t have a Costco locally, I ordered it sight unseen. It has been a great sofa and I’m so glad we ordered! We also don’t have a ton of furniture stores available, so we do what we have to do. 

    • Like 1

    PSA about benzene contaminant found in random sunscreens

    in The Chat Board

    Posted

    Ugh…leaving for vacation at the beach tomorrow. For some strange reason, this year I purchased several different brands of sunscreen. For instance, our Kroger closed (moved to a new location) and had a 50% off sale on the last day. By the time I made it there, I found a few different brands and just purchased what they had. Anyway, I am packed and ready to go…now I’m wondering if I should unpack my sunscreen and see if they made the list?

    Favorite Podcast App?

    in The Chat Board

    Posted

    I love listening to podcasts but I’d like to find a new app to listen through. I find the Apple podcast app to be too messy. I downloaded the Pocket Casts app and like it, but it doesn’t download all episodes of all the podcasts I listen to (some of the smaller podcasts don’t have all episodes available). Also, I find that some podcasts skip ahead in this app, which is annoying. Anyone have a (iPhone) podcast app that you love?

    Just found a tick on my leg

    in The Chat Board

    Posted

    6 minutes ago, regentrude said:

    I'd watch the bite site and watch for general symptoms. Good luck!

    We have tons of ticks here... nobody can go to the doctor for every single one

     

    2 minutes ago, Pawz4me said:

    Here I'd note the date on my calendar, probably flush the tick and forget about it. If I were a wee bit concerned I might save the tick. Honestly, if we thought we needed to see a doc and/or get on antibiotics every time we found an embedded tick "just in case" -- we'd stay on antibiotics the majority of the year.

    ETA: I hope you get good news on the cancer diagnosis. I'll keep you in my thoughts.

    Thank you both so much! In normal times, I probably wouldn’t freak out (too much), but right now, I’m just stressed. Finding that tick felt like just one. more. thing. 
     

    I will write it on my calendar so I remember the date and will watch it over the next few weeks. 

    • Like 2

    Just found a tick on my leg

    in The Chat Board

    Posted · Edited by Just Kate

    I just took a shower and found a tick on my leg. I showered and shaved my legs yesterday evening and it definitely wasn’t there then, so it’s been less than 24 hours for sure. We have a dog, so She likely brought it into the house. 
     

    We saved the tick and my husband thinks it is a lone star tick. My husband pulled it off with tweezers and it came off easily. 
     

    What should I do now?? I am dealing with some other medical issues (possible cancer diagnosis) so this is just pushing me over the edge. I live in WV, which is a Lyme disease state, which makes it worse. I have read a bunch online, but I’m still unsure of what to do. 

    • Like 1
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    Spring Break destination with teens?

    in The Chat Board

    Posted

    40 minutes ago, mmasc said:

    My vote is Hawaii. Full disclosure: I’ve never been. 🤣 but I’d love to take my kids (ages 10, 12, and 15) and they’d love to go! (It was our tentative vacation plan before covid hit)

    ETA: oh! Colorado is super fun for being active! Have you guys been there? Although, spring would probably be too cold for the things I’d recommend. I’m usually wanting HEAT by spring time, so I immediately thought ‘Hawaii!’. 

    Oh how I would love to visit Hawaii! But $$$, ya know? Colorado would also be great. We live in WV and haven’t traveled much in the western part of the US. But we need to do this trip in March, and like you, I want to vacation in warm weather. 

    • Like 1

    Spring Break destination with teens?

    in The Chat Board

    Posted

    I’m trying to plan a vacation for spring break 2022 and need some help getting started. My family is dh and me, with two kiddos who will be 18 and 14 next March. I want to plan a really fun vacation before ds graduates and we have always wanted to do something for spring break. 
     

    We haven’t vacationed a ton, but normal vacations have been visiting family in MN or going to Myrtle Beach (family has a house there which always made it convenient). One summer we went to the Outerbanks and allowed each kid to take a friend (that was a super fun vacation). This summer we are going to Myrtle Beach again, but this time for dd’s dance team. We are allowing ds to take a friend since dd will have her dance friends there. 
     

    I would like to come up with some options to give to the family. Something fun! The beach would be great, but not just lying around on the beach (everyone would be bored and kids would wish they had friends with us). Something that will keep us busy and active  

    I was thinking about maybe an all-inclusive resort somewhere like the Caribbean (this is what dd is requesting). Would there be enough fun activities for all four of us? I would love to hear of other suggestions. Any ideas?

    I am looking forward to planning this trip with dh and the kids. We have all been so focused on our own lives lately and it will be great to have something exciting to share. 

    Personal covid experiences

    in The Chat Board

    Posted

    My very small office now has Covid (I work from home in another state, so wasn’t even exposed). There are 5 people in my office...the person who brought it into the office worked on the Monday before Christmas and didn’t go in the rest of the week (planned time off for the holidays). He had no symptoms until Christmas Eve night. By Christmas night he knew he was sick and he had a rapid test the next day (Saturday) and tested positive. He called the other members of my office and they all tested that same day (no symptoms for any of them). Two tested positive and two tested negative. 
     

    Is it strange that the employee exposed the office on Monday and didn’t even have symptoms until Thursday night? I guess that’s three full days, but it seems like a long time. I guess that is part of the reason this is so contagious...if you can spread it for several days prior to being symptomatic. 

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