Author Archives: Regina Garvie

Thirty days of gratefulness – A Book

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Today is a book. Should be perfect for me. I thought about writing about all of my books – or at least manuscripts – that I have written. I could also do the Bible, which I am obviously grateful for.

I’m going to do “I’m Gonna Bury You” by Gene Neill. It’s a self-published book that I first read in junior high. My church Sunday School teacher lent it to me. It’s about a man who lived a wild life, went to prison, found Jesus, got out, and became a preacher. Every time I read this book, I am filled with faith, and hope, and excitement at the power of God!

When I was having a terrible depressive episode about eight years ago, what finally pulled me out of it was Gene’s book. I reread it, and it gave me a lift, but not like it used to do. But for the first time, I noticed he mentioned a book he read, Power of Praise, by Merlin Carouthers. And that book! That book was all about thanking God in all circumstances, whether we perceive them as good or bad. God is in control of all and it’s all working out for His glory. Like the whole, “All things work together for the good of those who love God.” ALL THINGS. Not just the pleasant things. And if we fully trust God and His plan, we should be praising and thanking him for everything!

And there it is. My heart was troubled before I started writing this, worried about finances and what’s going to happen to our family. But now that I remember to praise God in everything and thank Him, I remember that everything is going to be okay. Even if it looks bad here. Even if we lose our house, or the cars, or even our very lives, God is in control and He wins! And we can be with Him for all eternity, right there with His glory.

I feel complete and at peace again.

I am so thankful for those books!

“I’m Gonna Bury You” on Amazon

“Power of Praise” on Amazon

Thirty days of gratefulness – something about your body

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This isn’t easy to do today. The question keeps reminding me of my stepdad, Jerry, who hospice said today is actively passing. My stepsister Dianna has been taking care of him for the last several years, while I’ve had Mom. Mom repeats herself a lot and asks questions again and again, and that’s hard, but nothing compared to what Dianna has had to do. Although his mind has been sharp the entire time, his body has been having trouble for about four years now, starting with a tick bite.

So I think about that, and the fact that many of take our bodies, and our mobility, for granted. But it can all go.

My body hurts a lot. I think it’s the connectivity tissue disorder the geneticist says Belinda and I have, probably Ehlers-Danlos. But I’m not as bad off as a lot the people in the groups on reddit and facebook that I follow. My rheumatologist thinks it is psoriatic arthritis, but that never seemed quite right to me. I don’t really have psoriasis. I do have a super dry scalp and very rarely a little red spot up in my hairline, but that doesn’t seem the same to me. But I think he came to that conclusion because that’s what I walked in his office asking about, since Marissa had that. And now I wonder if she had it too. Maybe her pain was all undiagnosed Ehlers-Danlos. Her skin was really soft and makes me think of the velvety skin they said some EDS people have.

I’m not going to pick one thing. I’m thankful for my entire body. The good parts and the bad parts. I don’t treat it well; I don’t eat great and I don’t exercise enough and I’m on too many medications right now. But I’m trying. Hopefully as my weight comes down I can get off the medications and feel better. And do better.

I am thankful for the painful parts. I know that God has me experiencing this for a reason. Maybe it’s so Belinda could get a diagnosis and not have to go through whave over the years. Maybe it’s for all my kids and future issues. Maybe it’s something else. Doesn’t matter.

This is such a solemn day. 🙁

Thirty days of gratefulness – A Sound

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So I forgot to do this yesterday, and I’m backdating it. It was a busy day, with church, and then we went to see Jerry and Dianna and have lunch there. Jerry has been on hospice and now they say his passing is imminent. He is on some heavy medications and snoozed for most of our visit. Mom held his hand most of the time, and he did look at her and he knew she was there. I know we need to visit more. I just feel like I am at my limit for what I am able to do and still retain my sanity. I feel guilty right now that we didn’t visit him enough, and I am sure I will feel even more guilty when he passes.

So, I am going to just do the sound I am grateful for quickly. It is the sounds of a little song and video that is a nice thing to see and hear when you are feeling down. It has been on the Internet for a long time, but I only found it a few years ago.

Ranger Preview

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Today we left the house at *gasp* 6 am and drove to Alva so Belinda could do Ranger Preview, which is a thing for high school seniors to find out more about NWOSU. It was a great time and she got to talk to professors from the psychology and English departments, which is what she plans to major and minor in. She also visited with some people from clubs and took a dorm tour. I really enjoyed seeing the updates on campus and I got to see one of my favorite professors at the history booth! He told Belinda that she sure had two crazy people for parents. It is neat to go to a small school and get to be remembered like that. History wasn’t either of our majors, and I only think I had two classes with this professor, but he remembered us. It was so good to see him!

We ate lunch in the school cafeteria and then got Taco Village to take back for the fam. Belinda did not have a problem swallowing all day! She still has not had to regurgitate food since the dilation procedure. She said that yesterday, she did start to choke on rice (it’s so sticky) but she got up and started to walk and it went down. I hope and pray everything keeps going well!

And we we got home, Bennett was feeling better after Mia took care of him and everything else around here all day. That made me feel very happy.

The editor at the local newspaper wants to write a story about Belinda, and I need to get the questions answered that he emailed me. One of his questions was if we had a gofundme or how people could help. I’d never done that before, but I asked our pastor if people could give to the church for Belinda, and then the church would give it to us. We did that before for a young man in our church who needed special surgery. But then tonight, I went ahead and made the gofundme. I wasn’t sure what to put down, but I thought about how much we have spent so far, and how much that may be in the future. After she turns 18, she won’t be eligible for the same assistance from the National Organization of Rare Diseases. Her benefits are on the pediatric level. And there’s not much help for Achalasia because it’s super rare. And with health insurance kind of in flux right now, it seems smart to try to get on top of that. Also, we need to determine how we are going to meet her needs in her dorm room. We might do a wedge under the mattress to elevate her head, but many of the other parents on the facebook group have gotten adjustable beds for their kids. I feel like that might be a better option for the dorm room, so she doesn’t slide down. It would be more comfortable for studying and reading too, since she’s not supposed to fully lie down anymore.

Anyway, the gofundme is kind of experimental at this point. We’ll see what we think and make adjustments as we go.

Thirty days of gratefulness – Something that makes you laugh

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I’m sort of hard to make laugh. I only do it for what I consider to be Very Good Things. Ben can make me laugh. Lots of times my kids make me laugh. They all say that I made them funny but not laughing at things they did that I didn’t find amusing, so they had to keep trying harder and harder to get me. And they are all very funny, so I guess that worked.

Another thing that makes me laugh is Ylvis, as posted about earlier. One thing that liking the humor of Ylvis did for me is that it got to to watch Season 1 of Kongen Befaler, which means The King Commands and is Taskmaster in Norway. I watch it with subtitles and it really does make me laugh. And that led me to Taskmaster. And boy do I love Taskmaster too. I’ve watched all the British seasons and some of the other versions. I think there is a new season out now and I’ve been waiting to watch it. That will be a very nice thing to do in November, I think.

I am smiling right now thinking about watching Taskmaster with my dear friends Greg Davies and Little Alex Horne.

These shows are so SMART, you know? So you get to laugh and you get to think, and you get to solve things. It’s such a good combination.

It’s funny because Marissa used to love her Britcoms on PBS and tried to get me to watch them and I was like, yuck, no, I can’t even understand those people. When Ben and I watched Shaun of the Dead, I had to put on subtitles. But then Ben and I watched Downtown Abbey and Great British Bake Off and then Taskmaster, and I don’t have a problem with the accents at all. I really don’t understand how I ever did.

And I’m so glad I can watch it so easily now because the funny things I have found matches up with my sense of humor to a T!

I filled out my Secret Sister form for church today. I hope I do a good job and help her to feel loved. Sometimes I let time get away from me. I’m going to start praying for whoever mine is tonight! I don’t know who she is yet, but God does.

Thirty days of gratefulness – Something You Didn’t Have Last Year

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Okay, today is Something You Didn’t Have Last Year. And I am pleased to actually be writing this on the correct day and not having to backdate.

I’m going to have to make it short and sweet because there’s just too much happening right now and I want to let my mind rest a minute. But I am thankful for my son-in-law and future daughter-in-law, neither of which I had last year.

It was wild having my children start dating their eventual life partner within days of each other. Suddenly instead of six chairs at the dining room table, we needed eight. And we couldn’t all fit in one car anymore. It’s been difficult getting used to new people being at our house all the time. I am usually guarded around people who aren’t my close family, and having others here made me feel on edge. It’s better now.

But even with that difficulty, I am so thankful that Ben R. and Mia are in Lenora’s and Bennett’s lives, and that they are very happy with their partners and in love. It is hard to let go but it is good to add more love to our family.

I have been praying for my children’s future spouses ever since they were babies. It has been very nice to finally meet two of the people I’ve been praying for.

A different sick baby

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Today Bennett is the one who needs babying. He got his wisdom teeth out this morning. Our portion was higher than I thought it was going to be, because I didn’t understand the paperwork they’d gave us before, but I had gotten a credit card offer right after Ben lost his job and I thought that might be needed in an emergency and I guess this was the emergency. I’m glad I had it.

After, we went to our regular CVS in Mustang to pick up the four prescriptions. We waited in line and were next to go when the pharmacy closed for lunch, at 1:30 pm. Bummer. So we went to Walmart and I bought gauze and puddings and popsicles and things while he waited in the car. We went back to CVS and got there right at 2 pm and got in line. Then when we finally got there, they informed us that the prescription had actually been called in to a different CVS instead of the one we requested. Okay. We turned around and went back north for about seven miles to the other CVS and got in line, and eventually, we had his prescriptions in hand. The funny thing is, if I had only known they were going to call it in to the wrong CVS, we could have had the meds right away. The oral surgeon was basically across the street. Both CVS stores are on Mustang Road, so I can see how that mistake could happen.

He said he was going to go up to the car taking forever at CVS and just look in their window like this.

We parked in the lot and he got his medication. I was very glad because he’d had a few big bouts of pain, just really sharp and sudden.

By the time we got home, he was asleep, thanks to the stronger of the prescriptions. I woke him up and we went inside and now he’s on the couch, snoring.

I was going to go with Karlene to see Jerry tonight because hospice has said that his passing is imminent, but I don’t think I should leave Bennett like this. I originally thought Mia would be here when we got back because I misunderstood what she said her work scheudule was today. I don’t want to leave Bennett alone here.

I also can’t go see Jerry tomorrow because we are going to take Belinda to NWOSU for Ranger Preview. She needs to go to this to prepare for going to school there in the fall. Just attending gets her a $600 scholarship.

We’ve already made plans to go to Jerry’s on Sunday afternoon, instead of hosting church lunch here. I hope he is still with us that day.

It’s hard when there’s no clear correct answer.

Thirty days of gratefulness – An Opportunity

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Today’s prompt is An Opportunity.

I am very grateful that I am now writing again for the Tuttle Times. My friend Jayson is the editor now, and he posted on facebook that he was looking for something to write for Minco and Union City, and get paid by the story, and I commented that if he was ever looking for someone for Tuttle, to hit me up (cause I don’t want to do Minco and Union City, sorry not sorry). He did, and I’ve been doing stories them for over a month now, which is wild because it’s gone by very quickly. It’s not a lot of money but it is nice to be getting a little something. And I am enjoying getting a toe back into the local news and community scene. It’s been a long time.

It couldn’t have come at a better time, too. I used my first check to help us out during the trip to DC for surgery earlier this month. And now the second and third checks is keeping our bank account from going negative, so I am very grateful for that!

When I commented on that post, Ben was still employed with no inkling that he was about to lose his job of 28 years. I just thought it would be good to write news again and to make a bit of money at the same time. But God knew what was to come. I believe that He put this situation in place, and it will help us through this difficult time.

My triumphant return into the world of journalism, in the Oct. 3, 2024 edition.

And now you know the rest of the story.

Insurance schminsurance

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Today was the day I battled insurance!

I’ve been having some trouble getting one my own prescriptions filled with the specialty pharmacy I have to use. They told me our insurance showed as terminated on Oct. 31. I explained that we had extended it with cobra, and they were basically like, too bad, so sad. I have waged war with this specialty pharmacy before so I wasn’t super surprised. Then after two days of calling them, they discovered that I needed to get a refill order from my doctor anyway, so I did that.

Last night Ben and I rolled into CVS to pick up a prescription for Belinda. And they said, of course, that our insurance showed as terminated.

Ben got in touch with HR and it went back and forth a little. Today my doctor messaged me and said the prescription had been sent to the pharmacy. So I decided to call the insurance company myself and after an hour wait on hold, got connected to a very nice woman who set up a conference call with us and the specialty pharmacy. And the pharmacy rep told us that the office we made the cobra payment to needed to contact them and tell them that the information was incorrect and that we were covered.

I passed this on to Ben, who was tired of being the middle man and asked the HR rep if could just talk to me, and that’s what we did. I emailed her what the pharmacy had said, and she took care of it. The specialty pharmacy is updated and they also left a voicemail to CVS, so hopefully that one will be updated fast too. I am very thankful for his kind former co-worker!

Okay, so I just called the specialty pharmacy and they have not gotten the prescription from the doctor. Sigh.

I guess I’ll call CVS and see what the update is there.

It’s annoying that so much was paid for the extra month of insurance, and for two weeks we didn’t have pharmacy coverage. I am thankful that we didn’t actually need it, though. My prescription is late, but I did have a few extras from days I forgot to take it, so I think it will be all right.

And in the grand scheme of things, these problems don’t seem very big at all. I know that I am blessed. Thank you to everyone reading my updates and praying for Belinda, and may God bless all of you. <3

For sure spasms

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I asked the parents in the kids with achalasia group on facebook, and it is definitely spasms. Several people said their children describe the sensation the same way.

I’m very grateful that Belinda doesn’t have them very often. I’m also grateful that they don’t last very long for her. She did say today that sometimes they last longer, like a few minutes, but still. One parent said their child has experienced them from an hour up to two days.

There is medication you can take that supposedly helps with it, but Belinda and I talked about it and she doesn’t think it’s at a point that should be medicated.

She’s also supposed to think about what she ate and drank before one, so she can figure out her triggers. She said she hasn’t had one since the dilation, so maybe that is helping.

I’m glad that she talked about it and now we know what it is. She was frightened that she was having heart problems, but now she doesn’t have to worry about that.

Oh, and bonus fun, the insurance through cobra seems to be working fine EXCEPT for prescriptions. Both pharmacies we use says that it says our insurance has been terminated since Oct. 31. Today I was on the phone with one of the pharmacies and also the insurance company. They were all nice but it’s apparently out of their hands. Insurance lady’s advice was to wait until tomorrow and see if the computers have caught up by then. Even though this is Day 14 of the coverage with cobra. The person at the pharmacy said that the office we paid for cobra coverage needs to contact them and tell them we are indeed insured. So now it’s back in Ben’s court, to deal with HR.

My speciality pharmacy prescription is now 7 days late. Belinda has one to pick up, and so does Lenora, and we can’t do it. It’s pretty bad that the cobra extension cost so much and it’s not even working correctly.