Catching Up

Well it's already almost 1am so I guess I don't have time to catch up on this completely, but there are two posts below about my wonderful hubby so don't miss them! I'll have to post about Parker's blessing and being with family tomorrow or soon after.

Scott's Internship Expedition to Seattle

Last week Scott was gone for three days with a group from his school. He didn't walk me through every picture but I can guess at some. It was lonely with him gone, but really not that bad with the kids. Call me crazy, but it was ok. He got to meet with and get networking info from Microsoft, Amazon, Costco, State Farm, Boeing, and maybe another place but it's late and this is all I can remember.

Scott and a friend waiting to board the plane to Seattle.
Part of his group. They rented vans while there.

Going to the meeting with Amazon.com

He raved about this Thai restaurant they went to.

And says they all ate multiple plates piled with Sushi at a Chinese buffet. He said one guy in his group ate 7 plates.

At the famous Pikes Place Market

He was stoked to have this Gyros and have it taste the way it should! Having served his mission in Germany he is a bit picky about these...

The little plane they flew on.We now know we are not leaving in April for an internship and so are excited for this summer. We will be able to do the garden again and enjoy Rexburgs warmth again. The summers here are great. And now we will do the internship in the fall as his last semester so we only have to move once instead of three times! Very excited about that.

This will never get old!

Scott loves to take advantage of the cereal sale Albertsons does every once in a while. This is his 3rd time doing this and this time he bought 60 boxes for about 50 cents each! Anyone want Honey Bunches of Oats? lol He's also built a tower with them every time and so here are the pictures. He actually had to build two because the first one got knocked over before it was finished. And David got to knock the finished one down!

Is it really going to be a good thing?

I got this in response to an email I sent to our Idaho State Congressman a few days ago. As much as I would love to believe this health bill will be good for America I can't get past all the bad things happening with this bill. I agree there are a few good things as stated near the end of this email, but I can't believe everything else and it frightens me that Obama and Pelosi were pushing so hard for this thing to just get passed when we don't even know everything that is in it. It really frustrates me that they think they can take away some of my freedom and give me a penalty if I don't have insurance. ugh. And I'm just stating this one because it's the one that irks me the most. I know many of you are in favor of this bill, but read this email and I hope you will keep your comments respectful.

Dear Alicia:

Thank you for contacting me regarding healthcare reform and HR 3590. I appreciate hearing from you and having the opportunity to respond to your concerns.

I voted AGAINST HR 3590, legislation that represents the first step to a government takeover of the healthcare system. Despite my strong opposition and the Republicans' repeated efforts to defeat the bill, this bill passed the House by a final vote of 219-212.

Everyone agrees that our healthcare system needs to be reformed. Health care in America is too expensive and too many Idaho families are worried about losing or have already lost their health coverage. However, I have major concerns with HR 3590, which will raise Americans' taxes, create a massive new entitlement program and do little to address the problems in our current health system. The frightening reality for the American taxpayer and anyone who will need health care in the future is that the Democrats are hiding the true costs of these bills and doing so in ways that will be disastrous to our nation's long-term fiscal health.

This bill raises Americans' taxes by including a Medicare surtax on individuals making over a certain income. This is really a surtax on small businesses, which make up the majority of high-income filers. Moreover, like the Alternative Minimum Tax, this tax will continue to entrap more and more middle class Americans every year as their incomes go up because health premiums tend to rise faster than the standard rate of inflation. It also contains a number of other tax increases, including a tax on health insurance plans costing over $27,500 for families, penalties for individuals without health insurance and employers who cannot afford to provide insurance, and, for the first time, a Medicare surtax on investment income. For those people who already have health insurance through their employer, this bill will put that coverage at risk. It implements expensive new mandates on all employer-provided health insurance, which businesses must follow or face new taxes and penalties. For many employers, it will make more business sense to eliminate jobs or drop employees' health insurance and pay the penalties than comply with Uncle Sam's new rules.

This bill also includes a dramatic expansion of Medicaid, from 100% to 133% of federal poverty level. Starting in 2016, it will cost states, including Idaho, billions of dollars to comply with another unfunded federal mandate--something state budgets simply cannot afford. It contains devastating cuts in Medicare payments that will put seniors' access to care at grave risk in order to offset the cost of this new entitlement program. It includes cuts to hospitals, nursing homes and hospice care, implements a new tax on medical equipment, and includes devastating cuts to Medicare reimbursement rates for physicians. If these cuts take effect, the Medicare actuary estimates that up to 20% of physicians will be forced to stop seeing Medicare patients.

I strongly believe that there are a number of measures that all of us, regardless of party affiliation, support that will bring down costs and improve access to care for all Americans. These are not new ideas-they are, however, ideas that are critical to implementing real, affordable and effective health reform.

First, we must pass effective medical malpractice reform. By passing meaningful liability reform, the legal system will continue to protect patients against medical negligence, but it would limit junk lawsuits by placing caps on noneconomic damages and limiting attorney fees and save billions of dollars in wasteful spending by stemming the practice of defensive medicine.

We should immediately end the current practice of banning the purchase of insurance across state lines. Under the current system, the insurance market operates like 50 individual fiefdoms with each state in charge of insurance regulation and individuals limited to buying health insurance from local insurance providers. Allowing purchasing of insurance across state lines would increase competition in the insurance market, as individuals would have more affordable health insurance options and end the monopolies that exist in many states.

Bipartisan health reform should include provisions to allow small businesses to band together through associations to buy health care coverage, giving them the same leverage and buying power that large corporations and even labor unions already enjoy. Further, everyone recognizes that we need to do more as a country to focus on prevention and early intervention. And for those people with pre-existing conditions, I support measures to prohibit insurers from denying coverage.

These are just a few examples of reforms that all Americans--Democrat, Republican and Independent--could support that would bring down healthcare costs for taxpayers and consumers and improve access to care. These are not new ideas-many of them already have support on both sides of the aisle. I am disappointed that President Obama and Speaker Pelosi have chosen to ignore this message. Americans deserve REAL reform-not a partisan, gimmicky bill that will cost trillions of dollars and do little to improve care.

Once again, thank you for taking time to write to me with your concerns. The thoughts and opinions of Idahoans are important to me as your Representative in the United States Congress. I also encourage you to visit my website at www.house.gov/simpson to sign up for my e-newsletter and to read more about my views on a variety of issues.

Sincerely,
S
Mike Simpson
Member of Congress

Is Spring Really Here?

It seems almost too good to be true that the snow is already gone. We went to the park Monday and Tuesday and it was wonderful!

The kids were especially attracted to the puddles, of course...
And had a great time in the swings...

This is my nephew Owen, Russ and Hilary's son. Aint he a cutie? We tried to get a picture of Parker all bundled up but it just wasn't workin, so here's one of him getting frustrated that I'm taking pictures instead of cuddling him...

And here are some random recent pictures since I know family(particularly my sisters) love to see them.

Say Cheese!!

If you can't tell I'm really grasping for reasons to post here. Not much going on besides just hanging out together at home. It's supposed to be 49 degrees on Monday though! If it is I'm going to venture to the park for the first time by myself with all three kids. Whoo!!

Loving on the baby...

Parker is David and Sydney's favorite thing right now. They always want to hang over him and play with him, and I play the referee because, you know, sometimes they love him too much!! =) One thing is for sure though. Although they can drive me crazy sometimes(usually from 4:30-6pm weekdays before Scott gets home-it's killer!) I love being their Mom and love spending time with them, watching them grow, and playing the referee. They are so adorable and I love them so much!

Big gummy smile!

If you can't understand what David is saying he's talking and asking about elbows. =)

Cooing

In the last week Parker has started cooing and playing with toys and it is SO adorable!! Sometimes he does it more than what I caught but I never seem to have my camera on hand when he does it the most. Cutie!