The Lenten Journey Intensifies

I realized that I'm giving up more for Lent than I thought!! Today I gave up any spending money I'd hoped to have for March, maybe April and quite possibly May and June!!!! There goes my favorite Easter treat : Peeps!!!!

I mean, kids need to go to the dentist and all...but why does it have to cost so darn much!!! I took my four crying out loud to the dentist today: three had their teeth cleaned and had clean bills of teeth health, but JACK!!! Poor Jack has had a train wreak in his mouth ever since I brought him in 6 months ago. Over the past few months, he's had two teeth pulled, spacers fitted where the rotten teeth were, a child's version of a root canal (not as bad as the adult version), and has yet to get another tooth filled were decay has set in. Mind you, these are all his baby teeth!! How can three of my kids have perfect mouths and one inherit the teeth of an 80 year old?? Back when Jack came in for the first of his many dentist visits, our dentist broke the news to me that the cost of all this work may run about $4000 thousand dollars.....I just stared at him.....blankly.......not knowing what to react to first: the fact that Jack would have to suffer all this work, or to the fact that my pocketbook would no longer exist as an entity to hold money. Our dentist, God bless him, saw my stunned face and quickly assured me that since we were members of the same church, he'd give me a price break. I smiled uncomfortably, not used to needing such charity, but knew it would be stupid to pretend that I had $4000 just sitting at home so I humbly said, " Thank you, I think I may take you up on that offer."

Fast forward to today. I approached the receptionist desk for partial payment, and I knew it was going to be large.

Receptionist: $700.00 please

Me: heh. (I thought to myself....there go all my Easter Peep candy) Here's my bankcard. You can put it on that.

When I broke the news to my penny pincher husband about how much the visit was today, he took the news well. No fainting was involved at all!

Turns out that the overall cost for Jack will *only* be $3000. Meanwhile, my Lenten journey continues, more painful than I ever thought, but hey....no pain, no gain. Oh, and no Peeps for Easter. Waaaah.