Crazy Week

This has been an emotional week for me. It started out with my back hurting really bad on Monday, yeah Monday. I mean I can usually deal with it hurting like Thursday or Friday like it was, the stabbing pain that doesn't get better unless I lay down for a couple hours with heat and ice. So I was worried for the week because of that. Then Tuesday just got worse, because even after the heat, ice, and laying down on Monday night the pain was immobilizing after 2 hours of work on Tuesday. So I called my physical therapist to see when she could get me in, and her office people said that Monday was the soonest she had time available... That wasn't going to work. So I called her cell phone and left a message and then also called her other office (down town) to see if she had any availabilities there, I got a no, but we'll have her call you. So at 2 after a couple people went to lunch I went home. I got a call at about 2:30 from Laurie (my pt)saying that I could go in right then to her down town location or Wednesday at 7:30 to the Sandy location. I went then, to the downtown office. She got me feeling a little better, enough that I could walk and sit and stand without being in more than a little pain. She kept a spot open for me on Wednesday night, which was a really good thing because Wednesday was just as bad as Monday had been. So I went again and she taped my back which I think helped a little...

Then Thursday happened...

It should have been a day full of excitement because the Arveseth's moved back that day. But it turned out differently.

So I work in the afternoon Thursday's now, which makes it my day to get things done, phone calls, appointments, etc. I needed to get some details from the HR people at my work about how the disability/maternity leave stuff all worked. In case I had to leave early because of my back, and to see what happens after the baby comes. Well I called the Kroger corporate people and the lady looked me up. She in an very emotionless tone said, well since you have not been here a whole year you have no benefits. You will be terminated when you leave. Insurance will be canceled as soon as you don't meet the hour requirements. Then when you are ready to come back you will have to reapply, which means a new start date and the same waiting period for insurance.

Any other questions?

So then I called my mom, my poor mom... I lost it, complete hysterics, I couldn't breathe, I couldn't talk, I couldn't do anything. After about 5 minutes of not really being able to talk she spent the next 20 minutes trying to get me to calm down and to help me know that it would be ok and that everyone would do what they could to help and that with my license I would be very employable after the baby came, and told me that I needed to talk to my actual store people and the local people to make sure that was their policy as well. It was made so much worse with the state of my back because I was planning on calling in sick because it was so sore from the first thing in the morning.
I was a mess.
Jake started school this morning also so he called me between classes and probably 10 minutes after I talked to my mom, I was still crying, and he was in a panic when I couldn't tell him what was wrong. A hysterical wife is bad but a hysterical pregnant wife is much scarier plus my sister's family was on there way here flying cross country. He was about to run to his car and come home, I had to tell him that everyone was ok and get out the news about my job and insurance... He didn't freak out quite the same way as I did, I don't think he even cried - men are so lucky to not cry so easily. He also tried to tell me it would be ok and that I just needed to relax and that we'd figure it out. He told me to call in to work and see about taking the day off like I had been planning...

So I tried. They were short handed and if I didn't work my whole shift it would leave them with 2 people during lunches and at closing. So that wasn't an option, I had to find someone to cover for me. Well the people I could think of weren't answering their phones, one didn't even have an active phone number... I left a message for one person and hoped she would call me back as I tried to prepare myself for an emotionally and physically draining evening. Finally 30 minutes before I would have had to go in she called and could work half my shift for me. It saved me, I got to spend some time with Jake for lunch and then went and visited with my mom for an hour or so. By then I was emotionally in control enough to not get hysterical at the thought or mention of any of it. I worked my 4 hours, of which only the last hour or so was my back in complete spasm, so that was good.

Friday came around and I knew it was time to talk to the store people to see what they could do for me. It was hard to talk to the manager guy, luckily he is super nice and easy to talk to. I told him what the corporate people said and he quickly said no, no I won't take you off the payroll, you won't lose your job, you can pay for COBRA when you aren't working and then as soon as you are back up to the required monthly hours you will re qualify for insurance. I told him my concerns with being gone more than 6 weeks and he told me he's had people gone for much longer and not fired them when they had a reason to be gone. Phew. One hurdle for the day done. I also needed to make sure that my pharmacy people would help me out and to see if I could cut back hours. They were so very reassuring and said that all the maternity leave stuff would be fine and that Paige (the Smith's pharmacy guy, over all the Smith's in the area, also my old bishop) would make sure I get the hours I need, even if its at more than one location. And if I need more time off he would put me in the float pool and that would keep me from being able to be fired even if I didn't work. Phew again. And then with yesterday being pay day we all got our checks and the other tech's who have all worked for years for Smith's got raises... I didn't. Because I am considered an apprentice or something, but we looked and I am like 2 weeks away from the next pay step, its done by hours, so I will be getting a 60 cent raise sometime in September, isn't that awesome! I told them I wanted to cut back some hours because of my back, I was afraid because the scheduling has been kind of an issue at my work... But they were good with it and I will just cut back an hour a day, so work 9-4 MTWF and 2-9 Th which I think will really help me out and won't totally destroy my pay, like calling in sick or leaving extra early would do. Plus it will probably make it so I can work longer, like for the next 9 weeks.

Jake just called me this morning to tell me he just got his insurance packet from Target and that he will be eligible for insurance in September.

So with all of my freaking out and the horrible things from this week, it is ending on a happy note and with some extra reassurance that everything really will be ok and that God is listening to our prayers and will take care of us and not give us more than we can really handle.
(Sometimes I wish the reminders weren't quite so hard)