Wednesday, February 27, 2008

The Results Are In

So the doctor called this morning and Allen does have a herniated disc between L4 and L5.

Basically he is leaking:

The advice the doctor gave was to continue physical therapy and take Vicodin as needed (taking Ibuprofen when the pain isn't as bad).


Hopefully soon he will be able to stop Vicodin all together.

(Note: The fuzzy picture reminded me of how Vicodin effects so many people, though Allen says he isn't one of them.)

Tuesday, February 26, 2008

MRI


Allen had his MRI today. We hope to have the results from the doctor by tomorrow evening (so says the doctors office). Be praying that it is good news, and that at the very least it would be an answer to why he is having this pain.

Saturday, February 23, 2008

Clean up Clean up

Earlier today, Lizzie kicked Steph and myself out of the kitchen because the floor was "icky." Lizzie then proceeded to sweep the floor for the next five minutes.

Ellie's 1st birthday video


My wife ever so graciously reminded me yesterday that we never posted the video from Ellie's 1st birthday party. Problem solved.

Ellie's 1st Birthday

Note: It's a long one, so folks on dial up should expect long loading times.

2nd Note: Sorry for the shaky camera work up front (first 30-40 secs). It does get better.

Charlie

One of the funniest videos on YouTube I've seen in a long time. I could watch it over and over again. The one boy's voice and expressions... and Charlie's reactions/expressions. Great.

Charlie Bit Me

Friday, February 22, 2008

Photos Finally


So I have seriously neglected our flickr account and am just now getting to October's photos. With only 200 photos a months to work with it could be awhile before I am caught up to speed, but feel free to take a journey back in time into Fall of last year.

Note: (I am hoping to be able to purchase the pro account, then you all will have some serious catching up to do in flipping through them :-) ).

UPDATE: So we are going to be doing things a bit different than I had supposed. We are now the proud owners of a Picasa account, that hopefully will soon contain all of our pictures. Not only will we have more room for photos, but if our sweet family want copies of any of our pictures they don't have to wait for slow Steph to get them in the mail (snail or email).

Friday, February 15, 2008

Letter to Delta

As promised my response to Delta's letter


Dear N----- M. F--------

I thank you for your prompt reply to my letter regarding our difficult Delta Experience. However, upon reading your lengthy response, I found myself feeling even more frustrated with the policies and procedures of Delta Airlines. I appreciate you explaining the various reasons for why we had a poor experience. Unfortunately some of the key points seem to have been overlooked. For instance the destruction of our car seat wasn’t mentioned and the idea that Rush Hour 3 was a good choice to show to an entire airplane of people simply because it is a new film is a poor excuse at best. I do appreciate your apologies despite the seemingly tongue in cheek appearance they presented.

The poor treatment by your baggage claim handlers and the way with which your customer service personal continuously have blame shifted has left us feeling frustrated to say the least. Please understand that we have come to appreciate the people in Delta customer service very much, but feel that the rules they have to go by are where the true problems lie. I realize that Delta is a large company and perhaps it would seem that you could afford to lose a handful of customers by simply dismissing their complaints, and in essence them as people, but I assure you that if this type of conduct continues within the umbrella of Delta, it could spell bad news for more than just your complaints department.

Regarding the vouchers we were sent: Yes, $100 each seems a wonderful gesture, but what it fails to recognize is that we were treated so poorly that there is no incentive to fly with you again, regardless of what price discount we receive. If I paid $300 to be treated poorly, how is paying $200 really any better? The discount offered seems not an attempt to redeem our terrible experience, but rather a failed attempt to pacify a displeased customer. Therefore, thank you, but we will not be partaking of your “good will gesture.”

Not only will my family not be flying with you again this year, but we will try our best never to fly with Delta again. In addition, all of our extended family and friends from all over the country have been informed of your practices and treatment of your customers as they pertained to our events and situations. Rest assured, your Corporation lost more than a 4 person family as customers for the next 50 plus years. Even people who barely know us have heard our Delta woes and will think twice before using your Airlines, as we have updated our weblogs regularly with each new piece of the story.

I am saddened and disturbed by Delta as a company and the unhelpful manner in which they assist their “valued” customers. By the way, we are still waiting for the remainder of the reimbursement check for the car seat, as we were surprisingly shorted by $59.99. We hope, but don’t expect, to see that coming in the mail in the weeks to come.

Disappointed by Delta,

Stephanie Hutchison

Wednesday, February 06, 2008

Delta's Letter of Response

Allen and I tried very hard to get this letter in a link so that it wouldn't take up the whole page. However, we were unsuccessful, so please only read the following letter from Delta (a response to my lengthy complaint letter) if you are really interested.

Dear Ms. Hutchison:

Thank you for your correspondence describing your recent experience with Delta and our Delta Connection partners, Altantic Southeast Airlines and Comair. We apologize and appreciate your taking the time to share the details.

Your time is valuable, and operating on schedule is equally important to us. In the process of providing air service over many different routes each day, we sometimes encounter mechanical problems, adverse weather, and other unavoidable interruptions. These are situations faced by all airlines and no carrier can guarantee that all flights will depart and arrive as planned. We're sorry you were inconvenienced.

I am very sorry your clothing was damaged on your recent trip with us. We place great emphasis on providing the highest standards of service to our customers and we regret this unfortunate incident.

The films shown on Delta reflect those currently produced. We realize some contain material that may be objectionable to individuals for various reasons. The feedback we receive from our passengers plays a direct role in our decision regarding future programs, and we will continue to exercise as much discretion as possible in this area.

As a goodwill gesture, we have issued our $100.00 electronic Transportation Credits for each passenger which may be used toward future Delta travel. E-TCVs are valid for one year from the date of issue. If redeemed at delta.com, they will not incur a transaction fee. Fees will apply if the e-credits are redeemed through any other Delta location. Please refer to the enclosed terms and conditions of the e-credits for additional information.

Please accept our apology for the unfavorable impression you received in this instance. We appreciate your selection of Delta and will always consider it a privilege to be of service.

Sincerely,

N--- F---
Manager
Customer Care

Back Woes

Allen's PT appointment went well. They say he probably has a leak in one of his discs ("probably" because they would have to do an MRI to know for sure).



For now they are going to treat it as such and have him rest it up with one stretch he is to do 2-3 times daily until his next appointment on Tuesday. The hope is to regain fluid in his disc so that in time he can move on to strengthening the disc and surrounding muscles. This means no lifting anything over 10 lbs.
Translation: I have to lift everything! Pray for us. As we go through this we are also battling a flu-bug-virus-thingy (yes all 4 of us, what can I say we do everything together :-) ).

The good news is that God has given us some great friends in our building, who we can call, or knock on their door if we need help in the coming days and weeks.

Monday, February 04, 2008

Pain, Pain Go Away, Don't Come Again Any Other Day

Sorry I haven't posted recently. This has been a really tough week around here. Allen has been experiencing excruciating lower back pain that began last Tuesday. He did see the doctor on Wednesday, had X-Rays on Thursday, called the doctor again at 11pm Friday night because he was in so much pain nothing was working. Started taking anti-inflammatory meds that night. He is still in a ton of pain, though not as bad as Friday and Saturday.


This pain has been draining for all of us. Allen is exhausted from the pain and lack of sleep due to pain. The girls are on edge and irritable from the lack of activities for them to do while being stuck home and unable to play with Daddy because of his owee and Mommy is tired and can't play much because she is busy trying to keep things together.
I saw this chart when looking for pictures of back pain, I just can't figure out if this chart is representative of Allen or me. Probably all 4 of us at some level or another.
Tomorrow Allen goes to the Physical therapist to begin work on ridding our family of the pain. It is going to be really tough and probably pretty painful, so be praying for him at 2pm our time (that's 11am for you west coasters). And pray that it works, even if it is difficult to get through.


We don't know what we will do if the physical therapy doesn't do the trick. I suppose there is always: