It’s open enrollment time for benefits at my employer.  They have given us our options for health insurance, and we are able to choose which plan we’d like.  The choices for health insurance have been simplified down to a few choices, and it mainly boils down to two choices: a high deductible health plan or a PPO.  Last year, we ended up going with a PPO health insurance, and it ended up costing us more money out of pocket in premiums each month.  We did have less out of pocket expenses than if we had chosen the high deductible health plan.  Of course, this year I’m going to analyze the costs and see what makes more sense for our family.  The thought of a high deductible health plan scares me for a few reasons, but I need to not dismiss it, and see if we’d save more money going that route for health insurance. Cost of High Deductible Health Plan versus PPO The cost for the high deductible health plan for the entire year is $1,162.68.  The cost for the [...]

I went to the dentist this morning.  Before I went, I made sure to check our current dental insurance information on our company’s human resources website. It’s a good thing I did because it had changed from last year.  While I was logged onto the site, I printed out the dental insurance information.  The cost printed out along with the explanation of benefits.  For a whole year of dental insurance that covers myself and husband, we pay $402.24.  It’s only $15 a paycheck, but I really started to wonder if it’s worth having dental insurance any more.  Neither myself or my husband have been to the dentist at all this year (bad, I know!).  So we’re pretty much not using the insurance at all. Our open enrollment period is coming up soon, and I’m wondering if I should just go ahead and drop the dental insurance.  I do think it’s very important to have your teeth cleaned every six months (and our insurance pays for that 100%) but if we don’t do it, then we’re wasting $402.24.  I don’t think [...]

This fall is turning out to be horrible for my allergies! I’ve suffered from headaches, a stuffy nose, itchy eyes, and a scratchy throat.  We live in one of the worst places to live if you have allergies.  I am so ready to move! Unfortunately, it seems like everyone I talk to is suffering (or knows someone who is) from bad allergies this year. Rather than toss back Claritin, I’ve tried to find some natural allergy remedies.  What’s nice about natural allergy remedies is that instead of masking the symptoms, you are actually treating the causes of the allergies. Natural Allergy Remedies 1. Local honey.  Local honey works as a natural allergy remedy because it introduces pollen into your body naturally.  It’s best if it’s super local because then you know you are getting your system introduced to local pollen and allergens.  When your body ingests small amounts of pollen, your natural defenses are stimulated, which helps your body naturally fight.  Not only does honey work well for allergies, it also tastes great! 2. Neti Pots. Neti Pots (which look [...]