When we left WA, we left our car as part of the closing deal with the house. When we got here, we purchased a used 2006 Volvo. Not quite three month has gone by and we find out that the car is in desperate need of a new transmission. Total estimated costs are equalling 6800€. Obiviously, this is quite a blow. That amounts equals about $9000. We didn't know how in the world we could pay for this repair and of course are really angry that we were sold such a shotty car. Meanwhile the dealership wrote to Volvo and asked them to cover some of the costs. This car, although no longer under warranty, had been dealer maintained and us only about two and a half years old. We got word back yesterday that Volvo will cover 60% of the costs. Not bad considering they were under no legal obligation to cover any amount after the warranty ended. Of course this doesn't fix everything, but it certainly helps!
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Recession impacting developmentally delayed children
There is a news story on NPR today discussing the negative impact of the economic plight of the nation on children with developmental delays. The stories are truly heartbreaking. Schools are not able to meet the higher numbers of children diagnosed with Autism and other delays because they lack the funding. So, this precious short time in which interventions make the highest impact is spent with the child on a waiting list. Parents are desperately trying to get the services needed for their children and are moving to states the may offer services with shorter waits or whose benefits are better. After listening in on the development preschool here this morning, the rising numbers seem to be putting a strain on everyone. There are 11 students in one class. That is quite the case load for one teacher. All students qualify as special needed children. I just hope that with the greater numbers of children and the falling financial ability of government to fund these programs, that these children don't fall through the cracks. Imagine the implicaction if these children do not get the help they need. The cost of funding these programs will be nothing compared to the amount of money it will cost in the future if these children grow up without the life skills needed in order to function in society.
Sunday, February 8, 2009
mobile blogging
We are still without traditional Internet, so I am going to try mobile blogging. We'll see how this works out. Things have been crazy here, as usual. Everyone has been sick. Ian hasn't been to school since Monday. Jameson has not been quite as sick. We were able to visit Wurzburg a couple weeks ago. We saw the hospital were the boys were born. The base and everything are shut down tight. A sad sight indeed. We enjoyed awesome food and even visited one of our favorite wineries. We are looking forward to warm weather and more travel.
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