The things kids say

Last night I had decided to take a long hot bath. We had been working on sorting through boxes and boxes of stuff from the basement. I was in the bathroom, bent over cleaning the tub when the door opened and my five-year old daughter stepped in. I should be used to this by now as privacy goes out the window when you have children. :-)

The Kinder: "Eww, Mommy, you have hair on your butt!"
Me: (reaches behind me to check)
The Kinder: "No! On your other butt!"
Me: "My other butt?"
The Kinder: (points on herself) "Down there."
Me: (blushing realization dawns) "OH! My vagina?"
The Kinder: Yeah! (sounding shocked at the concept)
Me: (wrapping back up in my towel as this one may take a bit) "Well, baby, most women have hair on their vagina at some point in their lives."
The Kinder: (looks absolutely mortified) "EWWWW!"
Me: "It's not eww, it's just something that happens to you when you get to be about Spidey's age."
The Kinder: (eyes big) "Will I get hair down there?"
Me: Yes, when you're around Spidey's age, baby.
The Kinder: (eyes even bigger, absolutely mortified) "EWWW! But I don't want hair down there!"
(Tim chortles and dashes out of the bedroom from where he's been eavesdropping.)
Me: "That's a bridge we'll cross when we get there. You don't have to worry, though, it doesn't hurt and it's not a bad thing at all. It's just part of growing up."
The Kinder: (thoughtful for a bit) "Boys don't have hair down there."
Me: "Well, most boys naturally get hair down there when they're about Spidey's age." (I'm so avoiding the sculpting and scalping aspects for both men and women. LOL.)
The Kinder: (thinks about this) "Spidey has hair down there?"
Me: "Well, I don't know if he has started to get hair there yet, but quite possibly."
The Kinder: (opens her mouth and bellows her brothers name)
Me: (trying not to laugh) "No, no, honey. It isn't polite to ask someone if they have pubic hair."
The Kinder: (crestfallen, then thoughtful for a second, and then bellows her brother's name again)
Me: "{Kinder}, do not ask your brother if he has public hair. It isn't polite to ask people that kind of question."
The Kinder: "Why can't I ask Spidey? Spidey's not people, he's my brother."
*insert longer conversation with much amusement on my part!

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An email I just sent to Lenscrafters

The following took place at Dr. Day & Associates/Lenscrafters:

LENSCRAFTERS,

THE AVENUE WEBB GINN

1250 SCENIC HWY #1268

LAWRENCEVILLE, GA 30045

(678) 512-0316

I recently made a reservation for my son to have his first ever contact lens exam. I did so through the Lenscrafters' website. I arranged to get off work early on this particular Friday afternoon and I was taking him to his appointment when someone from the Lenscrafters' office called to say that the website allowed me to make a 6:30 p.m. appointment when they didn't actually offer 6:30 p.m. appointments. I had even received several confirmation emails so this confused me. The person on the telephone stated that none of the doctors liked to work past 6:00 p.m. She offered us a chance to come on the following Sunday so we made the appointment.

I arrived ten minutes early for our appointment. I handed over my insurance card and ID and began filling out the paperwork. While completing the paperwork the person who had signed us in came over and said I'd have to pay full price as my son isn't allowed another eye exam until September 2009 as he's already had one this year. This is not true in any way. I asked if she was sure because he's only been on my insurance since January 2008 and hasn't had an eye exam since August of 2007. She said that most likely wherever he previously got his eye exam had a 'hold' on him. My son was on his father's insurance before and there's no way the previous place had my insurance card information in the first place. I called his father and got the number of the previous place and called and they verified this information. I asked the receptionist if she could call Aetna to verify this information. She said no. I tried to call myself and they were closed. The receptionist eventually grudgingly conceded to placing a call to the verification service (not Aetna) and found that there was an inconsistency in the chart and I'd have to call tomorrow to straighten it out. I was rudely and quite condescendingly informed of her findings and told that the doctor would not see my son unless I paid $108.

I went with her to pay and I guess the doctor came out and got my son during that time. When I returned I was told he was in the exam room alone with the doctor. I went in and there was Dr. Cohen who I'd never even met shouting at my child. She asked him to read a line to her and when he responded that he didn't think he could read the line she started yelling, "Just read it fast. Go! GO! GO! GO!" He said, "It looks like a triangle." She yelled again and said "Just read it! GO! GO! GO! GO!" My son is special needs. He does not perform well when being yelled at or being rushed. I tried to explain this to the doctor and she completely ignored me. My son who had been looking forward to this experience was nearly in tears.

She hurriedly finished up with adjusting to get a reading on his eyes and before she left the room I again explained that he didn't do well under pressure and could she please make sure the reading was correct. She glared at me and walked out. I was baffled and could not understand her rudeness. I decided to let it go for now as my son seeing is more important than my ego. She returned with a pair of contact lenses. My son asked a question and she ignored him. I repeated it and she ignored me, even to the point of talking OVER me as I asked the question again. I could not believe I was paying someone to treat us this way and that something so important to my son was being ruined by such rudeness from this doctor and her staff. Dr. Cohen then proceeded to lecture me about how important eye exams were and that my son's eyes were so bad that he shouldn't wait two years to have one and how such behavior was irresponsible on my part. I was mortified. My son had his last eye exam in August of 2007, something I'd put on the forms. I explained to her that it had only been a year, not two years and she turned her back to me and ignored me. I very nearly walked out at this point, but reminded myself that my son needed this so kept my mouth shut.

She sent us out of the room at this point. We weren't really quite sure what we were supposed to be doing as she didn't tell us and no one came to assist us. And she had left us as soon as ushering us out. I had noticed with other patients wandering around that patients did get called back in for eye dialation and I knew from when we checked in that they would be dialating his eyes. I asked my son to read things to me and tell me how things looked for him as we waited for some associate to notice us or for someone to tell us the next step. We watched as other people were ushered in and out of rooms with the same brevity and abruptness. Dr. Cohen has the worst bedside manner I have ever witnessed and treats patients like cattle being ushered in and out of stalls. She ignores questions and quite frequently talks over people, treating them with quite obvious disdain. I went and stood in line at the counter so I could ask a question. The man ahead of me was dealt with, and then without even acknowledging me the lady leaned around me and started talking to the man in line behind me. I was completely ignored. I stood there for 20 minutes before she finally even addressed me or my question. I was floored. I've never experienced anything like this and was really baffled.

Eventually we were finally called back into the room and Dr. Cohen removed the contacts from my son's eyes and put in drops. Again we were ushered out of the room.

This time we sat for 45 minutes before Dr. Cohen returned to get my son. In the meantime we were ignored by the associates. I am handicapped and had to spend most of this time standing which is very painful for me and no one even considered providing a place for us to sit. I made it a point to pay close attention to the behavior of the associates and noticed how rudely one man was treated when he asked for his prescription so he could fill it elsewhere because he was unhappy with the service he was receiving. All in all he waited for more than an hour for the associate to print it out. I watched them rush through another client's order and ignore his questions, and then have to chase him down in the parking lot because they forgot to recheck his eyes before he left! I noticed the same abruptness and rudeness with several of the associates, with only one notable exception. I couldn't believe this treatment as the Lenscrafters in Athens, GA (where we formally lived) was extremely customer-oriented and extremely helpful.

We were finally called back again and the doctor once again took my male child into a room alone. I find this not only inappropriate and rude, but quite potentially risky behavior for the entire practice. When she returned she rechecked his prescription (which did make me feel better) and then told us that they didn't have time to teach my son how to use contacts and so we'd have to come back. I looked at my watch and there was still an hour until closing time. We came out and noticed there were three other associates and only 1 other patient. Again I was made to wait, standing, at the counter while people BEHIND me in line were waited on.

The associate behind the counter said I could return in 6 days at 2:30 p.m. for my son to be trained on contact use. I said we couldn't make that appointment, was there one earlier or later in the day. She said I could come at 1:45 or 3:00 p.m. but that was it. I asked if we could just have his prescription and I'd fill it through my work discount provider. She glared at me and said I couldn't have the prescription. So, I've just paid $108 and I don't get the prescription?! Now I feel like I've been robbed and cheated. Eventually she agreed to someone teaching him at 10 a.m. on the following Saturday. I went out and called my husband. We talked for a few minutes trying to figure out an alternative plan because we really don't want him being without a way to see very well for a week at school. I went back in and asked if he could come tomorrow (Monday). The associate said, "sure" - I asked how late they were open and she said that how late they were opened didn't matter. What mattered, she responded, was if someone would be there who would show him. I asked who could do it, and she said an associate. I asked if one would be available after 5:30 p.m. the next day as I had to work. She said no. I asked would anyone be available after 5:30 p.m. any day this week and she said no. I asked who could do the teaching and she said any associate. I said, "and you're open until 7 p.m.?" She said yes, but no one was available after 5. Now I was really confused. I explained that he really needed his contacts filled as soon as possible because his prescription had changed so radically in the past year. He is having issues in school. She finally said that I could come at 6 p.m. tomorrow but there would be a really long wait and no one might not be available.

At this point I feel like I've been robbed of my $108 and several hours of my life. My son came home in tears because he felt so mistreated and upset that he still didn't get his contact lenses. I don't understand why I can't get his prescription when I've paid for it and when they're certainly not trying to make time to train him to use it. It seems the only thing that's important to them is getting out of work early each day and not working with patients until closing time.
I've never been so disgusted by such treatment by anyone in any form of medical practice. I'm certainly never going back there again (except to get his training and his prescripton. I will certainly get both his glasses and contacts elsewhere). I'm contacting the Better Business organization tomorrow as I feel scammed out of my money, and I don't feel like Lenscrafters or Dr. Davis & Associates are giving a fair treatment to patients. In essence they are stealing money by not providing a service as promised. I also have a blog with readers in the greater metro Atlanta area. I will be posting this entire email there as well as specific details about the location of this Lenscrafters. I will ask that fellow bloggers repost in any local communities and in their personal blogs. I will be forwarding it to Yelp and any other customer service-related websites I can find. I will be contacting Clarke Howard on WSB Channel 2 News as well as other news affiliates who want to help investigate the business practices of this locaton. I will also be contacting our insurance agency and discouraging any kind of relationship with this Doctor's office in the future.

In the meantime I suggest you check into this practice's methods of treating clients so poorly while ripping them off. With practices such as these you're not going to keep very many repeat clients. I doubt I'll ever go to a Lenscrafters again.

A Messy Room

What is it about kids that make them have the ability to see beyond the big chaotic mess of their rooms? IS it really more comfortable to them that way? I cringe when I walk by my kids' doorways. I avert my eyes many mornings. Sometimes I can't even make my way into their rooms without fear of breaking a leg. And I've tripped and fallen a few times trying to get to their closets.

We punish them and make them go to their rooms to clean it, but yet they never get it clean and organized enough. My daughter can spend twelve hours in there and not get anything done, even with us giving her helpful suggestions about what to do. I've tried charts, I've tried making it into a game, I've tried being stern. We take other privileges and make them dependent on getting their rooms clean, but yet they don't seem to be able to click over into "clean & organize" mode.

My husband and I are both fanatical about being organized, almost to the point that I wonder sometimes if we're not OCD. And I don't remember being this way as a child. I shared a room with my five siblings. We lived in an old mill house and my parents slept in the living room (yes there was a bed in the living room); we had no den or dining room, just the kitchen, living room, a bathroom on the partially enclosed back porch, and all six kids had the one bedroom upstairs. Oh, and the attic, but that's another story for another day. :-) My siblings were hugely messy, I was always cleaning up behind them. I remember when we'd be sent to "clean our room" that "my" part of the room would be clean and I'd spend four hours cleaning the rest of the room - messes the other five made! Maybe I was just a weird kid or it's an oldest child thing? But I can't stand to live in a mess.

My son recently went to Louisiana with his paternal grandfather and a church youth group. There they worked on homes damaged by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. As a gift to my son for doing something so charitable and wonderful I spent almost thirteen hours on that Saturday working in his room and closet, organizing things, getting rid of things, and going through his drawers. It was a sight to behold. My son was really thrilled when he returned. And it stayed that way for the last month or so, then last week I started noticing things piled up in the floor and piled up on dressers. Then there were random piles around on the floor of the closet, then the pile spread out into his room. Now I can't even see the floor of the closet. I pleaded, I cajoled, I threatened, and I even punished but he didn't seem capable of cleaning it up.

This morning before work I spent an hour in the daughter's room picking up stacks of clean laundry out of her floor, hanging them up, and putting things away in the drawers. I know I'm enabling their behavior, but I don't know what else to do at this point to get them to clean up and organize their things. My ex-husband would have boxed up everything he could and remove it from the rooms, that's what he used to do as punishment for having a dirty room. That never felt fair to me, but then again, I'm a softie.

So, what is a mom to do? How do I get them to take some ownership and some responsibility and get these rooms clean? How do I make them WANT to live in an organized manner?