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Yay for DD! That's awesome! I love that you make travel and experiences a priority!

Liz, thanks for the thoughts on Medicare. I am very leary of Medicare Advantage. Anytime a medical product is advertised (and the plans are constantly being advertised on TV and print) I think some group is chasing profits. In order to generate profit, access to care must be limited in some way.

Retirement Spending: If we've planned this the way I think we have we should be debt free when I retire. The house is paid for, the cars will be paid off. That's pretty much it for debt. I was joking with DH if he thought we could keep at least one of our cars running until we die. Probably not :) When we were in the thick of it raising kids, bills everywhere I asked DH how we would ever be able to retire? He said are you planning on taking dance classes? Playing the saxophone? Voice lessons? Will you need special shoes for track? And he was right, some of the expenses that were overwhelming me did fall away. We will not live lavishly, but we will be fine, and will have room to do some of the things we love for as long as we are able to health wise.

I find my weight stays weirdly stable too. One time I grabbed a box of stuff and held it while I weighed because I thought maybe the scale was stuck. Nope, I did in fact weigh more holding a box than not holding a box.

Overcast today, so I think DH and I will go check out my classroom to see if the carpet is in and I can start re setting my things.

We bought some more theater tickets: for the Broadway tours of Some Like it Hot and Back to the Future. We saw Some Like it Hot in NYC and it was fabulous! So excited to see it again. I'm not a huge fan of the Back to the Future story, but DD saw it, and said we shouldn't miss it because the special effects are so good. So we'll see it when it tours through Minneapolis next month.

DD texted us this morning and shared she has now lost 32 pounds since the beginning of June. I am so happy for her!

Currently planning a trip to Galveston with BIL and SIL during my break in October. In Minnesota we have a fall break (a 4 day weekend). Always need to have a trip planned for overall life satisfaction :)

I hope that the minimally invasive procedure can help you!

Navigating Medicare is a bear. Just be sure that you make a choice that will serve you well for the long-term because switching once you are sick is essentially impossible. Advantage plans are almost always great when you are well but can be a a burden or an expense with a serious illness. Deceased DH was on an Advantage plan (my choice). We had no problems until his dementia became advanced. We couldn't see the psychiatrist we wanted or the in-house physician we wanted at his assisted living facility because they weren't on his plan. At the end when we were exploring psychiatric help again, his plan didn't include any of the geriatric psychiatry resources available. We have a friend who has a huge debt with a major Boston hospital because his Advantage plan wouldn't cover him going to the specialist based there for his unusual medical condition.

I have a supplemental plan with Medicare which costs me a bit over $200 a month but covers absolutely everything. I never get a bill other than the insurance bill. It was an easy decision for me because prior to Medicare I was paying $800 a month for a high deductible plan which meant I paid out of pocket for most routine visits.

ETA: BUT the prescription plans are way less great. As you know Medicare Part D plans will not pay for any weight loss drugs unless there is an existing cardiac condition (high blood pressure doesn't count). And because of this rule it is illegal for pharmaceutical firms to let you have the drugs at a reduced price.