MetLife TRICARE Dental Program

“I participated in an Ambassador program on behalf of Influence Central  (#IC) for the MetLife TRICARE Dental Program. I received a promotional item to thank me for my participation.”

 
As this year is coming to a close my kids and I just finished up all of our routine, and not so routine, dental appointments. With my husband's retirement from the U.S. Air Force in our immediate future I'm thankful that we've been fortunate to have great dentists, and dental coverage, through the MetLife TRICARE Dental Program. One of the easy ways to enroll is through the online enrollment process.

At my last dental cleaning my dentist found one of my amalgam fillings had a tiny crack in it and needed to be replaced. He said over time this is a high possibility with these types of fillings - they simply don't last forever. I had several amalgam fillings and most of those were from my teen years so they've been in my mouth for too many years!

Knowing that my husband would be retired come the new year and that we wouldn't have our current dental plan anymore, I started thinking about getting all those amalgam fillings replaced by the end of the year and while we still had our MetLife Tricare Dental plan. I wanted to have this done because I had no idea what our next insurance would cover, or how much, or if we would even have dental insurance. Why not just get it taken care of now?

The MetLife TRICARE Dental Program has low-cost monthly premiums and cost-share rates (based on rank) for a variety of dental procedures. For an active duty family the monthly premium is $32.89 (and single is only $10.96.). Although the rates are increasing in Feb 2015 it is a very minimal rate. The new family premium will be $33.88. Compare that with the military retiree dental plan of just over $100 a month for premiums and I've heard many families say they elect to not have the retiree dental plan because it's just cheaper to pay out of pocket for the routine cleanings.

Fortunately MetLife approved the request for me to replace all my amalgam fillings with composite fillings (and it's so nice not to have all that silver in my mouth anymore!) and my cost share for the procedures was 20%. I was grateful to have this done with MetLife TRICARE Dental program because we didn't know who my husband's next employer would be and what kind of dental coverage we would have, or how much the cost share might be for that procedure.

The #MetLifeTDP also does a great job of keeping military members educated about dental health and important dental care practices through different communication channels. One way is that members can sign up for the Dental HealthMatters Newsletter to receive information such as benefits, updates, announcements, and tips. Another way to stay up-to-date is via the TRICARE Dental Program (TDP) Administered by MetLife Facebook and/or Twitter pages where you can learn some interesting facts about the program such as MetLife offers a TRICARE Dental Program Survivor Benefit. (The Government pays dental premiums and dental coverage for eligible surviving family members under the TRICARE Dental Program survivor benefit. 100% of the TDP Survivor Benefit premium is paid for children until age 21 (or 23 if student) and for spouses for 3 years beginning on the date of the sponsor’s death.).

In addition to providing dental coverage to spouses and children of active duty members, the TRICARE Dental Program also provides coverage to Reserves and National Guard members and their families. And speaking of the National Guard - their birthday was Dec 13, Happy 378th Birthday to the National Guard!

Softcard Makes Paying by Phone Easy

“I participated in an Influencer Activation (#IC) on behalf of Influence Central for #Softcard. I received a promotional item to thank me for my participation.”

It is amazing how much we are able to do with our cell phones now - think about how far technology has advanced from when cell phones were even first a new thing! You almost don't need to carry anything else with you since you can do almost anything with your cell phone and an app. You can arm your house's alarm, lock and unlock your house/garage doors, access your bank accounts to transfer money and deposit checks just by taking a picture with your phone, store all store loyalty card accounts on your phone so you don't have to carry all those key fobs with you ... and you can pay for your purchases at the register just by holding your phone up to a scanner device.

Softcard is available as a free download for Android on Google Play for select phones, and the Windows Play Store for select carries and phones. It is an app that makes paying at the register an easy process. The app allows you to pay at the register with a tap, and then some. With Softcard you can also save with special offers and store your loyalty, membership, and reward cards. I have not had a chance to load my store reward cards on Softcard, but plan to do so as soon as I can so I can have that convenience as well.

I was a little hesitant to use my phone to pay at the register since obviously it means your bank or credit card account is connected to this app, but Softcard uses state-of-the-art technology and layers of security to protect your account information. When you first use the app and go through the set-up procedures you will pick a 4-digit PIN that you it will prompt you for every time you open the app. If your phone is lost or stolen a call to your carrier or a visit to the Softcard website will disable the app on your phone.

When you open the app and click on the drop down menu there are several options, one of which is stores, this will show you a list of stores in your area that accept Softcard as a way of payment (there are over 275,000 stores accepting Softcard). Some of the stores will also have a symbol by them to indicate deals or specials for that store.

Since this does involve bank or credit accounts the app is not ready-for-use immediately upon installation. You do have to go through a few steps to get it all set-up. I have a Droid Razr M that is a couple of years old; I did have to go to Verizon to get a newer/updated SIM card before I could use the app. The SIM card was free to get it replaced so that was no problem.

Softcard uses participating credit cards from American Express, Chase, or Wells Fargo, or you can set up an American Express Serve account that you can add money to with your preferred debit or credit card or bank account. I went through the process of setting up a Serve account, which is free and has no monthly or annual fees if set up through the Smartphone app. Once I set that up I added money to it using my preferred credit card and then I was ready to try this out for the first time.

I used Softcard for payment at Walgreens a couple of times. The first time I used the app I used the function to search for a store and found out the Walgreens right around the corner accepted this type of payment. I needed to buy a last-minute gift for a child on an Angel Tree at my hair dresser's salon and figured going to Walgreens would be an easy way to try out Softcard for the first time while buying this gift. I was pleased with the experience and had no problems with it - it was easy and convenient to use.

I switch back and forth between a couple of purses and am constantly having to remember to check the purse I'm using to be sure I have my credit card(s), license, ID, or whatever else I may need. It was so easy to stand at the register with my phone in hand and not have to worry about looking through my purse/wallet to pull out my credit card and swipe it. Instead I just held the back of my phone up to the device above the credit card machine and it beeped once to indicate it registered the payment. That was it. So easy and quick.You can touch the card and it flips to the back side to show your remaining balance.

The current promotion through Softcard also enables me to earn $1 back each time I 'tap to pay' through the end of the year.

Here is a quick video of the mascot Tappy explaining Softcard.

Rosetta Stone Kids Reading Review

"I participated in an Influencer Activation on behalf of Influence Central for Rosetta Stone. I received a product and a promotional item to thank me for participating."

I am always willing to try new and different kids' reading programs to use at home with Kayla. While she has progressed in reading over the past year she still has a way to go with working on fluency and sounding out words she doesn't know. Anything to encourage her to read and practice (although I'm glad to see her more willing to pick up a book and read more so than she's done in the past.)

Rosetta Stone - well-known for their successful products teaching foreign languages - has a kids reading program called Rosetta Stone Kids Reading.

Rosetta Stone partnered with reading experts at Lexia Learning to create this Kids Reading Program. The program is geared for kids ages 3-7. It is designed to help kids develop core literacy skills in an engaging and effective way.

I like that the program is research-proven and self-paced with engaging and interactive experiences tailored for each child. Each child can have their own profile and set their account to the level that is best for them.

The lessons incorporate phonological awareness, phonics, comprehension, fluency, and vocabulary. The user can move through the different levels by completing assignments and being accompanied by Lingos. The Lingos are a lively bunch of friends that love to tell stories and kids join them on skill-building adventures such as sounding out words, matching rhyming pairs, reading comprehension, and more.

The Lingos give feedback on each correct and incorrect answer. My only complaint about this is the sound they make for correct answers gets annoying to hear (for me anyway) very quickly. I wish that when they get the answer correct they could move on to the next question or have a visual high-five. It hasn't seemed to bother my kids to hear that noise, but as a parent I could do without it.

Although Lucas is 6 and at the age this is recommended for, his reading skills are above his age and grade level. While this product isn't exactly helping him along with his reading (because he is not a beginner reader) he is enjoying using this and he told me that he does like it. He likes the accomplishment of finishing the levels and there are spelling games that he likes doing as well. If he wasn't already reading above his grade level I can see how this would be a very beneficial program to incorporate along with what a typical Kindergartner and 1st grader are learning in school. The comprehension is helpful to keep reinforcing that skill as well.

Kayla, while older, as I mentioned - is below age and grade level for reading. This is geared for kids younger than her, but she, too, is enjoying it. She likes the positive feedback she is getting and I can hear if she is getting too many answers in a row wrong and ask her what she isn't understanding or concentrating on the questions.

They each use it for about 15-20 min a day, a few days a week to encourage, supplement, and reinforce reading and comprehension skills. I like that I can also log in and see the progress they've made by seeing what levels they've completed.

Parents can get a free trial of the first level for their kids and see what this reading program is all about.

National Military Family Appreciation Month

“I participated in an Ambassador program on behalf of Influence Central for the MetLife TRICARE Dental Program. I received a promotional item to thank me for my participation.”

November is National Military Family Appreciation Month and as my husband's military career winds down I think about the positive benefits of being in the military and things I'm thankful for.

Included in those things are the health and dental benefits provided to military family members through the TRICARE Health Plan and the Metlife TRICARE Dental Program. I'm thankful for the coverage of health and dental benefits these programs provide to my family and this coverage gives me peace of mind about my family's health and well-being.

While the MetLife TRICARE Dental Program is part of the TRICARE Health Plan for military families, they are both separate enrollments that families have to elect coverage - neither program is automatic - but I can't see any reason a military family wouldn't want to be enrolled in either program.

The MetLife TRICARE Dental Program provides dental benefits to spouses and children of Active Duty personnel (the active duty member receives dental coverage at the dental clinic on their duty installation) and National Guard and Reserve members and their families.

What I like about the dental program is the convenience of the program to provide us continuous coverage despite frequent moves or deployments. An example is when a military member deploys for a year sometimes the family will move to go stay with relatives. Even if the family isn't near a military installation, or have moved away from their sponsor's duty location, they will still receive coverage from the large network of dental providers worldwide.

Another benefit to this program is the low-cost shares of the program. There is a minimal monthly premium to receive 100% coverage (no out of pocket costs) for diagnostic and preventive services; which includes two free cleanings each year. This is important to me because I believe early detection of any dental issues is key to preventing worse problems in the future. Cost-share for other services range from 20-50% so this is pretty affordable for dental coverage.

We have had positive experiences with our in-network dental providers. When we first moved here I attended a resource fair where there were several dental offices in attendance. I asked one of them two questions that are important to me when finding a new dental provider: 1) Are you a MetLife TRICARE Dental provider? and 2) Do you have experience with children with disabilities? Thankfully they could answer yes to both those questions. Finding a children's dental provider with experience in treating kids with disabilities is important since Kayla has a fear of all things medical/dental. We need a provider who is patient, thorough and will explain things to Kayla.

Military families can find more information on the dental program, to include enrollment information, at TRICARE Dental Benefits.

You can follow MetLife TDP on Twitter @MetLifeTDP and by using #MetLifeTDP; and follow on their Facebook page.


 

McAfee Family Protection

Kayla's not at the point where she's using the computer, or the internet, without me. But when that time comes I'm glad to know there are internet security software programs, such as the McAfee Family Protection, to help keep her safe.

This software has several features including social network monitoring, preventing kids from sharing personal information, keeping tabs on how long kids spend on the computer, email and website blocking, and instant messaging (monitors and records conversations), just to name a few.

They've thought of it all!

I like the fact that it keeps confidential information private and you can receive alerts when access to objectionable material is attempted.

The program was really easy to download and install. I like things that are quick and uncomplicated!

From now until Aug 31 you can save $5 by using the promotion code: 5familyprotection - and this includes 30 days of free support and installing it on up to 3 computers. How nice not to have to buy the software for each computer and/or laptop.

I know when Kayla does start exploring the internet I'll have peace of mind about what she can and can't do online!

"I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central on behalf of McAfee and received a sample to facilitate my candid review. In addition, McAfee sent me a blanket and care package to thank me for taking the time to participate."

Father's Day Frosty Weekend

I didn't realize this, but for the past 3 years Wendy's has created a new tradition with the Father's Day Frosty Weekend. Wendy's donates 50 cents for every Frosty sold to the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption.

The money raised goes to the Wendy's Wonderful Kids program, which funds full-time adoption recruiters at local agencies across the U.S., who in turn pair up parents with foster care children needing homes.

Last year $1.7 million dollars was raised during that Father's Day Frosty Weekend- that's a lot of Frosty's sold! $260,000 was donated from Canadian restaurants where $1 was donated for every Frosty sold.

And there's more...you can create a free Father's Day ecard at Frosty Card and for every card that is sent Wendy's will donate an additional 25 cents to the Dave Thomas Foundation...how wonderful! You can even attach coupons to the cards for things like "washing the car" and "taking out the trash."

I think Kayla and I will be making plenty of Father's Day cards to send to Joe and the grandpas! And we'll go have a Frosty for Joe on Father's Day so at the same time we can help contribute to a wonderful charity.

Thanks to Mom Central for making me aware of the Father's Day Frosty Weekend!

Ragu Old World Style

Thanks to Mom Central I found out about 2 new sauce favors from Ragu - Sweet Tomato Basil and Marghertia.

Ragu also gives you some recipes to try with the new flavors. I'm all about trying new recipes! I get tired of eating the same things for dinner. Chicken Margherita is done in under 30 min and has only 5 ingredients - not to mention tasty!

In keeping with the Feed Our Kids Well motto Ragu offers helpful tips and healthy meal options and recipes to help make meal planning easier.

I like the recipe of the day for ideas when I just don't know what I'm cooking for dinner!