Texas WIC

Today was our adventure to the WIC (Women, Infants, and Children) office today.  I'm the kind of person that doesn't believe in "using the system", so for a very long time I was trying to avoid having to use WIC.  My thought was I would leave the money from the program for other families, you know, the ones who really need it.  I've been on WIC before though I ended up stopping both times.  The first was benefits for my daughter when she was small.  We stopped getting them because the vouchers were too problematic.  The second time was a birth certificate issue with my youngest.  Now we're on it once again, though I was hoping we weren't going to have to.  I guess in a way it's just my sense of pride.

Years back when you were on WIC you would get vouchers or checks.  These would have a list of items you could receive on each.  It wasn't like you got a voucher for each item.  There were several listed.  For example, you could get two gallons of milk on one.  Another might have a gallon of milk, a dozen eggs, and one 16oz box of cereal.  You were encouraged to buy everything on the voucher because you would lose it if you didn't.  Once the voucher was used, there was no chance to later pick up the items on it that you didn't at the time.  It's just like a check.  You can't cash half of a check and expect the bank to write you another check for the remainder until you wanted to get it cashed.  It was such a frustrating system that half the time we didn't remember the vouchers, the product list, or didn't need to get everything WIC required on a voucher.  I figured if we weren't going to use it all, we might as well not waste the systems money and everyone's time at the appointments.  Instead we'd just give it up.  We were getting by just fine without it.

Just last year I went on it again.  My older son was two, so still plenty young enough, and I was pregnant.  We weren't tight enough on money that we needed it, but we were certainly cutting it tight.  Paying for the birth center was a lot on us and we needed the extra help so we could prepare for the baby.  Anything extra was appreciated, so I went back on WIC.  The system had changed so much I didn't even know what to do with it!   I got an EBT (Electronic Benefits Transfer) card with a little chip on it that stored what we could receive on each month.  It would automatically change to the next month's benefits on the first of the month.  I was finally allowed to shop from the list for whatever I wanted or needed at the time.  I no longer had to buy specific items.  More items were added to the list as well.  Whole grain breads and tortillas are now offered, as well as some fresh produce.  WIC became far more useful, and a life-saver.  The list of remaining benefits is printed out on every receipt after the purchase, which made things even easier.  All I had to do was keep the updated shopping list and I knew I would be just fine!

That's when things got frustrating.  I was scheduled for another appointment in December, "after the baby was born".  They told me the computer just spat out a date after my due date and I could call to change it.  All I had to bring was the birth record for the baby and both my boys and I would have my benefits update.  If only it had been that easy!  Thanks to the military hospital's lack of organization and their inability to keep their patients informed, the birth certificate went through without a name.  It was a song and dance that took eight months for a birth certificate to finally be printed up and shipped.  By the time all of that was done, I had completely forgotten about WIC.  I had too much else on my mind.

While I was pregnant a woman from my birth board was told me about this guy who does financial planning assistance and all of that.  His name is Dave Ramsey and he has a program called "The Total Money Makeover".  While I haven't yet read his book, I have listened to his podcast and seen a good deal of his ideas.  The basic goal is to live debt free, be financially stable, and be prepared for most emergency situations.  I had slightly looked into it at the time, but didn't think that was the right time to worry about it.  I was re-introduced to the idea from a friend of mine's Ravelry group list.  I saw "Gonna Be Debt Free" and decided it was worth a look.  It turned out to involve the same man!

Back to the WIC thing, I had been considering going on WIC again as soon as I had gotten the baby's birth certificate in order.  By the time it finally arrived, I had considered not going on the program at all.  I figured we were financially stable not to need it, and the money from the program should be left to families that need it more.  That's when the Dave Ramsey thing comes in.  It helped me realize I wasn't using the system in a negative way.  I don't plan to live off of food stamps, welfare, and WIC benefits.  In the case of WIC, you don't get it for long anyway.  However, I do qualify, and that means I have a right to those benefits.  I pay taxes, right?  My family pays taxes as well.  They pay for this system for families who qualify.  If I qualify, shouldn't I use those to my advantage?  Wouldn't using those programs help my family find financial stability?  Wasn't that the whole point of the programs in the first place?  The idea is while I'm on WIC, food stamps, whatever I qualify for, I can start putting some money away to save for an emergency.  I can start paying off my past debts to fix my credit.  I can put my family in a better position to take care of my family.  By the time I no longer qualify we'll have money put away for emergencies and our credit will be in much better standing, which will help us with some day buying our own house.  The idea is pretty sound.

So here I am, for once in my life not feeling guilty about the need to use the benefits that are available for me.  I'm looking at this as an opportunity to get my life back together and put myself in a better financial position.  It may not be easy, but I think we'll be okay if we really make an effort at doing this.  Sitting in the WIC office for an hour and a half wasn't exactly my idea of a good use of time to get my life back on track, but I know in the end it will make a positive impact and will all be worth it.