Tuesday, August 31, 2010

2009 JDRF Walk Video

working on a new one for this year but until then, here is the one from last year...

Monday, August 30, 2010

excuses, excuses

I often say I would do things differently if we didn't have D to deal with. But thinking about it, would I really? Do I just use D as my excuse?
My dear neighbor's car just died. For me, that would be almost life ending, but for her, she is able to embrace it and just looked up bus routes. Took it on as a challenge. I so admire this!! When gas prices skyrocketed a year or so ago, I vowed to drive less, walk more. It didn't last more than a day! I realized that with walking, it required so much more effort. Besides the sssllllloooooow stride of young kids, there is D. Walking seems to be the silent killer for Bryce. Boy do his bgs drop with walking!! So for me, it isn't just about walking, but about having the necessary supplies with me: the meter, the snacks, the low treatments, water, etc. And I can't just pack for him because his brothers will want something too. Then to round up the kids, then to walk, and do what I need to do, then walk back. Whew! I am tired just thinking about it!! So I drive, and I even drive down the street to the grocery store where sometimes the parking spot is almost as far away as my house!
So I SAY that I would walk more, drive less without D...but would I really??

cleaning up

this was just from around Bryce's bed....gotta love middle of the night testing!

Sunday, August 29, 2010

Needle, not syringe

Today we went up the Space Needle in Seattle...

But the elevator wasn't the only thing that had gone up...so had Bryce's blood sugars
(betcha can't tell which one Bryce is in this cheesy pic they took of us in front of the green screen! hahaha)


The huge correction bolus started kicking in as we headed back down the Space Needle and someone was feeling much better by the time we left...

Isn't it amazing how much mood is affected by blood sugar numbers!?!



Friday, August 27, 2010

More or Less??

I have written about 5 different fundraising letters for our JDRF Walk. I can't decide which angle to take. I want to let our friends and family know why this is so important to us, how D has affected every bit of our lives, those things all the other Drents know but noone else would. I want them to KNOW too. Not to feel sorry for us or give us pity. But to fight with us and give us strength. I also want them to read the dang thing! To say all I want to say, the letter gets too long. I know that many people don't take the time to read lengthy letters (no matter how important they are to the writer!) So I tried sweet and simple...doesn't pull at the heart strings...and we know what those are connected to in this. Tried to be creative and write a "if a cure was found..." Again, too many things came to mind, it became a beast of it's own. (may add that as a separate addition to the letter.) With just over a month till our Walk on October 3rd, I really need to get going on this and make up my mind before it is too late to send a letter. For those of you veteran "walkers", what have you done that worked best??

I WON!!

Ok, so I don't ever win anything. I am that person that is always one number off in the raffle or sits NEXT to the big winner....so close and yet, nothing!
Well NOT TODAY!!! I WON!!
Earlier I posted about a blogwarming giveaway at Candy Hearts...well this morning, the winner was announced and it was ME! :-)
Now I am super excited about this prize pack cuz it is not just for a sample of glucose tabs but for a TON of awesome D stuff....pump packs, t-shirt, gift card, necklace, gluten-free stuff.
But I am not just a winner of cool stuff. I am also a winner because I have found an awesome group of blogging D-moms. Moms who get it, who know what it is like to be a pancreas, the ups the downs, the midnight checks, the love of Juicy Juice ;-)
Yes, today I am a winner! I will kick D's butt and I will make sure Dex stays in line! Because today is MY day!!


Monday, August 23, 2010

Come on now!!

This morning, I woke up to Dex telling me Bryce was low and going down (82, one arrow down). I had to hunt down some test strips cuz of course we were out from the night of testing so by the time I got back, Dex was saying 68 and down. Tested...117!! Really?!!!
So I decided I was going to keep track of all his discrepancies throughout the day....

7:39a Dex 68 arrow down, meter 117
7:53a Dex 90 double arrow down, meter 119
9:34a Dex HIGH (over 400), meter 385
12:20p Dex 234 slight down arrow, meter 180
12:45p Dex 173 slight down arrow, meter 151
2:00p Dex 235 straight arrow, meter 252 ***closest reading of the day!
3:35p Dex 256 slight down arrow, meter 200
5:43p Dex 191 straight arrow, meter 151
6:23p Dex 120 slight down arrow, meter 167
7:44p Dex 60 double arrow down, meter 119
8:30p Dex 216 double arrow up, meter 150


Boy we tested a lot today! Partially cuz I was double checking what Dex was telling me so I could document it. But also cuz we had gone to the zoo and usually he goes low with all that walking. Think the higher numbers today are from being at the end of the set's life. Anyhow, the point is, I can't trust Dex and I don't know what to do about it.

Friday, August 20, 2010

so over Dex!

This afternoon, we were playing at my mom's house. My oldest (non-D) son asked for a snack so I got out some granola bars and asked everyone if they wanted one. Bryce yelled, "I would LOVE one! I feel low! Want to see how low I am?" Then proceeded to jump all around and squeal. Well Dex said 107 with one arrow down so no worries and I sent him to off to wash his hands. Well when I tested him, he was 37.

37!!! WTF??

I frantically searched for the juice boxes I had stashed in my mom's pantry. That was when the low hit him and he went from the happy active kid to a slumped sobbing mess.

Damn it Dex!! Your job, your ONLY job, is to alert me to lows!! I even have you set to alarm at 90 so that I can catch the low before it happens. What were you doing today? Ugh, there is nothing I hate worse than a liar. My son's life is in your hands and you keep messing with me!!!

Thursday, August 19, 2010

Super Bro to the rescue

While this happened a couple months ago, it was such an awesome moment that I had to share...

Kids were playing in the backyard with their neighbor friends. I needed to grab a couple things from the grocery store for dinner so I asked our neighbor dad if he'd keep an eye on the kids so I could run and do that. I tested Bryce before I left, over 200. I was gone less than 30 minutes. When I got home, I found this note on the front door....


Somehow, Bryce had dropped to 67 in the short time I was gone. His big brother, Jaden, knew the signs so tested him and treated him for the low. When I got back, he had just retested him and gave him pretzels and cheese.

Not only was I so proud of my oldest son for taking care of Bryce, I was also overcome with relief in knowing that Bryce would be safe as long as his brother is by his side.

How many 7 year olds do you know that can spot and treat a diabetic low?

D-mom blogger giveaway

Candy Hearts: CANDY HEARTS MEGA GIVE AWAY!!!:

Go check out this blog and enter to win her great giveaway!

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

'Oh'tmeal

Big mistake this morning....
Bryce is very insulin resistant in the morning meaning he needs a lot more insulin to cover the carbs he eats in the morning than any other time of day. This combined with the high carb options that define breakfast will send Bryce's blood sugars skyrocketing. One way we try to combat this is to bolus him at least 15 minutes before he eats so that the insulin has time to start working. Well this morning, I bolused him right before I made a pot of oatmeal. Unfortunately the oatmeal took a LOT longer than I thought it would. By the time he started eating, Dex was screaming LOW. Gave him his milk and his oatmeal, tested a few minutes later to see where he really was since Dex runs about 20 mins behind. 67. Of course Dex says 50 and slow down arrow. Hoping he will raise up enough so I don't have to treat this as a 'low' and that I didn't mess with his numbers for the day. Ugh, so much for being proactive!!!

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

ack!!

Day Two of Kinder Academy went great. It helped that we skipped breakfast there and fed him at home, plus I went in to bolus him for lunch. I am sure it was close to 90g of pretty much empty carbs as he loaded up with chocolate milk, grapes, granola, and chicken nuggets. I bolused him for 50g, assumed he would be high especially since it is a set change day and it has been scorching hot the past few days so the insulin is probably bad too but I would take care of it later. When he got off the bus an hour later, he was HIGH. Ok, expected that, like I said. Went to get his pump to change the set, and hmmm, what do you know...it wasn't connected! The cannula was completely out and the adhesive was folded over it. Just dangling there! Wonder how long it has been like that. Did it come out before or after I gave his lunch bolus? Is he high because it hasn't kicked in yet or because he didn't get it? I hate being in that position. I should know to check his set more often, especially when he is high. I guess we will never know for sure if he got that bolus, just glad we can correct it.

Monday, August 16, 2010

school anxiety


This week, Bryce is attending "KinderAcademy"....a week of kindergarten to get to know his teacher, classmates, and get used to the school before starting in September with all the big kids.
While it is only a half day, they are serving breakfast and lunch. And this is where my anxiety kicks in. I had met with the school nurse in the Spring and we put together a health plan I felt pretty good about. But he will be in afternoon kindy so food isn't really an issue. This week, it is an issue. I could barely function on Sunday as I thought of having to figure out how it all would be handled. I put together some stuff (glucagon, juice boxes, granola bars, extra pump sets). I keep thinking, "is this enough?" "should he have more snack options?" "do I need to have stuff for the office and the class?" "where will he test?" "where will he keep his meter?" "who is going to take care of all this?" "why can't I breathe?" "I think I am going to throw up!" Talk about an anxiety attack!!!
Of course all of this worry is unnecessary. The office staff is familiar with type 1. They have been taking care of a T1 little girl in 3rd grade. They might not be familiar with the pump and cgm but they know how to spot and treat a low....THAT is really the most important part. Plus I am literally 2 mins from the school and always available on my cell. Ok, breathe!!

So this morning, we bring Bryce to school and stay with him as he goes to the cafeteria with the class. We let him pick out his "breakfast" and cringe at the huge amount of empty carbs he is consuming. I know he will skyrocket and so warn his teacher that Dex will try to freak her out but to ignore him. I end up leaving then coming back for lunch to again see the crazy amount of carbs on his tray and bolus him to the moon. I did walk through the process with the office staff that will be taking care of his D. While I feel it is a no-brainer to bolus with the Ping meter, I realize it is because I do it all day every day. So how much did this lady really comprehend and retain? How much do I really want to give her that responsibility? Especially since it is only for 3 more days. Think I may just pop in and take care of it myself. That way, if there is a problem, it is my fault and I can fix it.

Well, after Day One done, I can breathe a little easier but won't fully relax till this camp is over. Of course that means I have a couple weeks before the real deal starts and maybe another anxiety attack.

Sunday, August 15, 2010

dreams of vacations

My husband and I dream of taking vacations to beautiful places. Places we can relax and have fun. Last spring, we brought our oldest boys with us on our trip to Cabo, Mexico. Not because we wanted to have a great family vacation (which we did!) but because it would not be a relaxing vacation for us if we left our son with someone else to care for his diabetes. Not only do we not have that someone willing and able (my in-laws are close but still a little anxious about handling it all solo) But we would spend the time wondering how his blood sugars were doing and if all was going smoothly. We wouldn't be able to relax and what is the point of a vacation if you can't relax?
Today, after the boys got us really frustrated, we talked about taking that next vacation with just the two of us. We rarely get time together and when we do, we have so much fun. But alas, those carefree days are gone. This is the life we are relegated to.

Sunday, August 8, 2010

crying wolf

My love affair with Dex is not a smooth one. He talks too much and doesn't always tell the truth. I think he just wants attention. And last night, he wanted it while we were trying to sleep...of course! Problem is, you can't just ignore him. What if this time he really means it? Multiple alarms said Bryce was low (we have him set to go off anytime Bryce goes under 90) but upon fingerpoke, he was in the 120s. We did turn down his basal to be sure and we calibrated Dex too. We even had Dex try to get our attention by alarming with a double arrow up, saying Bryce went up to 149 when he was still only 100 (this was in between all the low alarms). I think Dex was trying every trick in the book...and it was working. He cried 'Wolf', and we came running. But by 3am, we decided we were not going to fall for his tricks anymore. Luckily, we didn't have to make that decision. He stayed quiet (and Bryce woke up at 270!! wtf?) Think we are getting less sleep with Dex than we were before. However, because he has caught a couple real lows in the middle of the night that we never would have expected, we will keep him around.

Friday, August 6, 2010

old glucagon

Just looked today and found out our glucagon expired in January! Who knew? Good thing we haven't needed it. One of our CDEs said that he has only had a handful of kids ever need to use it, and they were teenagers who had been drinking. Since I found that out, I haven't been so uptight about keeping it on me (or him) at all times. Guess I was too lax about it that I let the ones we have expire. Will refill it today however....just in case.

**glucagon is an emergency shot that is needed if a diabetic goes so low they become unconscious and are unable to ingest fast acting sugars. it is a hormone that releases sugars from the liver. one should always be within close proximity (much like an epi-pen for someone with servere allergies)

Thursday, August 5, 2010

where did they all go?

I feel like I have lost complete touch with the outside world, the world that does not have D. We used to have a strong group of friends. We used to go out together often and have lots of fun. Now I only know some of what they are doing because of Facebook, not because they are reaching out to us anymore. And why should they try? We can't really go out anymore. At least not easily. Finding someone who can take care of three boys AND be willing and capable of taking care of Bryce's diabetes is not easy. Then when we DO go out, we spend the time checking in on Bryce or wondering what his numbers are doing. It is almost not worth it. When they ask us how we are doing, our glazed eyes can really only come up with insulin to carb ratios and the last days worth of bg numbers. They have no interest in how many carbs various foods have or how bgs are affected by activity and stress. Maybe they fein interest in what we are dealing with. But they really don't know. They don't know the amount of energy that goes into caring for a child with D. They don't know that we don't sleep at night because of fear that he will go low and die in his sleep. They don't know that we analyze his blood sugar numbers constantly, trying to find a pattern so we can make insulin adjustments so he won't go from 400 to 50. They don't know how D has affected not just our son with D, but his brothers as well. But really, they don't know how bad I NEED them. I don't ask them to join our JDRF Walk team just to fund research. I ask because I want to know they still care. Care about us as friends and the hardships we are dealt. That they are by our side in this battle. So where did they all go? Who knows??

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Bryce's Team: Wipeout Diabetes

The JDRF Walk to Cure Diabetes will be October 3rd, 2010 at Oaks Park.

Please join us! It is a ton of FUN!!

There is lots of entertainment, free breakfast (last year IHOP provided big fluffy pancakes) and lunch (Fred Meyer provided hot dogs, etc) and everyone gets a FREE RIDE BRACELET to Oaks Park.

to join our team or make a donation go to my fundraising page :
http://walk.jdrf.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=extranet.personalpage&confirmID=87689384

Monday, August 2, 2010

camping with D

Just got back from a great camping trip (though the weather could have been a lot warmer!)

Hiked to and under North Falls at the Silver Falls State Park. Beautiful.

Not so beautiful were Bryce's numbers.
This time we had Dex with us (not that he is a great traveling companion since he beeps all the time and doesn't always tell the truth)
Even with Dex around, we stopped and tested on the trail.

Despite the hike and the many correction boluses, Bryce's bg was high...holding steady at 350 no matter what we did.

Changed his insulin when we got back to camp.
Turns out that did the trick....battled lows the rest of the night.
ugh!!!

As always, test strips everywhere!!

s'more


graham cracker: 12g
marshmallow: 6g
chocolate: 4g

Mommy cringing when he asks for some more s'mores (but just bolusing him to the moon instead) that is what camping is all about right?