RUFUS....Her friend til the end!

My comment to Cara about Rufus got me thinking. I thought I would talk about him and tell how Kacey got him.

After Kacey was diagnosed at CHKD, we spent the 3 days there and when we got home I contacted JDRF about the Walk to a Cure. Since we weren't very familiar with the walk, I asked for some info about it. I got an email from Lori Camden. I felt such compassion in her email back to me and she asked me if Kacey had gotten her Bag of Hope while she was in the hospital. Bag of Hope? What's that? Ummm no I don't think she did. The Bag of Hope is a backpack with the JDRF logo on it...inside is some information for parents, an Accu-check meter with a coupon to get another free one by mail...a book about Rufus....and RUFUS! Nope I KNOW she never got that! Lori assured me that she'd send one out to us ASAP...well she wasnt kidding....we got it the very next day! When it arrived, Kacey screached with excitement! I opened up the box to reveal a cute blue backpack with the JDRF logo and inside.....RUFUS! Kacey took to him right away! With everything spread out across the table, we immediately read the book about how Rufus came to be. As she hugged him, we continued to read about his JDRF tshirt and his colorful patches that are placed in the same locations that you give injections...how cute! Most of all...Rufus proudly wore his Medical Alert bracelet. Since we'd only been home a few days, Kacey didn't have a bracelet yet. She kept worrying us til we finally got her one! Since that day....Rufus has made countless trips to Walmart....been drug around outside....tucked in a backpack with insulin and glucose tabs...hugged while watching countless movies....pricked by countless lancets and injected with water that was sucked into the syringe by a little girl that insisted if Rufus didnt check his sugar and get his insulin then he'd have to go to CHKD like she did. He's been there for her when no one else understood how she was feeling! Being able to care for Rufus, the way she was being cared for gave her the practice to finally be able to give her own injections and manage her diabetes. He's not been just a bear....he's a bear with Type 1 diabetes and knows how it feels to be a human pin cushion....just like her! Even though she is 8 years old....Rufus still gets tucked into bed with her each night...he folds his hands together as we say prayers...and most of all...he's her "friend". Im sure as time goes on, Rufus will take a back seat...but in the end...he was there when she needed that "friend" that knew how she felt and when she got the poke....so did he! He will always be a part of her life!

~*~JILL~*~