Amy Has A Pump!

Kacey has been glued to Amy all afternoon and she's been bugging me to make her a pump. I racked my brain because I didn't know what I could use to make one. Well she was in playing with her doctor kit and I spotted the "pager" .... AHHHHHHH! AN IDEA! I took the infusion set that she kept from her "make believe" pump (yeah gross!) and with a little clear tape... WAAAA-LAAAA! Amy has a pump (a little big but it works!) It's even got a button to push to "dose her" and a clip for her to wear it on her shorts (LOL!). She was so excited :) Amazing how she now has a baby doll she can relate to! I never thought I'd be creating a "diabetic doll" (geesh someone could be sitting on a gold mine if they actually created one!)

Insulin Question?

Is there a difference in Humalog and Novolog?


When Kacey was in the hospital, she was on Novolog. The vial of insulin we were sent home with was Novolog but when we got her prescription filled, it was for Humalog (Kwik pens). When I was doing some research of pump supplies with our insurance company, I looked at the price of Humalog vs. Novolog. We pay $50 for Humalog but if she was on Novolog it would only be $15!! Thats a HUGE difference and so I was wondering why she went from Novolog to Humalog to start with? They are both fast acting insulin, so why would she be on one and then get a prescription for another? I'm going to fax a note to her CDE when I fax blood sugars on Monday and ask why but I was just wondering if anyone knew if there was a difference?

Now I'm beginning to wonder about Lantus vs. Levimer?

We've been paying these high co-pays for the last 7 months and we probably could have been paying less!

Meet Amy

I'd like to introduce you to Amy. Amy has type 1 diabetes. According to Kacey, Amy is already 9 years old (Kacey will be 9 on March 8th) and was diagnosed when she was 3. Amy is taking shots but she will soon have an insulin pump (gotta get my creative Mommy mind going).
Amy is Kacey's new friend.
Nope, she's not real, she's a doll.
We decided to give her one of her birthday presents a week early. She's been asking for a "Diabetes Doll" like the American Girl dolls. Geesh! Have you seen the prices of those American Girl dolls? I can't afford $100 for a doll right now but when I ran across this doll for $30 in Target, I couldn't pass her up. She came with all sorts of neat stuff and she's about the same size as the AG dolls!
Kacey went on to explain to me that since Amy came with ice cream and a cupcake then it was showing everyone that kids with diabetes can eat sweet things if they take a shot. Also, she came with a diabetes bag (pink purse) and Kacey tells me this is where Amy keeps her meter and her glucose tabs (LOL! This kid has always had a great imagination!)

P-U-M-PPPPPPPPP!!!

OMG! OMG! OMG! I'm ready to burst and I don't think my fingers can type fast enough to say everything I wanna say at once!!

I was teaching 1st grade and I couldn't answer my phone and I'd checked messages during my break and it was a call from Smith's Medical. It didn't register at first and then it hit me....COZMO! I called the lady back and got her voicemail. Dang! So I left a message for her to call me back after 4pm because I'd be teaching the rest of the day. Well at 4pm, I called her back...voicemail again... DARN! So I leave a message and go to the kitchen. My phone rings and before I could get back in to it.... 1 voicemail. CRAP! It was her! So I call back...voicemail. OMG! I'm playing phonetag! So I tell her on voicemail that I will be holding my phone the rest of the evening (LOL!) and for her to call back when she can. About 5 min later my phone rings....it's her! So she goes on to tell me that she verified benefits with my insurance.

***HOLDS BREATH***

Jill, your insurance will pay 100% up to $3500 ....WHATTTTTTTTTTTT? So I asked her to repeat herself LOL! And she did! Haha! OMG! So this means our out of pocket expense will only be alittle over $1000!!! HOLY COW! If that wasn't enough to bring tears to my eyes and make me jump for joy.... she says Oh, and if we ship it out this afternoon, she could have it by next Thursday or Friday. OMGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG!!!!! I immediately teared up!!! So she is going to call me in the morning and let me know when it will be shipped because we have to be here to sign for it. Once it's shipped, I have to call the doctor's office and get the appointment set up for the 3 hour training and week saline trial.

OMG! I really didn't think this would happen so fast!

After I hung up the phone, I went running outside to share the good news with Kacey. She was riding her bike and I told her that her Cozmo could be here by next week!! She started to cry!!!

Now...here's the exciting part....yep theres MORE....Wanna know why?

Her birthday is next SUNDAY!!!

Ever since I told her she couldn't get the pump for Christmas, she said then thats all I want for my birthday! If it arrives next Thurs/Fri then I could keep it a secret and surprise her with it at her party!!! How cool would that be? For all her friends and family to be in on the fun! YAYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!

Once again, everything happens for a reason :) The best part is....we can pay for it in payments and it's not so much out of us!! WOOOHOOOOOOOOOOO!

Wednesday Funny

Two little boys go into the grocery store. One is nine, one is four. The nine year old grabs a box of tampons from the shelf and carries it to the register for check-out.
The cashier asks “Oh, these must be for your mom, huh?” The nine year old replies “Nope, not for my mom.” Without thinking, the cashier responded “Well, they must be for your sister then?”
The nine year old quipped, “Nope, not for my sister either.” The cashier had now become curious “Oh. Not for your mom and not for your sister, who are they for?” The nine year old says “They’re for my four year old little brother.”
The cashier is surprised “Your four year old little brother??”
The nine year old explains: “Well yeah, they say on TV if you wear one of these you can swim or ride a bike and my little brother can’t do either of them!”

Germs & Doc Change

I'm really wishing the summer would hurry up and get here! Spring is one of my favorite seasons but I'm just wanting warm weather that is GERM free.

I've got Kayleigh home sick today. Her asthma is acting up and she's got a really bad cough (you know those ones when they cough and you know it hurts), sore throat and a headache that hasn't gone away for 2 days. Allergies inducing her asthma symptoms? Probably so! She has a doc appt at 1:15pm. So she's feeling like crap today.

Every time I call to try and get the girls a sick appt, most of the time I'm told "Sorry we have no openings but you can go to Urgent Care." Two things about that frustrates me... first, getting into the doctor is VERY hard and second, the co-pay for the doc is $20 and Urgent Care is $75!! Thats a HUGE difference. For the last 2 years, both of my girls have gone to our Family Doctor. I thought it would be easier for all 4 of us to see the same doctor. About half of the times we've ever had to be seen, we have to see the nurse practitioner. Which is fine because the girls like her but then again it's not fine because we're paying to see the doctor and he is our PCP! Ever since the doc visit where our doc was talking about T2 diabetes with us instead of T1, I've just had this nagging feeling that I needed to find a pediatrician for the girls. When I call the doc, I don't want to hear "Sorry we can't see you today but we can see you next week."....I want to hear "We know Kacey has diabetes and it's important for her to be seen so we can work her in today." Yes, I'm going to sound like a pain in the ass parent that thinks her child deserves special treatment because she has diabetes....and you know what...she does! When you have a child with diabetes, something simple like a cold, isn't very simple anymore! Just like when Kacey had the flu last week. There are several things that really ticked me off about our visit. If he suspected the flu, then why couldn't he have done a rapid flu test? Why did we have to do blood work that we had to wait days for? Furthermore, he knows she's got diabetes, she was throwing up, not able to keep anything down....why couldn't he have given us a prescription for Zofran like the ER doc did? Why did he send us home with nothing...knowing Kacey was going to get worse and we'd end up in the ER with her...which cost us a $150 copay...not to mention it could have gotten much worse than it did! I'm just really thinking that he might be a great family doctor for adults but when it comes to my girls, I just have that nagging feeling to switch. I talked with Frankie's cousin this morning and she gave me the number for her pediatrician. She's female and been their pediatrician since her kids were born. She's diagnosed several T1's this past year and they are in her care. This is something very important to us. I want a doctor that I can call and knows about Kacey's diabetes and how to treat her when she is sick. So I called Dr. G's office and her receptionist said they were not taking new patients *silent cry* but she said she could refer us to the other female doctor in the practice. I explained that Dr. G was highly recommended to us and told her who recommended her. I went on to tell her that Kacey was diagnosed with diabetes last July and we were really looking for a doctor that knew how to care for her along with her Endo. She took all my info down and she said she was going to talk to Dr. G and see if she'd make any special considerations since it was a recommendation and because she's got T1 diabetes. ****FINGERS CROSSED**** She is spose to call me back and let me know so I'm really excited. If we can't get in with her then we're going to go on and get in with the other female doc and then we can switch once Dr. G gets more openings.

Now, with Kayleigh being sick, I have to make sure Kacey doesn't pick up these germs!

Dose Change

I knew it was coming! Our CDE called this afternoon and Kacey's dose was changed.

Breakfast was 1:8 and now it's 1:10
Lunch was 1:15 and is staying 1:15
Dinner was 1:12 and now it's 1:15

She said the flu sorta threw Kacey's body outta whack (LOL ya think?)

She had another great day doing her care in the classroom today. Her teacher was giggling this afternoon because Kacey asked to test because she felt "weird" and her BG was 275. One of the other little boys went up to Mrs. M and said "Thats wayyyyy too high for Kacey!" LOL! She said all the kids are learning diabetes care in class...haha! ~smiles big~ Whatever works, right? I'm so glad things are working out with everything in the classroom.

Kayleigh is taking a Health & Medicine class this year in high school. She is really enjoying the class and it's an opportunity for Kayleigh to learn more about how her body works. She has a project coming up. She has to write a report on a person that did something helpful with medical science. She chose to write her report on Fredrick Banting. She said she thought it would be fun for all of us to learn about one of the people that was responsible for discovering the medicine we use to keep her sister alive, INSULIN. I thought that was very cool! So then she took in the article from the 9 year old little girl that had Type 1 that died in Texas. Her teacher was discussing the article with the class. She went on to tell the class that people that have diabetes are not allowed to eat sugar and how a 9 year old little girl can't think abstractly and doesn't understand how the disease really works. Kayleigh said she could feel herself getting madder and madder until she finally raised her hand to set this teacher straight (LOL!) She explained to her teacher that her sister would be 9yrs old next month and and she DOES understand her care and the statement about diabetics not being able to eat sugar is FALSE! She went on to say that there were 2 things her sister couldn't have unless she was low and that is regular soda and real fruit juice (orders given by Kacey's Endo). She can have things with sugar in them as long as she gets a shot of insulin for it. She said her teacher was dumbfounded and replied with "Oh ok." WOOOOHOOOOOO! GO KAYLEIGH!!! Kacey's big sister attempted to be an advocate and speak up to educate someone that is obviously misinformed...and she's a teacher! (proud Mommy moment)

Another Day

Today is Day 2 of Kacey caring for herself on her own. I spoke with her teacher yesterday about how she did and her response was, "She did wonderful!" Ahhhhhh music to my ears! She went on to tell me that a few of the girls were wanting to watch Kacey when she gave herself her shot and she asked them for some privacy. (LOL since when has my child been modest?) Mrs. M explained to Kacey that maybe if she showed them what she was doing then the newness of it would wear off and it was just be something normal she did in class. I spoke to Kacey about it and she said she didn't know if it was ok to show her tummy in class so thats why she did it. (LOL!) She's been very open with her class since the first day of school so this is just one more step to show people around her what her daily life consists of. She was fine with that! She even went on to tell me that she thought it might be good practice if Mrs. M did her shot too. WOW! Thats a big step for Kacey to allow someone else to do her shot but it also shows me just how much she trusts her teacher. For a Mom, thats a great feeling! As for the notebook, Kacey wrote everything down for me. All 3 blood sugars and her dose. We've been very strict about logging blood sugars since she was diagnosed 7 months ago and I just wanted to teach her that there was no other option than to log the numbers so they could be faxed to the doctor. A good example of why we got such a great A1c for the first 6 months. So Kacey just thinks that logging numbers is part of her daily schedule now...it's not a chore. The great part about everything being in her classroom is we only have one meter for all the blood sugars at school now. (YAYYY!) Another great thing is she is not leaving class to go test and dose. This was something Kacey REALLY enjoyed yesterday because she wasn't singled out from her friends to leave the room for 10-20min at a time. This was the one thing that Kacey wanted for a while now but she just wasn't read for it. Now she's proved she can do this and we're proud of her!

So now we're onto Day 2 today....hope it's as great as yesterday!

Cracking Up!!

OMG! I'm sitting here cracking up laughing!!

Kacey was sitting at the table drawing a picture for her sister. She neatly folded it and brought it into Kayleigh. Kayleigh opened it and started laughing at what it said.....

You're the Best!
But sometimes you can be a pest!
Either way...
I Love You!


HAHAHAHAHA! I doubt Kacey would get a job with Hallmark!
*wipes tears from laughing*
At least she was being honest!!! LOL!!!

Milestone Day

Today is another one of those "milestone days" for Kacey.

I spoke with her teacher the other day about Kacey moving all her diabetes supplies from the nurses office to the classroom. She told me she had no problems with Kacey testing and dosing in the classroom. I explained the notebook with her and told her that Kacey is doing all her dosing herself anyway. She agreed that it was safer for Kacey to do all her care in the classroom because of the germs that linger in the clinic. When we went to school this morning, I walked Kacey's "black bag" to her classroom (LOL! yep its a bag the hospital gave us to send to school that holds all her stuff) The nurse came with me to make sure her teacher agreed with this (which I knew she did!) and then she turned to Kacey and asked her if she was ok with it. Kacey smiled and told her she was and she was happy she didn't have to leave the room now!

We're going to see how this works for a few days and if it's too much trouble then we will come up with another plan.

Why is this a milestone?

Because today Kacey is caring for her diabetes on her own. No call to me at lunch to figure up her dose (unless she needs to...she can use her teachers cell phone) She knows she is in good hands with Mrs. M and she knows if she needs anything Mrs. M will call me from the classroom. Kacey will be testing at snack, lunch and before resource class....figuring her own dose for lunch...then giving her own shot. I'm amazed at how far she has come in just 7 months and I'm looking forward to her getting her pump so she will have more independence like she did before she was diagnosed.

She is my hero!

Temper Tantrums

Frustration is getting the best of me and I need to vent.

I've really been put to the test this last week. Between Kacey being sick, the scare of a possible celiac diagnosis and then the loss of Henry, I've hit a brick wall. I know I'm being overly sensative right now but I need help understanding Kacey a bit more.

Since she was sick, she's been having temper tantrums. It's nothing we've ever been through with her before. Even when she was going through the "terrible 2's" she wasn't like this! I've been really easy on her until today. She's been experiencing some low blood sugars at mealtimes. I've tried rounding to the lower end when it's time for her dose but she's still dropping. It's nothing below 70 but it seems that when she goes between 70-90 she starts to get very irritable and cranky.... Almost like a 2yr old does and then when I ask her to test or to do something she throws this little temper fit and its even to the point where she kicks her feet or throws her hands. I HATE the fact that I always have to ask myself "Is this diabetes causing this or is it just a fit?" I feel like I can't discipline her because I know she's been sick, I know it could be the lows but at the same time I don't want her thinking she can throw a temper tantrum and use diabetes as an excuse! (kids are smart like that!) Every single time I asked her to test today she kicked her feet and yelled back "I don't want to!!!" and every single time I got the meter and walked over to her and calmly but firmly said "Either you do it or I WILL!" and she'd take the meter and test and every time she did it she was LOW! So what do I do? Do I pass this off as her just being grumpy because she's low?

I'm going to suggest a Lantus change tomorrow when I fax blood sugars. She's dropping several times a day and I know thats what needs to be done. I'm just frustrated that this disease is playing a trick on me and I can't figure out how to deal with it!

Any suggestions?

Henry

Today is a very sad day at our house. Our beloved cat Henry passed away this morning. We rescued Henry in 2005 from a lady that was having surgery and could no longer care for him. I'd just suffered the loss of my other cat Tom a month earlier and I wasn't looking for another cat. A friend of mine told me about Henry. He was almost 6 years old, was neutered, good with kids, fat and adorable and just needed someone to love and feed him. I still wasn't interested and she insisted that once I saw him I'd change my mind. And thats EXACTLY what happened! I went to "meet" Henry and it was love at first site! He climbed up in my lap and all he wanted was love. I drove home with him on my lap in the car that day. My intentions were to keep him in the house but he had other plans! We live on 5 acres and the lady that owned him had already put him outside and he didn't want to be inside anymore. So we let him be outside (which is where my Tom was) He would lay on the deck in the sunshine, not a care in the world. As long as he was fed, he was happy. His last weigh in was 19 pounds! He was famous for bringing me "presents" and sitting at the front door meowing until I opened it and approved of his "catch" (field mice, moles, birds, and once a baby rabbit) After approval, he would easily take his catch under the deck and eat quietly (gross!). He really was the perfect pet and family member! All he ever wanted in return was to be cradled in our arms like a baby and loved.

I knew something was wrong when I hadn't seen him the last 3 days. On Wednesday, he was just laying on the deck in the sunshine and not moving around much. He was a bit "mopey" and I even asked him why he was feeling so down? He just meowed at me and I laughed and told Kacey that I thought Henry was feeling bad because she was sick. He usually greets me on the deck when I walk out to warm the car in the morning. I knew it was a little colder than normal the last few days but it wasn't like him to stray. I got the call this morning from Frankie while I was shopping with my Mom that he'd found Henry. I could tell he'd been crying and he said he'd passed away by the edge of the woods. There were no signs that he'd been hurt ... so we're assuming he died of old age. (Thats what I keep telling myself ) The hardest part was having to keep my composure until I was back to the car and could tell the girls.

Very sad day in the West house.

It's A Bird.... It's a Plane.....

IT'S SUPERMOMMMMMMMMM!

Hahaha!

Ok, I took advantage of the link Kerri posted for the Hero Factory and I created my "Super Mom" identity. LOL...if only that body went along with the Super Mom image I project **giggles hysterically**

So here it is....

The 6th Game

Thanks to Amy for tagging anyone that reads her blog for the 6th Challenge.

Here are the rules:

1. Go to the photo folder in your computer

2. Go to the 6th folder of photos.

3. Go to the sixth picture.

4. Put the picture on your blog and description of it.

5. Invite six friends to join the challenge.

My picture:

6th Folder- Diabetes

6th picture- Kacey & Nurse Amanda

I'm so glad this picture came up :) This is the wonderful Nurse Amanda. This pic was taken on July 15, 2008....in the ER at Children's Hospital...as Kacey was being admitted with her diabetes diagnosis. Nurse Amanda is the one Kacey bonded with that dreadful afternoon. I don't think she completely understands the impact she had on Kacey (and us!). She took such good care of Kacey while we were in the ER waiting to be admitted to the PICU. As I always say...a little kindness and compassion goes a LONG way! She took the time to come up and see Kacey and speak with us once we were admitted. That day is one that we will never forget and it was nice to have such a wonderful nurse to help us embrace this illness. When I see Kacey in this picture, I REALLY see how sick she was! I never saw it at the time but I see it now.

Anyone that wants to tag themself...please do! :)

Results

The results of the bloodwork came in today and I just got a phone call....

NEGATIVE for Celiac

POSITIVE for Flu

Thank you, Lord! The power of prayer is an amazing thing! I've been so sick to my stomach just wondering how much our world would have to change if we got that positive diagnosis.

Kacey (along with myself & Kayleigh) are all vegetarians. Everything started swirling around in my head about how much life would change and I've stressed myself so much the last few days.

As much as the flu sucks (and she even got her flu shot this year!), I'm very thankful it turned out the way it did.

**Update on Kacey***
Today was a good day! She's finally smiling again but still tired. She took several naps today (30min-1hr each) and she was frustrated about being worn out. I explained how much her body needed to rest to recover from all the throwing up. She ate some pasta and a cheese sandwhich today and kept it all down (Wooohooo! Go Zofran!) She's been a little more thirsty than normal but thats her body still needing the fluids. Her BG numbers have been fantastic :)

I went by her school today to pick up her missed work so she doesn't get too far behind. I had a chance to speak to Kacey's teacher, Mrs. M (Kacey misses her so much!) and I told her about rethinking Kaceys care plan at school. One of the things we were asked by the ER doc was "Has Kacey been around anyone sick lately?" Ummm...well the kids in her class and I don't think any of them were sick BUT every single day she spends time in the clinic where she is exposed to every cough, sniffle, sneeze, puke, etc from all grade levels in the school. This flu was something that was going around the school and even the nurse got it!!! The doc said we might want to rethink her care plan because with diabetes being an autoimmune disease, her poor system is already stressed and makes it easier for her to catch colds and flus. (Ugh!) Mrs. M said she was prefectly fine with Kacey doing all her care in the classroom. I told her I also spoke to the nurse and they are going to talk to the principal and see what can be done. Since Kacey does all her shots herself anyway, there is no reason why she can't just do everything in the classroom. (grrrr! once she gets the pump we wont have this stress!) I just don't think its fair to make Kacey go into the clinic and expose herself to every germ in there if she doesn't have to. Mrs. M said she would explain to the principal how dangerous it is for Kacey to be exposed to things like the flu (ugh! boy we know now how scary it is!) and she said there should not be a problem making accomidations for Kacey :) I have to go into school tomorrow with Kacey so Mrs. M can show her what work she needs to catch up on. She told me not to worry about catching up all at once. She'd work with her to get it done and for her to rest and get better! All her friends have been asking about her :)

Thank you all for your prayers, comments and emails. I'm so blessed to have such a wonderful group of friends here! You all are the best!

Emergency Room Visit

Things went into a tailspin VERY fast yesterday afternoon. I got home from work at 12:30pm and Kacey was playing on the computer and seemed to be feeling better. She managed to eat some plain ramen noodles at lunch and she'd kept them down. She asked to get on the computer so she could blog. Yep! She started her own...good for typing skills AND for writing skills. So she sat at my computer and even though she said she felt ok...you know that "Mommy intuition" says something just wasn't right. I'd checked for ketones...still negative. No fever. But something about her wasn't right. She finished blogging and then her sister came home from school. We were just about to figure out what to do for dinner when she said she felt sick again. Ugh! Twice back to back she threw up. I tried to get her to drink something and she refused. I tested her BG... 73! Yikes! That means she's falling fast because just an hour before she was a 219. I got her to eat a glucose tab and then I called her CDE. Kristen told me to hang up and call Dr. R on the emergency line. I called him and he called me right back. He said he wanted us to take her right to Children's Hospital ER and he'd have her paperwork waiting. By now it was a little before 4pm and we knew we'd hit tunnel traffic! We dropped Kayleigh off to my Mom and off we went. I checked her BG on the way and she was up to an 89 (whew!) Thankfully we didn't hit too much traffic and we made it down there in record time (LOL! I think Daddy had a case of "lead peddle foot") When we walked in, her paperwork was waiting like Dr. R said it would be and we were taken into triage. She was given diet ginger ale and we only had to wait in the packed waiting room for 40min. I heard some lady make a comment about how they'd been waiting 2hrs and STILL had not been seen....along with a comment....we were here before them. I resisted the urge to tell her what I thought and throw the BG meter at her when I tested Kacey sitting there and she was down to a 77! I took a deep breath and breathed a sigh of relief when we were called back so quickly when we showed them she'd dropped on the meter. Kacey started getting the nervous shakes because she knew what was coming....the IV! Dr. R had already told us that she was getting it and so I prepared her. We had some super nice nurses come in and one great ER doc that took his time talking to Kacey and helping her calm down. He took the time to look at her blood sugars that I'd written down the last few days, along with the times she threw up and what she'd eaten and thrown up. I told him about the visit with the PCP and how she was tested for celiac as well. He took a little weight off my shoulders when he said "Possible....but HIGHLY unlikely!" So the plan was to "fill her gas tank" (as he put it in terms for Kacey to understand) and give her some Zofran in the IV to take away the sick stomach. After that, they'd get her to drink by mouth again and if she kept it down we could go home.

The paramedic we met when we came in was the one that was going to start the IV. I explained to him that she'd had blood taken out of the one arm so if he could try the other arm first. He agreed. He tried the top of her left hand first....and blew it! So he moved up to the crease of her arm and went to a smaller needle because she was so dehydrated. He got that one! Now we had to wait for "hook up". Nerves had gotten the best of her and she had to pee before she got hooked up. As we were walking around the corner, who do we run into? NURSE AMANDA! Nurse Amanda was the nurse she bonded with when we came in to be diagnosed last July. Kacey was so excited to see her because we'd gone looking for her when we went to pump class and we spoke to 2 different nurses in the ER and they didn't know who she was. We chatted for a few min and we got her last name this time so we could keep in touch with her. Potty...back to room...then hook up to IV. The nurse gave her the shot of Zofran in her IV and she was allowed to lay back and just rest.
About 15 min after hookup, the IV alarm kept going off. Kinked line! Nothing was kinked. They did everything they could to avoid having to restart the line. She'd only gotten 1/4 of the bag of fluids. There was nothing more they could do and they had to take the IV out. When they took it out, the found the reason for the alarm. The IV cannula was the one they use on babies and they were trying to push the fluids in her fast and the IV just wasn't holding up! During all this, we got a special visitor :) Nurse Amanda decided to pop her head in and check on Kacey and let her know she was going home and hopefully the next time she saw her it would just be a friendly visit, not an ER one. I thought that was soooo nice fo her! She made that effort to come see her just like she did when we were in the hospital for diagnosis. It really meant alot to Kacey! After they got it out, the nurse gave her more ginger ale and said she was going to call our doc and see what he wanted to do since her tummy was settling from the Zofran and she was drinking now. Our hopes were to not be stuck again :) Nope! Our doc wanted her getting "a full tank" and so they had to do it again. This time...a different paramedic! After lots of tears, the paramedic walks in and goes to the sink to wash his hands. Kacey immediately starts to point and I notice the black Cozmo pump clipped to his scrubs. YAYYYYYYYYY! It gave them something in common to talk about while he did her IV.

He's been diabetic for 21 years and absolutely LOVES his Cozmo. He went on to tell her about the camps they had and for the last 16 years he's attended. It completely took her mind off things and made her calm right down. He was so gentle with her and took his time to get the right vein and even marked it with a pen. He rubbed her arm and said "I know how it feels to be stuck over and over and I will make sure I don't have to do that to you." She smiled at me and she did great! They drew more blood to test all her levels...which for throwing up were actually great!

About an hour later, she'd gotten her appetite back...was having to pee (thank you fluids)...and wasn't sick at her stomach. She'd kept down 2 cans of diet ginger ale and a pack of crackers. We were ready to come home! It was almost midnight when we left the ER. We hadn't had dinner and so we slipped through a Wendy's drive thru. Kacey immediately asks for french fries. LOL! I looked over at Frankie and he responds with "Anything she wants!" Haha! Since her BG was only a 130, she ate them and we didn't dose. I was so scared about her dropping during the night. We got home after 1am and I checked Kacey's BG again...149. Wowww! Good thing I didn't dose :)

I didn't sleep much last night and we're all home today to catch up on rest. I'll update how things are going later on once Kacey wakes up.

Thanks again for the continued prayers! Love and hugs to you all!

Wednesday Funny

Mom's Brownies RecipeRemove teddy bear from oven and preheat oven to 375.

Melt 1 cup margarine in saucepan.

Remove teddy bear from oven and tell Jr "no, no."

Add margarine to 2 cups sugar.

Take shortening can away from Jr. and clean cupboards.

Measure 1/3 cup cocoa.

Take shortening can away from Jr. again and bathe cat.

Apply antiseptic and bandages to scratches sustained while removing shortening from cat's tail.

Assemble 4 eggs, 2 tsp. vanilla, and 1-1/2 cups sifted flour.

Take smoldering teddy bear from oven and open all doors and windows for ventilation.

Take telephone away from Billy and assure party on the line the call was a mistake.

Call operator and attempt to have direct dialed call removed from bill.

Measure 1 tsp. salt, 1/2 cup nuts and beat all ingredients well.

Let cat out of refrigerator.

Pour mixture into well-greased 9x13-inch pan.

Bake 25 minutes.

Rescue cat and take razor away from Billy.

Explain to kids that you have no idea if shaved cats will sunburn.

Throw cat outside while there's still time and he's still able to run away.

Frosting Mix the following in saucepan: 1 cup sugar 1 oz unsweetened chocolate 1/4 cup margarine

Take the darn teddy bear out of the broiler and throw it away -- far away.

Answer the door and meekly explain to nice policeman that you didn't know Jr had slipped out of the house and was heading for the street.

Put Jr in playpen.

Add 1/3 cup milk, dash of salt, and boil, stirring constantly for 2 minutes.

Answer door and apologize to neighbor for Billy having stuck a garden hose in man's front door mail slot.

Promise to pay for ruined carpet.

Tie Billy to clothesline.

Remove burned brownies from oven

Long Night

It's was a long night here! Frankie is off today and I have a sub job lined up (took the job last week). It's only a half day so I'll be working from 8am-12pm.

Kacey ended up in bed with us last night. I was too worried to leave her in her room. She was still throwing up until after dinner and then she managed to keep down more crackers. I spoke with her CDE yesterday about everything and she told us the most important thing right now was to make sure there were NO ketones and we kept her BG above 80. She hasn't had any ketones the entire time and her BG has ranged from 89-289 with nothing but crackers and Crystal Light. Before bed last night, I wanted to check for ketones and she couldn't pee. I started to get scared because I knew she wasn't drinking enough. I made her another drink and she went to sleep. I didn't get much sleep because I was too worried about her. I got up at 3am to do a sugar check and managed to wake her up enough to have her pee....finally! Still NO ketones. I'm so puzzled...shes throwing up...not eating anything but a total of 20 crackers and 2 cups of Crystal Light yesterday...and her sugars are steady going up and down. This is what frustrates me though... if it is celiac...I'm giving her crackers and making her sicker, right? (Wendy, do they make gluten free crackers?) It can't hurt to try those! So when I leave work today I'm going to see if Walmart has any and try that tonight. She's still asleep and Daddy is back in our bed with her (LOL we kicked him out of bed at 1am and he slept in her bed). I have to get ready for work and I'll be back for an update this evening.

Thank you all for your continued prayers!

Update- Dr. Visit

I've been a ball of nerves all day.

I took Kacey into the doc. She was still crying with stomach pains. I'd finally gotten her to eat 5 crackers and drink some Crystal Light but she was still saying she had to throw up. The doc came in and he talked with us about her symptoms and his initial thought was her appendix but when she showed him where the pain was he ruled that out. His second guess was possible stomach bug. He was a bit stumped because there was no fever or loose bowels...in fact...it was just the opposite...hard for her to have a bowel movement. And then he asked me a question that really rocked my world... Has she ever been tested for celiac? I immediately felt a rush over my body like when I was told (by the SAME doc) that she had diabetes. I replied with a simple "No" and asked if he really thought that was a possibility? He said if it's not celiac then he'd call it a stomach bug but only a blood test would rule that out. So he had the nurse take 2 tubes of blood... one for a simple blood test to see what her levels are and if there is anything going on there...and one for the celiac test. (BTW, Wendy you came to my mind immediately!) I won't know any results until Friday/Monday (which really sucks!) Then I asked about "Sugar Sick" and he assured me that it was NOT all in Kacey's head LOL! He asked me, "Would you drink a glass of apple juice if you've been sick at your stomach with the flu?" Eeeekkk! NO! He said that people with diabetes can get really nauseous with a low and trying to drink juice with a sick stomach just makes them want to puke even more! (makes sense!) So he said to just keep doing the glucose tabs and stick with those since they work.

So for now he said to just give her Gatorade diluted with water to keep her hydrated. She started to cry and told him that Gatorade made her "sugar sick". So he suggested trying the Crystal Light with electrolytes. So my Mom stopped and got her some and brought it home for her. She did manage to eat a few more crackers and drink the Crystal Light but all she's done is lay around like she had NO energy. Still NO fever, NO loose bowels, NO ketones, NO appetite and grumpy as hell (LOL!).

Please keep us in your prayers and pray that it's only a stomach bug!

BTW, I just wanted to express how thankful I am to have my Mom. She's been there for me through every up, down, twist & turn and she's been such a support for me, not only though Kacey's diagnosis but my entire life. She never once turned her back on me ....even when I was only 18 and told her I was pregnant with Kayleigh. She just said, "What's done is done and now we deal with it!" and thats the same attitude I've carried with everything thats ever happened with us. I've faced it head on and not layed in a pity party. We've made the best of what we were given and smiled while doing it. She was sick this past week and I've been so upset about not being able to help her because taking Kacey around someone that is sick is a recipe for disaster. So we've kept our distance and I've called lots to check on her. We missed our Saturday morning breakfast date and the girls were really lost because we do that every weekend with her. Yesterday she was feeling better and so I went to her house to help her sort some things in her closet. While I was there, we ran across tons of funny pics that I'd forgotten about taking. Pics from when me and my brother were little and being silly. It was nice to get the chance to help her and give back to her what I could NEVER repay her for... the time, love and devotion she's given to me the last 33 years. I seriously don't know what I'd ever do without her! I called her after I walked out of the doctor's office today and I broke down crying with the possibility of being diagnosed with another serious illness. She immediately said, "We will take this each day as it comes and we will deal with it like we did with Kacey's diabetes diagnosis. We'll make it through, just like we did last year." And you know what.... WE WILL! I look back on how far I've come since July 2008 and I thought back then it was the end of the world as we knew it....and now here we are. For now, I'm going to continue on the way we've been doing things and wait for the results. But I just had to express how thankful I am to have my Mom!

Worried!

***Warning*** This post contains vomit so if you get queezy reading about vomit then please pass.


I'm REALLY worried and I've got another 20min before the doctor's office opens!

Kacey woke up yesterday morning with a tummy ache. Nothing out of the ordinary for her. Her BG was 169 so thats not really enough to cause the tummy ache (or is it?). We got up and she was looking sluggish. I did my usual "What do you want for breakfast?" routine with her and she replied, "Nothing." Uhoh! So I convinced her to eat a little something, bolused and we went on to my Mom's house to help her with cleaning out closets (I've been promising to do this with her for a long time). When we got there, Kacey just layed around. No energy! I tested her at 10am and her BG was down to a 105. (Yikes! She's falling fast from breakfast!) By 11am, she tells me she doesn't feel good and wants me to hold her. ***red flag*** I immediately got her test kit and her BG was down to a 60! So we decide to take a break and take the girls to Subway for lunch (Kacey's fav place to go!) But before we went, I gave her 1 glucose tab to keep her up enough without overloading her to eat. We get to Subway and she's still saying her tummy hurt. I told her that maybe it was just hungry since she was low. She tested again and her BG was now a 93 (perfect!) She got her sub, I did her shot and she took about 4 bites and looked over at me with these big eyes. UHOH! She says she doesn't feel good and asks to go to the bathroom. Since she'd been dropping, I decided to pass on eating and go with her. I thought she was going to puke but instead she just sat on the toilet crying in pain. Constipation? Very possible! Doesn't that make your tummy hurt? Yes! After about 10min in the bathroom we go back out, she tries to eat more and just cries that her stomach hurts. So now...shes got the insulin...not wanting to eat...and she knows that which is probably why shes crying. Shes scared! So I reassure her that if we test often over the next few hours then we can catch any low she may be getting. My Mom had real soda so worst case, she could drink that! So we go back to my Moms and she lays down t watch a movie. At 1pm, her BG was only a 108 (wow!) So she's dropping but she actually had an appetite and asked for rice cakes. The only ones we had were the mint choc mini ones but since she was already feeling bad, I let her eat them. She finished the small bag (15g)....and then I hear "Mommmmmm, I feel SUGAR SICK!"...... WTF?!?!?! She just layed around all afternoon and we left to come home at 4pm. When we got home, she said she was feeling a bit better and wanted a grilled cheese sandwhich for dinner but she didn't want anything with it. So Kayleigh asked to make them and while she was doing that Kacey tested again. Her BG was now a 229...HUH? And then she takes off running to the bathroom. She threw up her sub and the rice cakes. Oh geesh! Now what? She said her tummy felt better since she threw up and wanted to eat. She ate the sandwhich and then it started all over again. She was complaining her tummy hurt. All evening she layed on the couch and cried in pain. (***pause*** Call doctor- got appt for 9:45am this morning) She went to bed and woke up at 5:30am crying in pain again. Her BG was a 197. She said she really needed to throw up. I asked her if she thought she'd feel better if she did. She shook her head yes as she bolted out of the bed. She barely made it to the toilet when she puked. It was ALL liquid. No substance at all and it was a grayish/green with a VERY foul odor. She doesn't have a fever. She's EXTREMELY tired and cranky. And she's complaining of her muscles hurting. I'm stumped! If it was the flu then I'd expect her to have the fever and watery stools. She's got absolutely NO appetite and I have no idea what to do?

I'll update when we get back!

The Life of A Mommy

This was how MY life went just a few short years ago! The time flies so fast...cherish every moment you have with your children and take time to do....SOMETHING! :)
The Life of A Mommy

My husband came home today and saw me sitting on the couch, preschooler on one knee and baby in the other arm. I was trying to turn the pages of a book with the hand that wasnt attached to the baby, while listening to the stove buzzer, which indicated tonights dinner was at the stage between "well done" and "the dog's entree".

My husband looked at me innocently and asked "So did you do anything today?" Its a good thing that most of my appendages were otherwise engaged, as I was unable to jump up and throttle him to death/ This was probably for the best, as I assume that asking a stupid question is not grounds for murder in this country.

Let me back up a bit and explain what led me to this point in my life. I was not always bordering the brink of insanity. On the contrary, a mere four years ago, I had a good job, steady income and a vehicle that could not seat a professional sports team and me comfortably. I watched television shows that were not hosted by singing muppets. I went to bed later than nine o'clock at night. I preferred sex to sleeping in. I laughed at those people that drove half way across the country hauling a tent trailer, screaming kids and a drooling dog and called it a vacation. Now I have become one of them!

What happened? The stick turned BLUE...thats what happened! I traded my Victoria's Secret lingerie for cotton briefs and a firm support bra. Goodbye Garth Brooks and Hello Barney and Big Bird! My idea of privacy is getting to use the bathroom without a preschooler banging on the bathroom door and the baby spinning the toilet paper from my lap. And I finally understand the term "Stay At Home Mom" does not refer to a parent who no longer works outside the house, but to one who never seems to get out the front door.

So, here I sit, children in hand, wondering how to answer my beloved husband. DID I DO ANYTHING TODAY? Well I think I did, although not much seems to have gotten accomplished. I shared breakfast with a beautiful little girl. Of course, the breakfast consisted of a bowl of Cocoa Puffs and leftover cookie crumbs found between the sheets. This beautiful girl is about 34 inches tall and only gets excited at the site of purple dinosaurs, baby dolls and french fries. I got to take a long relaxing stroll outside. Of course we had to look at the pretty flowers blooming and pick a few dandelions along the way.

I successfully washed one load of laundry, moved the load that was in the washer to the dryer and the dryer to the basket. The load that was in the basket is now spread out across out bed, awaiting my bedtime decision to fold them and put them away or merely move them to another basket.

I read two or three classics. Of course, Dickens and Shakespeare cannot take credit for these works, as we have moved on to the works of Seuss and Munsch. I dont think I will be making any trips to the adult section of my local library anytime soon.

In between, I dusted, wiped, organized and rearranged. I kissed away owies and washed away tears. I scolded, praised, hugged and tested my patience all before noon.

Did I do anything today? YOU BETCHA! I now understand what people mean when they say that parenting is the hardest job they will ever have. In my LBD (Life Before Diapers) I was able to teach young minds how to divide fractions and write complex sentences but Im unable to figure out how to occupy a preschooler for more than 15 minutes. I was once able to navigate urban streets while talking on the cell phone and looking for a decent radio station but now I cant get the wheels on the stroller to all go in the same direction.

I've graduated from a university, written newspaper articles and won awards but I cant figure out how to get carrot stains out of the carpet. I used to debate with friends about politics but now we discuss the merits of cloth versus disposable. And when did I stop talking in sentences that had more than 5 words?

So, in response to my husbands inquiry, yes I did do something today. In fact, I am one step closer to one of life's greatest accomplishments. No, I did not fins a cure for cancer or forge world peace but I did hold a miracle in my arms...TWO of them! My children are my greatest accomplishments and the opportunity to raise them is my greatest challenge! I dont know if my children will grow up to be great leaders or world class brain surgeons. Frankly I dont care, as long as they grow up to be good people. The are my greatest joys, even though I sometimes cry myself to sleep in frustration. The point is that today I got to watch my children take another step on the great journey of life and I even got to point out some of the sites along the way.

As challenging as parenthood is, it is also equally rewarding because we are using our wisdom, our talent and skills to help forge a new person. It is this person, these people, who in turn will use their gift to create our future.

So every nursery rhyme I recite, every swing I push, every little hand I hold is SOMETHING....and I did it today!

~Anon

Sugar Sick

Is there such thing as Sugar Sick?

I'm beginning to really think there is! When Kacey drops low, she does glucose tabs because she said the other stuff like juice or skittles makes her "Sugar Sick". I wasn't sure what she meant at first and she describes it as, feeling like she is going to puke because she has too much sugar in her tummy. She's done this a couple times now and I brushed her off...til today! She wanted to eat those candy peeps with her lunch and so we bolused in for them. She ate lunch and then ate the peeps for "dessert". About 15min after she ate them, she said they made her "sugar sick". She layed on the couch and complained of a tummy ache (just like she used to do before she was diagnosed) and she said, "Mommy, I just don't think I can ever eat anything sweet ever again because it just makes me sugar sick!" Is this possible? I'm wondering if since we don't feed her all the sweet stuff anymore, is her body just not used to eating sweet and really making her sick? Or is it all in her head, knowing she ate something with more sugar than she'd normally eat? It's hard to tell!

One of her favorite things to eat before diagnosis was Little Debbie- Zebra Cakes. I went grocery shopping this morning and I was picking up things for their lunches next week and I read the box of cakes- 48g carbs for 2 cakes. So if she ate 1 cake then it would be 24g carbs and she could have one every so often as a special dessert treat. I got them and when she saw the box she held her tummy and made a sour face. I asked her why in the world she did that and her reply was, "Mommy they make me sugar sick just looking at them!" OK...now it was all I could do to keep from busting out laughing! So I assured her that it was ok, we'd let Daddy take them in his lunch. She asked for mini rice cakes instead! LOL!

So for all the diabetics or parents of kids with diabetes....Do you/your child get "Sugar Sick" or is this all in Kacey's head? LOL!

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day

to you all!

Hope you have a great one!

Dose Change & Party

I had to put in a call to Kacey's CDE today. We had a repeat episode of yesterday this afternoon. Her charted blood sugars looked like an EKG...LOL! She had a low of 57 this afternoon and she had NO symptoms this time. She only tested because she was scared she'd drop like she did yesterday and sure enough....she did! She treated with glucose tabs like she did yesterday and only came up to a 166. Her CDE wants me to change carb ratios at lunch from 1:12 to 1:15 and see if that makes a difference. She did explain that all the physical activity she was having was probably causing it all but we could change that now and see how she did through the weekend. If she has more than 2 lows in one day then she wants me to call the emergency line over the weekend. If she doesn't then we need to fax blood sugars on Monday like we usually do and they will take a look at her week and see what changes they need to make.

I thought for sure she'd be running high today since she was having a Valentine's Day party. I figured the excitement would keep her high and silly me didn't think that she'd be saving all her treats to bring home! She was proud of herself that she saved them and then she said if she had known she was going to drop then she would have eaten them! LOL! Oh well! She got several "candy" treats from friends and one little boy gave her "sugar free" heart peeps. He was so proud of himself and told Kacey that he knew she couldn't have sugar and so he got her those so she could have some too. How sweet! Kacey didn't go into the whole spill about sugar free stuff with him...she just thanked him for thinking of her and making her feel special. I thought that was very grown-up of her :) and she didn't hurt his feelings for going out of his way to make sure she had what he thought she could! This is the same little boy that told his mother he HAD to be there for Kacey at the Walk to a Cure so he could make sure she was ok while she was walking. This kid has a heart of gold! And do you know...his mother made it a point to bring him so he could walk with Kacey that day and he missed out on another family event to be there with her. Thats what I call a true friend regardless of gender! Her teacher said that she had a hard time walking up and down the candy aisle and instead of doing candy for the class she decided she was giving them all "Free Homework Passes" ...YAYYY! One more reason we love Mrs. M!! The kids didn't know that she'd stressed over what to get them because she didn't want Kacey feeling left out and Kacey was thrilled to have another pass to use on "high blood sugar" days!

Friday the 13th

Have a GREAT weekend!

A New Symptom

I got to work another day this month :) This time with 5th graders! It was a great group and overall no major meltdowns. Only one that decided to put a "Kick Me Hard" sign on his friend...haha! Oh yeah, and my first fire drill as a Sub...those are always fun! The end of the day is when the day fell apart. It was 3:30pm and I was bring the class in from outside and one of my friends met me coming down the hall and said "Kacey's low!" I responded with "How low?" (keep in mind the kids were getting their backpacks to go home at 3:40pm) She said "54!" My mind swirled for a moment and I said "Tell them to give her a juice box. NO! Give her 3 glucose tabs!" About that time, Kacey's teacher comes around the corner and says "She's taken care of! I've already treated her." I breathed an instant sigh of relief and got the class packed up to leave. I took them to the front door to go to the buses and I saw Kacey sitting there with Mrs. M and she was smiling. So...this is what happened....

Kacey said she was sitting at her desk and started sweating. (Yikes! SWEATING? Thats a new symptom!) She asked one of her friends if he felt hot? Nope! So asked Mrs. M if it would be ok if she tested? Sure! She got her kit and it was a 54! Mrs. M asked her what she needed to do? She knew what to do immediately. She went to her backpack and pulled out her "emergency stash" of glucose tabs and ate 3. Perfect! There was no need to call on the nurse....Mrs. M & Kacey had complete control over the situation. YAYYYY! I was so proud of her (& Mrs. M!) I was a bit scared because I kept thinking about ...What IF Kacey hadn't tested because she was sweating? I would have got in the car with her THAT low and driven home. Scary! I'm just thankful that Mrs. M is on the ball. We got to the car and Kacey had a little bit of a meltdown. We tested and she was up to a 232 but that wasn't why she was crying. I think the thought of having a low like that at school had finally hit her. Then she cried even harder and said "I knew what to do, Mommy!" Thats right...she did....at only 8 years old, she treated her own low blood sugar without the help of an adult. It's amazing at how responsible our kids are when they are dealing with an illness like this. She did say that sweating wasn't her only symptom...she got the shakies while she was trying to open the glucose tabs but she said she thought it was just because she was scared. (Poor thing!)

She's been on the lower end of things for the last few days. I'm not sure if a dose change is needed? I'm really thinking it's because we've had some really nice weather and she's been playing outside. So now I have a question...yesterday she had gym, played outside for recess, came home and played outside all evening. She went to bed with a 115...woke up with a 151 (hmmmm?) and then she was a 155 at snack...so far so good! But then she went to an 81 for lunch and an hour later she was a 156 but said she was feeling low. An hour after that she dropped to the 54...up to 232 after 30min....and then 2hrs later for dinner she was an 85. Can all the activity she had yesterday affect her blood sugars today? I know that sounds crazy but I'm wondering if all the activity is affecting things.

Wednesday Funny

It was this little girl's first day of school and the teacher asked her what her name was and she replied, "Happy Butt." The teacher said, "Honey I don't think that's your name you need to go to the principal's office and get this straightened out." So she went to the principal's office and he asked, "What's your name?" And the little girl said, Happy Butt." The principal called the girl's mother to get this straightened out once and for all. After getting off the phone he looked at the little girl and said, "Honey, your name's is Gladys, not Happy Butt." The girl then exclaimed, "Glad Ass, Happy Butt" what's the difference?"

Health Insurance

Health insurance has become a top priority in our life the last 6 months. Some days I sit and think about how we'd manage if we didn't have it. I know Frankie makes too much to qualify for any type of state assistance. We tried to get help for the $160 a month we have to pay a month for insulin & supplies and we were denied. I personally think it's really sad that we're busting our asses to make ends meet and we already pay almost $500 a month just for insurance, not counting co-pays and medications. I wanted assistance for the $160 we have to pay for insulin and diabetes supplies because I didn't want to have to worry about where the money would come from if we happened to come up short. I explained things to the lady and told her without insulin Kacey would die and she looked at me and said "Mam, I really am sorry, but your husband makes too much a month and there is nothing we can do to help you." The system SUCKS! There are people we know that are mooching off the system, lazy bums who don't give a flying flip about their kids, and they go to the doc for every ache & pain and get pain meds and then turn around and sell them for CASH! WTF is wrong with the system?!?! Grrrrr!

OK...so all that being said... I'm in a bit of a dilemma. Frankie's company isn't very stable right now. They've cut his hours to 40hrs a week. He went from working 60hrs a week to 40hrs a week....20hrs of time & a half....CUT! They've told them that NO ONE will get overtime for any reason. This really got me worried. So as things would have it, the job he applied for a few years ago with the city has now opened back up and he was called for an interview. He went for the interview and things look really bright and this would be a stable move for us. My biggest fear was switching insurance. The first thing he asked them was would Kacey have a waiting period for a pre-existing condition. Since we already have insurance then she will NOT :) Our insurance is nearly $500 a month now and we have United Healthcare. We will be getting Anthem and it will be $232 a month....thats HALF of what we are paying now! Right now we pay $20 for reg doc visits and $40 for specialist and with the new insurance it will be $10! So thats another savings. Same with medications...we will pay a significant amount less. Now here's my dilemma...I filled out all the paperwork for Kacey's pump to go through our current insurance which will pay 80%...leaving us paying $1200 or so for the pump. But I'm not sure what Anthem covers for the pump? I've heard 100% and I've heard 80%. If they are going to cover 100% then I'm thinking it will be in our best interest to wait another month or so before filing all the paperwork. I don't have the heart to tell Kacey this because I know how badly she wants the pump and how badly I want it for her. I'm just trying to figure out what our best interest would be to keep us from being stuck with more medical bills. Sometimes we have to think with our brains instead of our hearts and this is one of those times I'm trying to use my brain.

Does anyone have Anthem? How is the coverage?

I'm really scared to make this move but I'm scared if we don't make this move and the company Frankie works for decides to go under then he's without a job and we're without insurance and then we'd REALLY be in trouble. I need some advice here because I'm unsure and stressed over all of this! It's weighing heavy on me right now and I'm torn on what decision we should make.

Pump Site- Kacey's Interview

Through the eyes of an 8 year old....

Me: Last Thursday you went to Pump Class at CHKD. What did you learn while you were there?
Kacey: I learned about how to work all the different pumps and how to put a site in and I learned that the first insulin pump was a backpack and the second insulin pump was the size of a notebook. (Wowwww! She payed attention!)
Me: When the CDE told you that you HAD to get a pump site put in, how did you feel?
Kacey: I was a little scared because I never had one done before and I thought the needle would be very big.
Me: When you saw Nurse Kristen and you knew she was going to do your site, did you feel less afraid?
Kacey: Yes because I know shes very gentle and very nice.
Me: When you got the site put in, was it as painful as you thought it was going to be? How did it feel?
Kacey: No, it felt a little tingly but not hurting tingle.
Me: We made a "make believe" pump so you could see how it felt to wear a pump during the time you had your site in. Did it feel weird?
Kacey: Yes because I never had a pump before and it was clipped to my pants.
Me: You had the chance to show off the site and pump to Mrs. M and your friends. How did they react? Did it make you feel uncomfortable?
Kacey: I didn't feel uncomfortable and all my friends asked a bunch of questions and I answered them all.
Me: Did you have a hard time riding your bike or playing outside when you were connected to the pump?
Kacey:I did but I got used to it.
Me: Did you have any problems with snagging your site or forgetting you had the pump on?
Kacey: Yes when I was asleep I tugged on it on accident. Then when I was putting my playstation game away I forgot it was my "pump" in my hand and I sat it down and walked away. It tugged and hurt really bad and I started crying. Then another time my pump fell out of my bed and tugged my site and woke me up in the middle of the night.
Me: How did you sleep with it?
Kacey: I put it on the side of me but it still fell out of my bed.
Me: Were you sad when it was time to take the site out?
Kacey: Yes because I got used to have it in and then I had to take it out and I couldn't put another one in. I want my pump really bad and now I have to wait for it.
Me: Did it hurt when you took it out?
Kacey: Yes because I pulled the cannula out really slow because I was scared.


Sunday morning...sleeping in til 8am. She woke up at 6am when her pump fell out of bed and so I let her come out to the couch and go back to sleep.
This pic made me cry! Taking the pump site out was a very difficult task. It was moreso because of the reality that this was just a "trial" and it there wasn't going to be another site to replace it. She cried so hard for a few minutes and I had to keep reminding her that we had to go through this "waiting period".

The place where she had her site looked great! It wasn't very tender.

She had to show off her tubing and what was left of the site.

This one she tried to smile but she really didn't want to! She wanted her pump so bad :( My heart broke for her. Now it's just a waiting game!

Letter Meme

I emailed Karen for my letter to do the Meme. She gave me the letter "A".

Now I have to list ten things I love that start with the letter A.

1. Angels- I collect Willow Tree Angels and I believe in Angels.

2. Ace Ventura - My favorite actor is Jim Carrey and my love of him started with Ace Ventura: Pet Detective.

3. Apple Juice- This is my favorite juice and when I was pregnant with Kacey I could drink it by the gallon!

4. Advocate- I've found myself speaking out more and more about diabetes. Especially to those people that mistake Type 1 for Type 2 and try and tell me I can control Kacey with diet & a pill (ahhhh if only it was that easy!)

5. Albuterol- without this inhaled medication then I wouldn't be able to control my asthma or Kayleigh's asthma. Kay had her first asthma attack when she was 10 months old and has been on Albuterol ever since. I developed asthma after 10 weeks of bronchitis/pneumonia in 2006. I've been on an inhaler since then.

6. Aunt- I love being an Aunt to my nephews, Kylar & Hunter, and my niece, Abigail. I don't get to see them as often as I like but I think about them often and wish they lived closer :(

7. August- The month I was born. It's also the best time to be on the beach or playing in the pool.

8. America- The country I live in.

9. American Idol- My FAV reality show! I've watched it every year since Season 1 :) and I'm so glad it's back on!

10. Abracadabra! - I've always been fascinated with magic. I love watching it on TV and live and trying to figure out how the trick is done.

Wow! That was harder than I thought! LOL Thanks Karen :) ***Hugs***

Pump Site- Daddy's Interview

Me: When you first found out that you could wear a pump site for 3 days, what was your first reaction?
Daddy: I was excited because I would be able to feel what Kacey was feeling.

Me: Did it hurt as bad as you thought it would?

Daddy: No not at all.

Me: Your job is driving a tractor trailer and hauling heavy equipment, did you find yourself bumping the pump site while you worked?

Daddy: Nope I didn't even know it was there.

Me: Did you snag your tubing on anything while you wore it?

Daddy: No I wore the tubing tucked in my pants.

Me: Do you have a better understanding of what Kacey will be faced with everyday?

Daddy: Yes because I had to be aware that the site was there and be careful not to snag it while I worked.

Me: Are you worried about doing her sites once she gets her pump?

Daddy: No because I got one and now I know what she will feel.

Me: Did your site hurt when Kacey helped you take it out?

Daddy: Not at all

Me: Do you have more respect and compassion for what Kacey will have to go through every day?

Daddy: Yes because I know how uncomfortable it can be and because you have to be careful not to snag the tubing. She has to go through a lot and I know how it feels.

Me: Are you glad you were given the chance to experience this? Do you think every parent should have to participate in a trial like this?

Daddy: Yes I'm glad because now I know how she feels and how big the responsibility is for her to be connected all the time. I do think every parent should have to participate because you get a better understanding of what it takes to manage diabetes.

Kacey helped Daddy take his site out. She was worried that she would hurt him.

Pump Site- My Interview

Doing this interview was a bit harder since it was myself...LOL! I'll just make it a question and answer session.

Was the site insertion as painful as I thought it would be?
I'll admit, when I first saw the needle that is used to insert it, I felt like I'd been punched in the gut. I was scared of the pain especially since my tummy is such a tender part of my body. I didn't let on that I was scared and I bared the "brave face". As Kristen put the site in, I didn't even feel it go in! I'm sure if I had watched then it may have been more painful but honestly I didn't even feel it. After it was in for about 5 minutes, I felt a little pain but nothing too uncomfortable and then it was gone....just a bit tender.

Did I find it uncomfortable to wear?
The first day I didn't even notice I had it on. By the second day, I knew I had it on every time I went to pee! LOL! Since I had the tubing tucked into my pocket and it wasn't connected to anything, everytime I went to the bathroom I'd forget the tube was there and it would tug on the site. After about the 8th time of tugging it, it started to get sensitive where the cannula was in. The end of the 2nd day, I was rushing about as I normally do and I snagged the tubing and I thought my skin was being ripped off!!! It had started to bleed and so I had no choice but to remove it :( I did let Kacey help me take it out and she was still very uncomfortable touching it.

Did anyone notice I was wearing it? Was I self conscious with it on?
I wasn't self conscious with it because it stayed tucked in my pocket. No one knew I had it unless I showed them. I did use it as a "teaching tool" for the school nurse. I showed her how it worked and how to disconnect and reconnect. She was able to see the difference between the site that goes straight in and the site we had that is angled.

Was the removal painful?
Not at all. It was a bit tender because I'd snagged it so much but it wasn't painful.

Do I have more respect for people using the pump and for Kacey?
ABSOLUTELY! I had respect even before this trial. The pump is alot of hard work and commitment just like shots are. Don't let anyone tell you that you can get the pump and "forget" you have diabetes. It's a constant reminder that diabetes is there BUT it's also a reminder of how well controlled your diabetes can be and the freedom you have to be just a bit more "normal". With the pump, diabetes is a little bit more hidden. You're not pulling out needles and doing injections in public like you have to do with shots. You're not getting those "weird looks" like people give us now when I pull out Kacey's case and give her a shot at the table in a restaurant. You're able to pull out a pump that looks like a cell phone to the untrained eye *wink*. So if you don't want people to know you have diabetes, then they don't have to know.

I'd do this again for Kacey in a heartbeat! I think it gave me a better understanding of what it feels like to have a site snagged and what a pain in the ass diabetes can be. ***See the pic below***
Like I said in the last post, if you are considering the pump for your child, ASK to have a site put in when they get it done. It's very important you feel what they are feeling so when they come to you and say "My pump just fell off my lap and my site pulled" and they have tears streaming down their face then you DO know how the pain of that feels and you can sympathesize a little bit more. (this happened to Kacey...her interview is tomorrow) You won't just pat them on the back and send them on their way. Even if you're scared to do it, just remind yourself if you're scared then imagine how your child is feeling and do it for them.

Thanks to all the CDE's at CHKD for a great Pump Class and for giving us the chance to walk a few days in Kacey's shoes (kinda!)

Pump Site- Kayleigh's Interview

When we went to the Pump Class last Thursday night, our CDE gave us the option to have a site put in to see how it feels. I knew that I wanted to get one done since I will probably be the one doing Kacey's sites and I knew Frankie wanted to have one done but I never in a million years would have thought that Kayleigh would volunteer to have one done. She is VERY afraid of needles (just look at her face in the pic below) but this was something that she wanted to do and we didn't push on her. Now for my interview with her.....

Me: Kayleigh, you chose to wear a pump site so you could feel what it would be like for your sister to wear it. Was the site insertion as painful as you thought it would be?

Kayleigh: Actually no it wasnt. I am really scared of needles and the only thing I felt was a little tingle when the needle was being removed.

Me: Did you find the site uncomfortable to wear?

Kayleigh: In a way it was sort of uncomfortable because I was attached to it.

Me: You wore your pump site to school with the tubing tucked into your pocket. Did your friends notice? Were you more aware that it was there? Did you feel self conscious about it?

Kayleigh: My friends didn't notice until I showed them. I had gym that day and we have to change in the locker room. One girl looked at me weird and asked me what it was? When I told her what it was she really didn't understand what I was talking about. I was aware that it was there because I was afraid I would snag it and pull it out during school. I wasn't self conscious about it because no one knew I had it on unless I showed them. I did get alot of questions from the friends that I showed and was happy to answer them.

Me: You were only able to wear your pump site for 24 hours. What happened?
Kayleigh: The first night I got it, my arm snagged the tubing and it began to bleed a little. As the hours went on, it got more tender and hurt. The blood went further down the tubing and it worried us so I took it out.
Me: Was it painful coming out?
Kayleigh: I thought it would be but I soaked it with alcohol and it came right off like a bandaid.
Me: Did the area around where you had the site hurt after taking it out?
Kayleigh: No it was just a little tender and I think that was because it was snagged.
Kayleigh's pump site after 24 hours.... Is this normal?

Me: Do you have more respect for what your sister will have to go through every day?
Kayleigh: Yes, even though it will only be one stick every 3 days, I wish she didn't have to go through all of that. If I could take it from her I would. She's been so brave over the last 6 months and I'm proud of her.

Conclusion: This was definately an eye opener for Kayleigh and I'm glad she took part in it. I did have a question about the site though. If you snag your site like that, do you have to pull it out and do another one? I was thinking that since insulin would be flowing through a real one, then you wouldn't get the blood backup like that. Would you? I think having patients, parents, siblings, and anyone else involved in the care of a child with diabetes should have to wear a site. This has definately given us an inside glimpse into just a SMALL portion of what Kacey goes though.

My interview tomorrow :)