Diagnosis Day

I honestly didn't think I took any pictures when Adam was in the hospital...heck, I don't even remember having the camera there. But I found my point-and-shoot today (kids...gotta love them) and I've been uploading photos from 2010 to Shutterfly and I found that I did take 3 pics of him in the hospital.

Boy he looks skinny! Sniff, sniff. :( But man, that kid is just a happy kid...diabetes and all. Love him.

I puffy heart my hubby's job

Oracle Corporation...you are on my nice list this year.

In the midst of Adam's diabetes diagnoses, my husband was in the middle of negotiating a new job. Talk about uber-stressful when your son has been admitted to the hospital, your husband has just given notice to his old job, accepted a new one, and then the old one says, "your last day is today because you are going to a competitor."

Freak out! We were afraid we'd be without coverage during his hospital stay. It all worked out fine, though, once we realized we'd be covered 'till the end of the month and his new job would start my husband earlier just to be sure we'd have insurance coverage.

And what mighty fine coverage that is. Today we found out that Adam's Dexcom will be covered at 100%. And the sensors are covered at 100%.

***doing happy dance***

I say this only because I feel like FINALLY. We are able to catch a break! We have not had the best insurance in the past (but I'm thankful for what we had, that is for sure). We have had to pay out of pocket for all of Adam's contact lenses ($140 a pop - and let me just say that small children do not keep track of them well), 20% of all of his surgeries and exams under anesthesia (3 surgeries + 3 exams under anesthesia = $$$$$$$) and now his diabetes supplies.

I know how hard it is to pay those bills. I know what it's like to call the hospital and say, "hey, I can't pay this, we need a payment plan." It sucks, but we do it for our kid.

Now, I'm just reveling in the fact that SOMETHING is going our way. For all I know, the insurance coverage will change next year.....but I'm going to enjoy this for right now. I'm pretty sure that our pump will be covered at 100%, so I'm going to push to get that before Dec. 31st as well. :)

our week with Dexie (well, almost a week)

I'm finally able to sit down for a few minutes! Between hosting Thanksgiving for 19, doing Black Friday for the first (and LAST!) time ever, and then getting "Christmas" up in the house this weekend, I've barely had a minute to rest.

So, Dexcom.

Adam's site came out the day after Thanksgiving, so we're done with our trial. I sure hope when we get our own that the sites stick better...the adhesive was coming loose after one bath. And a few wrestling sessions on Thanksgiving didn't help matters. This is what I'm worried about with a pump...I don't mind the Dexcom coming out so much, but a pump site...that is a huge deal.

I really liked the Dexcom. Although, it really made me hate Diabetes even more than I already did. Dexcom made me realize just out out of control we are, after being under the illusion of control.

Um, Novolog? Fast-acting insulin my ASS.

I realize that since we are doing MDI, we are dosing Adam after he eats...but man, to actually see those meal spikes happen in real life after his meals and then having to wait for the insulin to react - it was an eye opener. It made me want a pump yesterday. I know that the pump won't solve everything, but am I wrong in assuming that we won't have as many meal spikes if I can pre-bolus him partially for a meal, then bolus him for the rest when he's done?

I was very happy to see how steady he stayed every night. VERY happy. Levemir rocks and no matter what his bedtime reading was, he always stayed steady in the low 100's all night long.

I wasn't so impressed with how varying the numbers could be between the Dex and his real blood sugar - sometimes there was a 100 pt difference when he was high. For example, Dex would say he was 350, and in reality he was like 260. But the gap closed when he was lower, which was good.

I don't know...I'm just pissed that this is all so hard. I want a break and I feel horrible for complaining because Adam doesn't get a break and will never get a break for the rest of his life.

Overall, I give the Dex a thumbs up and I feel kind of naked without it now, especially at night. We should have one of our own sometime this week, though, so we don't have to wait that long!

Lookie what we have here...

"Wow, this thing is cool!" "I love my Dexcom!"


Today was a very exciting day in the Drew household.

Today, the Dexcom came to live with us!

We are extremely blessed to have our neighbor - we've known each other for 11 years, she is T1D AND she's our Dexcom rep. :)

She came over this afternoon to do the sensor insertion on Adam. He was totally nervous and scared, mostly because I think he truly didn't understand what was going to happen. He seemed to think that the Dexcom insertion was the NEW way we were going to be checking blood sugars....like 10 times a day. I had to reassure him that no, this was only once a week.

He wanted me to do the insertion, and it was really quite easy (I'd viewed the tutorials online, and watched Tracy's You Tube videos!) Adam cried and said that it felt like he got a cactus needle stuck in his arm (only an Arizona boy would say that!) but after that, he fell asleep on my lap while we went over the details of the Dex. And since then, he hasn't said a word about the sensor/transmitter feeling funny or anything.

He's been proudly showing it off to everyone he knows! I put the receiver in the Spibelt that I won from Meri, and it works perfectly.

I love the trending. LOVE it. I knew he was going down from playing outside, and then it beeped to let me know it was under 90. A few glucose tabs later and he's all good.

Dexcom seems to have great customer service...our endo sent in the paperwork for approval this morning, and by noon I had Dexcom call me and let me know that all things look good and we should have one of our OWN next week.

WOOT!

First bloggy award!

Oooh, fun! I have seen this floating around the DOC and I think I've been tagged a few times...by Heather and Denise! Thanks, girls!

Now, I need to share 7 things about myself...

1. I love to bake. Not cook, BAKE. You will often find me in the kitchen making sugar cookies - like today! I made Thanksgiving turkey sugar cookies as "placecards" for our Thanksgiving table and helicopter cookies for my mom to take to her work to share with her co-workers.

2. I have a new-found love of power tools. I love to build! I built Adam a bookshelf for his room, a bunk bed for Sydney's American Girl dolls and a headboard for our bed....which is not finished yet. Next on tap is more doll furniture and maybe a desk...

3. I am a total night-owl. I had hoped that would change after having kids and I'd switch to being a morning person....but no such luck.

4. I am a people-pleaser, and at 35, I am just now beginning to learn how to say "no." It's very, very hard for me.

5. Holy crap, when did I get to be 35?????? I still feel like I should be in my 20's. Hmmm.

6. If I could snap my fingers and have a new career, I'd be a nurse. Which is completely unrelated to my old career as a copywriter.

7. I am completely and totally addicted to diet soda. I'm not even picky - Diet Coke, Diet Pepsi...I'll take whatever I can get. Although the best is the $1.00 Diet Cokes from McDonald's Drive-thru. Fizzy, fountain, diet soda. Mmmm....if it wasn't 9pm and my husband wasn't out of town, I'd be out the door right now to get one.

Okay, now the deal is I need to pass this award on to 12 bloggers you have recently discovered and think are fantastic! Many of these girls have been tagged before...but haven't posted yet. And some are new!

Danielle @ Where Candy is Medicine
Reyna @ Beta Buddies
Sara
Joanne @ Death of a Pancreas
Tracy @ Our New Adventure
Shamae @ Our Crazy Happy Life
Meri @ Our Diabetic Life
Laura @ Houston We Have a Problem
Amy @ Laughing at Diabetes
Adrienne @ 2 Green Eyed Girls
Heidi @ D-Tales

And my great friend Heather - not diabetic, but her son has FPIES. Which can be just as maddening as diabetes some days. Go give her some love!
Heather @ Feeding Jake

I am...

SO READY FOR A PUMP.

The end.

PS, we are also doing a Dexcom trial sometime this week. SO EXCITED!

Fun with Insulin Syringes

Well, when you've got T1D, you've gotta find the fun in it somehow. Our syringes often end up all over the house, no matter how hard I try to get them in the sharps container ASAP. They become makeshift toys every once in awhile... (he knows not to remove the orange cap!)

WDD and a bummer...

Yesterday we were finally able to meet some local D-peeps for World Diabetes Day! We met up at a park and I finally got to meet some great bloggers in person - Heidi, Wendy, Donna, Kristi and Tracy!

It took me a few minutes to put everyone's face to their name to their blog name...I joked that we need name tags that say, "Hello, My Name is ___ and my blog is ___" But seriously, how lucky am I to have so many great D-blogging moms right here in my neck of the woods??

I didn't get any great pics, but I know these ladies will post some in the next few days. Adam was being totally anti-social...and this morning I figured out why.

This is the bummer part.

I took him in to the ped's this morning because he was up coughing all night and this morning said his throat hurt. I normally don't rush my kids to the doctor when they complain about stuff like this but I had a gut feeling (much like Heidi did!) and I just knew it was more than a virus.

Sure enough, he was diagnosed with Strep throat. Ugh. He's on 10 days of antibiotics...anything I should look out for? This is his first time being sick with diabetes and I'm a bit nervous. His blood sugar numbers are fine - a bit high today, but okay.

Hopefully this won't get passed around to the rest of the crew...

A first

Today was the first time I got "the call."

I was just about ready to head into an appointment when Adam's preschool teacher called. She said he was acting really tired and lethargic and just didn't seem like himself. They tried to offer him juice, but he refused. I told them to give him his snack instead, and I ran over and picked him up. Thank goodness I'm only a few minutes away!

He looked forlorn when I got there, and I tested him and he was 88...which means that before his snack he was even lower! Thank goodness for his teachers - they said they felt bad calling me, but I assured them that they did the EXACT right thing and I'm so glad they did.

Once I got him home, he ate about 30 carbs worth of goldfish crackers and I tested him again, and he was still only 98! Crazy. He had a HUGE activity day yesterday - a playdate and about 3-4 hours playing outside, so I'm guessing maybe all of that caught up with him. He woke up a few times last night as well...

All is well now...he's cuddling with me on the couch and we are watching Spongebob. Well, he is. I'm on the laptop. :)

D-blog Day

In honor of D-blog Day for Diabetes Awareness Month....I have officially "pulled the trigger" on getting Adam a pump.

Gulp.

I am scared, nervous and frankly, I just don't want to do this. I don't want my son attached to a pump. I don't want him on shots. I don't want him to have diabetes.

But I have to. I feel like I need to get this pump thing going so we can "move on" with our lives, so to speak. Does that make sense? I just want to get settled with the pump, accept it and move on. It's been this thing hanging over our heads for a few months - this huge unknown thing that is so scary to me, but I can't deny that everyone that has one for their kiddo says it's been great.

His blood sugars have been so wonky, and frankly, we are not getting a true BS measurement because of his constant grazing. I'm sorry...it has been really hard for me to nail down a 4 year old on an "eating schedule." It's just not happening. I am hoping that a pump will give us that flexibility and I'm praying that Adam will take to the pump and like it.

I've been emailing with Adam's endo for the last day and he's setting us up with an appointment with a CDE at the hospital so we can discuss all of the pumps. I really, really want to like the Omnipod, but I think that we are going to go with the Animas right now. Adam is still little...and in 4 years when it's time for a new pump, I can see the Omipod being our first choice. But right now, I think I need all the features the Animas has. Plus, the fact that my neighbor uses the Animas, so having 24/7 life support right there is awesome. :)

Thankful

Normally, Thanksgiving is not one of my favorite holidays. It just gets in the way of my excitement for Christmas. :)

But this year, I plan on embracing the holiday - despite the crap that has gone on this year, I am very thankful for my family and friends that have rallied around us this year. I don't usually "decorate" for Thanksgiving, but this year I did.



I'm thankful for little boys that are so proud of themselves for playing football:


I'm thankful for little girls who spend hours reading the latest American Girl catalog:


I'm thankful for a husband that lets me sleep in when I'm sick and he's been out of town all week:

Okay, Diabetes...you got me this week.

WTF!

That has been coming out of my mouth all week long in regards to Adam's numbers. The beginning of the week, he was low, low, low. So low that on Monday, I think I gave him 1 unit of Novolog total during the day.

Fast-forward to today, and his blood sugar hasn't been under 155 all day long. 310 at 8:30am, gave a correction, then he was 180 after preschool. 179 this afternoon and now he's 240 an hour and a half after his 2 units of Novolog for dinner. It's a fresh batch of insulin, too.

I give. I give.

I guess my plan is to watch this over the weekend and call the endo on Monday to see if things need to be increased. No ketones so far, thank goodness.

I'm also so ready for a pump. So ready. And a Dexcom. Let's face it, I'm getting greedy now. We have great insurance finally and I'm going to go for broke. :)

Fighting injections

Well, we are all home sick today!

I am trying to find the inner "good mom" in me and enjoy a day at home alone with my sweet, little, hacking, snot-dripping dumplings, but alas, it's only 10am and I'm ready to run up to my room, take some Ny-Quil and lock the door.

Le sigh.

Maybe I'll just lock them in their rooms.

Just kidding. kinda.

Not sure what is up with Adam the last few days, but he is all of the sudden fighting his injections like crazy. Freaking out, saying it will hurt, etc. Which is strange because he's never really had an issue with them before. Delayed reaction, maybe? Who knows. But it has me starting to think about a pump sooner rather than later. I'm already growing weary of always drawing up injections, not getting the right amount, etc. I don't know. It's such a tough decision.

First D'Oween

Well, our first Halloween with diabetes has passed us by. The kids had fun and I didn't worry too much about it, although today we are experiencing lots of lows...in fact, it is 2:25 pm as I write this and I have yet to give him any insulin today.

Hmmm.

He had one piece of candy before bed since he was low...then at bedtime he was 120. He was 98 at 11pm, and I really should have checked him again, because this morning at 7am, he was 84.

He does have a bit of a cold as well, but I always thought that he'd have high blood sugar with a cold?

I guess this is definitely an example of YDMV (your diabetes may vary!)

Our first JDRF Walk!

Our JDRF Walk was this past Saturday - what a great day! We had a lot of fun and felt great to be "doing something." We raised over $2500 - not too bad for our first go-round!

The only sad moment of the day was at the end of the walk, and Adam looked up at me and said, "Do I still have diabetes?"

Talk about breaking a momma's heart! I think he thought that "Walk for the Cure" meant he'd be cured. But hey, he's 4. :)