The SUPER low

I saw a number today that I hope I never see again in my lifetime. Or atleast the Princess should never see again in her lifetime.

A little while after I had corrected her for a high of 450 this morning she came to me saying that she felt really low. (You have no idea how grateful that my 4 year old can tell me what her body is trying to tell her!) She climbed up on the bar stool and put her head down on the counter while I grabbed her tester. She closed her eyes and told me that she just wanted to go to sleep. I quickly tested her and there it was.

29

I started to shake and got her some juice and quick as I could. She was so pale and so sickly looking. She didn't want to lift her head to drink, but she knew that was the only thing to make her better. She drank it as fast as she could. We all stood there in shock and super worried. I wanted to cry. I couldn't believe that she was that low. Even her diabetic grandpa (that was sitting next to her) said that he had never seen a low THAT low.

It took her about 20 minutes or so to feel better. As we watched her you could just see the life coming back into her. I don't know how close she was to being unconscious, but I can't help but feel it was really close! We called her doctor and he made some adjustments.

It was scary! Really really scary!

Family Adventure Holiday Edition

It has been awhile since I have posted about our family adventures. My sister in law, Kaycie and her hubby Shannon and their 3 kids are here from Texas and they wanted to go see the lights at Temple Square. We have already been there this year, but we really wanted to share this moments with them. My other sister in law, Stephanie, who is living with us, decided to come to. It was so much fun! COLD but fun! We went to dinner at Village Inn (which had SUPER crappy service! That is another post all in it's self.) Then we boarded Trax to go down town. Since it was Christmas Eve the entire train was singing carols all the way down. The kids LOVED it! We really had so much fun! Here are TONS of pictures from our little outing. In complete random order since I am too lazy to fix it. And don't mind the poor quality. I just wanted to have fun so I shot in jpeg.

Kaycie, Shannon and the kids.



Stephanie

The ENTIRE group.

The lights.

Little Man

Shannon and Kaycie

Steph again.

The other Shannon. Or otherwise known as Shannon #2.

Kaycie. I love this picture of her! Such a beautiful smile!

I love that he has his arm around the Princess!

The girls!

Silly Face! Or crazy lady. You choose!

Silly face. Or Crazy Man. You choose. LOL!

Half of the Fam.

Group Shot.

They are from Texas and THEY WERE FREEZING!

The SISTAS!

Oh! CUTE!

All the kids waiting for the train! They were super excited!

Putting the power outage, the blizzard and having to work all afternoon aside, this was by far one of THE BEST CHRISTMASES EVER!

I hope everyone else feels the same!

The children are all nestled and snug in their beds!

OOOOHHHHH!!!! I can't wait! This Christmas turned out to be the best EVER!

I was worried! I really was. ALL because of the kindness of others my kids have gifts to open in the morning. Some I don't even know what they are! You guys I don't even know how to tell you how grateful I am! Every single time I start to think about it I just sit and cry.

Christmas is NOT about gifts, it really isn't. We have been given so much, and I can tell you with everything that has been given to us I have truly felt the Spirit. We have felt and been focused on the love of Christ this season.

There are so many good people in this world. Again I am overwhelmed with gratitude and love for my fellow man! Merry Christmas everyone! I hope you can all feel the warmth that this season brings.

Busy Busy

So this time of year is just meant to be busy. I love it to an extent, but I feel I have been neglecting my duty as a blog owner. Sorry to have let you all down. :)

Actually here's the updates:

The Hubby: Loving his new job. Trying to work as many hours as possible but still home TONS more than any other job he has ever had. He had a BIRTHDAY yesterday that I totally slacked on a blogging birthday tribute. Hope he still knows I love him! Happy Birthday babe! His sisters are with us for a bit. One more permanent than the other and he is LOVING it! So am I for that matter! It is great to have them here with us!

The Dude: Tomorrow is his last day before Christmas break and he can't hardly wait! He told me half awake last night that he really hopes that he is on Santa's nice list. I assured him that there have been lots of things that he has done lately that have made mommy and daddy proud and I am sure Santa will take that into consideration. I TOTALLY love this kid!

The Princess: She is still a trouper, but life has been a little harder lately. With the treats that people have brought over she is trying to learn a little self control. She can't wait for Christmas either. I love seeing the magic of Christmas in her eyes. She has been doing a few extra things around the house just so we will let her wrap the presents. I am willing to do anything the help her keep her mind off her glucose levels. She has been running pretty high lately. We are having a hard time determining if it is because of her runny nose, her maybe sneaking food, or if she needs a dosage change. Last night I was in tears when her meter gave her an error because she was over 600 and that is as high as it goes. We called to doctor and he gave us a little talking to about keeping her on a schedule of when she eats, and gets her insulin. Man I felt bad, but we can count that as lesson learned. Today is much better, but it is all starting to wear on her. As I figured it would. She is justified!

The Little Man: He is just as silly as ever. I am not sure what he understands about Christmas, but we took him to see Santa at Ikea and he screamed! He loves the snow though and would be out in it all day long if I let him. I can't wait for him to maybe get a better idea of what it is all about!

Me: I had 5 photo session last week, and have also been working lots of hours for Jet Blue. Since there has been so many airports with weather delays it has been SUPER busy! I have been preparing for Trev's sister to move in with us for a few months and his other sister from Texas to come for Christmas for a few weeks. I am loving them here, it has been nice to visit. I woke up this morning to awesome news that my sister had her baby! She had a little girl Hadley Nicole. I wanted so bad to go to the hospital to meet her, but I have been sick too. I decided to wait. It is killing me though! We did get all our shopping done finally. We did it all in one night. We started at 7:30 and picked up the kids a little after 1. I was so happy to get it done! Now I just have to wrap it all! URGH!

So that is what is happening with us. I can't wait to share with you all about all the Christmas Magic that has been happening, but I will have to share that when I am a little less tired. Thanks for sticking with me through this lame posting month! Hope to back an running after the holidays! Merry Christmas if I don't stop by before then!

It's time for a laugh.

I saw this on a blog that I have been reading lately and I had to steal it! It is too funny. Not all of them pertain to us, but alot do.

YOU KNOW YOU'RE THE PARENT OF A DIABETIC WHEN.....

In conversation, your husband describes his personality as Type 1 instead of Type A.

You ask your child how her day at school was, and she answers with a number.

The microwave beeps and your d-child shouts “that wasn’t me!”

Everyone in the family says they are "low" instead of hungry!

When your parents answer the phone, the first thing they say is "What's wrong?"

You have no problem asking your child if they are "high" in a middle of a public place.

You make sure your child has candy in bed with them.

You ask your child what they had for lunch and they reply 45 carbs!

Your daughter wakes you up in the middle of the night and says, "Mommy, I'm beeping."

Your child says "I'm tired" and you ALWAYS have to wonder if she's low, high, or just plain tired.

You travel with as much food as you do baggage!

You hear another parent wish that kids would come with instructions and your diabetic child pipes in and says, "I do, and I don't leave home with out them."

Your first grader calls you from school to tell you that his teachers, nurse, and health aide are all absent so you decide to go to first grade for the day.

Your child refers to sequel movies as "Type 2".

You automatically wake up at 2:00 a.m.

Every meal turns into a math equation.

Your child falls and before you ask if they're okay you ask, "How's your pump site?"

You base your entire self-worth on your kid's last A1C!

You know what glucagon is and what it does.

You wake up the entire house because you accidentally finger poke your daughter's best friend for the middle of the night check - they look way too much alike.

Your daughter has a sleep over and her friends line up for blood sugar check, and none of them have diabetes.

Your daughter begins to miss the school nurse over summer break.

Your child refers to having a cold as being 'real people sick'.

You laugh out loud reading this list.

Is it possible?

Is it possible to have a Bi-Polar house?

My house can't decide what it wants to be.

CLEAN ~ dirty

fixed~BROKEN

EMOTIONAL ~ strong

quiet ~ BUSY

WARM ~ cold

I realized a very long time ago that nothing at my house will ever be "normal". If it ever starts to feel a little normal I start to brace myself. The thing is I wish that this last year wasn't so full of the extremes.

I am really looking forward to the new year and what it can bring. 2008 has been a rough one for so many, not just us. I am not banking on the fact that 2009 will be any less challenging. What I am hoping for is that it will be a little easier with the knowledge, faith, and hope that I have gained this last year. I feel my armour is a little more protecting than before.

This brings me back to my house. My home is what I make of it. I fully believe that it shows every emotion that I am feeling. I can truly walk out of a room and if I have felt a little overwhelmed the remnants of that feeling is shown in every one of my footsteps. Since I have been feeling the extremes of so many emotions can you imagine my house?

I am not meaning that it is messy, which it hasn't been lately. I am meaning when someone walks into my house I wonder what they feel? Is it possible that they can see how I am feeling that day? I am trying to be more aware of this. I want for everyone who walks through my door to feel loved. To feel the spirit and to feel important to me. With as much stress as I have been under I have been worried that when people leave they might need to seek therapy and not know why.

That brings up another question. Does that mean stress is contagious?

I guess what I am getting at is that I may feel a little more protected a little more strong, but is my front door as strong for what may come knocking in 2009?

One Month Down....

.........1140 or more to go.

So we have been dealing with Diabetes for exactly 1 month now. I totally feel like we are on a roller coaster. I am starting to wonder when we are going to get off.

Today to ring in the anniversary we have been dealing with EXTREME highs and lows. And when I say extreme she has been as high as 500 and as low as 50. I don't have any reasons to explain it. I am frustrated. I want to say that we have it all figured out, but as soon as we think we are getting it we get a day like today.

When we were in the hospital I remember one nurse telling us that the more organized our life is the easier it will be to control her diabetes. I have taken this to heart. We have taken one room at a time and scrubbed, de-junked, and organized it. I officially only have my bedroom left to do. I am really excited that we have done this. It really does make life easier. Set meal times are a must at our house too. I still have so much more that I want to do though. If anyone has any great ideas for ways to organize PLEASE SHARE!

Looking back on this month I feel that my little Princess has grown up so much. I still am amazed at her strength and how well she is dealing with all this. I feel so bad for her when she has her lows and she looks pale, has a tummy ache and is tired. My patience is tested when she is really high and I can't get her understand instructions, when she is irritable, and the times before bed and can't sleep because of the high. I understand that it isn't her fault, that is just how she reacts. I wish I could just kiss it and it will all be better. That her broken pancreas will start to work again and never fail her so she doesn't have to get any more pokes. Even though I feel all this emotion, I can look at her and she is still smiling. She is being effected, don't get me wrong. She tells me all the time she doesn't want to have diabetes forever. How is it that I have a 4 year old, that since birth has been afraid of the sight of her own blood and has been known to scream at any scratch big or small, be so brave when having to have 25 or so pokes a day? She still has never had a major breakdown about it all. This strength is heaven sent. I mean that! Her breakdown may come one day, and when it does come, I will be there to hug her, to love her, to let her cry or scream. She deserves it!

So to the last month of our lives....thank you. Thank you for the knowledge, the strength, the love, support, the family and friends, the challenges, the highs, the lows, the connections, the tears, the inspiration, all of it. If this has to be our new life than I accept it.

No really he was!

Do you need something to make you laugh? (or make you wonder)

Think of this....

I woke up at 4:00 or so in the morning to my hubby biting my arm.

I don't know what in the world he was dreaming about, or why he felt that he needed to bite me in the middle of the night--WHILE SOUND ASLEEP! But you totally should have been there. I thought me yelling for him to stop was going to wake up the family.

What crazy things have you done while sleeping?

I guess I am old!

I had a quick reality check the other day. I am officially old.

My mind thought I could do it! My body said "NO WAY! YOU ARE WAY TOO OLD FOR THAT!"

I was just trying to show off to the kids. They are so impressed that Daddy can stand on his head. I couldn't let him have all the attention.

Well guess what happens to an old lady that trys to stand on her head? I am not technically sure what happened actually, but something! I can't move. It took 2 days just to be able to move my head. I could feel it tear/pull on something all the way down my neck and spine and into my shoulders.

I am headed to get a massage by a neighbor tonight.

Daddy can have ALL the attention he wants. Heaven knows that an almost 32 year old man that can stand on his head in the middle of the room TOTALLY DESERVES it!

My Entry for the HP Prize Package Contest

Moosh in Indy is having a contest on her blog where you can win an AMAZING prize package from HP that is worth $6000! (Go check it out! The prizes really are awesome! And you too can enter to win!) I read the rules on how to enter today and I was compelled to enter. Writing a post on how you would share the prizes if won enters you into the contest. (check out the rules and regulations for more info) So this is my entry.


It is no question that our family has really been through a lot in the last year. Between my hubby loosing his job, having to replace broken down cars, appliances breaking, and my daughter being diagnosed with diabetes. These are just a few of the struggles that we have been through, but the list is longer for the ways that we have been blessed. Our lives have been changed by many that keep the spirit of giving all year long. I have been brought to tears this morning thinking of those people that have touched our lives. There are so many that have helped us so picking a few is so hard to do. While really searching though I thought of a few stories that I would like to share.

It was right after my hubby was laid off from his job at the bank. I had been visiting with a friend and talking about the situation. I cried. I couldn't hold back my emotions of fear, self pitty, worry and more. She gave me comforting advise and offered to help in any way she could. I declined the offer but thanked her just the same. The next day in the hot summer afternoon I looked out my window and saw her walking up the street. She was 8 months pregnant pulling a wagon with her two little girls by her side. I headed outside to greet her and to my surprise her wagon was full of food. Her little family that was struggling as well had taken several things from their food storage and filled the wagon to bring to us. I stood there and cried. I literally felt like she had just given me the shirt off her back. I knew she couldn't afford to do that. She mentioned that she just wanted to help so that our family wouldn't be hungry as my hubby looked for a job. I humbly accepted. With every last bite that was taken I could feel her love and charity. I honestly don't know how I could ever repay such an act of love.


Another way we have been blessed this year was by my daughter's Preschool teacher. The kids had been to Mrs. Donna's class last year and they loved her. It came time to register Princess for this year and all I could do was worry. My hubby didn't have a job and I knew we couldn't afford to pay for Preschool. As the time got closer to the deadline for registration I was sure that she wasn't going to be able to go. When in my heart I knew how important it was for her to go. A few days before we had to meet with the teacher I decided that we would go meet with her and explain the situation. We walked in me embarrassed, the Princess elated, and I just sat with the teacher and told her that my hubby had been laid off and that things weren't looking good. That even though I would love for her to go to school we would have to pass this year. When I told her she looked up at me and said that she knows that Princess needs to be in her class this year and not worry about paying her. That we will somehow figure it out, but still bring her. I felt that I couldn't accept this offer. That was just so much for her to give. I talked her into letting me trade with photography for the year, but I feel like I still have the better end of the deal. I have thanked her many many times and every time we talk about it she expresses love for teaching and for her students. I found out that the tuition the parents pay goes only to things for the kids. She doesn't make an income off of it at all. She has been teaching for over 20 years and has never made any money from it. What an amazing person! I know how she has touched Princess' life with all that she has done for her. She has touched ours as well with the example that she is. I would love to be able to repay her for this year of Preschool, and for all the other 20 years that have passed with serving and teaching so many kids! I know that I could never really do that, but I hope to find a way that I can come close.



This is just an example of two people that have touched my life. I really could go on! But my parents, sister's and brother's have ALWAYS been there for me in more ways than one. They have paid bills for us, watched kids, given us food, helped us with projects and so much more. It will take an eternity for us to repay them for all that has been done for us. I have an amazing family that no matter the situation they are there, helping with open arms and a loving heart. If I can never repay them then I just can hope to become more like them.


If I were to win the contest and receive all those awesome prizes I would have to say I don't think that I would keep any of it. I really mean that. I have searched for ways to repay all those that have helped us. I am in debt to many wonderful people that it wouldn't be right for me to keep any of it. They have sacrificed for us and have been happy and willing. I mean it when I say our lives have been changed this year and I really owe it to everyone that has been there along the way. If any of you are reading this I hope you are blessed. Thank you for being who you are and thank you for being an example to the rest of the world including my little family!

Ana's Song

We were looking through some old videos of the kids the other day and we found this video. Please ignore my fat scroungy self. Just listen to the song. This is a song that the kids' "Ana" sang to all her kids and even now sings to her grand kids.

When I saw it last night I was taken back by how little my two oldest kids were. I almost forgot what they where like at that age. Little Dude was almost 2 and Princess was about 8 months old. Even though I look and sound terrible I am grateful that we captured this moment. Silly kid used to LOVE to sing.

Low Carb Recipe

I have been so stressed about what to make for dinner every night. It is getting a little easier, but maybe because everything I have made this far has come out of a package. It is so easy to go that route when all the labels are right there for me to look at. There isn't as much thinking about it. Tonight I really wanted to figure it out for real. Meaning actually make a family favorite recipe and figure out the carbs on my own. I picked a recipe and went with it. When I got all the carbs figured out I was totally surprised how low the carb count was.

My dad gave me a copy of a computer program that I can enter recipes and it will tell me what the nutritional facts are so I thought I would double check it. I was right! 8 carbs per serving! Really guys this is super good for me. I actually did it! And picked something that was really low for the Princess to eat! Maybe I can do this!

I wanted to share the recipe just in case anyone would like to try a low carb dinner that is easy and pretty good.

Cheeseburger Pie

1 lb of ground beef
1 cup of onion chopped
1/2 tea. Salt
1 cup of cheese, grated
1/2 cup Bisquick
1 cup milk
2 eggs

Cook ground beef and onion, then drain. Add salt. Add hamburger mixture to greased pie pan. In another bowl, mix together Bisquick, milk, eggs and cheese. Pour over hamburger in pie plate. Sprinkle top with a little more cheese. Bake at 4oo degrees for 25 minutes.

Makes 8 total serving. 1 serving is 8 total carbs.

We served this with sugar free jell-o and green beans. For an entire dinner it was 12 carbs! (Que the tooting of my own horn)

Just thought it would be fun to share! Have a great day!

Dear Christmas,

Just like your friend Thanksgiving, you too have come at an inopportune time. The only difference is that you seem to have this problem every year. Now if you would consider moving to February or so that would really work better for me. I have taken the liberty in making a list of reasons why it would be better to wait a few more months to celebrate you.

#1 It is right in the middle of tax season. I can see tax payers that are getting a refund feeling a little better about forking out half a month's salary for gifts that get put in a closet the day after opening.

#2 Switching places with Valentine's day could really work after an election. Heaven knows this country could use a little more love about now.

#3 Most people get a little tired of seeing snow after Christmas, but we still have 4 to 5 months left of it. Everyone wishes for a White Christmas, we can wish for it a few more months and no one will ever even notice.

#4 I might be going out on a limb here with this one, but doesn't the day Feb. 29th have a nice ring to it? It would give me a little more time to plan for Christmas if you only come around every 4 years.

So think about it. I think that it could really work.

Sincerely,

Mommy Going Crazy

Dear Thanksgiving,

You have kinda come at an inopportune time. Don't get me wrong, I have much to be grateful for. I was just kinda wondering if maybe you want to pack up and move to lets say April? That way I would have a little more time to learn about counting carbs and insulin and stuff before the ONLY holiday where you are expected to eat ALL day long. So basically I am not ready for you yet. Give it a few more months than maybe I will be.

Plus wouldn't it be nice to get out of Christmas' shadow anyway? Yea, see? I didn't think you would have a problem with it!

Thanks dearly,

Mommy Going Crazy

Shocking!

In non-Diabetic news.....

I just FILLED up my Jeep Grand Cherokee for $33.50!

WAAHHHOOO!

The Stay

When people would come and see the Princess while she was in the hospital they were really surprised that she still has a smile on her face. She wasn't feeling the greatest when we first got there, but as soon as she was feeling better you could tell! Everyone at Primary Children's Hospital were AMAZING! She loved every single one of her nurses, techs and doctors! I honestly think they all liked her too!

Here are a few pictures of her stay there.

This was taken the night we got there. We made sure to take her teddy "Dot" and another of her favorites "Kung Fu Panda" but while she was in the emergency room the doctor took her down the hall to go pick out a prize. She came back with this silly looking doll named "Sweet Cinnamon". The other doll was her Hospital Buddy named "Ivy" everything they did to Princess they did it on Ivy first. This really helped her feel more comfortable.

After she started feeling better she started having a hard time getting to sleep at night. One night before bed I took her on a walk. I loved this picture of her just wondering down the hall at midnight in her princess robe and slippers.
We always had to stop to say hi to "Dori" the fish. I took this picture as she was trying to wake her up. Too bad fish sleep at night, she was bummed that she couldn't see her.

She really did LOVE everyone there! They all took the best care of her and made her feel special. This is Dan and Beckah. They were both her favorite! There was another Dan that she loved but I didn't get a picture of him. These two took her out to the nurse's station and colored with her ALL afternoon! I listened to her laugh and make friends for hours! These guys saved me. I was SOOO tired and really wanted to veg and they made this possible! Dan is an awesome artist, that sent home the coolest drawings.

They made these cool High School Musical 3 hats because she was going to see the movie that afternoon and was so excited! Beckah taught her how to draw some pretty cool flowers and has been practicing ever since. She even thought she saw Beckah the other day. Boy was she sad when I told her that it wasn't her.

They were good sports when Princess wanted to take their picture with the hats on!

Don't mind me. I was SOOO tired, and so not looking great! But I couldn't pass up a picture with her too! She was my support the entire time!

She proudly wore her hat to the movie! There is a story that goes along with all this too, that I have been meaning to share. Hopefully soon I will get to that.

Her penny jar that her first nurse Dan made her! This was taken the morning we where leaving. She ended up with over 60 pennies. 1 for every poke!

Since she spent almost the entire day with the nurses I had to take pictures too! I think she was there for entertainment. Well and they all thought she was cute too!

Thanks to the PCMC staff! You guys are all so awesome and made such a big difference in her stay! I don't know that she would have been as brave if she didn't have you guys helping her! And thanks to the Nurse Jen that spent a few minutes with me in one of my moments of weakness!

I hope we never have to go back, but I know if we do, she will be in good hands!

Reality

Our first purchase of Diabetic supplies........

$107!!!

That was just for 100 test strips.

That honestly will only last a few days.

Maybe a week.

Bring back the tears that I have spent the last 3 days trying to hide.

Sneeky.

The Hubby caught Princess hiding with a big glass a milk today after she had her breakfast insulin.

Her blood sugar is now 428.

We are all learning that change is not always bad. That doesn't mean that it is easy, but sometimes you don't have a choice.

Gratitude

We are still trying to get life organized and running smooth. I never thought a few weeks ago that such a curve ball would be thrown at us but we are taking it one step at a time.

Once again we have been consumed with kindness by family and friends. There have been meals brought in by our neighbors and my awesome cousins. Remember them? I know, they were at it again even with a diabetic cookbook! Great friends have come over and convinced us to take a break. I never knew how much a trip to the mall, some cute house slippers and some yummy desert at a local restaurant could really help the soul. Our family has been amazing too! They have been trying to learn more about Diabetes and have even been almost as obsessed as I am with counting carbs. I loved it today when my sister called me from the grocery store to tell me how many carbs where in a package of Smarties. (6 in case anyone cares) We have received so many emails, phone calls, visits, hugs and more that bring me to tears every time.

I have been wearing my emotions right on my sleeve, and I can't stop the tears from coming most of the time. I received a phone call from our Pediatrician today that even that brought me to tears. My Princess climbed up on my lap and asked me why I have been crying so much lately. I responded with all that I could think of "I am crying because in everything I do and everything that I see, the Lord is right there with me. I am not alone." I told her. " Can you feel His help when you have to do something hard?" "Yes." She replied. "Well Mommy feels grateful for his help. It makes me happy to have him here with me."

I may be really stressed and tired, but I am filled to the brim with gratitude.

I am humbled.

As for her, I have been saying since she was born that there is something special about her. Stay tuned for a story about something that she did while she was in the hospital. She is amazing you guys. She has taught me so much!

Home.

We are home now to a new life. She is doing amazing. Her smile and laugh is contagious.



I will update later.



I am off to organize things.



Thanks again for all the phone calls, emails, comments and prayers. We are surrounded by super awesome family and friends.

Progress.

Yesterday seems like it was forever ago. Today seems like it will never end. Right now I am more tired than I have been in a long time. Forgive me if I don't make sense with the rest of this post. Forgive me if I don't get into detail. When we get home tomorrow night or when things get settled down I can try to make more sense then.

These two days have been very busy. They have had us in classes for a lot of the day learning about Diabetes. We have been given so much information that I never thought I would need to know. Now with a quick change of events this is information that will help my daughter to survive.

She is doing great! She has charmed all the nurses here. Every time they see her they ask her why she is so cute. They all comment on how brave she is and how great she is being. I am so surprised by her strength. She has had her moments of weakness where she tells me she will hide her hands so she won't have to be poked again. But she gets through those moments and in the end is more brave before it started. We came up with a plan that has been helping her so much with every poke. Bribery. However our bribes have changed a bit. Bribing her with candy is not longer a great idea for her. So we have bribed her with pennies. For every poke she gets with a test or with her insulin she gets one penny. To put all this into perspective for everyone who hasn't seen her bruised and beat up tiny fingers, I owed her 26 cents before the night was done last night. Currently her count has doubled that. Imagine...in two days we have had to find places on her tiny, tiny fingers to poke her almost 50 times. Poor thing. Her favorite nurse Dan made her a penny jar out of a specimen cup that she proudly shows everyone. And even thanks from a great friend NaTasha who brought us several rolls of pennies they payments aren't even coming out of my pocket. This has been wonderful for her though, even if it is bribery.

We have had many visitors in the last few days that have brought her things to do and things to play with. She is having a ball! Some of her friends have shown up to play and this means the world to her. When she said to me the other day that she thinks no one will ever want to play with her now because she is different it broke my heart. To see that not only will they want to play with her but that they come all this way up here to be with her has really brightened her spirits. We have loved the company too especially when my parents brought the boys to see us. I have missed them so much! They have been pretty good for my mom and dad too in case anyone was wondering about them.

All of our training is over now. I am scared to come home and try it on our own. I feel we can do it...well.....we don't have a choice, but we have resources if we ever need them. She is needing to stay until tomorrow because they don't quite have her levels worked out yet. She still has very high moments and very low moments. We have been assured that we get to go home tomorrow night. Thank goodness it is after the showing of High School Musical 3 in the auditorium. She COULD NOT miss it!

I am off to do another poke before we head to bed. Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers! You internet friends (and real friends and family too) are awesome! Thank you!

Where do I begin?

Today has been a whirlwind of a day. I am laying here with my princess in the hospital bed where I am amazed at her strength. To kind of give an idea of how things have gone today I will briefly try to document this time. I am really tired, but feel that I need to write these things down and keep people updated.

First of all, thank you everyone for your thoughts and prayers. We are walking testaments that prayers are felt and that the Lord has a plan for us. This has been a difficult year for us, but this too is something that we will take it one step at a time, and just try to find what it is that we are supposed to learn.

Well, when we got to the doctor this morning the first thing they needed her to do was pee in a "hat". It was a little thing that goes over the potty so she doesn't have to hold a cup. She was told that if she could give the nurse all that she needed for the test they wouldn't need to poke her. Unfortunately though the test came back as +3 (0 is normal) so the nurse had to poke her anyway. We were told that they needed to find out what her levels are but most likely she did have type 1 diabetes.

When the doctor came in and said there her blood sugar levels where higher than what they can test it at (well over 300. 60 something to 115 is normal) he said that she definitely has it. He had contacted the Endocrinologist and that he needed us to head up to Primary Children's Medical Center and that we need to get there within the next hour or so.

So the craziness began. We packed and worked out some details for the boys all the while she played happily with her cousins until we could be all ready to go. Her daddy and grandpa gave her a blessing, and we where off.

Once we got here they had to test her levels again (yes another poke) and her blood sugar levels where higher than 500. Let me take a minute to point out how incredibly lucky she is. Most people when their levels are this high they are close to a coma. Some how her body was working with it and her little personality hadn't been effected by it. We caught it at the perfect time before she got to that point. She is also very lucky that her grandpa has type 2 diabetes (for all those who don't know, that type 2 is not at all related to type 1. They are totally different so there for not hereditary). He came up from Las Vegas and came to the hospital to be with her. This helped to feel normal and that she is not alone. What a blessing that was to have him here for her tonight.

They gave her her first dose of insulin and sent us up to her room. They where doing more test and asking more questions and she just climbed up on my lap. Not hardly moving or talking. At first I thought this was because she was scared. Then I felt that it was something more. I was telling them that she was feeling sick. They thought that it was because it was late and she hadn't had dinner. They actually ended up testing her levels again and it was WAY too low at 50. Quite the change. They gave her some more insulin and dinner and she was much better.

This is why she is here for 4 days. The roller coaster of getting it leveled out is going to be rough. We are also here for what they call Diabetes Boot Camp. She will live with this forever and could get worse someday if not taken care of. We are here to learn how to live with this. How to monitor her and learn how to give her what she needs. This will change all of our families lives. Maybe with the new eating habits I will loose the extra weight that I have been wanting to loose forever now.

I wanted to end with a quote from our doctor Dr. Buchanan (aka the VERY best doctor in the world) He said "We need to not adjust her life to fit the treatment, but rather adjust the treatment to fit her life." I loved that! It gives me hope!

Oh, one more thing. We still don't know how this is all going to work out without having insurance, but it will somehow. We have already seen the blessing and the promise that we are doing the right thing regardless.

P.S. If any of her friends want to visit, she would love it!

Keep her in your prayers.

My Little Princess had a doctor appointment today in regards to my last post. I am so grateful the spirit led me to take her insurance or not.

She was tested for Diabetes and she was tested positive (with VERY high levels might I add) for type 1 Diabetes.

We are headed to Primary Children's Hospital ER and will be there for the next 4 days. Please keep her in her prayers. I will update when I can.

Should I be worried?

My Little Princess has always loved milk. She would have a glass with every meal and a few times in between. It was never really a big deal to me I just thought that she took after her Uncle David. In the last few months though it has been getting really bad. Like she drank almost half a gallon of milk by her self in one day. After that day I have always tried to regulate it a little. I couldn't afford to be buying so much milk all the time. She now will drink just about anything.

Naturally when you drink lots you pee lots too, so I am sure you can guess that she is always going potty. ALWAYS is an understatement lately though. Part of the problem is the fact that she has been having accidents while sleeping a lot lately, like 3 times in a 24 hour time frame. While trying to figure out what is going on with her and try to stop the accidents from happening I have realized a few other things that had brought up some concern. This problem has been on coming for a little while now, but just in the last month it has been getting really bad! When I say bad, I mean I have never seen anything like it. She drinks SO much. For instance, she woke up the other morning and threw up. Her daddy felt bad for her and went and bought a 64 oz thing of Gatorade for the family to share thinking it might help her tummy. Well less than 2 hours later she had drank almost the ENTIRE thing. There was probably about 12 oz. left. I know it was her that drank it because her brother was gone and and her dad and I hadn't had any. Is she the only child that could do that? Also before she started wetting the bed so much she would get up 3 or 4 times in the night even to get a drink.

A few of the other things that I have noticed is that when I have tried to regulate what she has been drinking and when she needs to stop drinking for the night (trying to help the accidents) all she tells me is that she is thirsty and hungry. When I feed her all she wants is to drink, she fills up in drink and hardly touches her food even though she said that she was hungry. Also after not letting her drink anything after 7:30 at night last night at about 9:00 or so she had gone potty 3 times in 45 minutes.

The more I think about all this the more it gets scary to me. I have heard that when someone is always thirsty and can't stop drinking it is a sign of being diabetic. When I realized at what point is started to get really bad (about a month ago) was when she had been given lots of Halloween candy. It is scary to me, but that made perfect sense. If she is eating more sugar the worse her blood sugar would be and the more thirsty she would get.

Tell me internet world, am I looking into this too much. Should I be worried? I really don't want to be one of those people that over reacts. I guess that when it comes to the health of my kids I can't over react too much. With all of your infinite wisdom internet friends, have you ever heard of this really happening?

I laid awake most of the night last night so worried. Wondering if this sounds like a case that needs to be taken seriously, or if there is something else I should be trying since we don't have insurance and all.

I don't know what to next.

HAPPY FRIDAY! Hope everyone has a goofy weekend!

I know we will!

Halloween 2008

I am finally getting to my post about Halloween. Even though it was almost a week ago, I still wanted to post about how perfect the day was. It started off by me going to Little Princess' Pre School for the Halloween party. I always enjoy going to take pictures for her teacher. She has so many fun things for the kids to do. I never thought Princess was going to stop with the prize walk game. She wanted to win all the play-do. Actually, I think she did win all of it.

Then we went and ran a few errands and the kids where great. We came home, had lunch, rested and were off again. We went to Exit Reality's Halloween party. (My hubby will soon be an employee there too, but that is info for another post) It was great! The kids had so much fun and I got to talk to a few people that I hadn't seen in a long time.

Then we were off to Grandma's and Grandpa's house. They were having a big thing for all trick or treaters. It was great! They decorated their garage and handed out hot dogs, chips, homemade rootbeer and cotton candy to everyone that came by! It was a HUGE hit! We were joined by some awesome friends Josh and Jenni to go trick or treating. Then surprised by Brandon and Cherie who also wanted to come along. The kids had such a great time!


Little Man was dressed as a 3 eyed green monster.
Little Dude was Spiderman.

And the Princess was a 50's girl.

The weather was great! The food was fun, and the company was the best! I don't remember a better Halloween EVER!

White Trash Winter

Winter is here my friends. Crazy that last week it was beautiful 75 degree weather, but that is how we roll here in Utah. My kids where so excited! They wanted so badly to play in it. I warned them that they had outgrown their snow clothes, but that wasn't going to stop them.

Little Dude was sporting a nice pair of snow pants that are 3 sizes too small for him. He couldn't put them up over his shoulders and was complaining how short they were. Oh well, something is better than nothing! He got a little more lucky on he coat, that is only 1 size too small. He couldn't find matches for the gloves but at least he found two. He didn't even have boots on. Once his shoes were all wet he was still determined to play in the snow. What a trooper!

Little Princess was just a little miss-matched, but for the most part she didn't look too crazy. Other than her coat is 2 sizes too big. We were all surprised that she could get into the pants that are a size 2T. She couldn't put them over her shoulders either, but she wasn't going to complain. With an old pair of mom's gloves and a set of big brother's old boots she was set.

Here is my littlest girl.....isn't she cute. WAIT! I don't have 2 girls! With those HOT PINK pants, the hat with the big flower and the pink gloves you would never know this was my Little Man. Good thing a found an old jacket and old boy boots in storage or you would REALLY think it was a girl.

So outside playing in the snow was fun for all, but it ALWAYS ends in this.....

SOMEONE IS ALWAYS CRYING!

To his credit though, his big brother had just thrown a big snowball in his face. I don't blame him for crying!

Oh well, I got proof that they did have fun....SEE!

Rejoice!

I know that I have been really lame on my blog lately. I have so many things that I would like to post here. Like the day at the park and Halloween, even the series of pictures that I have collected of my little man's obsession with hats. I will get to all that soon I promise! But today I needed to post about gratitude, about prayers being answered, about how there is a plan for our little family and how blessed we are!

As I have said before it has been a long hard summer for us. With my hubby loosing his job the very day that I was able to work from home for my job. With the fact that we where not prepared with food storage, with savings, with anything really. With the fact that the economy has plummeted like it has. There really are so many things that have played into all of it for us. I have spent SOOOO many hours crying, feeling sorry for us, being scared, and praying for guidance and help.

We have been sent many messengers from our Heavenly Father to help us out. To lend a helping hand or an ear to listen. Cookies where sent, hugs where given, time was spent praying in our behalf, chickens where donated, food was provided, the mortgage was paid, there were some that paid our utility bills even. Lets not forget to mention that many provided us with the opportunity to work in yards, work on decks and sheds, clean windows, take pictures, teach guitar lessons and many other things, and in return give us money to help make ends meet. For all these things I am truly grateful! I really honestly don't feel deserving of all this, but I really hope that those that have helped us receive blessing pouring upon them. In turn I hope that I can repay or help someone some day the same way we have been helped.

The Lord's hand is in every aspect our our lives and we can totally see that! Even the smallest of things. I posted awhile back some feelings that I had in regards to all this and I got the coolest comment from my sister (all the comments where awesome) this is what it read "We are all praying for you and you know it will all work out. Look what happened last time and the blessings that came your way. John 14:18 reads "I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you." He will guide you as you make your next steps in life." Thank you sis for sending that to me, it has helped me see that we are not alone. Far from it actually!

When all this happened we committed as a family to do a few things and I feel I need to share them.

1- We couldn't ever forget to pay our tithing. We have a testimony of how important this is and knew that we couldn't spiritually or physically afford to not pay it. There are so many blessing associated with paying your tithing. We knew that all that he had and all that we were given was coming from him that we owed it to him to give him thanks for that.

2- Even though we have very little money we felt it necessary to double our fast offerings. This is something that we have done in the past when things get rough. We felt that this was a must in this situation as well.

3- We felt that it was going to be so easy to get caught up in the frustration of not having an income and that it could really effect how we treat each other. To make sure that our family wasn't going to be torn apart, and to help us stay close we decided to spend more time together as a family. This is where our Sunday Adventures where born. We had thought of doing it before my hubby got laid off, but the meaning and importance of it changed after. We committed to taking that time every Sunday to do something fun and get away from all that troubled us. With doing this our family has truly become stronger and I have more love for each member of our little family than I ever have.

I am sharing all this today because of a few reasons. First because I truly believe that each of us have something to learn from all those around us, and if there is anyone else in need of learning what I have learned I want to be there to help. Times are rough for everyone, and I don't see them getting any better. Please take from it what you will. I am sure that by me mentioning all this someone will grow. I hope anyway. The second thing is that a few weeks ago the Lord sent someone our way to help again. It was a neighbor that had a position that he had at his work and wanted to hire my hubby for it. It was something totally different than what he was doing before, but he didn't hesitate. He started a few days later. Since he is an on call contract employee getting paid hourly I have been guarded a little since he started. I wanted to make sure that we would be getting the hours that he needed so we could be self sufficient again and I also wanted to make sure that he enjoyed it before we were "out of the woods". Well, I finally feel we are at that point. He got his first paycheck yesterday and has been really busy every day with work. The best part is that he gets to spend more time at home than his previous job and could potentially make more money. This is great from him and it is nice to see him happy!

I am rejoicing today. I am grateful and I humbled. I feel closer to my family, my friends and my Heavenly Father! We are a lucky family!

Thank you everyone! Thank you from the bottom of my heart!

So Excited

My Princess just said to me "Mommy can I please go to bed? I just love Halloween so much that I want to be there on time."

Dear Hubby,

There has been so many things that you have done for us over the past 10 years that we have been together that have been amazing! Unfortunately some of the awesome things have not been appreciated to it's fullness. Kind of like how you mow the lawn EVERY SINGLE TIME so I don't have to get all sweaty and gross. Or like how you worry about keeping the cars clean and how you are always fixing my electronic problems. (my ipod needs to be fixed by the way)

Well that is why I am here today. To thank you with all my heart for taking the problem of neither one of us ever wanting to do the dishes and hand off the responsibility to the oldest child. Now neither one of us have to bother with it! SWEET!

Bored Here?

For those of you that are bored with my writings here you can check out my photography blog. I have had some great shoots lately and I have been showing them off there.

Check it out!

Lasting Moments Photography

Inspiration

It is true when someone says that you can find inspiration everywhere!

I found it on a pair of jeans.

I got a gift certificate for my birthday and I really needed some new jeans. When I got home the tag had a little quote on it that I thought was pretty cool.

"This is your life put all of your energy into it and show off your intelligence to the world. You are unique and beautiful."

It is nice to know that in this crazy world you can be told by a pair of jeans that you are beautiful. I don't know about you, but for me trying on jeans makes me feel NOT so beautiful.

It's a pretty cool quote though! Thanks Jeans for warming my spirits today.

How did she know?

I guess my hubby overheard the Princess telling her big brother "You better watch out. You mess up one more time and mom and dad are going to sell you."


Did I say it out loud? I thought I was just thinking it.

My cousin and her awesome family.

This is my cousin Marianne and I. I have always been very close to her and her family. In fact when Marianne and I were younger, people used to think that we were twins. We are the same age, we look lots alike and we were always together. Since we have gotten older we don't look as much alike, but our grandma still has a hard time telling us apart when we call. (Hi Grandma! You know that I have the same problem too! She sounds just like me!)

The cool thing about Marianne is that she has this awesome gift. She knows me. When I have had a moment that I needed to talk to someone any time in my life she just shows up and she is there. We can even go SO long without talking and in a moment of my weakness there she is. The other day I was feeling really down, sick, tired, stressed, overwhelmed and just down right sorry for myself and there she was. I am grateful for her and her friendship that we have shared our entire lives.

As I said before I feel pretty close to her entire family. Her older sister Susan has always been there for me too! I remember a time when she came to visit me shortly after I moved into my apartment in High School. She came to visit when I felt so shut out from everyone else. That visit meant so much to me. She also watched my kids for me when I went to girl's camp!

Then there is my Aunt and Uncle. I can't name all the times they have been there for us! There are just so MANY! Can you believe that when my hubby and I were in desperate need of a car one time and had no money to speak of they GAVE us a car! Really they are so giving! Just the other day my Aunt sent me a box of Ziploc bags just so we can freeze some peaches.

Everyone in this family are great examples of being Christ-like! I am in debt to them. I can't say thank you enough. I just hope I can be just as awesome someday!

My Yearbook Pictures

Have you ever been cleaning out a closet and you find your old box of pictures? Well I did the other day and I just thought it would be fun to scan some and share them with you.

Here is my picture from 1952

Here is 1966. Don't I look great?

1976

In 1986 I thought I would go a little drastic with the hair.

In 1994 I decided I needed to go back to blond, long and poofy.
Again changing things up with the hair in 1996.
1998 Graduation year! I look so young!

Ok wasn't that fun? I challenge all of you to post your old pictures too! You might want to go here first though.