Carb-Free Tea Party

Stupid diabetes.  Mary Claire had such a hard day today.  It was day three of her site, and I can usually count on three good days, but no.  Not today.

She hovered in the 240's and 250's after repeated corrections, but finally dropped enough to eat lunch by 11:45.  I just knew that any minute she'd bottom out and go low.  I had the boys, and I'd taken Clay to see his doctor, and so I couldn't go pick her up just yet.  I was so thankful she'd dropped enough to eat, since I never leave her at school too high to eat.  (Then she can't eat, and I feel awful if she has to smell lunch and watch everyone else eat.  Cruel.)  So, when I checked Clay back into school, we called her up to the nurse's office for another check.  (was this the fifth check already?)  Get this.  She was 365!

I just checked her out and brought her home.  By then, she was moody and irritable and wanted to come home.  If she's going to get checked hourly, I would much rather her just come home.  (and she had a substitute today!)  I brought her home, changed her site-new insulin too.  I wanted control over this monster.

So..when she was fall-on-the-floor hungry and crying, I had to get creative.  We had a carb-free tea party.  We made peach tea in a teapot I'd painted in Philly back in 2001 (I know, not quite the style now!).  (And she had a matching sugar bowl full of Splenda!)  We washed and used her little tea party tray, cups, saucers, and spoons.  We used to have 16 of everything from her four-year-old tea party birthday party, but we've managed to lose most of them!  Anyway, we had celery and four-cheese "salad" in mini-bowls, and a meat and cheese tray (toothpicks with a hot dog slice, turkey and orange bell pepper and mozzarella sticks sliced!)

Yes, this is Megan's hand in the picture.  This just means Mary Claire gets to eat twice as much food. : )  (ps-it's her American Girl)

Let's Eat!

Can I have some of yours too?

He wanted to drink out of an egg cup.  Don't ask.  Being so small, it also required really frequent refilling.

Ok, so it put her in a better mood, made her forget about the frozen yogurt snack she was dreaming about.  Mission: Accomplished.  Umm..I have too many wreaths.

She stayed over 360 (even with her basal set at 180%!) until about 5pm when she finally dropped.  Yep, to 56.  I knew it would eventually happen.

She was low and hungry.  She had quite a smorgasbord.  Yogurt, yogurt drink, nuts, applesauce, (and finally..) frozen yogurt!  (No, I didn't push all that yogurt, it was her idea!)  We reduced her basal to 83% till morning, and after ten minutes, she got her bolus for her "dinner"/large snack!  At her bedtime snack check, she was 70.  I had to drop her bolus again!

Crazy, crazy blood sugar roller coaster.  And it's not over yet.

When I uploaded these pictures, I found extras!  I forgot that I finished the last of my pay-it-forwards:

A towel and monogrammed cup for Tonya..  I know they don't match.

And two for Michelle.  Hers do, however, match! : )

And, I'm in this group on Facebook (try here to friend us, or join, whatever!  It's called T1 Hangout!)  We are having an Easter card exchange, so we posted our kids' names and addresses on a discussion board (only if you feel comfortable!), and we are sending them cards.  We decided to make ours!  Here is the front:

Love Stickers! : )

..and the inside full of sugar-free LOVE and blessings!

When she figured out that she'll GET twenty cards in the mail, she almost flipped out.  This girl *loves* mail like I love chocolate.  or shoes.  or purses.  or vacation.  You get the idea.  Want to make her day?  Send her a letter! ;o)

Baseballs and Bait

Oh golly...I've been (online) shopping!  I am still stalking that great blog makeover site again (remember the one that had the great SALE in January?), and I can't decide.  It's the worst!  They are backlogged anyway, but I didn't get on the list in January when I wanted to, so now we are looking at May!  I know all about waiting, I'm practically a professional now. : )

I can't decide between background papers or kits, and between photo- or scrapbook-style, whether to use Erin or Lauren as the designer, ahh..the indecision plaguing me right now!

They also want a Title, and I don't really have one as of late.  I changed from busymom-it made me feel stressed, so now I'm trying out Holly's Hope-hope for a CURE for Mary Claire's diabetes and hope for my uterus and future babies. : ) I'm not all out of hope (or faith), and that alone fills me with hope!  God has a plan for me.

So..today was our first Saturday of Spring Break (excepting that the kids have to go to school on Monday and Tuesday..), so we did what spring-breaking families do: baseball practice, talking on the phone, park, eating out, church, Hobby Lobby, Wal-Mart, and...straightening the lines on our fishing poles and stocking up on baseballs (2 crate-fulls!) and bait!  We are Ready.


I took one reel all apart, and got it straightened out, added weights, and it's ready to roll reel.  The other one is nicer, and it needed to be rethreaded over the spinning-around thing (technical term) so it would release.  They are all fixed up.  Clay was adorable-he was so intent on fishing (after he got his newest Boys' Life magazine focused on fishing!).  He was even willing to use string and a paperclip on a stick in a pond (couldn't you just eat him up?)!  I just couldn't let his determination go unnoticed; it's so sweet to watch him persevere despite the odds (and lack of good equipment!).

He'll get to go fishing in a local park tomorrow-we just ran out of time today.  There is no permit required if you are under 16 (thanks, Springdale!).  Now my only question is: who will gut the (theoretically caught) fish?  (followed by a close second: then what?)

Biggest Surprise today?  We went to Chili's tonight, and Mary Claire got her usual hamburger and fries.  After her blood sugar was over 200, got her insulin and correction bolus, she decided not to eat all of it. (First Time Ever!)  I did a tiny Freak Out, then checked to see if she'd gotten all of her insulin-nope!  I stopped the square wave slowly going in over 30 minutes, and did some quick math.  She'd already gotten too much!  Agony.  I realized it was only 3 tenths too much, and decided to risk it since she'd had chips too and always goes high after Chili's.  Get this.  She was 94 at bedtime!  Score! : )  (like SO rare in my world, so I had to share!)  (did that sound Valley Girl?  'Cause I used to totally be one.  In fifth grade.  Like, my name was Valley (according to rules, it ended in -y, Bonus!), and all things gagged me with a spoon!) (as if!) (I should go to bed now, so whatever.)


It is super-hard to follow Valley with Jesus, but can He ever be left out?  I think not.

Blessed are those whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD their God.  Psalm 146:5

Official Contest

Lord, let me not go crazy.  Mary Claire had a sleepover last night, and I've been kinda crazy.  I was so worried last night because the last time I'd talked to her, her blood sugar was 64.  She had pizza and cake after that, but I wanted to talk to her before bed!  This morning I had to sit on my hands not to call her!  She called a little after 8, but I was up before 7!  I wanted to know how she did through the night!  I always want to know that she made it okay.  Ahh-it's hard!  She was finally up to 318 last night (horrible), but I was a teensy bit comforted that she'd make it through the night fine.  She's been running soo low lately!  She woke up at 136, so I'm very happy that she's doing alright.

She was having pancakes with all the other girls, and I told her to make her plate, measure her syrup, and call me back for her bolus.  Well.  You cannot allow a child with diabetes away from home, to make their own plate!  I just got a lesson.  She used 1/2 cup of syrup!  We are talking 106 grams of carbs just in syrup!  That's without the pancakes (which are much lower in carbs-maybe only 10-15 grams each).  I (kinda) freaked out, and asked to talk to Sandra!  Bless her heart, she's busy making pancakes!  Mary Claire had done it herself, and while I was talking to Sandra, she was shoveling pancakes since she knew I was going to ask Sandra to mop up some of that syrup!  Hahahahaha-all I could do was laugh.  And give her tons of insulin.

I talked her through her bolus, but we've never had one that big!  It was 146 grams all together, and her pump suggested 8.5 units (we deal in .6 to 1.5 units normally!).  I know I've set her bolus ratios to change at 9am, and it was 8:30, so just a unit too much would kill her.  (In the day, her blood sugar drops about 25 points for every .1 I give her.)  Her ratio from 5am to 9 am is one unit of insulin to 17 grams, and after 9am it's one unit to 33 grams.  Big Difference.  Since we were on the verge (8:30), I figured it at one unit to 25 grams-six units, and prayed.

I told her to check herself in an hour and call me.  Hopefully she'll either be perfect (85-124), or high.  It's so much easier to correct a high.

I always hear Marlin, Nemo's dad in these instances, and I try not to be him.

"You think you can do these things, but you just can't, Nemo."

I don't want to tell her she can't do things.  She doesn't know she can't-she thinks the world is her oyster!  If she thinks she can spend the night, check herself, eat a stack of pancakes with half a cup of syrup, then by golly, I hope she enjoys herself!  Whatever it is, we'll manage just fine.


Clay has to:
a. pick up the popcorn that he sold. (and deliver it this week)
b. go to Samaritan House and receive food that's being picked up today (earning a Webelos badge)
c. go to basketball practice
d. be ready to go to Missouri at 2:30pm.
e. all of the above.


Yes, you guessed it: E!  He's wearing his basketball clothes under his uniform, since he's going to be the main character in a busy play today!  I need to pick Mary Claire up from her sleepover at 11am, and I'm working on making stuff for our Women's Bazaar after church tomorrow, and since we'll be gone from 2:30 till about 10:45 tonight, I have to get it done now!
I bought some cookie (yes, break-n-bake) dough to make cookies, then I'm embroidering the kitchen towels I got last night.  I'm thinking maybe Go Hogs Go, Mom's Kitchen, Wipe Your Hands, and Bless this kitchen.  I used to make recipe cards, and one of them said, "..blessed and broke the loaves.  Mark 6:41"  but it was really too much to put on a kitchen towel.  Can you think of a shorter one?  We used to have all sorts of Bible verses on them.  How about we have a contest?

Official Contest:
You give me a pretty short verse or phrase (I have to be able to embroider it in about three lines or less), and the scripture reference, and I'll make you a towel and send it to you!  You can leave the ideas in comments, and I'll post the winner on Wednesday, November 17, so you'll have your new towel by Thanksgiving! : )
Rules:
1.  It's really subjective, since I'm the judge.  If I have a few great ideas (like more than one!), I promise to put the ideas on folded paper, in a hat, and draw!  That makes it more fair. : )
2.  You can tell me your kitchen colors, and I'll match it.
3. Aren't little numbers down the side fun?
4. That's all.  Just enter to win.  Small print, read the small print.  There are no gimmicks, no guarantees, I'll post a picture of the winning towel.  Is it coming to your house?  You'll have to email me your address so I can send it to you!  Here's my email: busymom3370@yahoo.com.  I'll keep posting the contest every day till I get a winner on Wednesday, November 17th.  Don't sue me over this.  Don't be a sore loser.  If you win, you can send me a picture of the towel in your house!  If you are the winner, you have to send me your address, or I can't mail you your towel.  Please follow the rules, or the winner will have to be someone else.  I'll wrap your towel all cute so you'll feel extra special.  It's a late (ore early) birthday present!

Here are the ones I just finished for the Bazaar:

The khaki one says, "Mom's Kitchen"-it's in lime and hard to read!

 Don't you need one?!