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Incoming!!!

Diabetic Parents — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 19:29:00 GMT

"Incoming!!!!!!!"

Suddenly something went buzzing past my ear. And then a flash of something went flying past my knees.

"Watch out!!!!!"

That something goes flying past my head again and hits sister squarely in the back of the head.

"Ha! Ha! GOTCHA!"

Now a fight breaks out over the flying football. Little brother wins and gets his ball back and big sister comes with Mom to do her hair before school.

But now little brother is tired of football. So he brings a bouncy ball and finds that it is fun to bounce it in the bathroom with Mom and sister right there to watch.

"Watch this guys, it goes up to the ceiling!!"

Thump. Ceiling. Thump. Floor.

Catches ball and then bounces it again.

Thump. Ceiling. Thump. Sister's head.

Big sister chucks it at him and whines. Lecture from Mom to be more careful next time.

Thump. Ceiling. Thump. Shower door. Thump. Mom's bum.

"Ha! Ha! The ball got your bum Mom."

Bored of bouncy ball, now goes onto the soccer ball. And now the dogs are subject to his soccer ball game.

Boys NEVER stop.

And neither do Moms.

Counting by Units

Diabetic Parents — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 19:12:00 GMT

At one of my last doctors appointments, we talked about carb counting. I told my doctor that I don't always count my carbs by "how many carbs it has in it." That after several years of being on the same carb/insulin ratio and eating many of the same snacks over and over again that I now look at a snack and think, "3 units."

I'll look at 2 or 3 slices of pizza as "x" amount of units insead of calculating how many carbs and then figuring out how many units I would need. No, I've eaten this same pizza countless times, and now to me it's "x" amount of units. Same when I go out to eat at establishments and things. If it's the same dish, and I eat the same amount I usually do, it's "x" amount of units.

Don't get me wrong. I haven't given up carb counting entirely. In fact, I do my fair share of carb counting. My wife is always cooking something new. Or she uses a new sauce, I eat somewhere new with clients, or I eat more or less than I usually do. That's where the carb counting comes in. But for me, most of the time it's a simple snack or meal that I've had over and over again. Or I can tell myself, 'it's only "x" amount of carbs instead of the usual amount of units.'

So why get upset about my method if it clearly works? Am I the only one that does this? My last A1C was 6.9. And continually improving. So why ask me to make sure that I am counting out my carbs on meals and snacks that I eat everyday if I stay within normal range after eating them?

Protecting Them

Diabetic Parents — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 13:55:00 GMT

A few weeks ago we received an email from someone asking about the absence of pictures and names of our children on our site. They told us that if we claimed to be a parenting and family site, the absence of pictures and names of our children seemed a little strange.

Perhaps it does.

Recently another blogger in our community has also struggled with this same thing as she prepares to have a baby. It must be something in the air this week I guess.

But how far should I go to protect them? We started this blog after our children were born, so for us the protective nature was already instilled. My husband also had some rules for his protection at work and for future employment. For that reason we don't post our last name. .

As to our children, we make sure that their names aren't posted on the internet. Nor do we post any pictures where their faces can be seen. (We find there are a lot of great ways to take pictures without posting their faces). To respect them, we ask our daughter if she's okay with us posting a picture of her and talk to her about internet safety. We found she knows a whole lot more than we do!

Keeping our children safe to the best of our abilities is a job we take seriously as parents. (And perhaps we are alittle OCD about it). The things that we can protect them from, we will. Because there is so much that we are unable to protect our children from and that we don't have control over that this is something we have to protect them from because we can.

So our sincere apologies if we have offended anyone by not posting pictures of our children even though we are a family website. Please understand our reasoning behind it, and our need to protect our children. (It doesn't mean we won't talk about some of the crazy things that they do. Because we do....often) Thanks for your support!

"It's Just a Yogurt"

Diabetic Parents — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 02:52:00 GMT

Maybe this sounds a lot like your house. Or maybe we're just going crazy and starting our "picking a fight over nothing" phase of marriage. 9 years in--we're not newlyweds anymore. But yogurt? Yogurt?? I really didn't think this would be our first fight over nothing.

"Do we have any snacks honey?"

"Yeah Scott. i just picked you up some yogurt at the store."

Fridge door opens. Yogurt drawer opens, then closes.

"What's this Traci?"

"Yogurt."

"But you didn't get the same flavors."

"I know. They didn't have all the same flavors you like, and I thought you might like to try some new ones."

"But there's a reason I buy the same flavors. It's so nobody else in the house will eat them. I like my same flavors."

"I'm sorry. I just thought..."

Front cover inspected. Very vanilla. Thick and creamy.
LId opens. Visual inspection given of inside of yogurt before spoon is inserted.
Smell test.
Bite taken.
Lecture begins.

"this isn't the same. It has like, little chunks in it. And it tastes funny. It's not the same. I don't know if I like it."

Finishes rest of yogurt.
Still hasn't made a decision as to whether yogurt is good or bad.

Cooking w/Kids...

Diabetic Parents — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 14:03:00 GMT

Yesterday was one of those nasty days outside. The temptingly warm temperatures of spring we had been experiencing quickly turned to this:

Ick.

So my little boy and I searched through recipes to do for my Burnt Apple site. My cooking class theme this month is a Mom and Me class. So we're working on some fun Mom and Me recipes.

And when we searched through recipes we found these magic middle cookies. He read the word magic and was hooked.

So we made them, and unfortunately when you have a little boy helping you, this tends to happen:

But we had a great time, and the afternoon passed quickly.

Today both kids are out of school and with the snow coming down, I think this calls for some serious time on the hills sledding.

Have a great weekend!

-Traci

Childhood Goals...

Diabetic Parents — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 19:48:00 GMT

When I was a little girl, I kept my future goals list short. And updated often.

For instance, in second grade, my future goals listed included the names of the boys I was going to marry. I narrowed the list down to 8, but each week I updated it depending on how nice or mean they had been to me that week. (I was making sure that I had backup!)

As I got older and into high school, teachers encouraged us to set goals constantly. And for them, it had better include the word "college" in it. Only we had very different views on college life. I wanted the whole experience--the fun, the moving out, the roommates, then class and studying.

I even knew the type of person I was going to marry. I always had a feeling it would be someone that was the opposite of what I dated. I usually dated shorter, bleach blonde hair live-on-the-slopes or the beach kind of guys. West coast boys since that was where I was from. I ended up marrying a tall, dark haired handsome guy from the east coast. Go figure. The one trivial thing I had on my list was that he had to have nice teeth. Thank you list. I did get a guy with good teeth.

Beyond marriage, having kids, and having a lot of money, there wasn't much else from that childhood list of goals that could foresee my future. How could I foresee future goals as being "find a job that would provide us insurance?" as being a goal? After working for ten years away from my family doing 13 hour shifts, I made it a goal to have a job that allowed me to stay home with my family but still make close to the same income. I get to do that. I am living my goals. And while I may not have a lot of money and a beautiful mansion like I wanted as a child, my home now is better than any mansion could ever be. I feel comfortable, I feel loved and accepted here. No house (except for the beachhouse in california that I will one day have...hopefully) can ever bring the feel that my own home has.

Thank you childhood goals for not predicting too much of my future. The turns and loops and surprises have been scary, exciting, daunting, and completely unreal at times. But I wouldn't trade it for the world.

Just Listen...

Diabetic Parents — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 14:07:00 GMT

Before going to bed, my wife and I lay in bed watching TV. I started to relay to her some of the events of the day, including my trip in the car with my little boy earlier in the evening.

He had been practicing and singing the same song for weeks in anticipation of his school music program. (And driving all of us a little crazy by it). As we drove home from the store together last night, he told me that the reason he had been singing it so much was that he wanted to do the best job that he could, and he was afraid that if he stopped practicing he would forget the words. He also told me that he liked it better when our whole family was together in the car because it was kinda boring with just the two of us.

And as I sat there listening to him, I realized how much I don't always listen to our kids. I get so caught up in the daily busyness of work and details--getting kids to bed, homework, keeping kids on schedule, etc. that stopping to listen to them is often overlooked.

My daughter is all excited because she is doing her first school play--and she gets to be a wise owl. I loved listening to her excitement about this, but feel bad that I didn't REALLY listen and focus in on what she was saying. I was so busy at the moment when she approached me that I failed to really listen to something that means so much to her. After the experience with my son, it's a testament to me that parenthood goes so fast that i really need to stop and listen. And learn from my children. They love us so much, and just want a few precious minutes from us. To just listen.

An Expo, An A1C, and A WHAT??

Diabetic Parents — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 17:56:00 GMT

Saturday I dragged the kids to the diabetes expo. It was great to meet the group at Tour de Cure. My little boy loved the bicycles and was mad that he couldn't ride one. It was also fun to watch them become friends with anyone that offered them food. Gotta talk more about stranger danger. Or maybe not attend an expo at lunch time.

My son also got to meet Charlie Kimball. He now wants his Dad to become a professional race car driver and race cars like Charlie does. "Dad, Charwie has diabetes too. And his car goes WAY fast. You should get a fast car like his."

We also stopped by to meet Dawn & Ben (good friends of mine) at the Ask the Educators booth. I worked with both of them for a number of years when I worked at the hospital and also know them personally as well. They are great advocates and they and the Utah Valley Diabetes Clinic do a fantastic job of managing and helping not only my husband stay healthy but caring for our family as well. They deserve a major shoutout for sitting eight hours and answering questions. Of course, sweet Dawn hasn't seen my family since they were little and couldn't believe that my little girl who she used to hold and rock at my husband's doctor's appointments is all grown up now and in elementary school! (I can't believe it either!!)

I also got to finally meet Grant from Utah Diabetes. He has been a huge advocate for the Faces of Diabetes campaign here in Utah. DiabeticParents.org has been featured at some events here in Utah and Scott and I are excited that those with diabetes are being recognized and our voices are being heard here in Utah. It was amazing to meet so many people who had heard what we are doing as a family and what we write about daily as we walked around the expo.

My daughter and son made themselves comfortable behind Grant's desk. My son helped Grant turn the wheel of the raffle machine over and over and almost make it fall off the table a few times. Hopefully it survived!

It was also nice to meet Ginny of AskGinny.com who has forged an amazing campaign and works so hard to help those who have diabetes. She was so nice and a great cheerleader to myself. 41 years with Type 1 and she is absolutely gorgeous and doing great!

Of course the biggest hit of the day was a Chesepeake Bay Retriever who stole the hearts of my children and caused us to be late in leaving the expo. This Retriever has been trained to tell when her blood sugar is going low and to help her treat it. She lives alone and trained the dog by herself to aid and assist her. What an amazing dog! This dog was spoiled to death by my two children. (Who coincidently spoil their two dogs about as bad as this dog was spoiled).

And the best news of all! Scott and I are late in posting anything today because he had another doctors appointment and I had to attend my little boys music program. But I got this great text halfway through my son's program: "A1C 6.9."

Loving it! (Still going to have to wake up to continue the night checks for him, but YEAH! YEAH!) We're doing good and Scott is starting to feel better. And the best part of all was his doctor says he's doing good. Love our doctor, but this is a rare thing to hear. Scott's testing better than ever and seems to have a more renewed sense of wanting to take better care of himself. Although his doctor says he still has to get the MRI. And Scott said "As long as you've got the valium order waiting."

Great start to the week! See you tomorrow!

Say What?? Where are You Going??

Diabetic Parents — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 21:02:00 GMT

It was my Wednesday to volunteer in my daughter's class. And as soon as I walked into the door, one of her good friends came running up to me.

"Guess what?"

"what Jessie?"

"My mom told me today that she's going to rent a limosine for my birthday party and then take all of us down to watch a movie at the movie theater! I'm so excited."

"Oh, and who are you going to invite?"

"All the girls in my class plus my girl cousins."

In my head I'm thinking '15 girls in class, maybe 5 cousins = 20?? Seriously??'

"Well that sounds great. I'm sure you are so excited!"

"I totally am. I can't think of anything but my party today!!"

And I my dear can't think of anything but what the hell are your parents thinking?? 3rd graders. Limo ride. Where in the world did parents suddenly start this bigger and better philosophy. One parent spends hours making cookies and letting 10 screaming girls trash her kitchen for 2 hours. Another takes the whole 3rd grade classes roller skating for her daughter's birthday . Another family throws an extravagant pool party complete with hula dancing lessons. Now a parent will be taking an entire class to the movies in a limo. Am I just overly paranoid about this? I'm freaking out a little bit. I thought this wouldn't hit until---junior high or something.

Probably the biggest concern I have is that she's just growing up so fast, and I just wish there was a way to keep her young just a little bit longer. Just when I get a chance to enjoy her, she jumps to the next age and stage of life and I'm forced to keep up. Everyone told me that parenthood went fast. I guess I just overlooked it and thought many of the people who gave me that advice had children so long ago that they couldn't remember. But as my own children have gotten older I've realized that you never forget. You never forget how precious they once were, how precious they now are, or how fast the time goes.

Grrr...Basal Rates

Diabetic Parents — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 14:47:00 GMT

Basal rate changes can be a huge frustration. At night I now steadily head down to the 50's by 8pm. I eat a small snack, watch myself in a panic climb to only the 70's two hours later by 10:00 at night. I'm tired, want to go to bed, but don't know if I'm heading uphill or will head downhill again. Eat another small snack, and by 3:00am when my wife wakes up to check my blood sugar, I am in the 200's or 300's. And I now get MORE insulin between 10pm and 6am. WTH?? I usually don't take insulin for my 10:00pm snack because it's been so inconsistent as to whether my blood sugars will go high into the 200 or 300's or stay steady in the 80's to low 100's through the night. Sometimes she checks me and I'm good. Sometimes she checks me and I'm in the 300's. The snack is always the same. But the blood sugars are anything but. It's the frustrating thing about basal rates that get changed. It's fine tuning. Then patiently fine tuning rates over and over and over again until they are right.

The funny thing is a CGM would help me to know at night if I'm low and going up, or low and going down. It might help me through that decision making process at 10 o'clock at night when I'm not sure but just am so exhausted and ready for bed.

Any help or opinions on this?

--S

Olympic Moments in Parenting....

Diabetic Parents — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 22:59:00 GMT

Lately we've had some real Olympic moments in parenting. So in the spirit of the Olympic games coming to a close this week, we thought we'd bring you our own memorable Olympic moments:

"I CAN'T WATCH TV OR PLAY THE WII, BUT CAN I.....?":

Silver Medal

After countless times of asking the kids over and over and over to please listen to us, we grounded them for one day from the Wii, TV, and the computer. So what does my dear sweet daughter ask? "Mom, we can't watch TV, or play the Wii, or play computer games. So can you play a DVD on your computer so I can watch a movie. You didn't say I couldn't do that."

"DAD TOLD ME IT WAS OKAY."

Gold Medal

Our son just becomes more and more like his Dad everday. My daughter and I were exercising to a Billy Blanks DVD. (Well, she was laughing at me as I shouted at Billy Blanks in pain). She was doing situps with me, and her brother crossed the room and sat on her, then proceeded to fart on her loudly. (Mind you, he's only in preschool). He then turned around, sat on me and farted on me loudly.
He then stood up, a grin on his face, put his hands on his hips proudly and said, "Dad said it was okay to do that. He teached me how," and then walked out of the room.

"THE DOG BURPED, NOT ME!!!"

Bronze Medal

My classic one is blame the dog. Those poor dogs get blamed for everything. I let our lab stay in during dinner one night. She proceeded to promptly plop herself down at the kids feet to catch any possible falling leftovers. Several minutes into our meal I hear a loud burp. I started to get mad at the kids and remind them of their table manners. The kids started to protest that it was Sadie, not them. But we didn't buy it. We told them there was no way that Sadie could've burped that loudly. They fervently denied that it was them that had burped and kept blaiming it on the dog. Later on that night we were sitting and watching TV after the kids went to bed. Our lab came out, sat down at our feet, then let out a large, dog food smelling burp. The next morning we apologized to the kids.

A Calm Weekend Deserved

Diabetic Parents — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 17:33:00 GMT

Hmmm.

I worry...a lot.

Scott did fine down in Phoenix although he admits to keeping his pump settings set a little higher at night because he was nervous. Changing your basal settings right before you leave on a trip isn't always the ideal time. You never know how your body is going to react.

I did not sleep well the night he was gone, and surprisingly our lab did. She usually freaks out in her kennel and barks incessantly when he's gone to the point I crack and let her sleep on the floor by his side of the bed just to get her to be quiet. That's probably how I knew he was okay. At least I'm telling myself that.

The kids seem to be doing better. They had a really rough time the couple of days and night he was gone. Wanting to know if Dad would be okay. My 4 year old asked if the ambulance was going to be able to find him at the hotel. But once they got to sleep, even they did fine.

It was just me. I think I have anxiety.

--Traci

Since I've been home, we spent the weekend together as a family--actually feeling decent. They upped my Addison's medication on the weekend and that has seemed to prevent me from feeling sick like I have the past few weekends. My basal rates sent me low the first few nights, but now seem to be leveling out. Instead of the high 60's I stayed in the 130's-150's last night. Having my peanut butter on a piece of bread and a glass of milk right before bed snack really seemed to help too.

--Scott

Have a great day!! I'm off to attempt my workout with kids and dogs making my workout nearly impossible.

--Traci

Feeding the Dew Addiction

Diabetic Parents — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 03:15:00 GMT

Since we've been married, my husband has tried to find ways to strategically feed his Mountain Dew addiction.

He became friends with the local Pepsi distributor hoping to get him to add our home to his delivery route. Didn't happen.

He called a restaurant to see if they would sell him the syrup. They wouldn't.

He tried to get his own Pepsi machine here in hopes of getting the Pesi distributor to put him on his route. Too expensive.

He went to local stores at the time the Pepsi distributor was there so he could stock up on Diet Mountain Dew. Distributor became convinced my husband was stalking him.

He even tried to see if his doctor would give him a second pump so he could run a line of constant Mountain Dew through his body. Too ridiculous.

At Christmastime, I found this:

I wrote them to see if they had Diet Mountain Dew. I told them that my husband was extremely picky, and loved Diet Mountain Dew. He also loved most diet sodas, but Diet Mountain Dew definetely was his drink of choice. I told them we were hesitant to try their product, because he was so picky. But we thought if it ended up being as good as they say, it might actually pay off for us. Soda can get so expensive!

I received a letter from the company stating that they would send me a unit to review.

It arrived in a large box. The kids ran over and started opening it. I read online stories of other people who swore it only took five minutes to set up. I must be illiterate when it comes to directions, because it took me 15.

The company didn't just send us Diet Mountain Dew to sample, but every other diet soda that had available. 15 bottles to be exact.
My preschooler counted them--three times for us while my daughter read each flavor aloud.

We couldn't wait for my husband to get home, so we tried some of the diet orange soda. Not too bad!

But the test would come when he got home. And when he came home to try it, he was like a kid in the candy store. First inspecting each and every bottle and looking at the flavor. Then opening the bottle and doing the sniff test. Than filling up the bottle with syrup and pushing the carbonation button. "So cool!!" he would exclaim.

He tried 5 or 6 different flavors and was mostly satisfied. The one thing he noticed was that each and every one of the flavors was just a touch off from the taste of the regular bottled soda. After trying a few of the sodas, he drew this conclusion:

"If you just like to drink soda, and aren't particular about the taste of the soda, then this is a great product. If you have one or two sodas that you drink, you may not like it. The soda tastes are just a little bit off."

And don't worry. just to prove it to me he took out his Diet Sprite, Diet Mountain Dew, and Diet Root Beer sodas out of the fridge to compare label ingredients.

However, for the price it definetely is one of the easiest, most convienent systems to use. And our kids love to break it out when their friends come over. We also let some friends borrow it for their Superbowl party. (Since ours was spent in the ER). They loved it and thought it was the best soda machine ever.

In the meantime, our family will continue to search for a Pepsi distributor we can bribe to deliver to us. Or work on our Diet Mountain Dew pump creation.

To find out more information on the SodaStream machine, go to www.sodastream.com.

Disclaimer: The manufacturers of SodaStream sent our family a review unit with syrups at no charge to try. We in turn agreed to give our honest and thoughtful opinions of the product. Simple as that.

Apprehension vs. Worry

Diabetic Parents — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 13:53:00 GMT

The new basal settings--especially during the evening hours sent Scott into the 60's last night.

And early this morning he was off to Phoenix for business. Before leaving he said, "Don't worry honey. I set a temp basal so I won't run so low. In fact I'll run a little high tonight. DON'T WORRY. I love you."

So what am I going to do tonight? Probably worry. After all that we've been through over the past few weeks, it's hard NOT to worry. I know that he doesn't remember me checking his blood sugar hourly while he slept through three days of his life. I know that he doesn't remember me waking him up to make sure he was staying hydrated, or adjusting his pump settings so he didn't go too high or low. He can't remember those moments.

The funny thing is, I know that he's alittle apprehensive too. You can hear it in his voice. Changing your basal rates a day before you leave out of town is always a little scary. Especially when your body reacts by going low. I can only do so much from afar, but it's hard. It's hard to know that I can't be there to help him if he needs it. That I won't have any control or be able to assist if something happens. That I can't be there for him.

And then I realize how much of a role diabetes actually plays in my marriage, and in my life. For both of us. It can't not be a part of our marriage.

Crashing Down...

Diabetic Parents — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 16:45:00 GMT

Got the Dexcom out today. Yeah! The first few days weren't too bad, but the last couple the monitor got really, really uncomfortable.

I love when I get to be right with my doctor. (It's such a rare moment, isn't it?) He realized what I had been telling him. During the day my blood sugars are in great control. However, from 10pm-4am, the hours I'm asleep I run high--and then I come crashing down. Literally crashing down.

Between 5am and 8am my numbers just plummet. Scarily plummet. So he adjusted my basal settings, and I'm alittle apprehensive. I head out of town tomorrow for business. He wanted me to wear a continuous again, but being out of town it's going to make it more difficult. I promised to wakeup and check at 3am. My body can't handle another sensor right now, and unfortunately being on the road my eating and time schedule isn't my own.

There are some other things going on in relation to my Addison's. It's the difficult part. Trying to find balance between the Addison's and the diabetes. It just seems like it's a constant battle to keep numbers up and keep me adjusted. One always affects the other. But hopefully by my next appointment in March, the trends will be holding steady and I'll be back to feeling good again. I'm so grateful for a great doctor and family.

P.S. Our little boy is feeling much better! Thanks for the well wishes. His bum feels much better today, but he won't let us remove his bum bandaid. He had to show it to his buddies at school. Although we told him to not drop his drawers.

Pain in the Butt...

Diabetic Parents — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 16:22:00 GMT

Hmmm. Interesting concept. Dr. has us spend hundreds of dollars to remove our little boys tonsils and adenoids several years ago, and he still gets a bout of strep every year. (At least it's not several times a year like before).

Well, yesterday his strep came on so quickly and so severely that we took him into an urgent care clinic last night. He was so tired that he fell asleep on the doctors exam table and didn't wake up for 30 minutes, or even when they swabbed his poor little throat for a culture. But when the doctor came back into the room to tell me she thought we should give him a s-h-o-t, suddenly his eyes popped wide open and he was trying to hurl himself off the table.

Unfortunately, he lost the battle but won the war because he got his shot. But he got to eat dinner in the living room last night. And this morning he had his big sister and Mom running around to get him a pillow so his bum didn't hurt while he ate breakfast on the hard stool.

**Cheers** to winter illness and sick kids.

"It Could Be"

Diabetic Parents — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 20:10:35 GMT

I went in on Thursday afternoon, hoping for an answer. I came out with "it could be this, but it could be that."

My first problem:

My biggest meal of the day is dinner. I eat a bowl of cereal on my way out the door in the morning, and generally don't eat until I get home. Sometimes the bowl of cereal gets eaten at 6 in the morning, sometimes 8. On the weekends, not until 10. I may eat lunch at 4 in the afternoon when I finally get a chance, or just wait since I'll be home by 6 or 7 at night anyways.
Apparently, my doctor says that kind of lifestyle is not what the insulin pump was designed for. (I thought it was designed for freedom).

My goal: Eat consistently throughout the day. Even if it's just a granola bar. Eating something will be better than nothing.

My second problem:

My trends. I've been wearing the Dexcom CGMS since my appointment on Thursday so when I go into my next appointment this week, I'll be able to hopefully show some consistent trends. I can't see my results on the Dexcom, but I have always hated (and can't justify the expense) of having a CGMS right now. Apparently my doctor thought otherwise. I can really see how the CGMS systems help them do their job better. What a great tool for them to use to help us.

My third problem:

No real answer as if what's going on with me is diabetes or Addison's related or a combination of both. But my highs while I sleep and the extreme lows in the morning are really making me tired and I don't feel that great. My blood pressure drops from laying to sitting, and that isn't that great of a feeling either. Hopefully this week, I'll have some answers. Right now the only solid answer I get is "it could be this, but it could be that." Fingers crossed to more solid answers.

"Oh No She Didn't!"

Diabetic Parents — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 17:56:00 GMT

--A BlogPost from Traci

Our doctor's appointment for Scott was yesterday, and I'll have him post the news on Monday. Think it might be interesting to a lot of you. For now he gets to sport the Dexcom CGMS for the weekend so his doctor can track him. It's a little wierd seeing him with two things poking out of him. I feel like we're in some strange movie where these wierd objects suddenly take over his body. It's a little bizarre to see him with another thing attached to him besides the pump.

Valentine's Day is this weekend and I can honestly say I really don't mind. Our anniversary was a couple of weeks ago, and we usually celebrate then. I'll probably make dinner for Scott and I Saturday, and then on Sunday we'll celebrate as a family by making these cookies I made for our TV segment on Wednesday.

And to avoid hate mail, yes, you can substitute sugar free ice cream for the low fat if you want, and use Splenda if you want to instead of the sugar. Or half Splenda/half sugar if you don't like the taste of a full Splenda product. Just don't use fat-free ice cream. It melts WAY too fast!! And you don't have to use the caramel sauce. We just did it for decoration.

We hope you enjoy your Valentine's Day! Thought you would enjoy these interesting Valentine's Day facts about Scott and I:

* Traci actually broke up with a guy in high school one day before Valentine's Day because he was going to buy her flowers. She grew up one of two girls in her family, and her Dad raised her a tomgirl. She couldn't (and still can't) understand why people spend so much money buying stuff that will die in a few days. Buy silk! You can use it year after year. Needless to say, her boyfriend at the time wasn't happy, but his parents loved her. They weren't thrilled about coughing up the money for the flowers. (Although they loved her, probably).

* Scott has had to come up with some creative Valentine's/anniversary gifts. Traci hates jewelry and flowers. Chocolate works--she'll eat that religiously. But he's also bought her tickets to an NBA game, a new car stereo and other uniquely odd romantic presents!

Random Thoughts...

Diabetic Parents — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 03:50:00 GMT

Today is just one of those wierd days. Full of random wierd thoughts. And struggling for things to say and come up with. We have a doctors appointment later on today for my husband. But in the meantime, enjoy my random wierd thoughts.

* Grocery list: Pomegrantes and cough syrup. And valentines presents for teachers.
* How I could fill up my car with gas yesterday for $2.59. Today it's $2.89. That sucks.
* Why the days the kids don't listen to us at all, they get along great with each other, and the days they are angels for us, they are constantly fighting with each other.
* matchbox cars and legos. The cause of middle of the night foot pain.
* Call doctor, call sitter, call insurance company, call neighbor, schedule girl's night out. Probably won't get a single one of these calls done today but it's the thought that counts, right?
* Think dinner. Think dinner. Oooo. Think dessert.....
* Why is my son carting the dog around IN the wagon? I thought I told him to walk the dog. Maybe this is his interpretation of that.
* How I could get into trouble at parent teacher conference for never having the kids to school on time. Least the kids were good.
* My husband just named every steak establishment in town talking to his Dad on his cell phone. Do I deprive him?
* Dreading going to the mailbox. Not looking forward to the bill.
* Wierd that I'm writing this at breakfast time and thinking about chocolate? And dinner?
* Wondering when I'm going to get the call from her teacher. About this.
* Why am I a day behind or a day ahead. Constantly???
* As a mom, I'm wondering if I'll ever remember what the date is again. Oh well, at least I remember what day of the week it is. Sort of.
Read above.
* How cheesy was I yesterday when I did this?

Back to Work...

Diabetic Parents — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 13:44:00 GMT

It feels like we've lived in a cloud the last few days and are now heading back to reality.

(I know I have)--Scott

But now it's back to work. Traci is on the set of Good Things Utah today whipping up some great healthy Valentine's Day recipes.

(I'll post the link to the segment later)--Traci

And Scott is back to work at his job.

Calls to the doctor have been placed and we'll see how it goes. Kindof thinking his reaction was more Addison's related than diabetes but you never know until we talk to the doctor.

Hope everyone has a great day!