A diabetes Lucas-ism

Sometimes on my other blog, I'll post funny things the kids say.  I figured this one belonged here.

I was in the kitchen using rubbing alcohol to clean some gunk off of toys that I was getting ready to garage sale.

Lucas walks in, wrinkles his nose and says, "why does it smell like diabetes in here?"

Man, he's cute.

All you need is gum... and a whole bunch of love

The other day we had a particularly bad CGM insertion.  Elise flinched as I pressed in the plunger, and then started to cry.  Something that is unheard of around here.

Upon closer inspection, I found out why... a small dot of red began to bloom.  Then seep,  And drip.

Aw, crap.

We removed it ASAP and I gave up on any chance of her wanting another one any time soon. We've been having some problem areas and I've been depending on the CGM to help us pinpoint exactly what is going on.

I came downstairs after nursing Lucas when Elise ran up to me and said, "I'm ready to try again!"

So we did... this time it went just fine.  I looked at Elise and told her that I was so proud and amazed by her bravery.

She hugged me and said, "Oh thank you Mama!  All you really need is some gum.  And a whole bunch of love.  Thank you for giving me both."

Swoon... I love that girl.

*we always give her gum to chew during pod changes and CGM insertions.  She swears it takes away the pain.

Well there goes my award

So just when I think I'm a shoo-in for Mom of the year (she said, sarcastically), I go and mess up. It's so hard being perfect you know?

I'm going to tell you about the awful thing that happened today, and then you will probably say to yourself, "girl, what is all that fussing about? You should hear what happened to MY kid when my attention was diverted for a few seconds!" I'm sure you all have your stories (and if you do, I would love to hear them!). Even if you don't, pretend that you do so I don't feel like such a tool.

Today I took Elise to the playground. She LOVES to be outside in the fresh air (or as fresh as Dallas air can get), running around with reckless abandon. Every time we drive by this particular playground she always says that she wants to go to the playground. I, in turn, tell her I want to go to Hawaii, but sometimes we just don't get to do what we want.

See why I'm up for Mom of the Year in the first place?

But this afternoon we had some free time, so off to the playground we went. Elise was playing pretty hard, and I didn't give her an afternoon snack because she woke up from her nap at 180, so I checked her BG and she was 190. Okay, continue with playing.

At one point she climbed up to the highest part of the playground (something she has done a million times by herself), to go down the slide. I turned my head for TWO SECONDS (I swear), and I hear a THUD, followed by a scream.

I look down and Elise was lying on the ground at my feet. She had fallen about 10 feet through an opening that kids can shimmy down a pole from. The worst part is, I was standing RIGHT THERE (which I always do when she goes up there, for this very reason) when it happened. I don't know if I could have prevented it, or caught her. But it made me feel so horrible, I almost start crying when I think about it.

The good news is, she was okay... she just cut the inside of her mouth. The funny thing is, the thing that flashed through my mind after the requisite, "ohmygosh, is she okay?" type stuff was, "what will this do to her blood sugar?" I know, I think weird things.

About 15 minutes post-fall, she was at 142. So apparently each foot you fall will drop your BG by about 5.

Don't try this at home.

and because I can, here is an uber-cute picture of Elise in her costume at our town's Hallowe'en on Main Street. That hood stayed on for about 1 minute.

Elise showing off her skills

After a blah day, this scene made me smile. Elise took her meter, lancet, and a cotton ball and was checking her pumpkin's BG before dinner.

Proud of my girl!

Okay, she may be driving me nuts with this sleeping issue, but I have to tell you how proud I am of how Elise handles her diabetes lately.

When it's time to check her BG, she runs to the sink so I can help her wash her hands. She also likes to pick if we're going to test her fingers or toes, and generally shows me the exact one she wants tested.

Same with her shots. When I tell her it's time, she runs over to the spot where we usually sit to give her the shot, and then picks which arm or leg she wants it in. And it's sooooo cute the way she says, " how 'bout THIS one!"

She also likes to check her baby's BG, and sometimes I catch her trying to test the dog too!

It makes me a little sad that she's had to grow up so quickly, but I am also filled with pride that she handles this disease with such maturity.

Diabetes-Speak

Elise is becoming more and more verbal these days. She also likes to make up her own words for things. Socks are "mei-meis" (the Portuguese word for sock is meia), a bird is a "guk" (because, according to Elise, that's the sound they make), water is "maw" (I have no idea), and my husband's favourite cheese that he eats practically every day is "Poppa-cheese". I believe that one is self-explanatory.

Lately, when I've been checking her BG, she refers to the spot of blood as a "bim-bim". I'm not sure why, but it's awfully cute. Sometimes after I've wiped the blood away, she'll notice it's still bleeding and hold up her finger and say, "bim-bim? Bim-bim?"

Unfortunately, she still calls the shots, "owies".