Ready for school...and a PUMP!

Okay, some of you know that we were anxiously awaiting the Endo appointment because we knew her pancreas was kaput and we wanted to ask if she was ready for the pump. The stars were aligned because she asked us instead if we were ready to try one! I informed her that we had demo'd the OmniPod the week prior, and she offered her opinions and suggested to us that we demo the Animas and Medtronic pumps, too. So now we're waiting for the "Pump Class" to open up (hopefully in October) so we can be released and approved to begin using one.

As for school....I honestly felt like we were preparing for a hurricane as we were walking in with our 24 pack of water, Hi-C juiceboxes, "Lock Down" emergency boxes for the teachers (she has 3 this year), snacks, doctor's orders, 504 rough draft, and diabetic supplies. I'm glad we have Meet the Teacher before we begin the school year because I did not want to carry all that in on the first day of school! We were able to visit with our WONDERFUL school nurse and Cham was happy to see her, too. I think it helps that Cham knows she's in good hands with Nurse Swartz, and they have developed a great relationship throughout her first year of diabetes. Shout out to Nurse Ratchett...we lurve you, lady!

The Honeymoon's Over...Probably.

For the past two months we've been playing "catch up" with her BG levels. Her numbers go up, we adjust the Lantus, they come down. A week later, they go up again we recalculate her I:CHO ratio, and they come down. Two weeks later...the numbers start climbing and the cycle starts again! The fact that we can't get a grip on it, tells me that her pancreas has decided to quit helping us out. I'm hoping that her readings over the past two months don't effect the outcome of us getting approved for a pump. I would think that her Endo would want to help us by giving us the opportunity to get her more evened out via the pump.

Venting time: I hate it when people pronounce it: "di uh beat us." I want to scream: it's not gonna "BEAT US", it's pronounced "beet eez." Honestly, with the numbers we've been chasing here lately, I feel like it's trying to "beat us," but the OCD in me is not going to let it. With the motivation of a number crunching family, and Cham's sad face when she sees a high number, we won't let it beat us. We've got this. Oh, and Pancreas...R.I.P.

Fingers, toes, and syringes crossed!

It's official, we love the demo OmniPod and it doesn't even deliver her insulin yet.

Reasons why we love it:
1 - The mere idea that we won't be sticking her 3 times a day with an insulin filled syringe if we are approved to start using it.
2 - It withstood every test we could think of - showers, swimming, dancing, sleeping, doodling on it, and other daily abuses. The tape peeled up slightly around the edges, but it never was yanked off when she would rip her clothes off without caution.
3 - Finally, and most importantly, she would forget that she had it on. This was a big one for me because if she complained even once about "feeling it," or it "bothering her," I was going to throw in the towel and not think about a pump again. She would hit it on the wall, roll on it, catch her clothes on it, and say, "Oh yeah, I keep forgetting about the pod!"

She went through several nicknames, but the one we doodled on it in the picture below is her official name for it: "iPanc." We are keeping "fingers crossed" that our endo approves of us trying it out and taking the pump courses that the hospital requires before beginning pump therapy. I'll keep you posted!

Faux Pod or Faux Pas?

Cham is on day 2 with the OmniPod demo. We put it on the back of her arm first so that it would be out of the way for dance and mainly so that her friends could ask, "What is that?" This way, it gets the explanation out there and she can see if it is noticeable or troublesome while she dances. So far, so good. She's showered, slept, and danced in it - next we will swim. She's hit it a few times on the wall, and put on her shirt without remembering it was there and it caught and pulled, but never came off. She's nicknamed it: Substitute Pancreas and Frank the Panc. Personally, I like Frank the Panc. Now...if we can only convince Cojack that it's not a "mute button" to shut her up when she's saying something he doesn't want to hear, then we'll be good. He actually pushed it and said, "be quiet" when they were arguing in the grocery store yesterday. Siblings in the summer, gotta love it. We see the doctor next week for her check-up and we're hoping to get the clearance to use a pump which, hopefully, will be the OmniPod.

Cards (not Carbs) for Sale!

Cham's JDRF card design that was entered in a contest back in March is now up for purchase on the More than Cards website! After you click on the link, it will take you to the page her card can be seen. Currently, it's located on the "Customized Holiday" page of the site. From there, it's the fourth row from the top, fourth design from the left - "Seasonal Snowmen." I was hoping they would offer to allow purchases in increments of 25, but right now the lowest amount you can buy is 50 cards. Which, of course, we bought! There are plenty of other choices, but none as cute as Cham's, obviously. Thanks for supporting Cham and JDRF!