Teenage Moths

My friends with teenage kids say "wait until your girls are teenagers".  A lot.  Apparently there is a metamorphosis that takes place when a child becomes a teenager. The cute little caterpillar child turns into a gigantic ugly moth that knocks you down and chews holes in your sweaters.  How very frightening.

I have a  hard time believing these parents.  I have one very special teenager in my life, and I know for a fact, she would not chew a hole in my sweater.  At least on purpose.  My niece, Amanda.

Amanda is smart, funny and very sociable (except for the pizza guy that one time).  She is also very adventurous.  She water skis, wake boards, rides dirt bikes, ATVs and snowmobiles.  If there is an activity that could possibly break a limb, she wants in.  She's tough.  She's 13.

She is my teenage babysitter.

When Madeline was diagnosed with diabetes, I wasn't sure how Amanda would feel about babysitting.  She would need to be able to test blood sugars and follow the strict rules that applied to Madeline's care.  Most teenage babysitters are not equipped, nor want, that kind of responsibility.

She did not hesitate to help.  She learned blood sugar testing immediately and listened to my speech about diabetes and the care that had to be given.  She understood this was not just a parent being overly protective.  This was serious business.

She approached diabetic babysitting like a new adventure.  This would be something she could do, and was determined to be good at it.  It worked.  When she babysits, I get to have a few hours of me time, and know my girls will be safe and having tons of fun. That does not come easily these days. 

I can only hope my children follow in the footsteps of  Amanda. That is, as long as she doesn't morph into a gigantic moth and attack us.

I'm not worried.

Diabetes Dance

We have officially made it past the 6 month mark with Madeline's diabetes.  No confetti, no balloons or horns, just a sigh of relief.

6 months ago if someone had told me "after 6 months you'll be pretty good at managing diabetes", I may have just laughed in their face (you know, that crazy, psychotic scary kind).  But here we are chugging right along.  We have the good days (yahooo, look at those great blood sugar numbers!) and the not so good days (WTF did I do wrong to give you that number?!).

Diabetes keeps me on my toes so much I should invest in ballet shoes.  Seriously.  I believe I now qualify for the lead role in The Nutcracker or Swan Lake.  Ok, so maybe I do not posses the grace needed for that, but I could show Fred Flintstone a thing or two at the bowling alley!  My toes are superior.

I hope to pass this great toe talent on to Madeline when she is older.  She will have to put on that tutu and pirouette to the diabetes dance day in, and day out, for the rest of her life.  But for now, I just want her to sit back, relax and let me put on the show.

Madeline has learned the very first, and most important, step to this new dance. 

She can now say: "I have diabetes".

Well done my little ballerina.

 
    

Let It Snow!

Rick and I are snowmobilers.  We love snow.  We love winter and watching the snow totals add up.  The more snow the better.  Bring it on!

Winters in Southeastern Wisconsin are pretty unpredictable, so we trailer our sleds to Northern WI or the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.  We've been doing this for many years and every trip is just as fun as the very first one. 

I've only missed 2 snow seasons all these years: Sophia and Madeline. Yep, prego.  Somehow bouncing down a trail, in the middle of the woods 7 months pregnant, didn't sound so fun.  So I took one for the team, and stayed home.

This snow season, I am once again faced with the reality, I may not be able to ride.

Madeline's medical needs are not something I can just put on a To Do list for someone else.  Rick and I live with diabetes in our life everyday, and we are still learning.  It's a  tremendous amount of responsibility and not for the faint of heart.  Madeline's life depends on it.

So what's a mom to do?  Get your helmet Madeline, you're coming with mommy and daddy!  How bad could it be? (please don't answer that)

We won't know until we try.

Madeline's ready!

10 Things I Ponder

1. Why does Madeline scream and cry when I comb her hair, but tell me it tickles when I give her a shot?

2. Will I ever be able to say endocrinologist doctor correctly?

3. Is it appropriate to say "hear comes the prick" when giving shots?

4. Why do I love Edward from the Twilight series so much?  Is it because we both care about blood?

5. Why don't I have time to finish wrapping Christmas presents, but have time to write on this blog?

6. Why do I laugh when Rick hurts himself, but panic if it's one of the kids?

7.  Will I have permanent shoulder damage from carrying a massive purse with all Madeline's diabetic supplies?   

8. Is it weird my kids run around and pretend to give people shots with clipped needles? (sorry to those of you that thought they were using real needles)

9. Do I seem like a mean mom when I say "if you eat that treat you will be shot" (with insulin of course).

10. Why does our freaking Elf on the Shelf always seem to be looking at me more than my kids?

Yep, lots to ponder..............

A Great Big Thanks!

We did our first JDRF Walk To Cure Diabetes on September 17 at the Milwaukee County Zoo.  It had only been 2 1/2 months since Madeline's diagnosis, so there was not much time to get organized.  I quickly created the Silkworth Family team and recruited my sister, niece and nephew to walk with us.

We sent out our emails asking for donations for our JDRF walk team, not really knowing what to expect.  Well, the donations were overwhelming!!!   Because of our very loving family, friends, and friends of friends generous donations, we collected almost $1600.00 for the Silkworth Family team!

A very special thanks to the Lake Beulah Drift Skippers and Star Motorcycle Chapter 372 for their club donations!  We are so lucky to know such great people and be apart of such wonderful clubs!

We may have had a small walk team this year, but we put many miles on and had a great day!  We are already planning next years walk and hope to recruit many more walkers!

Because of all the generous donations, the Silkworth Family team recieved 2 awards from JDRF.  We will proudly display these to thank all those who have supported our goal to cure diabetes.

Why So Testy

Testing blood glucose is a life saving step in a diabetics life, especially children.  Yes, it's important to test before meals so you know how to dose insulin, but what a lot of people don't know, is testing can go on all day.  Diabetes never takes a break.  Blood glucose changes constantly and you need to know what the body is doing at all times.  High blood glucose numbers are frustrating and just not good.  Low blood glucose numbers are serious, and can be life threating if not treated immediately.  Madeline is 2.  She doesn't say "wow, I feel like I'm running a little low" or "you know, I think my numbers are high", so test, test test.

Finger pricks hurt.  I tested myself....once.  I'm a real wimp compared to Madeline.

The good thing is Madeline doesn't seem to mind too much.  I make sure to test quickly and let her be on her way.  She has even stopped mid-snack because she couldn't remember if she had been tested.      

Someday, when Madeline can truly understand, I can't wait to tell her what an amazing little girl she is.   

    

Some Honeymoon

I learned there is period of time, after a Type 1 diabetics diagnosis, that is referred to as a "honeymoon".  Diabetes is caused by the lack of insulin produced from the pancreas.  Once insulin is introduced back into the body via injections, the pancreas says "wow, guess I've been slacking, now that I'm rested, let me help".  Now I'm not dissing the pancreas for wanting to help, but in reality, it's not much help at all.  We went from Madeline's blood glucose numbers hovering around 200 to dropping into the 60's at times.  This happens because I'm giving her insulin to cover her food as well as her pancreas "helping".  Once we learned how to adjust her insulin it was actually quite nice having her pancreas around for awhile.

Mealtimes were such a stressful time for me.  I had learned to hate food.  Madeline was only allowed 45 carbs for her meals.  If you have ever counted carbs in foods, it doesn't take much to get to that number.  It takes a lot of thought how to give healthy and satisfying meals without adding carbs.  But then comes the honeymoon!  Wahooo!  I could give a little extra food here and there, and her glucose numbers stayed in range.

Is honeymoon really a good word for this phase?  Not to a non diabetic, but being a Type 1 diabetic means having to give an insulin shot for all the food that goes into your body.  Think of all the food you eat in a day, then try to imagine having to count the carbs, test your blood glucose, dose insulin and give a shot, all within a specific time frame.  To regain a little freedom from the day to day rules of being a diabetic, honeymoon is a word that fits quite well. 

They warn you in the diabetes classes to not get comfortable with the honeymoon period.  There is no definite time for when it will start, or when it will end, but it will end.  Some people never even have a honeymoon.  If you get to comfortable with the food freedom, it will be like being diagnosed all over again when it ends.  Well, they were absolutely correct.  Because Madeline's pancreas is so small, it gave it's all, but in the end it could only help her for about a month.  Back to a very strict meal plan and 5 shots a day.

Sleep tight little pancreas.