Missing...

Okay, so I've been pretty much absent from the internet for the past week. I hate that, but I've done little more than check my e-mail. I simply haven't had time and haven't felt well.

I fought a cold all week last week and by Saturday, I thought I had it beat. That is until I woke up Sunday morning feeling like I'd been hit by a truck. And I've pretty much felt that way since. Last night I broke down and asked the pharmacist what I should take. My normal cold meds just weren't cutting it. I've not wanted to go to the doctor since everyone else in my town has strep, or the flu, or the stomach virus. I figured I could tough out a cold. By last night, I was beginning to second guess myself.

Turns out, my pharmacist is a pretty smart guy. He recommended a med to me and within a couple of hours I began to feel much better. For the first time in days, I slept through the night (I could BREATH!!) and woke up feeling like a new person. I still am a little coughy and yucky, but I can deal with it.

Last week, while I was fighting to keep this silly cold away, I was also working on the baby shower cake for a friend of mine. My gift to her, along w/ a baby blanket that I knitted. "Why," you may ask, "did you work on a cake all week long?" Well, if you've ever watched Ace of Cakes, you know it can take FOREVER to do the detailing work. I worked for an hour Tuesday night, two hours on Wednesday and Thursday nights, and Friday night from 5 until 11. I was able to finish it up on Saturday morning in about an hour. Whew! But it was worth it. It went over wonderfully and I was pretty darn proud of myself.

I am constantly trying new things. This was a very new thing to me. And I am always working to get things perfect. While this wasn't perfect, I was proud of my first effort at a design like this.

Anyway, I am hoping that I will be completely recovered by the weekend, since my sister is spending the night with me on Friday and we are heading to Nashville on Saturday morning to shop (her!) and go to a cake show (me!).

Hopefully I will get to post another blog or two as well...

Much Catching Up To Do!

I have not been blogging regularly. Basically, I've had so much stuff going on, that I've not had time. Even tonight, I am putting stuff off, just so I can blog. I miss you guys! And I miss blogging.

So it's catch up time.

1) Two weeks ago, I met with some other adult type 1 diabetics in Nashville. There were 7 of us that showed up to have lunch at a great little restaurant called The Yellow Porch. The food was fantastic. I was the only one who didn't live in the Nashville area (it's about a 2 hour drive for me), but it was nice. And it's probably going to be a monthly thing. I don't know that I can always make the trip, but I can go sometimes. And as you guys know, it's nice to be around others with diabetes.

If anyone is in the Nashville area, let me know and I'll get you the info on our next meeting.

2) I spent an entire week without my sensor on. But MiniMed came through for me. They not only got the approval, instead of waiting on the letter, they agreed to overnight me my sensor order. I should get my new box of sensors tomorrow. And the letter they needed was faxed to them today, after they had already agreed to release my order.

Someday I will get into an entire blog post on how wonderful MiniMed is. I won't do it today, but when I do, expect a short novel. You just don't get customer service like that anymore.

3) I spent last weekend in the D.C. area with my friend and my adorable godson. It was a nice trip. I left on Friday and didn't have to be back until Monday night (gotta love state holidays).

During my trip, we spent waaayyyy too much time eating. No lie. My diet (sorry Biggest Loser gang!) went out the window for the weekend.

4)On Valentine's Day, we got together with some other friends of Amanda's and had dinner at a fantastic restaurant called The Melting Pot. I had never had fondue before, so it was an experience. And the food was amazing! I loved it. Not to mention it gave me an excuse to get all dressed up.

5)Sunday morning I met up with Heidi, fellow blogger, from The D-Log Cabin. :) I love meeting fellow bloggers. It's so fun! We met at a place called Eggspectations and had wonderful omelets and chatted away. I'm going back up in May, so I'm hoping to get together with Heidi again and maybe some other fellow bloggers in the area. It would be fun to get several of us together to have lunch and hang out. Not to mention, so much fun to blog about.

Pretty much the rest of Sunday was spent watching movies, napping, and making cupcakes. :)

6)Monday morning, we headed back to Baltimore (this is where I flew into and out of) early.

The first thing we did when we got there was go stake out Charm City Cakes, home of Duff from Ace of Cakes. We took pictures in front of the building. You can't go in. It's only by appointment. And there is black on all the windows. But it was still pretty cool. I stood in front of Charm City Cakes! **Eeeekkkkkkk!!!!!!**

7)Then there was a restaurant that Amanda wanted to take me to called The Blue Moon Cafe. Since there is no website, I have just linked you to some reviews. Basically, it's a little hole in the wall. Very small, very packed. The wait was around 45 minutes. But when we got in, it was oh so worth it. They make Captain Crunch French Toast. Yup, you read that right. I don't know how they do it, but it is THE most fantastic thing I've ever had in my entire life. Homemade bread, no need for butter or syrup. And also I guesstimated around 110 carbs. I was so full when I left there that I only ate some cheese and crackers for the rest of the day.

Now, folks, I am spending this week working on a baby shower cake/cupcakes, so I have very little time. But I will blog again next week. Really.

Update on Sensor Order

On Friday afternoon, on my way to the airport, I got a call from Medtronic saying the insurance did approve my sensor order. I should have my new shipment in a week or so. :) I can deal with that!
I am soooo happy. My mother cried when I told her.
I would have posted sooner, but had no internet access. I will blog all about my trip in the next couple of days.

Exhibit A

Reasons Why I need CGMS to continue....

Last Saturday I took my sensor off. It was dead and I only had one left. With the whole insurance deal, I didn't know how long it would be until I heard something. So I spent the entire week "bare". I have run all over the board since then. I've had crazy highs and some lows. But none like hit me last night.
My mom and sister came over to hang out and help me get ready for my trip I am taking this weekend. While they were hear we ate dinner and I began to work on some Valentine's Day cupcakes I was taking to work today.
Suddenly I started feeling a little "off". When I tested I was 31. Three juice boxes, 5 BG tests, cold sweats, and numb lips later, my mother was crying and I was just becoming a normal human again. I never lost consciousness, but looking back on it, I think I probably could have used a trip to the ER. I didn't go. But it would have been quicker than waiting on my own.
Since I moved out of my parent's home when I was 18, I haven't lived with them again. That's been nearly 10 years. I don't typically mention my ups and downs of diabetes to my mom. I just don't think of it as that big a deal. It's just part of life.
But last night left my mother in tears. And I hate myself for that. I know it's not my fault and that she loves me, but I hate to worry her. She raised me with this disease. She knows the ins and outs. But time tends to mask the evils of this disease. You "forget" over time.
Last night's horrible low was a Diabetes 101 updated crash course for my mom. And I hate that she had to deal with it.
This, Dear Insurance Company, is why I need coverage for my MiniMed CGMS. Not because it would save my mother some tears, but because it might keep me alive. If they hadn't been here, I don't know what would have happened.

On a plus note, I am back on the sensor. Currently the only one I have left. And I am off for a long weekend to see my friend in the D.C. area.
I'll be offline until sometime Monday night. I hope all of you have a fantastic Valentine's Day weekend.

Six Things

I was tagged by Jill to post six things that make me happy. Here are the rules: Link to the person who has tagged you. Write down six things that make you happy. Post the rules, tag six others and let them know you did it. Then tell the person when your entry is complete.

1. My church. It makes me happy because I love being with other people who love God. I also enjoy my work in the church (teaching 5-6 year olds). It lets me feel like I am doing something good.

2. My family. They are a little weird sometimes. But they are mine, and I love them. They make me smile. The love me when I'm crazy and when I'm not. And they are so supportive of me.

3. My friends. I have so many wonderful friends. I am hard to get to know at first (you guys wouldn't think so, but I really am!), but when I make a friend, you are pretty much stuck with me for life. One of my friends I've known since kindergarten, another since we were 3, 2 since high school, and another 2 since college.
And then there are my internet friends! You guys rock. I wouldn't trade you for anything!

4. Music. I'm not talented. I won't be the next American Idol. Or a famous musician. But music moves me. Music of all kinds. I wake up every morning with a song in my head (no kidding!). I'm constantly singing in my car, my apartment, and in my head at work (I don't want to scare the co-workers!). I have a song for every situation. Most songs remind me of a time, or a place, or a person.

5. Cake decorating. Yeah, I know. Weird, right? But it makes me happy. I like being creative and then letting people eat it! :) I am constantly buying stuff to make and decorate cakes. Sadly, I'm not making any money at it, so I am going broke. But it's fun, so I'll suffer.

6. Theater. I could go to a play every single week and be perfectly happy. Sadly, I don't get to go nearly enough. There just isn't the opportunity where I live. When I get the chance, I try to take it though. Including going to see RENT in Washington, D.C. on my birthday this year! I bought myself tickets, even though my birthday is three and a half months away. :)

Okay, now that I've done this wonderful meme, I am going to break all the rules by NOT tagging 6 people. Most of you have already been tagged, but if you haven't, feel free to do this and then let me know, so I can read it. :)

Scared Silly.

I'm not really sure what to do. I was approved for my CGMS back in February of last year. I didn't have any problems getting approved. It just went through and I was hooked up with in about 6 weeks. I feel so grateful and blessed that was the case for me. MiniMed was essential in my getting approved and they went above and beyond when it came to getting me the information I needed and getting all of the paperwork to my doctors.
Since going on CGMS I feel I have much better control. It's been so important to me. In fact, I have discovered that any time I am off of my sensor, my blood sugar goes a little crazy. At one point, I even believe the sensor saved my life by waking me in the night when I had a low.
I live alone and nighttime lows were always a worry of mine. Then the hypoglycemic unawareness because a problem in the daytime too. I would be walking around talking and my blood sugar would be in the 30s or 40s.
It was a blessing from above to be approved for my CGMS.
About a week ago I realized I only had 2 sensors left in my box. I put one in and ordered a new box right away. Usually MiniMed is very quick in getting items to me. This time it was dragging on a little. It began to worry me. I usually take my sensor out after 7 days, but this time I have left it in. I am going to try to get at least another week out of it. I'm not sure how successful I'll be.
This afternoon I received a call from MiniMed. Apparently when my insurance company changed their "policy" it was required to get a new letter of medical necessity. They are supposed to be contacting my insurance company today and waiting to hear back from them. At this point, I have no idea how long that is going to be.
I have no idea how long I am going to have to go without a sensor. And I'm not even sure if they will approve it.
I'm scared.

You're So Vain...

In true Carly Simon fashion, I have discovered I am vain. More so than I would have thought. And it bothers me.

I got my insulin pump 3 years ago in May. My warranty isn't up on my MiniMed 722 for over a year, but I have been curious about other insulin pumps. When I was offered a pump, the only two that I was shown were the MiniMed and the Animas insulin pumps. And my CDE pretty much told me that the one most people in this area get was the MiniMed.

I did look the information over carefully, and ultimately went with MiniMed because they were within months of releasing their CGMS system. That was of great interest to me and I figured it would be something I would eventually want to try. So, I ended up with the MinMed 722, and later joined the world of CGMS.

I'm happy with my pump. In fact, I don't have any problems with it to speak of. The CGMS is also great. My only complaint with that is the HUGE needle that I can SEE while I insert it (note to MinMed: Make your sensor inserter like the quick set. I don't wanna see the needle!).

More than likely, I will stick with MiniMed when it comes time to get a new pump.

But, after hanging out the the OC for a while, you get curious. There are people with Cozmo pumps, Animus pumps, Omnipods, and people with MiniMed pumps. I wanted to explore the different types of pumps. I wanted to see their features and read up on them.

I started out by visiting each website. Most of them were very informative. And all of them allowed you to request further information be sent to you via snail mail. I filled each of them out.

When I got to the Omnipod site, there was also the option to request a trial "pod". I did this also. I wanted to see the actual size and shape. I wondered how it would work with my clothing.

A trial pod has no insulin & no needle. It's basically just the size and weight of a real pod. When I received it in the mail my first thought was that it was smaller than I thought it would be. I let it sit in my living room for over a week before I finally broke down and put it on.

The instructions state to pick a place that will not be bothered by folds of skin. I already had an infusion site on my stomach and because of my weight (I'm doing the Biggest Loser D-Style...cut me some slack!) I felt like my stomach would not be a good site.

I looked on the website for some tips. Some of the people were wearing it on their leg. That was out for me as most of my jeans are fitted and it would look like I had a growth on the side of my leg (see! Vain I tell you!!). There was another picture with the pod on the back or side of the arm. This was something I thought I could live with. I slapped it on my left arm.

It was a little weird at first. I expected it to be. When I first got my MiniMed, it took some time to get used to.

Day one went by. I caught my arm (or should I say the pod on my arm) on a door frame. Twice. In the same day. And let me tell you, it's not pretty! Also, taking off my clothes, I got the sleeve of my shirt & the strap of my bra caught on the pod at two different times. Sucks. It HURTS!

But, I figured I'd get used to it.

Day two rolled around. I started my day out lazing around my apartment (it is the weekend after all). When I finally decided to get around to doing something, I made the choice to go shopping. I was looking for something to wear and I pulled out a pink tee-shirt that I hadn't worn in a while. When I put it on my heart did a little flutter. I realized you could see the pod. It wasn't like you could see it a little bit; you could see the whole thing.

Suddenly I didn't want to go shopping. I didn't want to leave the house. Because I didn't want anyone to see this large piece of plastic stuck to my arm. I started thinking about the post that Kerri wrote for dLife. And later, the one she wrote on her blog. In both posts, she talks about people staring at her Dexcom sensor on her arm.

Did I want people staring at my arm? No way. But Kerri doesn't want that either. But was I strong enough to put up with the stares? No way. I took a picture of my arm and quickly changed shirts. I was a chicken. I was VAIN.

(Enjoy a little Carly...)

For the most part, people don't realize that I have an insulin pump. It's pretty inconspicuous. My CGMS is very small and I wear it on my thigh, so my pants or skirt always cover it. The pod was impossible to hide unless I had on a long sleeved shirt. And that's what I ended up wearing that day.

After spending all day shopping (and nearly ripping the thing off my arm a couple of times while changing clothes) I came home and took off the pod.

I love the fact that it's not tethered. But all in all, I don't think it would work for me.

The thing that made me the most sad was the fact that I let what some strangers would think about me, effect the way I would treat my diabetes. And it threw me back to feeling like Cara: iRobot.

Awesome Friends.

I miss my friends. They are really awesome and almost none of them live anywhere close to me. But, over Valentine's weekend, I am going to visit a friend in the D.C. area. I won't have much time, but I know there are some fellow bloggers out in that area, so if you want to get together for coffee or whatever, let me know. It might work out and it might not, but I'm always up for meeting fellow bloggers.

BTW, I don't drink coffee. But what else do you "get together' over? I mean really? :D

Why I blog.

I stumbled upon the diabetes OC nearly 3 years ago. I was searching for answers. I wanted an insulin pump. I wasn't sure what I was doing. I had questions. I felt alone. I knew no other type 1 diabetics (that I could talk to anyway). Basically, my diabetes life was in the process of crashing completely.

Then I ran across and article that Kerri wrote for dLife. She was near my age, she was funny and had an amazing was with words. From there I found her blog, and her blogroll.

I discovered that there were others out there who had diabetes too! They had bad days. They had good days. They got frustrated. They fell in love. They lived their lives. Suddenly, I wasn't alone.

I read blogs for nearly a year. I got my pump in May of 2006. On April 12, 2007, I posted my first blog post. I didn't really know what I was doing. Who of us does at first? But I posted. I only got 1 comment. From Scott K. Johnson. That first comment is thrilling.

Now I am coming up on my third anniversary (or blogoversary, as it may be known). I know many blogger. I may have never met you. But I count you among my friends. Just check my blog roll on the right! There are many more, and I try to update as I can, but the ones listed are amazing as it is.

I have found TuDiabetes.com.

The OC introduced me to Twitter.

I have more passwords than I care to mention.

But my life has been drastically improved by blogging and knowing other bloggers.

"So," you ask, "Why do you blog?"

I blog because I need a connection. I blog to help other people. I blog for my sanity. I blog because I love feeling like I am a part of something great. I blog because you guys are part of my family.

I DO NOT blog to make money. I never have. I would love for someone to pay me to do this, but I do it anyway. Because the money isn't a reason. It's something much bigger than that.

Yesterday a Tweet was sent out that referred me to this article. What I read chilled my heart. The title of the article: How the Health Blogosphere was Scammed.

I was nearly one of the scammed. I got the e-mail from Dr. Rutledge. I e-mailed him back, asking for clarification on what "featuring" my blog included. Instead of an answer, I got an e-mail back from a Victoria Ho asking for my blog address. I never replied.

Less than 2 weeks later, this all comes to light.

I have many of my family in the D-OC that were scammed. Their blogs were posted on this site. People who have other chronic illnesses and professionals who blog were also scammed.

Now that Wellsphere has been sold, that money that they earned will, more than likely, never be given to the people who rightly deserve it. The bloggers who's content made the site what it is.

Even though I never jumped on board with Wellsphere, I feel violated. When I post a blog, it is MY property. I put the work into it. It may not be great work, but it is MINE. I don't mine people asking to link back to me. But to have my work reproduced by some company that then thinks they can earn money from what I have written is disturbing.

There are many people in the blogosphere who have written professionally, freelancing and otherwise. I am not one of them. But they deserve to be paid for what Wellsphere made a profit from. To have your work sold for profit, and to never be informed is darkness in it's finest form. It's pure evil.

I hope that there is something done legally to be sure that no one else profits from these works.

Most people don't know this (although they do now), but I hope to someday be a published author. Maybe that's why this bothers me so badly.

So, to all of you who were violated in such a way, I am truly sorry. Let it make all of us smarter in our decision making. Let us have learned a valuable lesson, if nothing else comes from this debacle.

TMI Post....Gentlemen beware!

Okay ladies, I have a question for you: how does birth control effect your diabetes? Mainly your blood sugars?
I have a good reason for asking this question. I had been on birth control for a little over a year now. My blood sugars generally run okay. My A1c for the past 3 times has been 6.3, 6.3 and 6.6 (darn Thanksgiving & Christmas!).
For the past several months (maybe longer....I don't keep the best records) I have been fighting horrible high blood sugars. Super highs at night and spikes that never used to happen. My insulin intake in the past year went from staying between 40-47 units a day, to being consistently over 50 units per day.
About 2 weeks ago, I did some major changing in my basal and bolus rates. I thought this might help me out in controlling some of my crazy swings in my blood sugar readings. It began to get somewhat better, but still, not perfect. Then, a week ago, I stopped taking my birth control pills (no worries, they were for regulatory purposes only). Basically, I am a slacker and my prescription lapsed. Since there was no real purpose for them anyway, I just quit taking them.
Suddenly, my blood sugars have improved dramatically. For the past 8 days, my blood sugar average in tests, and on my sensor, are averaging 115. My daily insulin intake hasn't been above 48 units.
Because of the lapse in time between changing all of my basal rates and stopping taking my birth control, the only thing I can figure out is that the dramatic change in my blood sugars is from the absence of the birth control.
I want to know what the experience is with you ladies. Have you noticed a change in your blood sugar ranges when on and off birth control? Have you heard that birth control can effect your blood sugars?
I want to know if I am alone in this one. It's kind of creepy.

The Biggest Loser...and Fit4D

Well, as some of you may know, Landileigh, over at Landileigh's Little World, has decided to start a group for some of us. Biggest Loser D-Style. I joined up. I am intent on dropping a few pounds. I just need a little support.

So if you think you might want to join us (it's a support group, NOT a diet!), go check out the post.

Also, as some of you know, I won one of the Grand Prizes on Diabetes Mine, which was a 2 month introductory membership to Fit4D. I have been in contact with them, and have finished most of the paperwork. Currently, I am working on getting a week's worth of food diaries/blood sugar logs/and daily steps taken together for them, so I can send it in and we can get this thing started. I'm excited, but I keep terrible logs (okay, truth be known, I don't keep them at ALL), so this is a little difficult for me.

So this whole Biggest Loser thing and the Fit4D are coming together at a really good time. Hopefully the support and encouragement will get me in a good place and get me on the right track.

Molly Version 2.0

Okay, I realized how horrible my first Molly was. This one isn't much better, but it makes me feel better anyway. :)

So meet Molly Moretic-Version 2.0

In Response....

To the comment Scott left on yesterday's post, may I introduce

Mark Moretic...Space Cadet Diabetic.

I hope you enjoy him, Scott. Then you don't have to worry about walking around with a girl on your shirt. :P

Moretic Diabetic

Well, it seems like my last post struck a chord with the blogosphere. Apparently, I'm not the only diabetic that has some totally moronic moments. There are even some parents of diabetic children who are having these moments too!

Kelly, over at Diabetesaliciousness, picked right up on it, and has founded the "club" that we all talked about in the comments section of my post. And we are all members! :)

Lynnea joined us, as she explained in her most recent post.

I have to say, that the blogosphere rose to the occasion, once again, and made me feel like a human. You guys made me feel like a normal person. And you made me feel like I wasn't alone.

That is priceless.

So, I suggest you go over and check out Kelly's post. She is a total comic, once again. Thanks, Kelly, for making a comic twist on something that could otherwise, be very depressing. You rock!

By the way, I think Molly Moretic-Space Cadet Diabetic, is my new best friend! This is my very sad Microsoft Paint version on Molly. I challenge you all to come up with a better one. PLEASE!!!! This one sucks. :D

I'm a moron....

No. Really I am. Don't believe me? Well, here are two "I'm a moron" moments that I've had in the last two weeks....

New Year's Eve. I spent the night by myself, hanging out and watching the ball fall on TV, while designing a cake that I wanted to make over the long weekend. It was already my third day, and I should have changed my pump site that morning. I knew I was low on insulin. I'd already had the beep for the 12.5 units remaining. This meant I'd have to do a site change before I went to bed. I don't like to do a site change at night, but even if I gave bolus insulin with a syringe, I still wouldn't have enough basal to make it through til morning.

I had resigned myself to a nighttime change.

Well, I don't typically stay up much past 11:00. I love my sleep. So I was already tired. The ball dropped and I was watching the after shows when I decided to take my BG. I was in the low 200s. I knew I needed a correction bolus. I used my bolus wizard and gave a bolus.

About twenty minutes later I nearly had a stroke! It just hit me out of nowhere: YOU DIDN'T HAVE ENOUGH INSULIN IN YOUR RESERVOIRS TO BOLUS, MORON!

I looked down, and sure enough, for the first time since I started pumping, I had run my pump dry. Instead of a number in the spot that says "units left", it was "---".

Thus, I am a moron. I quickly did a site change and did a 3 a.m. wake up to check and correct another high. But, I couldn't believe I had actually run my pump dry! Wow.

Fast forward to Monday of this week. I had been fighting lows all night. I woke up that morning with a blood sugar of 75. I didn't correct, but instead turned my pump off and got ready for work. I also changed my CGMS sensor that morning. So I was essentially flying blind at that point. I tested before I left for work and was 79. I drove straight to McDonald's (yes, I know that's bad for me!) and got biscuits and gravy for breakfast. Usually, this spikes me to the high 100's, low 200's, so I figured that would keep me in the mid 100's on a morning that was already starting out on the lower side.

I got to work, and as I am carrying in my stuff, I get a "lost sensor" alarm from my CGMS. Basically, it was going to be a long morning. I reset my sensor and ate breakfast. It was a very busy morning at work, compounded by 3 more "lost sensor" alarms (sometimes it can take half a day to get it to "take", but I am too cheap to take it out and do another sensor). At 11:00 I realize that I am dying of thirst.

And then the light bulb came on. YOU FORGOT TO BOLUS FOR BREAKFAST, MORON! I looked at my pump, and sure enough, the last bolus was at 9 pm the day before. I checked my blood sugar: 369. Correction bolus, 7 units.

I spent the rest of the day, correcting and eating only jello, cheese, and almonds (basically, the lowest carb I could).

I mean, it's not like I haven't been a diabetic for 23 years. It's not like I don't KNOW that I have to give insulin when I eat. But I forgot.

So, you see, my lovely friends in the Diabetes OC.

I am a MORON!

Nuff said.

A Borrowed Meme!

Borrowed from Allison

Things you’ve already done: bold
Things you want to do: italicize
Things you haven’t done and don’t want to - leave in plain font

1. Started your own blog - Yeah? I mean, that's what you're reading, right???

2. Slept under the stars. - I grew up in TN....you figure it out. :P

3. Played in a band


4. Visited Hawaii

5. Watched a meteor shower


6. Given more than you can afford to charity

7. Been to Disneyland/world

8. Climbed a mountain - How high of a mountain are we talking? I mean, I grew up on a mountain. And I've hiked.)

9. Held a praying mantis


10. Sang a solo (in the shower)

11. Bungee jumped


12. Visited Paris

13. Watched a lightning storm at sea.


14. Taught yourself an art from scratch. -cake decorating, scrapbooking, blogging (yeah, it's an art!)

15. Adopted a child.


16. Had food poisoning.

17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty-the first time I was there, I was on a time limit (high school senior trip-we had 3o minutes and the wait was 4 hours) and the second time I was there it was not too long after 9-11, so no one was allowed up.

18. Grown your own vegetables.


19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France

20. Slept on an overnight train.


21. Had a pillow fight.

22. Hitch hiked.


23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill. -cut me some slack. I was immature and in college and it was only once.

24. Built a snow fort


25. Held a lamb.

26. Gone skinny dipping. I was 12. :P Never again!


27. Run a Marathon

28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice


29. Seen a total eclipse

30. Watched a sunrise or sunset.


31. Hit a home run

32. Been on a cruise


33. Seen Niagara Falls in person

34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors


35. Seen an Amish community We just have Mennonites around here. I think I spelled that right.

36. Taught yourself a new language.

37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied.

38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person


39. Gone rock climbing.

40. Seen Michelangelo’s David


41. Sung karaoke

42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt


43. Bought a stranger a meal in a restaurant.

44. Visited Africa


45. Walked on a beach by moonlight.

46. Been transported in an ambulance -isn't that a prerequisite w/ diabetes?

47. Had your portrait painted. - I had it drawn one time...


48. Gone deep sea fishing.

49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person


50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris

51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling


52. Kissed in the rain

53. Played in the mud.


54. Gone to a drive-in theater.

55. Been in a movie


56. Visited the Great Wall of China

57. Started a business

58. Taken a martial arts class


59. Visited Russia

60. Served at a soup kitchen - I served Christmas dinner at a place where homeless people come one time. It wasn't an actual soup kitchen.

61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies

62. Gone whale watching.

63. Gotten flowers for no reason


64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma

65. Gone sky diving


66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp

67. Bounced a check


68. Flown in a helicopter

69. Saved a favorite childhood toy


70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial - I've been several times. It's really cool.

71. Eaten Caviar


72. Pieced a quilt

73. Stood in Times Square -Not enough times for me. :P It's crowded, but soooo cool!

74. Toured the Everglades


75. Been fired from a job

76. Seen the Changing of the Guard in London

77. Broken a bone -the day before I turned 18 I tripped on the sidewalk running into the library. Which tells you what a complete nerd I am. I fractured my arm.


78. Been on a speeding motorcycle

79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person


80. Published a book

81. Visited the Vatican


82. Bought a brand new car.

83. Walked in Jerusalem


84. Had your picture in the newspaper. - If you've ever heard that song, by Miranda Lambert "Everybody Dies Famous In A Small Town". I grew up in a small town. I've been in the newspaper several times.

85. Read the entire Bible. -I need to work on this!

86. Visited the White House -I don't think the outside counts, does it? If it does, then I have. If not, then yeah, I wanna go.


87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating -a fish. But that's it.

88. Had chickenpox.

89. Saved someone’s life.


90. Sat on a jury

91. Met someone famous.

92. Joined a book club


93. Lost a loved one.

94. Had a baby.


95. Seen the Alamo in person

96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake


97. Been involved in a law suit

98. Owned a cell phone.


99. Been stung by a bee

The Year Begins...

I realized, just a few minutes ago, that we are nearly a week into the New Year and I haven't posted a thing. Time to get back on the posting bandwagon. :P
My New Year's Eve was pretty boring and perfectly perfect all at the same time. I stayed at home by myself and watched the ball fall and spent some time on the Internet. I stayed up way too late, but had a great time at it and ended up sleeping in on New Year's Day until nearly 9:00. Which for me, is pretty late.
The rest of the weekend passed in boring, normal fashion. Posting didn't occur to me because there was nothing very exciting to post about.
I did, however, get all of my paperwork filled out for fit4D. I faxed it all in today, and am hoping to hear from them in the next couple of days. I am super excited after speaking with one of the people from fit4D. She made me feel super special and actually listened to what I had to say. The first consultation couldn't take place until I got all of my paperwork in. Now that is done, so I wait. :)
I'll keep you guys updated at it goes.
Have a great rest of your week all you dbloggers.

Monday Rocks!

Okay, not every Monday rocks, but this one does. After fighting highs all night long (literally up in the 300s and my CGMS waking me every hour) I got up and went to work. After having 5 days off, I felt spoiled and really didn't want to go in, but that's the life of someone who isn't independently wealthy. :)

Last night, I had made some muffins from a recipe listed in one of my new cookbooks that Kathy sent me. My co-workers were very grateful for white chocolate berry muffins with cinnamon streusel. I thought they were pretty darn good myself. I had 2 for breakfast. Sure, it's not the healthiest breakfast, but there was fruit. And pecans. And chocolate comes from a bean, right??? :P

Surprisingly, my blood sugar actually has run LOW all day long. I've been drinking juice boxes and eating peanut butter crackers for a vast part of my day already. Now one would typically think that a day full of lows would make for a bad day. But after chasing highs since last Tuesday, this is actually a welcomed change.

While I was working this morning, I checked my Twitter account, only to discover that I WON!!!! Again! I was one of the three grand prize winners for the Holiday Survival Sweepstakes over at Diabetes Mine! I've won a Starter Membership to fit4D.com, which can help you with your nutrition, exercise, etc and is ALL related to diabetes! This is an area I need help in sooo much. I don't exercise because I have such trouble with my blood sugars during and after. Maybe this will help me get on the right track.

I love that Amy did this sweepstakes! It's nice to win something once in a while, but the best part was seeing all the different survival tips. It gave me some wonderful new ideas, and also let me know that I was on the right track in alot of areas.

At this point, my day was already looking wonderful. I live only 0.2 miles from work, so I headed home for lunch and on my step was another box.... apparently my Secret Santa's gift didn't all come in the same box. Inside this box was Cupcakes from the Cake Mix Doctor. Another cook book that I will use ALL the time. In fact, I made some muffins last night from the Chocolate Cake Mix Doctor. I just have to say that Kathy ROCKS!!!!! She has to be one of the coolest Secret Santas ever. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Secret Santa!

I spent the morning with two of my best friends (and a tag-a-long husband) this morning. We were having out Christmas. It's always been rough for us to get together, but since one of them got married this summer and moved, it's even harder than before. One lives two hours south-east of me and the other (and her husband) lives 4 hours south west.

But, this morning we were able to get together for a few hours and have breakfast and celebrate. It made me very happy. I hope we can do this every Christmas, but I know it's only going to get harder as we marry and start families.

Of course, my friend and her husband and I did a little shopping after the other friend had to leave to go to work. We went to store after store. While it was fun, I am totally BEAT! And ready to take a nap.

When they dropped me off at home, all I could think about was getting up my stairs and taking a rest....until I got to my door. Where there was a package waiting on me! From my wonderful Secret Santa!

I am so glad we got to do a Secret Santa this year. It was so much fun picking out stuff and who doesn't like getting extra presents?? Thanks to Allison for getting this thing together.

Turns out my Secret Santa was Kathy, also known as Araby62 over at Trying To Be Human. She completely ROCKS! I got two books, The Cake Mix Doctor and Chocolate from the Cake Mix Doctor. Two recipe books that let you take cake mixes and make them so much better than any boxed mix could ever be. I am sooo excited.

Yeah, it's kind of a weird gift for a diabetic, but I asked for it. And since my current hobby of choice is cake decorating, it couldn't have been a more perfect gift.

Check out some of these recipe names:

Chocolate Midnight Cake

Pear and Chocolate Terrine

Guatemalan Wedding Cake

Pumpkin Spice German Chocolate Cheesecake

White Chocolate Muffins with Cinnamon Streusel

Marbled Cream Cheese and Kahlua Brownies

Lemon Lovers' White Chocolate Cake

Snickerdoodle Cake

Plum and Cardamom Cake

Easy Tiramisu

Hummingbird Cake

Pumpkin Pie Crumble Cake

Fresh Lime Cheesecake

Orange Almond Angel Food Cake

Tomato Soup Spice Cake

Can you believe some of them?? I can't wait to try some of them out, though there's supposedly 150 in each book, so I don't know how I'll ever try them all.

Thanks so much to Kathy, who ROCKS! If you don't read her blog, check it out. I linked it in this blog post as well as it being on my blog roll on the right side of the page.

Winning and Christmas and Catching Up

I've not had the time or energy to post much in the past few days. I have such good intentions, but I never seem to get around to it. So this is my catch up post.

I WON!!!!!!!!! No really, I did. :P Amy T, over at Diabetes Mine, has been having her great holiday contest. Not this Monday, but the last, I won one of the great prizes. My prize: a great medical ID bracelet from HAH Originals. It had lots of room to personalize and great ideas for info to put on the bracelet.

Now, since I started wearing an ID bracelet on a regular basis (about a year ago), I have been wearing one of the generic $5 ones you pick up at Wal-Mart that simply says Diabetes on the back. It served it's purpose, but I really had been meaning to get another one. This one is great. I was able to put important information on the front, like that I am a Type 1 diabetic on an insulin pump and that I use CGMS. On the back (I don't want everyone seeing all the info, unless they are looking for it) is my full name, date of birth, month of diagnosis, and my emergency contact person and phone number.

Here's a picture:

The best part about it was that it was engraved and shipped the same day I ordered it. I had it in 3 days. Great customer service. HAH Originals has a great selection of bracelets, and if I order a new one, they will certainly be at the top of my list.

Also, Christmas has come and gone. It was rainy and warm here in Tennessee. Kind of sad, since I was hoping for at least a little snow. But, it was still filled with family and love and LOTS of great food (I'm still fighting my blood sugars! Yikes!). Christmas Eve I headed to my dad and grandma's and started dinner. My dad and I cooked most of the day to get a turkey dinner ready. It was pretty good, considering I'd never mad a turkey before...and neither had my dad! My brother and his wife and my nephew and my sister-in-law's son all came over and we had good food and then exchanged presents.

I'm not sure how my brother does it, but almost every year he gets me something that I love but would have never picked out myself or even thought to ask for. This year it was a cool set of bookends (I read ALL the time) that came from Tractor Supply. I'm dead serious. They are really cool though and they look like they have barbed wire on them. Not to mention being heavy enough to chunk at someone's head and kill them. :)

My dad got me some new Christmas ornaments that I needed. No lie. I needed new Dale Earnhardt Jr stuff. I don't have anything with his new number on it... but now I do. :) Pictures below.

Christmas morning I was up early and headed to my mom's to celebrate with her, my step-dad, my baby sister, and my step-grandmother. It was nice. My mom cooked a ham (I LOVE ham!) and I don't get to eat her cooking nearly enough. Though that's probably a good thing for my waist-line. :P My step-grandmother gave my sister an electric organ that she's had for years. It may not seem like much, but it was perfect for my musically talented sister. She was thrilled and even cried (how many 12 year olds do that over a Christmas present?).

I got a radio for my car! Yippee!!!!! I've been without a radio in my car for over a year now. The other one just died and I had never had the money to replace it. It's not usually a big deal since I live so close to work, but on trips out of town it's nice to have. My step-dad and I installed it in my car yesterday before dinner, so I am no longer music deprived. :)

Also, I have been truly blessed this year with Christmas cards. I hang them on the back of my door. The picture I am posting below is actually from a couple of days ago. I have even more now. They are almost all the way to the floor. :) I love Christmas cards. Several of them are from those of you in the Diabetes OC. Thanks for them!

Also, on Christmas Eve I got home from my dad and grandmother's and I checked my mail. Inside was a package. No, it wasn't my Secret Santa package, but it was a package from Jill and her family over at Diabetes Sweeties: My Crazy Life. It was full of fun stuff. Beautiful, handmade jewelry made by Jill herself, and a tee-shirt from their JDRF walk that they did this year! Kacey is even getting awarded the Golden Sneaker for raising $2500 for their walk! How fantastic is that? Jill says the award ceremony is January 11th, so we should all be thinking and praying for them that day.

I know this post is very long and full of information, but I wanted to be sure I didn't leave anyone or anything out. I hope everyone else had as blessed a Christmas as I did.