Letting Go ... A Bit More

Sometimes I feel like this d' mom business is like being drug down a path, not of my choosing - mind you, by my 4th toenail; I claw and scratch and dig at the earth in resistance.  I worry.  Many times I feel alone with that worry, as it can be belittled by those who don't truly understand the nuances of t1d.

Yesterday...

Maybe it's because he hasn't really ran this far before.

Maybe it's because it's a crowded and chaotic event.

Maybe it's because we really have no experience with basal reduction and carb boosting with distance running.

Maybe it's the logistics of him running 5.3 miles out and then needing to take a shuttle, on his own, to get back to the finish line.  

Maybe it's because I'm running the whole marathon and I won't be able to get to him easily if he needs help.

My friend offered Joe a leg in the Vermont City Marathon.  It is taking place this Sunday.  I am registered to run the marathon and Bridget is going to do a half marathon.  It's a big event for Burlington, Vermont.  The news has been broadcasting updates on the weather and marathon details for over a week now.  Downtown Burlington is congested with thousands and thousands of people: runners, spectators, and volunteers. 

When my friend asked Joe about the leg, I was sitting in between her and Joe.  Joe perked up and confirmed he would like to run the leg.  I kinda did a grumbly-mumbly under my breath 'uhm...we aren't really prepared for him to run a leg.'

My friend: 'Oh don't worry my kids haven't done that distance either.'

Me: 'No...d...ddiabetes."

I felt bad for even saying that.  I don't think Joe heard me.  Yes, I have always tried to show him he can do anything despite having diabetes.  He has....but...I've always been there.  I've been there with sugar sources, back-up supplies, and a brain that can make split decisions about bolusing, boosting, and adjusting pump settings. This will be a 5 mile jog without his parents close by, but surrounded by thousands of people...and aid stations...and even medical stations...and there is even a race tracking app.  I guess it's as good of an event as any to let go a bit more.

Last night..

'OK..you can do it, but you need to have sugar with you, your phone with you...and you have to wear your medical ID.'

'I will Mom.'

"Ma ... This is WAY too hard core for an Elementary School Field Trip..." ~ Joe Maher 2/11/2012

The title ... word-for-word ... was muttered by Joe, outta the blue, as we traversed the ice rapidly and efficiently aided by a solid, steady, hefty tail wind. We were keeping our eyes peeled for cracks and fissures that we would need to avoid or carefully cross.

Yesterday I took Joe to skate a large bay of the lake, Lake Champlain.

The skin on my hands was losing it's pliability as it was exposed to check Joe's blood glucose prior to our departure. I checked. Warmed my hands. Tied one of his skates. Warmed my hands. Tied his other skate. Warmed my hands. And then dealt with myself and my skates. Yes, it was that cold. I believe with the windchill the temperatures were bottoming out a bit below zero.

As we skated out to our destination, an island with caves, the snow looked like desert sand blowing under foot. Ice sail boats were gliding effortlessly across the glass-y surface in the distance. Ice shanties and lined fishing holes were dotting the ice. Sheets and chunks of ice had been pushed up as the lake ice had split and cracked and fresh water from below emerged and froze. The scene was a bit surreal. We were "extreme skating" in a sense.

When I packed for our adventure, I felt the nag of the "what if's" plague the periphery of my mind. Not only the normal ones... like what if Joe or I fall in the lake and croak? But the "diabetes what if's". What if I don't have enough sugar? What if the saline solution freezes for the glucagon reconstitution? What if I need help? Nothing scares the BEJEEZUS outta me more than being away from Joe's diabetes supplies and sugar sources. Nothing.

Ice Sail Boat

Cave

Since Joe's diagnosis, I have been determined to never let diabetes interfere with his innate right to be an active child. He should never not do something because he has diabetes. As many of you know, Joe is an active boy and his activity level seems only to accelerate in the winter months. Managing type 1 in the cold can be a mechanical, a logistical and a blood sugar nightmare.

Here are some tips that I have picked up along the way. Trust me, I learned many of them the hard way.

1) UNA-BOOB ~ Glucometers only function at certain temperature ranges. I have had the glucometer not read Joe's blood sugar number due to the cold. It would give me an error message. I have found that tucking the glucometer into the inner breast pocket of my coat keeps the glucometer warm enough so that it may function.

2) HOT HANDS ~ If I want to keep the glucometer in "Woodchuck" (our diabetes care on the go bag... see right hand side-bar under "Joe's Pancreatic Pit Crew"), I house an "activated" Hot Hand hand warmer in a child's sock, and then place it in "Woodchuck" to keep the glucometer warm enough to perform.

3) PUMP-IN-PANTS ~ If your child is a pumper I recommend pulling their snow pants up and over the pump. This keeps the pump warm by using body heat. I have had pumps lose their prime and stop delivery when not adhering to this tip.

4) STRIP WHEN YOU ARE READY! ~ Don't pull the test strip out of the canister until you are ready to roll with the blood sugar check. I also cover the blood receiving end of the strip with a paper towel square (I cut up paper towels for blood wiping and store them in the glucometer case) until the finger is lanced and the blood bubble is ready to be "tested". When I have not done it this way I have gotten some seriously false LOW numbers.

5) As with any activity... CHECK OFTEN ~ I check about every 30 minutes to an hour due to Joe's tendency to drop quickly while participating in winter to his heart's content.

6) MAKING THE LOWS GO ~ Joe runs low while playing in the cold. He has had a "LO" reading on his glucometer while he is running up and careening down sled hills. He has had numbers in the 20s and 30s. When he was three, four and five I would decrease basals by as much as 80% about an hour prior to outdoor activity. Now that he is older, I find that I rarely need basal reductions. I usually feed Joe "free carbs" prior to prolonged outdoor winter activities. I have found for us, the free carb feeding to be the easiest and best way to manage this sort of thing. I usually give Joe 3/4 cup to one full cup of milk prior to heading out to sled or to skate. This seems to hold him for about an hour... then I boost his number as needed with fast acting sugar sources.

7) STARBURSTS BECOME ICE GUM ~ Starbursts are extremely difficult to chew when they become cold. Avoid "gummy" or "chewy" sugar in the cold. We stick with glucose tabs in cold weather, as they are easily chewed. I am sure smarties or any other chalky sugar source will easily succumb to dentition pressure as well.

Figuring these details out did not come over night. It took me M-O-N-T-H-S... and I was frustrated... and I was in that place that we all visit now and again... that "helpless" place that our psyches take us to when we are unable to get a handle on the numbers for prolonged periods of time. Know, you are not alone and in time you will determine what works for you.

Here is an awesome "reliable" source of cold weather diabetes tips from the Children With Diabetes Website.

Do you have any cold weather tips? And p-uh-lease...don't say "Don't eat yellow snow!"

A day-in-the-life of LIVING with "D".

Another FIRST

Mondays and Fridays are "running days" for this Mama Pancreas. I usually ask Joe how far I should run as I drive him to school. He usually sticks somewhere between 7 and 10 miles with his responses.

Yesterday:

Me: "Joe, how far should I go on my run today?"

Joe: "How far did you go last time you ran?"

Me: "7 miles."

Joe: "Go 8...you should always try to improve on yourself." (Is he for real?)

Me: "Joe it did snow like 10 or so inches in the last few days. The path will be very difficult."

Joe: "OK, 7.5...that is still better than 7." - UGH.

So, I dropped Joe off. I headed home. I ran. I use Yaktrax (thanks to my brother and sister-in-law's Christmas gift and my sister, Tara's advice to run with them) on the snowy, icy Vermont sidewalks. I feel like I have been "popped" into four-wheel drive with those bad boys strapped to my feet. It was cold. The high was around 14 degrees. I ran...and ran...contemplating the 8...miles...

And my son...

Joe has a hockey tournament this weekend. It is out-of-town. It is his first. I was going through the "diabetes supply list" and checking it mentally, as my heart was like pounding out of my chest from the exertion of the run. I was then thinking what if Joe goes down on the ice rink, or more worrisome...goes down and passes out. Then I questioned... Would I just run out and jab him with Glucagon? Check a blood glucose first? I don't know why this vision went through my head. It is fucking hockey afterall. He goes down a lot. He is Joe. He gets right back up and he skates. But, anyway...I decided during my whole "I am dying from sloshing and sliding and slushing through the heavy wet snow, while running 7+ miles" psychotic-induced-haze that I would check a blood sugar first and then stab him with the Glucagon , if need be. For some reason I was then thinking of head injuries, and cerebral edema, and Mannitol, and serum osmolality, and if I accidentally made his glucose too high that it would not allow extra doses of Mannitol to be given to decrease intracellular edema. Ahhhh...yeah...a thought process infiltrated by my old Surgical Intensive Care nursing days. I am not even sure if I remember all of that correctly, as my brain has been taken over by the pickl-y penis-y looking organ, the pancreas, and by motherhood.

Back to this weekend...

As many of you D' Rents know an out-of-town athletic event will provide many blood sugar challenges. The activity level of two games a day... along with the hotel pool... and the added bonus of eating out ... and the wild ass guessing of Joe's carbohydrate consumption ... will be no easy feat. I am ready. I am thinking of myself as a Linda Hamilton (Terminator-y) kind of Pancreas this weekend. I have packed extra sugar sources, extra snacks, extra juices. I packed double of all supplies needed. I packed a back-up glucometer (remember this). I packed 10 transparent dressings to secure his pump sites while swimming. I am prepared to crank that basal up by 100% for the three hour drive. I do still need to insert a new Dexter, as Joe's current one is taped into place and is literally hanging on by the tip of the probe (I think it is day 10 anyway...it is the first Dexcom sensor that has been this accurate in a long, long time...I hate to part with it).

So...

Although I am facing this weekend with a bit of trepidation, I am also looking forward to putting yet another first behind us. I admire Joe's heart, his love of the game, and his spirit to try. He enjoys a challenge and he makes all of us that know him put a little more "umph" into our everyday lives.

So, did I run the 8 miles? Nope. I ran 7.05 miles and then I made Joe and Bridget some chocolate chip cookies.

A day-in-the-life of gearing up for another first with "D" in the picture.

P.S. I'll be out of the loop for the next couple of days. I hope you guys have a great weekend!

DO NOT PITY THE PORTUGUESE PRINCESS NOR HER SON... WOMAN!

About the title: (I am 1/2 Portuguese...and liked the way all the "P's" flowed together).

So I saw HER.

I saw HER tonight once we arrived at soccer. Who? Saw who? You are most likely questioning.

The lady who PITIES Joe and I.

I haven't talked about it too much, but boy have I given it some thought. It has weighed heavily on my mind intermittently over the past few weeks. This incident needed some "processing" before I could put finger tips to keyboard.

In the (almost) four years since Joe has had type 1, I have not experienced an event like this:

• Three weeks ago this woman witnessed me checking Joe's blood sugar after his game/before the "DREADED" team snack. She then commented (within earshot of Joe and I) to another woman standing next to her..."THAT is so SAD...". Even worse, was then her son (Joe's team mate) was asking her "what is so sad mom?" (she was avoiding answering him) he again asks while raising his voice and tugging on her shirt-tail "what, what...what is so sad?" She then whispers to him to 'be quiet' and that she will tell him in the car.
  

WOW...

Speechless...(which for me is RARE)

... and again WoWie, WoW, WoW... (thanks Junie B. Jones)... REALLY?

OK, so after I was stunned from the above verbage from this lady...that Joe's and my situation was "SAD". I began to really think about it. What do I want people to think? say? do? I mean REALLY???... Is there anything that people can say, feel, and/or do that will be "OK" or "acceptable" to me? Prior to this I haven't given it much thought. Well I can start off by saying I certainly DO NOT want pity. On the other hand, I don't want people to "blow off" the enormity of the disease.

In watching Joe day-in and day-out deal with the rigors of his routine with grace (most of the time). Here is what I WANT...Here is what I HOPE... people think (if they even give it a second thought) when they see my son, Joe, dealing with the likes of "D".

I want them to see his BRAVERY (this kid took a needle to his "A"-double-"S" for a site change while flying on an AIRPLANE mind you). I want them to understand that he is a HERO. I want them to "get" a 400 point blood sugar drop during hockey practice must feel like shit, but he still manages to skate well and have a good attitude. I want them to understand that he is AMAZING; the kid can add up 17g+17g+6g+10g+3grams of carbohydrate (for his Fluffernutter and milk for lunch), in his 7year old brain. I want them to know that he lives each day to the FULLEST...with GUSTO. I want them to know that he is a kid with HEART. I want them to take notice that HE DOESN'T FEEL SORRY FOR HIMSELF. He takes each day in STRIDE inspite of having a "Woodchuck #2 toting, carb calculating, needle wielding, insulin dispensing, lunatic pancreas on legs" following him around asking him if "his number feels OK." How he hasn't become "neurotic" after that last mouthful of a sentence I do not know, but he hasn't. He is SIMPLY JOE.

I WANT people to be in AWE of him. I WANT people to ADMIRE the courage and tenacity that he displays daily...heck HOURLY. I WANT that for Joe... I want that for me.

I DO NOT WANT TO BE PITIED ... I want to INSPIRE. Anyone who knows me knows that. There you have it... some more crazy-ass ramblings from a mom who hopes to do right by her AMAZING HERO of a son, JOE...who lives each day to the MAX hand-in-hand with "D".

Post Edit: I am not a confrontational person. Joe only has one more soccer game with his current team. I am hoping that I can show this woman what a day-in-the-life is like with finesse and tact.

The MANY, MANY....MANY, MANY REASONS for a LOW JOE

I don't want to SCARE you guys...but I think I may do a post of mostly pictures and few words. Yes, I am feeling OK. Nope, I don't have a fever. My fingers are lively and dancing across the keyboard. I was just thinking after viewing all the pictures I have of Joe...MAN this kid IS "BALLS TO THE WALL" all the time. For you "non-D folks"...I want you to take in how these photos look like Joe is just a "KID BEING A KID". What you don't know is that all of the below activities require special monitoring, planning, and care... I know, welcome to CRAZY TOWN (in "let me take you to Funky Town" - like music playing in the recesses of my twisted brain)!!!

Now, without further delay...

The many ACTIVE reasons that make for a LOW JOE (mind you this is only "active reasons"...not sickness... poor carb counting ... wrong insulin dosing... stars and moons being out of alignment reasons...that too can make Joe GO LOW)...

(Hula-Hooping Joe... look at the "determination" in that face)

(Up-To-No-Good Joe...this is in the remenants of our backyard ice rink)

(Biker Joe)

(Jumping Joe)

(Dirt Pit Joe ... yes, this is in our backyard... and yes, Joe and his pump become a filthy dust spattered mess... I have to use a baby tooth brush to clean all the cracks and crevices of our Animas Ping Insulin Pump)

(Hockey Joe)

(Baseball Joe)

(Soccer Joe)

(Diving Joe)

(Jousting Joe? Not sure what the heck this is called...but it too can make him go LOW while he is pummeling his opponent)

(Another Maher Family Classic - Surfboarding Joe down the Slip-and-Slide - GOOD TIMES)

(Skateboarding Joe...and yes, I asked him to change shoes and put on pads)

(Don't ask, b/c not even I know...prior to this pic he was skateboarding with the cones on his hands and feet)

For more information on Low Blood sugar click here.

The planning for all of the above activities includes frequent blood sugar monitoring and extra food/carb sources. Blood sugar checks are done every 30 minutes with hockey and soccer...otherwise we check Joe's blood sugar every hour while he is active. "Dexter" has lightened the load on this front. If his CGM numbers are running "right on" with blood sugar numbers, I will skip a blood sugar check and take a peak at "Dexter" (click here to read about one of my favorite posts about "Dexter" our CGM) and "boost" Joe's blood sugar accordingly. Woodchuck #2 is always on my person ready for ACTION stocked with the glucometer, Glucagon, Ketone Meter, syringes, and glucose tablets and Starbursts. The hardest part for Joe is taking a "break" from his activity of choice to care for his diabetes...for the most part he handles it with GRACE.

Again...A day-in-the-life... it never ends... balancing blood sugars, activities, food, and insulin day-in and day-out... This is where the "details of the mundane can drive you INSANE."

LITTLE SHOULDERS, BIG WEIGHT

"Joe's curled up in a ball under the table...should I try to get to him to do another blood sugar check?"

This is the call that I received yesterday from the school nurse.

Me: "Is he Low?"

School Nurse: "Yes, he was 51 and he has had a juice..."

Me: "Please get another finger stick...it was a nice day, I am sure he burned through a lot of sugar at recess."

School Nurse: "OK...I'll call back if he won't let me check his number" (Hangs Up)

4 minutes or so later...the phone rings.

School Nurse: "Reyna he has now barricaded himself in the bathroom...he won't let me check his number."

Me: "OK...give him a couple of minutes if he doesn't come out call me and I'll come in and drag him out by the ear..." (she and I chuckle)

I then just decide to go to the school. This has NEVER happened. Joe is known for being very responsible with his care. He checks his number at a minimum of 3 times a day while at school. He gives himself insulin via his Insulin Pump using math skills that most 6 year olds do not possess. He works in tenths and hundredths of units. He is simply AMAZING.

So why do you ask would Joe be hiding and refusing a blood sugar check after a low? Well I have a few ideas. First off...He was low, when you are low your brain is not functioning properly. From what I understand it can feel like being inebriated. When Joe is low he is not necessarily in his right mind, he is not thinking straight. The ONLY FUEL the brain can use for energy is SUGAR. A LOW BLOOD SUGAR = JELLO-Y, FOGGY, FLOUNDERING BRAIN.

On top of the low, Joe was missing PE. When a child with type 1 has a low blood sugar they need to treat it immediately with fast acting carbs. They are to then sit quietly (they should not be active as that would cause them to burn through more sugar and could make them go lower) and wait 15 minutes while supervised. Then they recheck their blood sugar to make sure it is in a safe range. Joe's low was caught right before PE, his absolute FAVORITE "subject". So one can only imagine a six year old with a "non-functioning" low brain and the disappointment of missing his favorite class and the tailspin his emotions fell into.

My heart broke a little yesterday for him. He is tough. He is amazing. He is my hero. He is human. He bears so much on his little shoulders. The psycho-social toll of this disease is enormous.

THE BIKE RIDE (the most boring story ever)

Disclaimer: Do not feel like you need to read this one. I just wanted to document the stop-go, stop-go, boringness of this outing.

Yesterday was a gorgeous day in Vermont.

It was SUNNY...and like in the 40s...GORGEOUS!

Joe decided to ride his bike with me while I went on my daily jog.

In order to get ready for a bike outing with a type 1 kid...there are a few things that must be taken care of first. You always want to know what their blood sugar is prior to any activity and then boost the number up accordingly and you need to have your "equipment". The "equipment" usually includes the glucometer (used to get a blood sugar number) and it's supplies and a sugar source...and a cell phone just in case I need back-up... especially after the "passing out" episode Joe had a few weeks ago...see MY LIFE THROUGH THE SNOW GLOBE.

Joe had lunch about an hour before. So we checked his blood sugar (activity can cause a LOW blood sugar reaction); it was 71. So he had a 1/2 cup of milk and a staburst. Next we collected our supplies - glucometer, sugar, and cell phone.

Last year I had tied Joe's camo pack (this is a little camoflouge bag that I believe Elli Lilly makes to hold diabetes supplies) to his scooter when he wanted to scoot while I ran...well, not a good idea. He hit uneven pavement, took flight, and his glucometer suffered it's demise when the scooter crashed into the sidewalk.

So, this time, I had Joe put the glucometer in his coat pocket, I carried the cell phone, and put glucose tabs in my fleece pocket...and off we went....well we only got to the garage, because then we realized his bike tires were FLAT after the long winter in storage. So we got the air pump...it was broken. I had to literally hold the tubing to the pump while Joe pumped the air into his tires. EVENTUALLY we did get them inflated.

OK...NOW...off we went.

A few houses down from our house, I noticed that the glucometer was hanging out of his coat pocket. We stopped and decided that I should carry the glucometer (we don't want another incident like last year) and he would carry my cell phone. After all the gear was passed back and forth...we forged ahead.

We were about a 1/4 mile into the bike ride when Joe is breathing hard, blaming his gear bike for NOT being in the right gear. He insists on having it in first gear ALL the time. I tried to explain that if he up-ed the gear level he would not need to pedal like a maniac to move an inch - ah yeah right. He wasn't listening to me. With all this heavy pedaling...he needed a break and he and I both decided a glucose tab was in order to stave off impending LOWS.

Then, he on his bike and me on my feet take off again...only to make it another 300 feet or so. Joe still in first gear (not on a hill, but on a flat), Joe still pedaling like a maniac, Joe deciding he needs yet another break...not willing to listen to reason on the gear issue. So he decides that we need to play a little "I spy" in the middle of the sidewalk during our rest period...dear lord really?...UGH.... After one round of I spy, in which he spy ed a power line pole...and my guesses were incorrect...we were off again.

Thank goodness the next 1/4 mile or so was down hill, so there was NO pedaling required and therefore little complaint from Joe. On the next flat...pedal....pedal...pedal....like a maniac...getting NO WHERE and still NOT budging on the gear issue.

He was HOT...so he removed his coat. I tried to tie the arms of his little coat around my no-so-little waist and we made a decision it was time to ...

WALK...

me pushing his bike....him carrying his helmet. We enjoyed the boring mile walk home listening to the...scuttle...scuttle...drag...drag of our feet. It was the LONGEST...most boring bike-jog of my life, but sweet. Mama and her boy enjoying a beautiful day. BTW he was 78 when we got home...not too bad.

I DO NOT LIKE WHEN JOE IS LOW

(from Green Eggs and Ham, by Dr. SEUSS)

That Joe is Low, That Joe is Low...

I do not like when Joe is LOW...

Do you like it when he is HIGH?
NO! Not when he his HIGH, NOT when he is LOW...

Do YOU like it when he GROWS?
NO, not when he grows, because then he is HIGH, so HIGH you see...NOT when he is HIGH, NOT when he is LOW...I do not like it when JOE is LOW.

Would you like him to play HOCKEY?

Yes, but not HIGH, not LOW...I do not like when Joe is LOW...

Would you like him to be carb-Free?

...OH YES...carb-free and in a Velcro suit you SEE...carb-free and Velcro suit attire would be so very very EASY for ME...ahhh...

Sorry...couldn't help myself...I was running today and this just came to me...I cannot even imagine what I could come up with on a long run...I only go for 3 miles or so.

I have made this statement so many times over the years..."If I just didn't feed Joe carbs and then made him a little Velcro suit" and then fashion a wall with the Velcro backing I could just stick him up on the wall...and then he couldn't expend so much energy and blow through so much sugar.

It must seem odd to people to see a mom of a type 1 child constantly feeding her child Starbursts and Glucose tablets (at the pool, at the rink, at the park, on the sidewalk). Many people think children with diabetes cannot eat sugar...really it is all a big BALANCING ACT. Children with type 1 need healthy carbs (just like any other child) to grow and for energy...they need the insulin so that their bodies can actually convert the carbs they eat into energy...Unfortunately, there is NO SET dose of insulin you can just take once or twice a day and then forget about it. You must always count the carbs in all foods consumed and then calculate the appropriate amount of insulin to give...AND you need to always take into account activity levels into the dosing...if you don't then you run the risk of being "LOW". A low blood sugar reaction is always a possibility with an insulin dependent diabetic. Lows are always in the back of a type 1 parent's mind...we are always trying to avoid them, because they threaten our child's well-being and ultimately their life if not treated.

Balancing carbohydrates AND insulin AND activity in a young active boy has been one of our many challenges. Joe plays hard...and he is all boy (well except for yesterday, I did see him twirling on his skates wearing full hockey gear )...anyways...I am always checking-in with him when he is eating. What are you doing next? Are you going skating? Are you going to ride your bike? Are you going to ride your scooter? ...and so on...even to the point of are you going to dance to Alvin and the Chipmunks in your room? If his answer is yes to any of the above, then I usually have him give himself a smaller dose of insulin. This should help stave off the dreaded lows...then we check his number frequently during excessive activity...and boost him up with extra sugar (Starbursts/Glucose tablets/milk/crackers etc.) if his blood sugar warrants. So when you see me chasing him at the pool, skating after him at the rink, running after him down the sidewalk, or careening down the sled hill after him...you probably have an idea what I am up to...because...I DO NOT LIKE WHEN JOE IS LOW....

"HOCKEY JOE"

"Hockey Joe"...this is what Joe's friend Sam calls him. I love it!

Joe started ice skating when he was 4 years old. I remember taking him to an Itty Bitty Public Skate...he skated with a crate. He loved going and picking up the toys that the teacher would spin and subsequently fling all over the rink...little rubber duckies, cars, etc. His blood sugar would usually run low (when using a crate)...so I would have to boost him up with a glucose tablet or give him a little less insulin with his snack to attempt to keep his blood sugar in range.

Then he started skating lessons ... NO CRATE ... well, Joe was not a big fan of this as a 4 year old and I remember his blood sugar would be sky high after ice skating without a crate...I only figured all this out after weeks of studying his numbers and activity levels...ARGHHH.

Now, Joe plays ice hockey on the Essex Sting "Blue Crew"...it is a House Mite Team. He has improved so much this year...between Saturday and Sunday am practices and skating for hours on our rink in the backyard. Dave and I are in awe at his passion for hockey and his ability to endure...lows and highs while skating and playing. He was out skating this am and he just didn't look quite right...and he was complaining about an itch on his left thigh...then his pants just didn't feel right...etc. I should have known....I should have known...even though I had just checked his blood sugar and it was 130 and I fed him half a granola bar (free)...it is 3 years with this crappy disease and I still miss stuff...he finally came over and complained of being low...we checked...sure enough, poor guy was 55. He ROCKS, even at a 55, he was cruising on his beloved crossovers.