Im at ur door

This was the text I received tonight from my former cleaning lady. YIKES! Just kidding...

I left work early today to go to my doctor to get some test results and some referrals. After waiting for over 2 hours, I finally saw my doc. Things are okay...my blood pressure is actually "good" and produced a smile on my doc's face! I left there, went and picked up some pictures, dropped off a script, went and picked up some dinner and came home.

I walked in the door, went to the restroom to take my contacts out and my bra off. As I got back to the kitchen to test my blood sugar and to eat dinner my phone rang with a text. It was from my former neighbor and read, "R u home" so I replied, "yes, just walked in the door...what up?" Her reply shocked me when she texted back saying, "Im at ur door"!

So I opened my door and in she came. I enjoyed the 2 hours we sat and visited. I realized how much I missed having her as a neighbor and how much fun we did have during the summer months in the past. Of course I was starving though...so I was selfish and glad when she decided it was time to go. But...tacos from taco bell...not so good two hours late!

But, good news...when I tested my blood sugar before I ate it was 111!!!!! :) My lowest number yet! Woo-hoo!!

Sharpening the axe

Rumors have been swirling all month...different dates, different numbers, different theories, but as each day went by the more and more it felt like some of the rumors must be true. The first rumor I heard was 500 layoffs in our company would happen by July 16th or 17th. That did not happen and those days went by. The following week was that between 400 and 600 layoffs would be announced within the next 2-3 weeks. That same week doors began to close, meetings were happening unannounced and then the confirming thing happened...a secret meeting occurred with some of the higher-ups. There were fake meetings in some of their calendars and it was held off-site...we all knew something was up!

Yesterday, two more rumors came up...the basis of them were the same, 'the layoffs were happening this week'. The only difference in these two rumors were the date of when it would happen. One said tomorrow, Wednesday, and the other said Friday. Well, today was it...322 employees were laid off in my company today and 7 of them from my department...

I am happy to report that I made it through, but I am sad to see so many friends and coworkers go...

Of course today the article I read this morning said that our city has the highest unemployment rate in the country, 17%. I wish everyone good luck...and hope they find their path quickly and are successful in their lives..

I'll be your companion

I've done my good deed for the week. Yesterday while waiting for my dad to come out of surgery a young man...okay, probably my age, but you get the idea...came crutching in to the surgical waiting room and when the nurse called him back she questioned where his companion was. He told her he didn't have one, he was dropped off and someone was picking him up. That wasn't good enough...he had to have someone there.

This poor guy who had not ate or drank anything since midnight (he came in at noon) and who had not taken any pain meds either practically broke down saying how he had no family, few friends and his girlfriend was sleeping because she had to work. One of the other women in the room offered to be his companion. The nurse went and asked if she could and came back to say no because that woman was a companion to someone else who would be released before this guy. So I offered to be this guy's companion because I was no one else's companion. They agreed to take B back to begin prepping him for surgery.

Mom and I had it worked out that she would take the munchkin when and if dad was released so I could stay for B until someone else came for him or until he needed to be taken home. About 30 mins after they took B back some strange guy kept walking in and out of the waiting room, so I finally asked if he was looking for B. He said yes. We told him that B had been taken back by the nurse and told him the crazy story of how two different women had told B, "I'll be your companion."

D, the friend, made it clear he did not like B's girlfriend because she wouldn't wake up to come for B. Hours later the girlfriend showed up, D met her at the doorway to the waiting room and immediately left. The girlfriend proceeded to walk in the waiting and get on her cell phone. She proceeds to tell the other person, "Yeah, I'm here at the hospital. B called me this morning to bring him for his surgery, but I told him I couldn't. I was so tired and I swear I think I was still drunk from last night. (Insert giggles here.) Then he called later to tell me I had to come up here and sit, because he had to have someone sitting here for him. I slept a couple more hours and then came up. I swear, I'm just sitting here wasting my time, but you know B, he has no family and few friends." Must be love...her wasting time for her man!

Well, we left before doc came out and talked to G about B and since D left we wouldn't have received any info anyways. I sure hope wherever B is he is doing well and his surgery was successful. And I hope he remembers the two strangers who were willing to provide aid on his behalf and he returns the favors some day. :)

A plate and a few screws for Dad

Up at our normal time this morning we packed everything up and off to the hospital we went! Dad had to be there for 8:30am, with a surgery time of 10:30am. As always, things do not go smoothly in our family, because this was something we should have been on our way home no later than 1pm. However, at 3:30pm we were finally thinking we were seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.

Dad's surgery went well; however, he was having issues with coming out of the anesthesia. Finally he was able to come home and I agreed to go and help mom get him in the house. Since we already missed Chica's oldest daughter's birthday party, we got Dad settled in and then after relaxing for a few minutes the munchkin and I grabbed dinner (him-McDonald's; me-Applebee's), came home and have just relaxed since. We will be busy tomorrow, but tonight we are relaxing and going to bed early. :)

Carb Overload...

Today I fell off the wagon totally. I've been having an off week the last day or two and today was the total worst. It all started when my co-worker who I've been doing lunch with off and on lately, you know her from here, mainly because I'm bored and wanted to start taking my lunches...oh yeah, and I became addicted to the Turkey & Bacon Wrap at the up-scale restaurant in our building. Well, apparently she wanted something different today for lunch so I suggested a local favorite chip & salsa place, but told me she was up for something different (hmmm...she was never a part of our group who went there so I thought that was "something different"). Well, my "something different" is really different than her "something different", because hers was Quiznos. Um...not really "something different" but whatever!

Do you know how bad a sub is @ Quiznos for a diabetic? Maybe it is just me, but all 3 items I looked up on their website all pretty well sucked in the carb department, but I went with the one with the fewer carbs and ordered a regular instead of a large. I should have gotten the small, but I was starving! I made it a meal with a Diet Mountain Dew (yippie Quiznos for having another diet option!) and a bag of cheetos, which I didn't finish! :)

Well, that was the beginning of the down fall for the day....then the munchkin and I went to the movies and saw G-Force. Watch out popcorn carbs! But hey...no candies and no coke. We shared a Diet Mountain Dew and a water! Then after the movies we went for dinner at Big Boys. I fulfilled my ice cream craving after my dinner there. Man...that place is a danger to carb avoiding diabetics!!

Alright...off to bed, carbs and all!

Latest Freak Out...

Okay, I've spent 2 days freaking out about my schedule for the fall. I have no clue what I'm going to take. Being a night student becomes tough because we have limited choices. It drives me batty when everything is offered at the same exact time...how is that fair? I understand that life isn't fair, but if you knew how much I was paying per credit hour you would understand why we are all upset.

This is why I wish they would release the schedules much earlier. When I completed my first year we already had our schedules before we took exams. Now, the first people can register exactly 4 weeks from the first night of classes. How is that not stressful? And as a diabetic, I don't need additional stress. Ugh....

I originally going to stretch out my classes to graduate in 5/2011. Now, I'm thinking of taking at least 10 credits for the next 3 and graduate 12/2010. In all honesty, I have no clue what I'm doing. I hate this whole thing!

I swear it is giving me a headache and since it is starting to thunderstorm I'm going to sign off and write my man for a bit since he sent me the sweetest letter that I got tonight about why he wants me to stay healthy and get my sugar under control. :)

PS: That $738 bill I received tonight from the hospital for my ultrasound & hydascan is not helping my stress level right now either. I wish I could open my mail before 5pm so I could call about things immediately... Ugh...

Sincerely, Your Car Guy

July 6, 2009

Dear J'Lynn:

Time is running out! You have approximately 30 days left until the lease expires on your Ford Explorer. But don't panic! We're here to help!

You still have a number of options from which to consider. For instance, you may purchase the vehicle or trade it in on a new one. In any case, please remember that I'm just one phone call away from assisting you in making a decision.

In the interim may I gather some information on our new vehicles and send it to you? Otherwise please visit our website at www.yourforddealerinyourtown.com so you may research our vehicle inventory yourself? Either way, give me a call today and let's talk about putting a plan into place because now is the time to take action! Please call me at (800) cal-lme!.

Sincerely,

Your Car Guy

Um....apparently my car guy forgot about this!!

Good News Coming My Way

Good news all around...

First, I went to the orthopedic surgeon during an extended lunch hour and he was impressed with how far my lump went down and thinks that surgery may be off the table now! He wants me to return in 30 days for a follow up, but if the lump (cyst) is gone I can cancel my appointment. How sweet is this?!

Second, I went to my diabetic assessment/class tonight. It was very interesting. I'm glad I went. It was so informative. She provided me with so much information, so many tips, etc. Next I get to go and see a nutritionist. I have to make that appointment and hope it comes soon. I'm a little excited about this new journey, but not overly excited yet. There are so many things that I've lost in connection with this disease that I cannot let go of just yet. But maybe in the future I will be able to. I'm trying to take it one day at a time. I do not think you realize all of the things this affects in your life unless you are the person suffering with it. Yes, I'm still in the space of considering this a suffering not a blessing...

Of course while I was filling out the paperwork at the diabetic assessment, my man called me and he was having a bad day. :( His teacher was a jerk because he had been off 4 days and decided to change up the routine on the guys and then didn't understand why the guys were upset. Duh...no one likes change, especially folks in prison. Then his ARUS told him that he could have reevaled my man today and took him back down to a Level I, but because he doesn't know him he won't. This would be fine and dandy if the guys could choose when and if they move from unit to unit, but they can't. Wouldn't it make more sense to keep them assigned to whichever ARUS they start with when they come in to that facility? I so do not understand MDOC and hope to never have to deal with them again after my man comes home with the exception of on a professional level...

Alright...on to another day! Opps...I forgot to give the best news at all, my BSN was 118 tonight when I checked it at the diabetic assessment! Way to go me!! ;)

Rude Grandpa & the other characters in baseball

During the munchkin's baseball season there were so many characters I think I could have made a blog entry on each one. There was one particular family that I found really interested...well, actually two.

Family #1...there were two cousins who played together. They were with the bad-ass family. At first it was suspected that there was a real dad vs. a step-dad situation brewing, but then it seemed like "real dad" was actually grandpa. The fathers to the boys were brothers, 10 years apart. One was the typical bad-ass, with a couple of tattoos, smoking, wearing his hat backwards and when he walked he had that typical bad-ass walk. He was actually kind of good-looking in that older-bad-ass way. (Yes, I do have an affinity for bad boys! LOL) His brother was real thin, really tattooed up, earrings, but not the typical earring...more like spikes. He smoked and wore his hat to the side. Spike only showed up once to practice and apparently something happened and he wasn't allowed to return again, which according to TBA happens a lot with his little bro.

TBA never stopped talking. His mom, grandma, would come to the games a lot and you would think that TBA and grandma did not own phones, because they talked and talked and talked for hours at a time about everything. I heard all about their MVAs and their pending suits (wouldn't I fall off my chair if TBA ever walked thru my office!), their worker's comp claims, etc. There did sound like there was some really good gossip about TBA and the mothers of these two boys and some jealousy....I wished at times that I could concentrate solely on their conversation instead of anything else, but I couldn't.

The kicker with family #1 was during Thursday's last game when as soon as the game started TBA looked at real dad a/k/a grandpa and some new woman in the mix and said, "Okay, lets go, but no need to tell the boys." In RD a/k/a grandpa's car and they left. I thought of some instant questions...how do you do that, do you think your children won't notice when they look up in the stands and all 3 of you are gone, and where did they go and what did they do. It is a strange little family and I wished I knew more...

Family #2...There are a lot of players in family #2. There is loud-mouth-mom (LMM), Coach J a/k/a dad (CJ), superstar (#1), superstar (#2) (the big and little bros), lil' sis (lil' sis), chain smoking grandma (grandma) and rude grandpa (RG). The first practice I attended I instantly did not like LMM. She has a comment for everything. I adore CJ...he is just awesome. #1 was an awesome kid and a kick ass player. #2 was a nice quiet kid until he got with some certain kids, but outside of that was a nice little boy and a heck of a baseball player too. Lil' sis is such a tom-boy it is scary! RG and grandma were strange.

RG earned his name the night of one game when they got there late and he proceeded to set up his lawn chair directly in front of another player's mom. And after she picked up her chairs, her husband's chair, and their two sons' chairs and resettled, RG picked up his chair and moved so close to the benches that I was totally blocked in. There was no way for me to get out of the bleachers unless I stepped on his chest as I stepped down.

I believe LMM learned her behavior from RG. I just never saw such a family that were so rude to other parents at a baseball game. Oh yeah, grandma would set up her chair in front of other people and then would never sit in it because she was too busy chain smoking over by the tree. Um...why did you haul a big ass lawn chair there if you aren't going to sit in it?

During the last practice, LMM left lil' sis for CJ to watch while he was out on the field with #2 and #1 was out on the field too helping with the kids. LMM went off to find a nail shop to get a pedicure. I'm all about pampering myself, but I would not leave all 3 of my kids for my husband to watch, especially my 3 year old daughter, while he is the assistant coach to a team of 7, 8 & 9 year old ball players. 4 of which are ADHD and 1 of which was autistic.

Did I tell you that one family had 5 kids all under the age of 7 and dad would come to practice or the game alone?

I never saw such a hodge-podge of a group of people for one thing! But even with all of those characters and a Rude Grandpa, I was happy to be on such a team, because compared to last year...they were awesome! Last year was a group of snobby parents, so I'd rather be with the characters then the snobs! :)

Sharing Dessert & An Update on my Numbers

So after the zoo last night we were only about 15 mins away from my all time favorite Italian restaurant.  Since it is over an hour away from us, I do not get there very often.  But I did last night and it was as always, delicious!  I love Maggiano's!  

Of course by the time we got there and got a seat I was dehydrated.  I think I drank 10 glass of water.  I'm sure the waitress hated me since I only had water and she kept having to refill it.  Of course, if they had another diet to drink other than diet coke I would have had that too and she would have been able to cut her refills in half.  Oh well....

I had my veal parmesan and ordered the side of ziti with marinara sauce for the munchkin.  Then all three of us shared their wonderful, huge chocolate zuccotto cake.  OMG...that cake is so good.  Of course when my aunt said, "No one could eat their entire meal and this cake for dessert.  Their servings are huge and this cake, oh my goodness."  I sheepishly told her I've done it....of course I swallowed it down with about 4 or 5 cokes, so I'm sure that helped..  LOL  Actually, I took the cake home after eating my dinner the last time we were there and then proceeded to eat the cake when I got home.  

Maybe others don't get it, but I was proud of myself.  I only had a couple of small pieces of bread while waiting for our meals, ate half of my dinner and then shared the cake with 2 other people. I will admit that I gave munchkin the largest piece of the cake, because he knows how to stop eating when he is full regardless of what he is eating...my aunt and especially me...not so much!  We had dinner about 6pm and after we got home last night I still needed to take my metformin so I warmed up my left over veal and took my pill.  I took my blood sugar this morning, expecting it to be high because of the Italian food and the cake, but I was pleasantly surprised that it was only 183.  :)

Maybe there will be a slow reaction with the numbers either later today or tomorrow, but I feel proud of myself.  My numbers are getting lower and lower.  I like seeing them in the 100's more and more than the 300's!  Here are my updated numbers since my last report...

225--pm

302--am

169--pm

201--am

261--pm

254--am

152--pm

219--am

175--pm

187--am

195--pm

208--am

183--am

Kangaroos, Dinosaurs, & Snakes....It Must be a Trip to the Zoo!

For almost a week I have been planning to take the munchkin to the zoo today. It was the perfect day too. It wasn't hot at all...an average of 68 degrees. It was a little cloudy and it only rained once, but it kind of worked out because we were on our way to have lunch anyway when it began to rain.

The animals were wonderful. We all loved them. The best was the Outback Adventures when we had to stop on the path to let a kangaroo jump around us to get across our path to the other side. I'm sure there is a joke somewhere in there, but I don't know the punch line. :) Of course the girl in our group who asked the ambassador giving us our instructions before entering the Outback if the kangaroo was going to kick her is probably a part of the joke...or maybe the guy on his cell phone in the small confines of the instructional booth is too. No problems...no cell phones or kicks from the kangaroos happened while touring the Outback.

The dinosaur exhibit was what drew us to this particular zoo as we usually head to the one south of us instead of this one north of us. And it was so worth it!! The extra $9 we had to pay on top of the zoo admission costs was so worth every minute of it. The dinosaurs were fantastic. I can't even say enough. It was engaging, beautiful, neat, and mind blowing. It was also so informative too. The only complaint I have was the fact that my camera batteries died a quarter of the way along the dino trail. :( I was so disappointed. I don't even know how many pictures we ended up with...once I get them developed I will post some pics. I was sad that I didn't get more pics of my munchkin as we made our way through the zoo.

We ended up covering the top half of the park because as soon as we entered the park we hopped on the train and took it to the African Safari in the back of the park and worked our way down from there. Before we even knew it, it was after 4pm, the zoo closes at 5pm and the munchkin hadn't even seen his snakes yet! So we rushed down the park and he was able to go in the reptile house so he could see the snakes. I sent my aunt in with him and I sat outside waiting because Im not down with snakes or spiders. Hell, I'm not down with the animals except the arctic ones, but I was happy to take the munchkin. We all had a great time and I would recommend the dinosaur exhibit to everyone!!!

But I do suggest waiting until the simulator is up and running again. We were all bummed that it wasn't working. You know how much we love simulator rides! So I'm sure we will be returning before Dinosauria leaves the zoo on 9/7, because I know I want to ride the dino simulator!! And I will be taking extra batteries too...

Not so peaceful...

It is our first Friday without baseball practice and I am totally exhausted.  I ended up working a little late, but not too late.  I was looking forward to a night of relaxing.  A simple dinner was planned...hot dogs & brats.  I had this fantasy that we would eat a simple dinner and we would all get to bed early since last night was later than usual with the end of the year pizza party after the munchkin's last baseball game.

Reflecting on last night's pizza party I discovered that there is a discrimination against us diabetics!  It doesn't happen that often, but I think when it does it is worse for a kid.  I cannot imagine what a child diagnosed with diabetes must go through on a daily basis.  I find it difficult and I'm 32 years old.  There was not a thing at the end of the season party that I or any other diabetic could eat.  There was pepperoni pizza, chocolate chip cookies, sugar baseball cookies, cupcakes and pop (all non-diet).  Needless to say...I didn't drink or eat anything last night until we got home.

Alright...back to tonight.  As I sat here, feeling a bit down for myself and the fact that I can't live the way I was even though I wasn't living the right life.  I think the hardest thing I've found is the fact that I cannot go to a restaurant and have a pop.  So after last night and the inability to partake in the festivities I was just feeling sorry for myself...As we waited for the brats to finish cooking the house phone rang.  It was my mom...My parents left yesterday morning on their bikes for a rally in southern Indiana.  There was a call that came in mid-day saying they were on their way home 3 days early as they suspected my dad had broke his leg... They were home and she was going to drive him to the ER after they spent over 4 hours on their bikes trying to get home.  After telling my mom that she wasn't going alone, I jumped in the car and picked them up and off to the ER we go...  

An hour and a half later we are leaving the ER, going to Taco Bell for mom and dad's dinner.  Dad's leg is broke, mom's spirit is crushed and I'm still exhausted.  I take them home, get them set up and come home.  My aunt then tells me I need to get the munchkin's script for antibiotics because his bug bites are swelling and getting red.  Of course my munchkin cannot have just normal bug-bites.  He gets it from his Daddy's side of the family.  His bug bites swell up like golf and tennis balls even with special proactive medicine and as soon as he scratches them he seems to end up with cellulitis.  So off to the pharmacy I go...

So much for a quiet, restful night...I'll be lucky if I'm in the bed before 1am...

It is over

Baseball that is...  

Tonight was the munchkin's final game of the season.  It was bittersweet I must admit.  After Tuesday's game I was kind of pumped for tonight's game and so was the munchkin.  Well, needless to say tonight wasn't nearly as great as Tuesday, but that is okay.  

We made it thru the entire season, so that is a bonus!  We had fun, the munchkin hit the ball on several occassions and it was less stressful this year than last....so hopefully next year it will get even better.  If only I could find somewhere that had baseball in the morning or early afternoon.  Then life would be much better for us...  He just does way better in the AM versus the PM, especially the evening.  

The coaches were fantastic this year.  The assistant coach, Mr. J., was super great!  He loves baseball and apparently loves kids.  He has passed his passion for baseball on to his two sons and it was fun to watch and listen to them.  He was super good with the munchkin!  Mr. J. is just a really super nice guy.  Coach S was all about the kids and that was great!  He just wanted to make sure the kids had fun!  We have been blessed this year with all of our coaches this year.  :)

Injured Party?

One of my co-workers returned to work last week...the first time since she left in November.  She is an older gal who has some medical problems.  She has been off work since she was unable to walk.  She can walk now but with a walker.  In order to get the full effect of this story you must know that this person is only in her late-50's but looks to be in her 80's.  

Apparently yesterday afternoon while I was off at the doctors there was a meeting with our new phone system people from corporate.  They saw the coworker walking with her walker and said to a fellow secretary, "That person really was injured in her auto accident, huh?"  They thought my co-worker was an injured party.  Needless to say, they were more than shocked when the secretary advised, "No, she isn't an injured party she is part of our staff."

Maybe you have to know these people, but I thought this was the funny thing ever!!  LOL  How bad must our "staff" be that people mistake them for accident victims?!?  

I was tough in the beginning...

I went to my second orthopedic surgeon today for the mass/cyst on my wrist.  It was not a fun experience from the start.  When my prior orthopedic surgeon's office called me with the appointment I confirmed on the phone that my appointment was for 7/14 @ 1pm.  I was in the car on my way to see my man, but I distinctly remember confirming the day and time.  Well, that following Tuesday I called to get the new doc's address and phone number and specifically confirmed the date and time of today's appointment.  Needless to say I was shocked when the CSR (clinical service representative) who finally called me to the window said I missed my appointment as it was scheduled for 11am.  WHAT?!  

Of course this happened after I signed in, waited 10 minutes and then proceeded to go up and advise I was a new patient and wondered if there was paperwork I needed to file out only to be told, "Yes.  We will call you up when we are ready for you to begin your paperwork."  I found this strange and rude, but whatever.  The blonde CSR apparently wasn't a fan and I'm sure once she found out I was over 2 hours late she became even less of a fan.

Once back in the exam room the nurse or medical assistant inquired as to the location of my x-rays.  I advised that my prior doc's office told me that I did not need them that her office would want to take their own.  She said that it was okay, but they would have used my prior x-rays.  Opps...strike #3!  

The new doctor came in, examined my wrist thoroughly.  Looked at the x-rays with me and then offered to aspirate the cyst as there is a 50/50 chance that this would take care of the problem.  I was totally down with this and originally wanted that all along over surgery.  If it doesn't work, okay...next step.  But if it does, holla~~no surgery baby.

Well, the aspiration was a little more intense then I expected.  I was tough at first.  The doc even confirmed that fact as he had the 23 gauge needle stuck in my wrist moving it around trying to aspirate the cyst.  Well, after a couple minutes of digging around and his inability to withdraw any fluid from my cyst he decided to puncture the "sac" to allow the fluid to drain from the sac in to my wrist.  When I started saying, "mother" the doctor concluded I was tough in the beginning, but that my toughness was fading.  He continued to jab around inside there and it continued to hurt.  Finally withdrawing that huge needle, the doctor started squeezing my cyst in hopes of getting some fluid to come out in the hold now in my wrist.  He then applied a pressure dressing to my wrist, told me to keep it on for a day or two, and then said he would see me next week.

Guess we will know then...my wrist was hurting, but after 800mgs of Motrin it felt a bit better.  I'm afraid it might be really sore tomorrow, so I will be taking more Motrin before I go to bed tonight, which is just minutes away!

Congrats AL for winning the all-star game & belated congrats to Prince Fielder for winning last night's all-star home run derby!  Also, congrats to my munchkin for batting 1000 tonight!  He hit all three times up tonight and was at least on base each time and scored once!  I stopped counting after 8, but know we won tonight!  Woo-hoo!!!  Way to go kids!  Especially M, who fouled twice tonight, and my munchkin~~baby, you rock!!

Popsicles in the Park

Tonight was the night we were able to meet the munchkin's new teacher!  OMG, my baby is going to be in the second grade this year.  Yikes!  His teacher is very nice and is young, which I think sometimes is good, especially with the problems we have.  We were the first ones there for her.  The other second grade teachers were there and already had kids sign in.  There seemed to be a ton of kids running around the playground.  The munchkin found some friends from "church school" (CCD) and then found a kid that was in his class last year at the old school.  I don't know if it was just me, but his mom didn't seem happy to see us.  Oh well....get over it!  Especially after I determined who this little boy was...he was the one that encouraged my munchkin to use not so nice language (dog poop, poop-poop, basically anything related to poop).  So now I need to determine...do I email the new teacher and give her a heads up as to these two, because we know they will want to sit next to one another...  Ugh, stress already?!  Doesn't the kid know what stress does to my blood sugar?!

Speaking of such...I took it tonight before I ate dinner, which is when I'm trying to take it...before I eat and before I take the 2nd half of my pill and it was the lowest it has ever been...169!!!!!!  I was so excited, especially since this morning it was 302.  Yikes!  Apparently taco bell is out (Sunday night's dinner) and turkey smoked sausage is in (today's lunch)!  I was talking with my aunt and she said she thinks I'm just really sensitive to sugar until I get my stuff under control or she said I could be like that from here on out.

An example of confusion with diabetes...my dad (adoptive/step) is a diabetic (yes, Mr. Skinny who is about the same size as my man who weighs in at 150lbs!) and my mom said that he could eat a donut and his sugar barely goes up, but he could eat a piece of pizza and it will skyrocket.  Or like my papa, he could eat cookies and his sugar only went up a little, but he could eat a small orange and his blood sugar would skyrocket.  It is a confusing thing and I'm just trying to learn what triggers my blood sugar and what doesn't.  I know I won't be able to be perfect all the time, but I am working on getting it down to around 100 and trying to maintain it.  

I am proud of myself...tomorrow will be a week since I first took it and that night it was 397...tonight it was 169, pretty damn good if you ask me!  ;)  Hell, the fact that I haven't had a regular coke in 6 days is a HUGE thing for me!

Last Practice of the Season

Well, today is it.  It is munchkin's last baseball practice of the season.  I'm very excited that this is the last Sunday that I have to get dressed and go somewhere.  And of course our last practice has to be our worst.  The munchkin has hit his brick wall when it comes to baseball this season.  Funny thing is...while I think about it now, last year the only game he missed was the last game of the season, so I guess we need to shorten the season by one week for him.  

But the best part of today's practice was the fact that my second favorite team member got her first hit all season today!  This little girl is just so neat and when her dad, who graduated high school with my man (small world), told me that she was high functioning autistic I almost fell off that ass-injuring bench!  You would never know it until someone tells you.  She is just really neat and my heart goes out to her.  She has been upset because everyone has hit the ball at least once and she hasn't.  Well honey, you did it today!  Congrats M!!!  Way to go girl!

2 games to go this week and baseball is over....woo-hoo!

Calling All Trekkies

Gosh...I hope I spelled that correctly.  Well, today (Saturday) we opted to take the munchkin to the our city's Science Center for the Star Trek Exhibit.  First of all, we are not trekkies but we thought this could be fun and my son thinks he could be a trekkie.  As for the exhibit itself, I was not impressed.  Actually, I was disappointed.  I expected more or different or something.  It was not worth the cost and maybe if you are in to Star Trek and do not have a 7 year old rushing you through the exhibit so you could stop and look at the uniforms, gadgets, etc. and read about them and the actual history of the series.  

But...the money was well worth the 3 other floors of hands-on fun we were able to experience!  That made up for the not so great experience with the exhibit.  We ended up spending 5 hours at the Science Center and less than 30 mins at the exhibit, so what does that tell ya?!  

The munchkin's favorite thing was the 4D Toyota Theater with the simulator seats, the spraying water, the blowing air and the smells!  That was my favorite too.  We also went to the planetarium, which was exactly what I remembered.  We enjoyed that too.  

After we finished there, the munchkin opted to head to the local Hard Rock Cafe for dinner over my vote of our favorite chips & salsa place.  Oh well...  It was still really good.  The Hard Rock isn't my first choice, but they have decent food and great tunes while your munching!  And I will admit, I had a sirloin and it was delicious!  

By the time we got home we were pretty exhausted.  I hope you had a great Saturday too!  

Bad Coworker?

Okay, in my position there are 3 of us.  We all basically do the same job.  There are always little twists and turns but the basics are required of all of us.  I always feel like I get more work than the other two and get the more difficult assignments, but in all honesty I'm sure they feel the same way and none of us know what the truth really is to that statement.  

When I entered the office I had 8 closing memos to do on my desk.  One of my fellow paralegals has been swamped all week with closing memos to do, practically buried.  The two of us went to lunch together at 2pm and I had mentioned earlier in the week that if I got caught up and finished my closing memos (I did 12 prior to today) I would come and get some of hers to do too in order to help her out.  So when she inquired how my closing memos were coming I lied and told her I was about half way done with them.  The truth was that I was finished with all of my closing memos...

If I wasn't so far behind on my own personal stuff I would have helped her, but I knew it was my opportunity to get some of "my" stuff done plus I had done 20 of my own closing memos.  No one offers to help me and to be honest...if I didn't have to write out bills, balance my checkbook, etc. then I would have happily taken some off her hands, but I promise if I'm on top of things and have time this coming week I will help when I can.

So, am I self-ish and a bad coworker or what?!?  LOL

Blood Sugar Results

So Tuesday night I was able to test my blood sugar for the first time and I almost died at how high it really was.  Of course I hadn't really been paying attention to anything because I was so preoccupied with my procedure.  I was super scared of my procedure and to be honest, I'm really glad that I was able to cancel it and am treating my problem medically instead of surgically and it is really working.

Well, my first blood sugar test (after eating for the day, of course) was 397.  YIKES!!!!  Of course I had coke and apple juice, etc. because I was on clear liquids for the first half of the day!  So far my test results, in order, have been:

397--pm

310--am

256--mid-am

264--pm

239--am

203--pm

319 (apparently marinara sauce isn't good for me either!)--late-pm

242--am

223--pm

222--am

I have been trying really hard not to have any sugar and watch what I'm eating.  I'm doing the best I can for now.  That is all I can ask for, right?  I am also on the medication only half of the amount people normally are.  

Scheduled Day Off

So obviously I scheduled today off from work because of my procedure.  Well, since I canceled the procedure I opted to go to work today since I have so much to do.  Of course after working 10 hours straight today, I'm not sure how I could have afforded to take the day off form work, because I'm still swamped even working 10 hours I wasn't suppose to today!

Prepping for a test that doesn't happen

Well today I started prepping for my procedure tomorrow.  That consisted of eating a strictly clear liquid diet all day today, then consuming some pills around 4pm when I get home from work and then at about 8pm I need to drink some nasty stuff to empty my system...

The surgery place was suppose to call me first thing in the morning to give me my start time for tomorrow's procedure.  By late morning no one had called with a time, so I called and after talking to the nurse I was becoming less and less sure about this procedure.  Especially when she told me it wasn't going to solve/fix the problem I was having and that I would have to wait three more weeks doing certain unmentionables to ensure a continued clean system weekly and on the third week have a second procedure done.  So I called to talk to the surgeon but was told he couldn't talk to me but could see me at 4pm.

After some discussions with my aunt, the nurse, and my mom we opted to cancel the procedure and my appointment with the doctor and seek another doctor for a second opinion.  So I did.  Especially when the doctor's office made the statement, "I don't know why the nurse told you that.  She shouldn't have, because we don't even know if we can repair your problem."  

Um yeah...I'm not going through all of these procedures for something that I was under the impression that could be done in the office.  Call me crazy, but I'm not down with those types of invasions, especially if you can't fix my problem.  What is the point?!  

At least this allowed me to go to the munchkin's baseball pictures and game tonight!  :)

Returning After a Holiday Weekend

Back to the grind today! I love my three day weekends, well actually this one was a 4 day weekend. But I hate coming back to work from it. I think I was made to not work but my bill collectors disagree.

Of course it would really help if we weren't so damn busy at work these days. I'm not sure why, but we are just getting slammed every single day. Of course it doesn't help that I'm needing to miss some work for all of my medical issues...that just makes it busier for me. :(

Who else feels like once the 4th passes summer is almost over. :( I have less than 7 weeks before I'm back to school. Yikes!! This summer is just flying by.

Our 4th of July

Yesterday went better than anticipated. I scheduled our BBQ for late because my bro's maybe wife had to work until 5pm and wanted to take a shower before she came over and my aunt had to work until 7pm, so I decided on a start time of 6pm and with my family that meant people would arrive around 6:30pm.

Our menu was simple:

**hot dogs, hamburgers & brats

**baked beans

**macaroni salad

**spaghetti salad

**potato salad

**chips & dip

**ice cream cake & a strawberry cheesecake thing for dessert

The attendees were: my munchkin, my 2 aunts, my uncle, my mom, my dad, their best friends, my bro, his woman, their two kids and me.

We had great conversation, a wonderful cookout and some pretty sparklers. It was a super fun 4th of July except the mosquitos. My goodness, they were horrible...so 10 bites later we moved the party inside until sparkler time!

The only "bad" thing that happened all evening was when my uncle and bro sprayed some bug fogger and my uncle had a bad reaction to it. His left hand began to tingle and go numb, his chest tightened and he had an immediate headache. His remaining time was in the house trying to feel better. It took a while. He makes me nervous with his heart condition....I sure hope that he gets better soon....

Happy 4th of July

I hope everyone enjoys their 4th of July and is able to spend it with their loved ones! I bought our fireworks and have the hot dogs ready to go!! Woo-hoo!!!!

Movies and Mohawks

Today was my day with my munchkin!  And I have to admit, I loved every single minute of it!  Sometimes it is difficult to spend the day with my son, but I have been waiting for today for a while so I was happy to do it.  We went to the movies this afternoon and saw Ice Age 3D and it was a blast!  Then after that I took him to my stylist and did for him what he has been begging for...I let him have a mohawk!

This is so out of character of me.  I don't mind other people having mohawks or funky style...heck, I'm the girl that for years had a purple streak running through the back of her blonde hair, but this isn't what I want for my son.  But I finally gave in...my baby now has a mohawk!  And I do have to admit that I love it!  My stylist out did himself.  He promised me I would be happy with it and I totally am!  

Of course I totally forgot to take my camera and after the cut we did dinner with my aunt and they went off to see fireworks and stay the night with her so I can sleep in and get ready for our cookout/birthday party tomorrow.  Hopefully she remembers to take his picture so I can send it to my man...he is never going to believe I did this!  hehe  

Munchkin, I love you and I think you should always be an individual; however, you must learn to conform too...if I can teach you that, I'm going to be happy.  Enjoy your mohawk baby and thank you for spending the day with me today!

My Rock Bottom

This morning I had to report to the hospital at 7:00am for two tests. The first being an abdominal ultrasound and the second being a hidascan. I made it through the ultrasound and then started the hidascan. An hour and a half in to the hidascan as they started the CKK and gave me the first 3 minutes someone decides they need to have the onstaff radiologist look at the ultrasound to make sure I do not have a gallstone. So I sit there with 1/3rd of the CKK pumped in to me with the other 7 mins worth waiting to go in and had to miss a call from my man while she runs to the radiologist.

Three minutes later the tech comes back to tell me I'm done for the day. WHAT??? I've already been through the hardest part and been nauseous and now you are going to "dismiss" me?!? Ugh. Apparently, if there is a gallstone or an inability to clarify if a gallstone exists, they run the risk of pushing that gallstone through with the CKK. The radiologist was unable to determine if there were gallstones or not, or so the story goes, and it is too risky to continue the test.

I decided to go and follow up with my PCP, get the results of 2 of my tests, to see what he had to say about them stopping my hidascan today and address a new situation that arose a week ago. Well, that is when I started to hit my rock bottom. The new situation has progressively gotten worse and has been bleeding for almost 7 days, so when he inspected that he advised I needed to see a surgeon immediately, as in this afternoon. So an appointment was made for 2:00pm. Then he looked up my bone scan and that came back fine.

My blood work on the other hand...not good at all. I am now a diabetic...this is only the 4th time I've said those words. And each time I do I come to tears. It isn't to the point of being on insulin or anything like that and actually my blood work is only 1 point over the high end. So it is only the beginning, but I must get control over the situation now!!!! Of course related to this, my liver enzymes are a little elevated too. Ugh... So he tells me I need to start an oral diabetic medication, change my diet and start exercising. I will need to check my blood sugar twice a day. Doc also said that he would be sending my results to an Endocrinologist and also questioned if I was ever diagnosed with PCOS (Poly Cystic Ovary Syndrome). I was years ago and then the next OB/GYN told me I didn't have it...how the hell am I suppose to know?!?

Of course all of this is on top of the elevated blood pressure and swelled feet.... Ugh...talk about frustration! My PCP said he will wait for my ultrasound and hidascan results to come in to move forward on the whole gallbladder/stomach issue...so that hangs in the balance.

In between my PCP and my appointment with the surgeon I called my aunt and lost it. I'm so mad at myself and really disappointed. So I talked to her and then told her I'm just not in a position with the holiday weekend coming up to deal with this situation yet. I know that probably sounds horrible, childish and a total excuse, but I'm just not. I didn't even consider this would be the type of news I would be getting today. And I was feeling like every time I went for something or talked to someone it got worse.

Since I had not ate since last night at 8pm and it was noon I was starving. Heck, I hadn't had anything to drink since 11:30pm. I was dying of thirst too. I also had about 2 hours before my next appointment, so I went to a local sports bar to grab a burger and a coke (yes, I know these are soon to be non-existant in the immediate future) and that is when my man called. I lost it again while talking to him. He put an immediate stop to that. He repeated the same exact things my aunt told me. How there are other circumstances affecting this outside of just the things I've done alone. He told me to think of those things before I sit there all upset and kick my own butt. He also said that I can change it and it is only 1 point over, not 100, so not to let it defeat me and to turn around and kick its ass, instead of my own. He and my aunt are totally right.

So off to the surgeon I go...well, I thought something was going to be done right then. It wasn't. He has to scope it and then fix the problem, but he wants to make sure it isn't something more than what we are praying it is. So that is suppose to take place on Wednesday this week. Another day, another dollar. :( So it appears I will be having a surgical procedure done this coming week. And less than a week later I go and see the 2nd ortho... I mean obviously these are issues that need to be addressed and I have to take care of the problems, but what really sucks is that I'm missing time from work and it is all unpaid, because I'm out of time-off.

So now...I'm like living on credit and stressing over paying bills. Normally this wouldn't be an issue, but it is summer time and I'm paying for daycare too, which is an extra $540+ a month. I'm not even looking forward to balancing my checkbook this weekend, but I might as well face that music too... I say, let's put it all out there so it can be dealt with.

Maybe America's Independence Day this year will be my independence day too....

...but I'm pretty exhausted so the munchkin and I are off to bed in the next hour.

Welcome July

Another day, another month.  Another walk from the parking garage that I survived.  I'm beginning to get back in the swing of things with being back home from my visit.  It usually takes me a few days to get back to basics.  Of course I'm starting behind the 8 ball in more ways than one.  I'm totally out of sorts...

I think we all must hit rock bottom before we can go up and this month is shaping up to be my rock bottom...