Several years ago I contacted our local newspaper about telling the story of how my husband and I met.
That was such a special time in our lives, and I was hoping for some way of preserving that memory for my children.
If you are interested, you can read that story here:
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Happy Valentine's Day!!
Posted by Brenda at 10:29 AM 0 comments
Saturday, February 11, 2012
3 years ago today!!
"It's hard to believe that it's been 3 years," my husband said the other day.
and writing down each and every blood sugar number on a chart.
Posted by Brenda at 6:00 AM 1 comments
Labels: Living well with Type I Diabetes
Friday, February 10, 2012
Friday's Fabulous Family Recipe: Southwestern Salad!
Posted by Brenda at 6:00 AM 0 comments
Labels: Recipes
Thursday, February 2, 2012
{You CAN} Teach Your Child Thursday: Free $5 gift certificate to Veritas Press
Veritas Press is a very good resource for homeschooling curriculum especially is you like the classical style of home education.
Right now, they have a special promotion going on where you can very easily sign up for a free $5 gift certificate, and then for every friend you get to sign up, you get an additional $5.
Sign up here to get your $5 gift certificate, and I'll get an extra $5 too!!
Posted by Brenda at 10:47 AM 0 comments
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
T1 Tuesdays: Illness and the Type 1 Diabetic
Last week we had a stomach virus slither it's way quietly through our house.
It was selective in who it chose to take down, but was mild thankfully enough.
It did not bring with it a fever or aches or diarrhea, nor did it strike in the dead of the night strangling it's victims in the grip of death.
It would begin simply near the break of dawn, cause a couple trips to the bathroom, and then suspend itself in less than 24 hours.
THAT, my friends, I can handle.
It's what happened to our family on this week exactly one year ago that I cringe with fear to remember and pray never returns.
You can read about that nightmare here.
Anyway, one of the victims of this latest bout was our Type 1 Diabetic.
I always take for granted what my body just does on it's own when I'm not feeling well.
But it's different when you're sick and one of your organs is completely shut down.
When Ashlyn gets sick, an entirely different monster takes over.
It's called "ketones."
You can google the term "ketoacidosis" and get a plethora of information on what happens inside her body.
For the laymen though, it means that her body starts using the fat for energy instead of converting glucose to energy.
It results in tremendous stomach pain and usually vomiting for her.
That results in an inability to keep fluid down, so there is a build-up of ketones in her system.
It makes her feel worse.
When her ketones measure "large" {we have ketone strips that she dips in her urine for this reading}we have to give her 20% of her total amount of insulin intake for the entire day.
For example, if we add up all the insulin she takes in a day {humalog and lantus at all meals and bedtime}and the total is 73 units {for both insulins} then we give her 20% of that which would be 14.6 units.
The tricky part with that is how high her blood sugar levels are at that moment.
If she is over 250, we don't worry too much about her blood sugar dropping too low.
But this last weekend, she would have large ketones but her blood sugars would be in normal ranges.
We still have to give her that large dose of humalog to bring down the ketones, but she also has to take in some carbs so her blood sugar doesn't plummet.
That was the balancing act we were playing all weekend.
High ketones.....vomiting....normal blood sugars.....large dose of insulin.....sips of regular sprite {instead of diet}.....more vomiting.....moderate ketones.....feeling better.....low blood sugar....more sprite.....more vomiting.....and on and on.
She pricked her fingers for blood sugar testing at least 10 times on Saturday.
Never complained.
Not once.
She's my hero.
It did seem to take her a little longer to get back to feeling 100%, but then we declared her officially well yesterday mid-morning....so it wasn't bad overall.....
compared to LAST year......eeeeeek!
Posted by Brenda at 9:32 PM 0 comments
Saturday, January 28, 2012
First birthday of the year!!
Last Thursday, January 19, 2012, we celebrated the first birthday in our family of this year.
Our youngest turned 4!!
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| Another free scrapbook design by Smilebox |
Posted by Brenda at 6:00 AM 0 comments
Labels: 2012 Birthdays, Family Fun Times
Friday, January 27, 2012
Friday's Fabulous Family Recipe: Moroccan Vegetarian Stew
In keeping with the adventures of trying different ethnic flavors, I knew I had to try this recipe when I found it.
It did not disappoint either.
It is very fragrant and just looked so beautiful with all it's colors blending together in the pan.
Another thing I've found about experimenting with plant-based dishes is that using lots of bright colors makes the dishes so aesthetically pleasing that it just invites you to try it.
The recipe calls for potatoes, but I had some extra sweet potatoes laying around so I just used those.
That added another burst of color and I think it gave it more flavor.
Next time I'm going to add a bit more pink salt to really enhance the flavors.
Serve it over steaming hot brown basmati rice with a flavorful salad and you've got a fabulous meal!!
Find the recipe here!
Posted by Brenda at 6:00 AM 0 comments
Labels: Recipes, Women's Wellness













