They're back! And so am I

THEY are the "ladybugs". The invade our house every fall and terrorize us through the winter. They're flying into our face and hair, landing on our plates, etc. The outside of the house is covered with them. All along the ceilings and lights in the livingroom and kitchen there are hundreds of them. I think they're a little late arriving, I was hoping we'd avoid them all together this year. All morning I've had the ladybug picnic song (from Sesame Street) going through my head.

My computer is back but with limited capabilities. I have NO sound and only minimal graphics (640x480pixels and only 16 colors). I can still read though. :o) The graphics problem makes enjoying all the pics difficult though.

Update on Carrie. We were seen at the Joslin Center last Wed. They're assumption with a child this age is that they are a Type 1 diabetic until bloodwork proves them wrong. The dr did admit with our medical history (family is riddled with type 2s) she could be Type 2. They've given her some fast acting insulin to be administered when her before dinner numbers are off the roof (even for a diabetic). We haven't had to use it yet, although her numbers after eating are still in the upper 200's. They're being pretty liberal with her treatment until they have some set answers about her. We were suppose to be seen in 1.5 wks which is Friday. Because they want her to also see the dietician on the same day it was going to be 2 wks before she could be seen. I realized later that day that the appt she gave us was THREE weeks away (Oct 16th), not 2. So I need to call and get an earlier appt even if it means we can't see the dietician.

I do have to say that she's doing really well with this news. I saw concern on her face when they were talking about things. I've only talked to her in terms of type 2 so some things were a little more then she was prepared for. She's a bit scared about the shots (as is everyone else) but I think once she's done it once or twice she'll be fine. She tests herself and even knows when to test for ketones (in her urine...when numbers are too high). I noticed at the Harvest feast at church on Saturday she skipped the cupcakes and sweet desserts and opted for the chips. I had a bit more to teach her about carbs it seems. I'm trying to get her to understand that a carb is a carb...whether sweet or salty.

My main concern is not making her afraid to eat all together, which I've seen signs of. Last week at the church potluck she begged me to go through line with her because, "I don't know what I can eat". I saw a look of mild "panic" on her face when she stepped on the scale at the ped's office last Thursday. (has strep nose instead of strep throat) Seems she gained a pound since they weighed her 2wks ago. I've been trying to drill into her that it's not a big deal!!! Hard to really blame her since I see a lot of myself in her reaction.

My weight has stuck around the 190lb mark. I haven't been sticking with my food plan or exercising. I'm hoping to get back into things this week although Halloween candy will be tempting me! I'll have a neat announcement later in the week concerning LOK/TOK and weightloss.

Today is a busy one with Halloween parades and parties at school. We're then headed into the city to both Tom's and my parents houses. I'm taking Liz on down with me afterschool for an evening of pizza and trick or treating. We'll go into my mom and dad's house first and go around their block. Then headed to Tom's with most of his brothers and sisters and their families. We'll hit the houses around her house too. Carrie is excited as this is her favorite holiday. Unfortunately she won't be pigging out like normally. Saturday night at church I had to get on her case about putting her candy bag away. Poor thing. I told her not to waste her candy allowance on the cheap stuff like suckers and hard candy. Hit the candy bars while she can! LOL We'll save the more sugary stuff for when/if she goes on insulin and needs to treat a low.

Pat has a new permanent job at Subway. At first I thought it would be bogus, working parttime when he should be working fulltime. He has been working a lot more hours then I thought he would. It's also for a lower pay thne he'd been getting working temp jobs. One of the reasons he wanted this job is that they'll work around his schedule once he goes back to classes...good point. Drew has worked here and there but nothing long term or permanent. He's more motivated to go for the longterm jobs now that Pat seems to have settled in. I just wish I knew WHAT was up with their schooling! I don't get too many straight answers from Drew. Pat says he's headed back in January. Fingerscrossed on this.

Enough rambling for now. I'm sure I'll have lots of fun stuff to report tomorrow after I'm done ransacking the kids candy bags. ;o)

OOPS! I forgot to give a Danielle report! She's getting more adorable everyday. She's 2mos old as of the 26th and getting bigger by the second. Her favorite thing to do at home is to laugh and coo and make cute smiley faces at everyone. While out in public she's still a bit uneasy. At church on Saturday she was the most alert she's been. Not "sleeping" to block things out so much. She didn't really want to make too much eye contact with anyone, including me while there though. Near the end of the night she was a little more friendlier with everyone. I think a lot of people were starting to wonder if things were ok with her for a bit. I've never had a kid who coped by "sleeping" and it is a bit weird to be dealing with her too. I do see her doing it less and less as time goes on though. She even decided to SCREAM during my quick (but not quick enough obviously) trip through K-mart last Wed. A first for her.

Hope to get some batteries charged and take some pictures to post soon. It's a bit difficult to do pictures on this computer so I'll have to do it through Drew's.