Spirit Assembly & Cake Business

I want to start this post with how AMAZING this school year has been...not only for Kacey but for Kayleigh as well! Last year, Kacey struggled hard through 3rd grade. She struggled with doing accelerated work, she struggled with managing diabetes on her own at school and she struggled with keeping up with the class after she missed so many days from illness and diabetes. By the end of the year, we were BOTH just burnt out! When she started 3rd grade, she was only about 6 weeks into her diagnosis. We both went through a rough time because we still had not had enough time to really get the hang of a schedule, much less a schedule for school. We had school nurse issues in the middle of all of that and we were VERY happy summer break arrived. Over the summer, Kacey had time to really "bond" with Herbie. We had a chance to change basals and really get on a schedule and see what worked for us. It was a nice break and it really took us a full year to accept all these changes that had entered our lives. We could also have the time to do all of this without school getting in the way...finally! By September, she was READY for 4th grade! I was very familiar with the teachers since the teachers she would have were teachers when Kayleigh went through 4th grade there. The parent/teacher relationship was already established! As a matter a fact, one of her teachers actually taught Frankie in 2nd grade!! ;) So we were thrilled with her teachers and she was more than ready. She is completely independant when it comes to taking care of her diabetes at school. She tests her own blood sugar, boluses for her own meals (snack & lunch) and only goes to see the nurse when shes not feeling well. Her teachers are not involved in her care since she manages all of this. I check Herbie when she comes home to see what her blood sugars were on days she forgot to log. It's just easier for everyone in the long run and Kacey wants it this way. She got her report card this week and it revealed one A and 4 B's!! HONOR ROLL!!! I wanted to cry! She is doing such a great job and she is really loving school this year. Now for some MORE great news....yep, theres more! We got a letter in the mail from her principal. No parent looks forward to the day you get a letter addressed "To The Parents of Kacey West". I got a knot in my throat as I opened the letter. "Dear Mr. & Mrs. West, I am pleased to inform you that your daughter, Kacey, has been selected as Student of the Month for October......." HOLY COW!!! Out of the entire 4th grade, Kacey was chosen for the month of October. Could it get any better? OF COURSE!! Kacey entered a photography contest last month at school. She won 2nd place!!! Her photos will now be sent to compete with all the other elementary schools in our county :) Very cool! She had no idea she'd won this award so it was priceless to see the shock on her face. I found out 2 days ago by accident from another teacher but I kept it a secret and took my camera to the assembly since I was working today.

Now onto Kayleigh....

She also got her report card this week... 3 A's, 2 B's and 1 C. Her C was in Spanish 3 so I'm not concerned in the least! She's having a great year this year. Last year was her first year in English Honors and she's never been a reader so she struggled through the class with a C. The class is a weighted class so the C really counts as a B...but seeing that C really bothered her. When it came time to do her schedule for this year, she begged me to let her go back to regular English, even though all her friends were in Honors. I signed the papers willingly. I hated seeing her so unhappy in a class! This year she's rockin' this English class and actually has a 98 A average :) Yep, we made the right decision! Her favorite class this year is Culinary 1. Those of you on my Facebook have already seen some of the pics of her cakes. Shes got her own site on Facebook and shes shown off her cakes but this is the first time we've been able to show off her Culinary art. In her school, the Culinary class actually runs a cafe. Anyone is welcome to come and eat in there and I'm going to make it a point to go eat sometime soon. All of the kids get a daily grade in class. Your performance counts as the grade. Everyone gets a chance to run each part of the cafe....hostess, waitress, cook (main course, sides and desserts). She took this class because she'd already had such a passion with cake decorating and lately she's been on the dessert station and this is what she produced today......

This is cheesecake with strawberries, whipped cream and chocolate sauce. Yes, she added the whipped cream border on the sides. AMAZING!!! And it looks delicious!!! Her teacher gave her an amazing compliment and he told her she was very mature for her age and she's going to go far. That drove her up to another level of confidence. :)

Last night, she built this.....

Its a two teir cake. The bottom layer is 12 inches round and 6 inches high. It's a yellow butter cake with chocolate Bavarian cream in the middle. The top layer is 8 inches round and 6 inches high. It's devil's food cake with chocolate Bavarian cream in the middle. Both tiers are covered in a layer of buttercream icing that is hidden by ivory fondant. There is a ribbon around both cakes and it's topped with rolled roses that are dusted with pearl dust. This is her first cake to make like this and she's pretty stinkin proud of it! Heck....I'm proud of it!! Her ultimate goal is to own her own bakery and decorate cakes full time :) but she said she will work with a catering company until she's able to do that. Right now, she's got her own little business going with word of mouth and she's had a cake to make nearly every week for the last 2 months. I keep telling her.....Practice makes perfect! Look out Cake Boss! Hahaha!

OK....now that I'm done sharing accomplishments....

Just a reminder, there is only a few more days to sign up for the Secret Santa Family Exchange. If you haven't signed up and want to play, NOW is the time to do it! So far we've got 15 signed up. If your name is NOT on the list below then that means you haven't registered with Elfster and you need to go to the link in the previous post to get on the list.

Names for the Exchange:

Jill (Organizer)

Amy L.

Amy S.

Chasiti

Hallie

Jennifer

Joanne

Kathy

Laura

Meri

Nicole

Ronda

Shannon

Tracie

Wendy

(All in ABC order, just like Elfster lists them...haha!)

Now, to answer Shannons question...We will find out on Monday who the family is that we're buying for. I click the DRAW tab on Elfster and it shuffles us all and sends us our family. I won't know who got who so it's up to you to remember who you have to buy for ....LOL! You will find out who bought for you when you open the package and they reveal themselves. I thought it would be more fun to keep it a secret than to know who was buying for who. Hope that helps :) Any other questions....just ask! :)

Exchange

WE'RE REGISTERED!!!

If you are interested in participating in the Secret Santa Family Gift Exchange then click on the following link and register yourself.

GIFT EXCHANGE

The DEADLINE for registration will be Nov. 23rd. The reason for this is so that we can hit those after Thanksgiving sales :) It also gives us a month to shop, wrap and send. Some of the Moms live further away than others. We need to take this into consideration as well. We wouldn't want a family left without a present on Christmas. So be sure to look and see where your package is going and allow mailing time.

I'm SOOOOO excited about this!!

So, on Nov 23rd, Elfster will magically draw names and the secret game begins! Have fun!!!


***Edit***
This exchange is open to ALL D-Moms and their families :)

Secret Santa

I've been sitting here thinking about the Secret Santa that I participated in last year with the D-OC. I had such a great time with it and I thought maybe I'd toss out the idea of doing a Secret Santa with all the D-Mom's & Kids since we have such a nice group going on here. How many D-Moms out there would be interested in participating? Last year we used Elfster and that way everyone got to particpate. You sign up and your name and address is only given to the person that is buying for you. It's computer generated so the computer picks the name and it's done fairly. If I get enough people interested, then we can set a price limit and rules and go from there.

So....how many of you out there are interested?

Do you want to shop for the D-Mom & Child? Or just the Child? What price limit? Deadline for it to be in the mail?

~~~~~~
My vote is: YES!
Shop for both Mom and Child
$10 for each one
Mailed by Dec 15th to ensure it arrives by the 25th

WDD Treats

We just ended World Diabetes Day with some special treats! I made the girls peanut butter cookies and used a tube of blue glitter icing to make the BLUE CIRCLE. Both girls were so surprised!

YES! My diabetic daughter CAN eat fresh baked cookies with all the goodness on top! :)

Why Blue?

(courtesy of http://www.diabetesbluecircle.org/)

WHAT is the Blue Circle?

The universal symbol for diabetes.
The purpose of the diabetes symbol is to give diabetes a common identity.
Until 2006, there was no global symbol for diabetes. It aims to:
support all existing efforts to raise awareness about diabetes
inspire new activities, bring diabetes to the attention of the general public
brand diabetes
provide a means to show support for the fight against diabetes

The icon was developed originally for the campaign for a UN Resolution on diabetes.
The campaign for a United Nations Resolution on diabetes was a response to the diabetes pandemic that is set to overwhelm healthcare resources everywhere. The campaign mobilised diabetes stakeholders behind the common cause of securing a United Nations Resolution on diabetes. The United Nations passed Resolution 61/255 ‘World Diabetes Day’ on December 20th 2006.

WHY a Circle?

The circle occurs frequently in nature and has thus been widely employed since the dawn of humankind. The significance is overwhelmingly positive. Across cultures, the circle can symbolize life and health. Most significantly for the campaign, the circle symbolizes unity. Our combined strength is the key element that made this campaign so special. The global diabetes community came together to support a United Nations Resolution on diabetes and needs to remain united to make a difference. As we all know: to do nothing is no longer an option.

WHY Blue?
The blue border of the circle reflects the colour of the sky and the flag of the United Nations. The United Nations is in itself a symbol of unity amongst nations and is the only organization that can signal to governments everywhere that it is time to fight diabetes and reverse the global trends that will impede economic development and cause so much suffering and premature death.

~~~~

So there ya have it! The reason we have a blue circle for a logo and the reason we've all chosen to wear blue today. We had our clothes picked out for today. Kacey had a blue shirt, jeans, blue socks, blue panties, blue earrings, blue pigtails, blue CURE diabetes bracelet, blue pump pack and she begged me to paint her nails blue but I didn't have that color! LOL!

We went shopping with my Mom today, who was also dressed in blue and complete with blue eye shadow. While we were out shopping, I doubt a single person realized we were all dressed in blue and that we were showing our support for diabetes awareness but the main point was.....we knew! And what's even more important is Kacey knew she was surrounded by loved ones that supported her.

I hope each and every one of you had a wonderful day today! We sure did

History Making Nor'easter

As most of you already know, we just made it through a history making Nor'easter here in Virginia. Being on the coast has it's up's & down's. This just happened to be one of those down moments. We almost made it through the entire hurricane season without any damage or floods. Yesterday, the tides started to rise and because of the high winds, they were not falling like they should have. Back in 2003, we survived Hurricane Isabel but our house flooded in one room. That room steps down and the water lacked about 2 inches from going through my entire house. The room at that time was my girls playroom. They were still sharing a bedroom and we used that room for all their toys and games. There was 7 inches of water in that room! When we heard this storm was being compared to the flooding we had with Isabel, my heart sank! That room is now Kacey's bedroom. We started putting things up and making sure nothing was laying on the floor that would get ruined. I was glued to the TV, watching every moment and preparing for the worst. By 7am yesterday morning, this is what we were seeing....

We could see that the field next to ours was flooding. I figured it was just rain water because we're about a mile from the rivers. It was raining so hard with no let up and I just thought it was from all of that. Over the next few hours, we watched the water flood across the road down there. That house down at the end is my neighbor's and they said the tide was coming up and it was about a foot deep in some places in their yard.

I checked the yard at 9pm and I really couldn't see anything because of the dark. There was really nothing we could do but prepare for the worst by that point. Kacey slept in the living room, just in case the waters came up. I finally dozed off somewhere around 10-11pm. My alarm went off for me to do Kacey's blood sugar check at 2am and the winds were far worse than they'd been. I did her check and peeked outside again and still couldnt see anything. I knew high tide would be rolling in between 4-5am. I went on back to sleep and when I woke up at 6am.....this is what I walked out to.....

Sticks and mess that was left by flood water in my front yard

Frankie's truck.....and MY YARD...which was now....A RIVER!!!

The further pic above looking down my driveway was now THIS.... water across the road

Frankie's dog pens were underwater! Thankfully he put his dogs in the back of his truck last night when we knew it was getting bad.

This shows where the tide came up and across my yard. My house is to the right which shows...it flooded right under my house!!

We've got alot of mess to clean up but it's still too nasty to be out there. It's still raining and the tide has gone down but we're left with a mess of debris and stuff blown all over the yard to clean up.

I'm thankful that it didn't come IN the house this time!

Herbie Fell Off!!!

Yesterday was NOT a good diabetes day!

I got a call around 1:30pm from the school nurse. My heart always skips a few beats when I hear that ring tone that sounds like a siren when my cell rings the school nurse number. I answered it and her nurse said, "Hi Jill, I don't want to scare you...but....." BUT? BUT WHAT? "Kacey lost her pump...." WHATTTTTTT? OK....before I could let her finish I was already spouting. Where was she last? How did it fall off? Did she find it? UGHHHH! I was freaking! Her nurse went on to explain... "Apparently she was in music and it fell off and another child found it and thought it was a cell phone and Kacey came rushing down to me with it. She reconnected and she tested. Her blood sugar is fine and she's gone to lunch and bolused." AHHHHHHHHH! That still doesn't explain how it fell off. Where did it disconnect? Is there air in the tube now? Forget it! I'm on my way!

I get to school and rush in carrying a new infusion set, bottle of insulin, a cartridge and a pump pack with her belt. Kacey was sitting in the nurse waiting for me. She began to explain the little vacation that Herbie decided to take. To backtrack just a little....Kacey has always been a "chunky" child and we've never been able to find jeans to fit her. Last weekend while we were shopping, we ran across plus size little girl jeans. Wow! Kacey was so excited because she usually wears stretch pants and she's wanted to wear her pump in her pocket like the teenagers do. I can understand her wanting to try it. When she tried the jeans on they were perfect fits! She was overly thrilled that she'd be able to put Herbie into the little case with the clip and wear it on her pocket. I bought her 3 pairs! Yesterday she decided to wear Herbie in the case with the clip and tuck it on her pocket. She went to music class and apparently Herbie made a break for it and bungee jumped and she never felt it. The diconnect was at the cartridge....not her infusion set! She was walking around with a tube hanging and then a child in her class picked up Herbie and gave him to the teacher, thinking it was a cell phone!!!! Thank goodness he didn't tuck it in his pocket!!! Kacey realized that it was Herbie and ran right to the nurse with him. After careful inspection, we found that the clip was broke and thats what caused Herbie's jump. :( I went ahead and did a complete site change because I wasn't taking chances on getting air bubbles! She strapped her belt back around her waist and tucked Herbie safely into her pack and with a smile she said, "I think I'll just wear my pack from now on!" Whew!! I had the sickest feeling in my stomach thinking about her losing a $6000 piece of equipment that is supposed to be "attached" to her.

For those of you that haven't seen the weather....we're being hit with a November Nor'easter here. The wind is picking up and we're already seeing some tidal flooding. The wind gusts are up to 45mph and they're expecting them to get stronger. They're expecting 2-7 inches of rain by tomorrow and they're anticipating the flooding to be worse than Hurricane Isabel. During that storm, our house flooded! I'm a little worried and I'm praying that we don't get the water like we did in 2003. They're calling it a history making Nor'easter and we'll be keeping a close eye on the news as this gets worse! Say a little prayer for us!

I'll update as I can!

Diabetes Chat

I posted about this two days ago but I want to take this opportunity to reach out to D-Moms, D-Dads, D-Grandmas and PWD too!

What started as a post on my Facebook, led to a reach out to our network. A small group of D-Moms that chat and share on Facebook, got together and then we started reaching out saying "Oh! We have to invite so and so to come too!", "Does anyone have so and so's address or Facebook?" and we ended up with a group of 10 Moms that all have kids with diabetes. Sure, it didn't end up being a diabetes chat since we were all so excited to just be in the same room with one another online....a first for all of us! I just felt like I should post and invite others to meet with us too.

Just follow these few simple steps....

For those that are interested in getting into our online chat group
1. Download MSN Windows Messenger Live
2. Add me- butterflybrat75@hotmail.com (and let me know who you are...LOL!)
3. Meet us on Sunday at 9pm EST or when I'm lit up green I can chat anytime!
4. And....we're not limiting it to D-Moms ...D-Dads are welcome too :) and D-Grandma's ....and PWD!

Come join us for fun!!!