Toddlers to Tiaras

My youngest is set to take the stage as 'Glinda the Good Witch' from the famed Wizard of Oz, or as in the case of her creative school theater production, a comedy musical mash-up entitled, 'Dorothy from Wonderland'.

This might be the most desirable role for our daughter.  Glinda is beautiful as a sparkly, pink adorned, crown wearing fairy witch.  Every movement flutters and shines and did I mention that she sings?  Oh for the love of all things girlie, our daughter will be belting out fancy tunes and gesturing like the finest royalty.  It is all very pink and very, very fabulous.

And it is all rather amazing.  Just a short while ago, she was a tiny, pale and undersized toddler that was often overwhelmed with her new diagnosis of T1D. There were many sleepless nights for both of us and even more tears from ouchy finger pokes or painful site changes.

Yet in a blink, it has changed. The young lady that walks out onto the stage in a few days is poised, confident and braver than most.  She'll manage her T1D both on and off the stage and very few will realize the effort that it took to not only memorize pages of lines but also to stay safely in healthy blood sugar range for her multi-show performance. She now makes living with T1D look easy, even if it is not.

To all of the moms and dads that are tired, worried or feeling hopeless over T1D, remember that the next time you blink, it will be a different world and with a click of their sparkly heels, your child will be living the mantra that 'anything is possible'.

To our youngest... "Break a leg"!  

Politics Are Not People

Over the past year, I've listened to many sides of the vast political spectrum.  In observing the daily articles and social media posts, it's been easy to determine the following non-scientific generalizations:

• There are those in favor of 'this' and others in favor of 'that' but rarely is there an acceptance in knowing we need bits and pieces of both.

• Some profess open-mindedness but in doing so, spout angry, ugly remarks about any suggested solution and how it can't remedy the problem.

• Others sharply denounce and degrade anyone with views that differ from their own.  

I find it all to be terribly sad.

Within this new society of radical free speech (meaning say whatever you want to anyone that you want to - especially on social or news media as long as it is behind a computer), what is most often lost, is human kindness.

Not the pay-it-forward-because-I-am-in-line-at-Starbucks kind of human kindness either. No, I'm talking about the fundamental understanding that we are all people.  To be exact; Human Beings.

With that proper designation, it is suddenly clear that we are bound by a commonality of flesh, blood and most especially; the will to live and to be loved.

Human Beings.

By pointing out that basic common denominator in all of us, my hope is that it may help to bring about a small cultural change within our world.  That change could then ripple through the many layers of society, into rules and laws and throughout civilization.

What a great reminder to our administration of remembering our individual selves and all of our fellow Human Beings.

Then, if we work towards actively fixing the problem, sharing our ideas in a positive and constructive environment, we may make headway towards goal-oriented results.

I say this often, #togetherwecan.

After all, politics are not people, but undeniably, Human Beings.  Instead of passively sitting behind a keyboard spouting negativity, I suggest that we continue to do what the #DOC has known to do for so many years... 

Stay informed, stay involved and be sure to vote.  



1.) Keep up on current trends here:  
http://hitconsultant.net/2017/01/09/7-healthcare-trends-to-watch-in-2017/

2.) Work with your local ADA and JDRF.

3.)  Know laws that pertain to your needs and communicate to the agencies that are implementing changes to voice your concerns.

4.) And above all... write to your senators, your congress and share the reminder that we are all Human Beings.

2017 A New Year: A New Stage.

While I haven't been blogging as much as I used to, time has certainly not stopped, me or The Naturally Sweet Sisters, from experiencing the many rapid changes that the teen years bring about. Our house seems to contain a different energy than it once did; busy, electric, exciting and most of all, forcefully propelling our family forward into the years of young adulthood.  I think my absence from blogging is a futile attempt to try to slow and maybe, savor these fleeting days, despite that nagging little voice that continually counts down the time remaining in which the four of us are together.

Next Christmas, she will be a junior in high school.

The Christmas after, she will be a senior.

Then, just months later, she will be off to college.  

And her little sister? Following right behind.

What I have discovered is that my patience is perhaps greater with knowing this a time of great change.  

Our oldest rarely misses a bolus, stays on top of changing her sites and has developed a new desire to make tiny pump corrections - just so she continues to feel well.  All of these tasks developed through the last few years and in some artful way, slowly came into focus as part of her daily routine.  

What I say is far less important than how I react.

For those moments where our girls 'forget' or ignore their T1D care, the way that I react is much more important than anything that I say (let's be real - yell) or demand.  Finding that compassion and understanding in what went wrong and guiding each of the girls to discovering their own resolution is much more important.  I can no longer swoop in and save the day.  Now is the time for their own solutions.  

Time is the greatest gift.

As these last few teen years unfold, complete with growing pains and amazing discoveries, I know that I want to continue to be there to see it all.  My youngest daughter recently snuggled up to me on the couch and whispered that she was glad that she could share what was happening in her life - this after a rather difficult conversation about the woes of social media.  Her little hug was a mixture of relief, support and love, because no matter how grown they are, they still have the need to be connected to their parents.  

We are their foundation, their glue and as I always say, their back-up pancreas.  

They will never be alone.