I really don't have any recipes to contribute because I don't know the carb counts of most of the things we eat.  We just kind of wing it around here . . . 

But . . .I did have a chance to make Lorraine's Special Fried Rice last weekend and it was pretty fabulous!

Jim and I both went back for seconds. 

Ok, so my pictures are not as pretty as Lorraine's but here is my attempt at pictures of our Chicken Fried Rice -

Chopping Broccoli (& other yumminess)

The Final Product

Looks Good!!

Most Important - Nate Loved It!!

Our family gave it 4 Thumbs Up - Emma was our lone hold out only because as she put it "broccoli makes me gag!".  Ehhh - I'll leave the broccoli out of hers next time for the 5 Thumbs Up!

Last week I was asked to take part in study being conducted by Schlesinger and Associates.  They were looking for caregivers of children with diabetes (CWD).  Hey - that's me!  I have a CWD so I was more than happy to participate.

They asked me to make a collage about diabetes and bring it to the meeting.  So, the above picture is what I made and took into the meeting. Pretty cute - no?  I mean if you have to make a picture about diabetes - it's pretty cute.  Oh wait - maybe it's just my adorable son, Nate that makes it so cute!!  :)

Anyway, I have no idea who or what the research was for but I hope that I was able to help in some way because ONE DAY I WOULD LOVE TO SAY THAT MY SON USED TO HAVE DIABETES!

Seriously, thank you all for your words of support and encouraging comments.  I let it all out and am feeling much better today.  And . . . I am very pleased to announce that after my grandmother prayed a good, long prayer for me she has forgiven me for saying BULLSHIT in my blog  - - - and I could not be happier!  :)

For all the new peeps that commented on this post --- thank you - thank you - thank you.  After a good nights sleep tonight I fully intend on stopping by your blogs and show you the same amount of love you showed me today,  Thanks again!!

Last week we (The Houston Five + Poppa DeJulius) attended the JDRF Walk to Cure Diabetes Kick Off Dinner. I promised myself - no crying!  Dang!  As soon as the Nick Jonas video started playing - I was CRYING! [Click HERE to see video]

And then again when all of these young children were on stage . . .

Lots of Cute T1 Peeps you may know in this picture.

 We have Elise from Death of a Pancreas , Liam from Sticking it to Diabetes , and Miss J and Miss G from 2 Green Eyed Girls (& their daddy too)


Look at these cuties. . .

Liam, Elise and Nate

Why do I still cry and get so emotional when discussing diabetes? Why?
I have friends and family members that have had T1 for years and are totally fine.  I read blogs written by men and women that have had T1 for as long as they can remember and they are living happy, healthy, and successful lives.  So, WHY do I CRY?

Well, sit down just a spell and let me tell you why -


Because diabetes SUCKS.  That's right I said it - it sucks.

Sometimes I wonder if I cry more for me or for Nate?  Well, some days I think I do cry for me and some days I cry for Nate.

On September 17th of 2009 - everything changed in my life.  Everything.

My life is hard.  Yep - I said it.  It's hard.  Not easy  --- not a lot of easy over here at the Houston house.
Sometimes I just get sad.  Sometimes I get mad.  Pretty damn mad!  Sometimes I just think - you know what?  This is bullshit!  Yep - I said bullshit.

It's BS that I have to use a lancet to cut my son's finger 12 times a day, make him bleed, so that I can test his blood glucose.  Yes, that is BS.  Nate doesn't even flinch - he's so strong and so tough and he is ONLY 2 years old.  That is BS.  If you are reading this and your 2-year old does NOT have diabetes - what do you think your child would do if you cut his finger and made him bleed even 1 time?

It's BS that a drug that smells like a big band-aid is infused into my son's body all day long and that stinky drug called insulin keeps him alive.  It's BS that if I make just 1 tiny mistake with that insulin pumping through his body - he could DIE.  See what I mean -  total BS!

It's BS that I NEVER sleep.  Seriously - Never!  Anyone that knows me well knows that is not a good thing.  It is my job to keep my son alive and it is a 24/7 job.

It's BS when people ask me - - - 'Why are you still checking him at night?' or 'When will you be able to stop checking him all night?'.  I want to ask them when they would stop?!?!  Would that be rude?  If your child had a disease that could potentially kill them - when would you stop checking?


It's BS when people tell me --- Oh, my cousin's brother's son was diagnosed with T1 a couple of years ago.  They're fine.  Everything is fine.  They have it totally under control.  OK - calling BS on that.  First of all if you tell me 'they have it under control' then you have no idea what the heck you are talking about.  A person with diabetes can have good control but there is NO such thing as total control. Everything is a roller coaster with T1 especially with children.  Another big fat BS when you tell me that 'they are fine'.  Really? You know that for a fact?  Or do you just assume because everything looks ok from the outside that everything is fine?  I can pretty much GUARANTEE that everything is not fine on the inside --- I don't care how long it's been since the diagnosis there are still good days and bad days.  I can GUARANTEE that every mom of a T1 still cries every now and then ---- if she doesn't then there is something wrong!!

It's BS that I am begging people for money to support the JDRF because MY son has diabetes.  It's BS because I am asking (begging) my friends and my family to walk with us, support us and donate but I feel like I'm asking strangers. It's BS because I never see my friends anymore and when I do I'm sure they are sick and tired of me and my tired ass begging them to support MY cause.  But what is NOT BS is that my son needs a cure and that is why I will keep begging anyone and everyone to help.

It's BS that I miss my normal, boring life.  I miss my friends.  I miss girls night out.  I miss hanging out and chatting with other moms.  Even when I try to do these things my brain is such mush from all of the numbers swirling around and the lack of sleep I feel like I'm not really there.

It's BS that I have to weigh, measure and count every little thing that goes into Nate's mouth.  Seriously - it is SO much harder than it sounds.

It's BS that I cannot get insurance for my children.  Yes, I know there are options out there but the options are BS.

It's BS that my 6 year old asked me the following question "Mom, if Nate has diabetes and Sophie has Crohn's --- what am I going to get?".  That is BS.



Here's why I still cry - - - because when I look at my son he looks so healthy and beautiful but I know that his BG jumping all over the place. I know that that 325 that I saw on the meter this morning is BAD!   It's really bad.  I know that his life expectancy is shorter than you son's life expectancy --- what mom doesn't cry about that?  A child's mortality is something a parent should NEVER have to think about and yet I think about it every day.

I cry because I want a cure so bad that I can almost taste it and yet somehow I won't allow myself to think about it.

I cry because I want to take this stupid disease away from my son --- I just want to grab it and take it away.

I cry because type 1 diabetes is so misunderstood and I want to tell the world all about it but when I try to discuss it all I can do is CRY.

That is all.
Tomorrow I will be back to sunshine and rainbows.

I LOVE these magnets and I love that all of the proceeds go to JDRF.  My awesome D-Mom pal, Jill over at Diabetes Sweeties sent me one for Christmas and my mom was green with envy.  She was on a mission to find one for her truck!!  Now I am normally the more internet savvy one but I have to hand to to my mom --- she searched high and low and finally found the site that sells them.

You can order them at:

http://juvenilediabetesmagnets.homestead.com/

Christi and her mom, Laura (awesome name) will hook you up!!


I'm so glad she did because now our trucks look like this:

FAIL. 

I am super excited about D-Feast Friday and I am super sad that I am not participating.  Here's the deal - - -
I've been sick all week, I've got the diabetes blues and I am pretty sure there is not a recipe that I can offer that doesn't spike Nate's bg to the MOON! Even the bacon and eggs he had this morning sent him off the charts - - - I give up!

Maybe he's getting sick - I don't think so.  Maybe he's growing - could be!  Maybe diabetes sucks - yep I think that's it!! 

I am already seeing fantastic recipes popping up on my blog roll so please take a look on the left hand side of my blog and check out all of the awesome bloggers that are participating!

Thank you Karen, Lorraine and Elizabeth for coming up with D-Feast Friday - you girls are AMAZING!!

How can you not insure these 2 adorable children?


That is all.

Thank you,

Laura Houston