blue bracelet not just for Fridays anymore

so i have a blue bracelet that i try to remember to wear every friday.  i got it from my local Canadian Diabetes Assoc. chapter.  it is the blue, ACT NOW ON DIABETES bracelets put out by the IDF.

unfortunately, it is a little too big for my writst.

my daughter was using yarn the other day to make a bracelet.  using some macrame knots, she came up with a bracelet for hereself which got me to thinking. 

using blue yarn and a blue bead, i could create my own blue bracelet!  i could wear it every day as a symbol of my diabetes.

so to the internet i went in search of macrame bracelets, to see if i could find one that i liked.  there are many different types of knots that can be incorporated into a bracelet.   i finally found one that i liked and was fairly easy to create. 

next i went to Walmart and bought some blue yarn and beads.  i spent about an hour creating my bracelet.  it was pretty simple once i got the hang of it!

basically it is just a series of square knots, a bead, and more square knots.  it is comfortable to wear and can be slipped off easily. 

today i am going to Micheals to get some different thread and smaller beads.  perhaps a blue circle like my pin.

  then i am going to make another using a different type of knot.  we'll see how that turns out!

**BEEP BEEP Occlusion Detected**

Oh my, this has been a busy couple weeks.  I feel as though I haven't been on here AT ALL.  I have tons of reading to catch up on.  Between grandkids during the day, work at night, planning for family on Father's Day and helping with a video for my mom's Surprise 70th Birthday Party this weekend, I am about done.

Today I woke up knowing that it would be a site change kinda morning.  I took out the old one and enjoyed a "free shower" day.

About 3 weeks ago I wrote about trying out some new insertion sets.  Well I have tried the Cleo 90 and the Rapid D.  Both have 6mm cannula's, the Cleo is Teflon and the Rapid D is steel.  Both work really well.  My blood sugars have been running fairly consistently in the 6's during the day.  Still have a little trouble with fasting highs so will be doing a basal test after the Birthday Party.

Today I decided to use the last of the Cleo 90's that i received.

I'm still using my tummy for sites (trying to work up the courage to try legs or butt or back/butt) but am branching out more towards the sides.  I chose my site and plunged in!   All went smoothly.  It didn't hurt at all.  I bolused for breakfast and went about my morning.

The grandkids and I decided to enjoy the backyard.  Cameron jumped in the pool with his aunt.  Aubrey and I scooped out the bugs, watered some flowers, and sat on the side of the pool splashing our feet.  I dipped her in a few times and then she too went in with her aunt.

Noon rolled around and the kids decided they were hungry.  Today was too hot to cook indoors (no air conditioning), and even too hot to stand at the BBQ, so we decided that peanut butter sandwiches and some melon would be a good lunch.

I made the kids their sandwiches, and set them up at the table.  I proceeded to do a BG test and bolus for my sandwich.  I use the Animas Ping so bolusing from my meter is the norm.  As i was entering the carb info on the meter,  the phone rang.  My daughter answered it and I continued to bolus.


 **BEEP BEEP ~ Occlusion Detected No Delivery**

Well that was a new one.  I haven't seen this since I was testing the Medtronic VEO, using a teflon infusion set way back in 2011.  So I unplugged myself, primed the tubing again.  That went fine.  I checked the pump history to see how much insulin was delivered before the delivery failed.  1.6units of the 3.6 required for lunch with correction.

I proceeded to do a NORMAL bolus for the 2 units that weren't delivered.  They went in fine.

I will keep an extra eye on my BG this afternoon.  I work 6-10 tonight, so i should probably pack a little care package with a new set just in case. 

a review with a dream attached

about a month ago,  i travelled to Barrie, Ontario to see the one and only George Canyon! (i actually met the man, in person, in real life, i touched him!!!)

when we first arrived at the venue, "the diabetic" (that's what they said, i swear!) was given an arm band, a bag of "goodies", and directions to the bathroom, the food tables, and the "vendors" tables.  there were people from Connected In Motion there.  Animas had a table set up.  i got a new pump cover (purple), and a pin stating "i love animas" on it (now attached to my purse).  there were people from JDRF there.  you could sign up for the Telus WALK to cure diabetes.  there was also a table set up introducing the new Verio IQ, by One Touch.  i will admit, after driving for 3 hours, i was more interested in the washrooms and the food, than a new meter.

a couple weeks after the concert, i was tidying up my dining room table (it's become a bit of a drop place for all kinds of stuff),  i discovered the contents of the goodie bag from the concert.  the reusable bag had already been delegated to the bag of bags that i take to the grocery store (no plastic bags for this girl!), but its contents had been dropped in the pile of  "stuff".   as i was looking through it i found a pamphlet from OneTouch for a free, limited time offer on the new Verio IQ.  i decided to phone the number and request my free meter.  i love "new" and i also love "free"so why not?

well the meter arrived last friday.

photo credit my daughter!

i've given it a trial run and here's what i think (good things in green and not so good things in red)

• i LOVE the size and colour! it is slim and compact, very much like an ipod in size
• i LOVE the light ~ makes night testing sooo much easier!
• the ability to alert you to patterns without downloading and searching for them [although with only 10 strips i didn't really get a chance to see this wonderful feature in action =( ]
• the screen is really well lit and the colours are bright
• blood can be applied to either side of the test strips
• take a really small amount of blood [at least i think so!]
• the battery is rechargeable (you just plug the whole meter into your computer or the wall!)

  

• i really wish it would sync with my pump like my OneTouch Ping does, then i could test, bolus and go,  in one fell swoop
• the test strips tend to stick together in the little black vial.  i empied them and put the in my own flat container to make it a little easier to get them out un-attached to each other.
• it only gives the option of "before meal' or "after meal',  not which meal, or snack
• there is no screen that allows you to input how you were feeling or why (stressed, menses, illness)
• the battery charge does not last very long 

 overall i really like this new meter.  i probably won't use it often though, simply because i like that i don't have to fish my pump out of wherever it may be hiding at any given time to bolus.  and this is where the dream comes in.  since i have only had my pump for just over a year, i won't be looking at a new one any time soon.  and i really love Animas and One Touch.  i have used a One Touch meter forever.  even before using a pump, i tested with a OneTouch.

soooooooooo....if there is anyone out there from OneTouch reading this, perhaps you could pass this on to the design team.  what i want in my next pump/meter combo is a nice slim pump, preferably NOT silver(love the white!!), with light on top for night testing (or sitting in a movie theatre watching a movie-testing, or sitting in a car on the side of the road at midnight-testing). one with a well lit screen with bright colours and large font (for us older folks).  one that is basically my Ping meter and the Verio combined.

now that would be a meter that really rocks!!

**Disclosure...although i received the meter and 10 test strips free, i was not asked to blog about my experience.  the  opinions stated here are my own, and i can only hope that someone, somewhere gets wind of it and can get my dream meter on the drawing board, so that by the time i need a new pump/meter the Animas Ping/IQ will be a reality! (call me!)