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I love, love this new pump. 

First, the new sensor calibration rocks.  I’m always within the same decade on the figure sticks and the calibration.  I was skeptical that we would be able to actual dose off the system, but I see no problem with it. 

Second, two nights a row without being woke up by lost sensor alarm or false low.

Finally Jenny Craig update.  I continue to lose weight!  I’m close to my half way goal – though I’m not sure how I’ll ever meet a goal since I keep changing them.  I went in on a 20 pounds for $20 promotion, lost almost 20 and changed my goal to 210 pounds.  I’m almost halfway there.

I had a love hate relationship with my old pump.  Loved it during the day, hated it at night.  Plus, the whole sensor thing wasn’t that accurate.  It almost always work me up with a lost sensor alarm sometime during the night.  Well I also hated the screen, I couldn’t see it.

I finally got everything hooked up yesterday evening.  I was at the dentist all day when the sensor came in.  Fortunately it had a full charge when it got here and I was able to hook it up right away.  That was the reason the pump was sitting on my desk all week.

Anyway, last night it didn’t wake me, and this morning the sensor reading matched my blood sugar reading EXACTLY.

Just answered my first question, I can have up to 6 compatible meters.  Now I need to snag one or two for free.  I don’t see needing six, but I had quite a few of the old ones.

So first, I get comfortable with the way I regularly used the old pump and then I start figuring out features that I haven’t used but should or new ones.

And no I don’t advise people to hook up the pump without training, but I’ve been pumping since 2004 and I’ve been doing CGMS off and on since it came out.

I had everything I needed medically to have a pleasant trip.

This was a surprise — my new dog came with dog show entries — we spent three days in Conroe, Texas.  My box of sensors was missing tape, but I went to CVS and they had a good substitute.  At least the tape is still on 🙂

Next dog show trip I need to add makeup.  I also need a better bag for dog show stuff.

And this is a diabetes issue. 

First both human and dog diabetics are in debt to Banting and the dogs used in his reasearch. If it weren't for the animal model who knows when insulin would have been discovered.  

I have a good friend who is a vet and is supervising a beagle colony in reasearch currently and she has in the past. She is that type of vet proecisely because she can help both animals and humans live better lives. The current colony will be homed afterwards though I am not sure that is the best thing. They have lived in a rescue colony all of their lives and changing that environment is difficult. 

One of the biggest issues in medicine these days is aging. The animal model is a good choice and she has worked with those studies. Unfortunately to do a complete study they need to be necropsied when the study is finished but  that is usual at age 13! In my own beagles cases, quality of life was not good after that age. 

The reason I am bringing this up today is that I have run into this group as an alternative fund giving opportunity to the group I am in the board of. First at a friends funeral which appalled me since she was a diabetic.  Yesterday at a club that I was considering joining. This an another reason is why I am not joining.  Don't want to fight that battle.

However, it is apparent to me that their overhead is more costly than ours.  Ours is less that 5%  

The warranty went out on my insulin pump earlier this week.  The new Minimed 630G arrived today.  I asked all the right questions, but one, and wasn’t told this.

It needs a new sensor transmitter!

The good news, is that they are sending me a new one that will work with the 630G system, arriving probably by the end of next week.

I like being able to see the screen!

Yes, I’m still at my lowest weight and very close to my half way weight with Jenny Craig.  My consultant had me set a higher goal weight than I really wanted, but it made sense.

Here’s my frustration, which is really weird because it’s also the reason I didn’t lose weight for so long.  My clothing still fits.

Well my sports bras are too big, and I’m trying to solve that.  I’ve got three different bras coming to see which one fits.  The smallest I ordered last, one that is a band size and a cup size smaller and one that is only a cup size smaller.  Nordstrom, so getting the bra fitting department to help will be easy.  I should have had them ship to store as I think about it, but running over there during the week, early in the day, with them is no problem.

My regular bras still fit, and are much more comfortable. 

My tops should still work because we chose styles that weren’t form fitting, but I would think a size smaller jean would work, but they don’t.

I have a feeling part of the problem is my skin.  I have a lot of extra.

This picture was taken about a year after my lap band:

And here is one from last week:

Though it is a bit difficult to tell, I was super bundled up in the first picture.

And I still think I ran better back then.

This trip was probably one of my most successful.  At no point, did I wish I had something that was stuck at home (well, maybe my shower).

I had all the diabetes supplies I needed.  I had the food I needed.  If I ate the wrong food, it was my choice, not because I didn’t have it.  I did have a planned refill trip.

I kept my dogs crated as far from the other dogs as possible.  That was easy, because the show committee had given us a “no bitch in season” crating area and I was the only person who used it most of the week.  Of course, we won’t know if that worked for a few days.  Last year, Dulce didn’t start coughing until we got home.

I had a full set of diabetes equipment in the car.  I had one set of emergency supplies in the bag I had with me. 

This has nothing to do with the trip, but I need to be better at managing the expiration dates of my diabetes equipment.

Off to unpack and organize my house.

My last trip went well, though I kicked myself for having an vial of insulin with no way to get it out.  I was around other diabetics though and if I needed it, I'd have gotten help.  

This trip is going great!  Thanks to a NBC Facebook friend, I tried AirBNB for the first time, and that was wonderful.  Really enjoyed the house.

So far, I've got everything I need and I haven't lost anything yet (though I need to locate my CGMS sensor, I know where I put it).

I keep a cane in the car, which I need to replace — one of my friends body went out (not sure which part), and he was particularly crawling around the show site yesterday.  He told me he needed crutches, I asked if a cane would do and produced one out of my truck.  I have a friend whose superpower is making cupcakes, decorated, better than Sprinkles, which she brings to the trials.  So far, I'm the one who always is where she says she will be and has emergency medical equipment on her.  I'd like to do a bit more.

Staying at La Quinta last night was good, but I should add one more thing.  A wheeled cart or my wagon all of which I left at home in the interest of space.

I also need to play Tetris one more time, and replace one of my small crates with a bigger crate for Summer.  That one inch makes a huge difference in crate space.

I've been able to help my students each day and even had one finish.  Got  all the paperwork processed.  

I'm in Alabama now, and will soon be at my families in Brandon.

Managing diabetes has been hard for me the past few years. Partly because I was going it alone, without the support of the online community. 

I have a great counselor but she doesn't always get it. I have a great endo but it gets too be too much of the traditional patient relationship. I finally got back into control, at 6.4 and Went back to Jenny Craig.  As a result I have lost 20 pounds. 

Its never easy, dealing with diabetes. Going it alone doesn't work for me and I need to learn to reach out more. 

I need the structure of a meal plan.  No, I don't follow it 100% but I needed to learn what to eat and when. And most importantly how much. 

I really need to thank AstraZeneca for diabetes linkup. Helped also to that community is out there. Reach out!