Our First Appointment

We could not have been more pleased with our first first endocrinologist appointment. We were there 1/2 an hour early, as instructed, to find parking and to fill out any necessary paperwork. Paperwork??? This was interesting to me, seeing as they had every ounce of information on him from his hospitalization. Anyhow, we check in, and the amount of people in the waiting room is staggering. We had been on the road, so to the bathroom we go. Cameron first, when his name is called. WHAT? We ask her to give us a minute and sat down, only to have her open the door and bring us back.

Cameron lost somewhere between 14-16 pounds when he got sick. He weighed in at 78 pounds in August. Today he is back up to 75.5. Woo-Hoo! I was so happy when I heard this. We were taken to our room, complete with couch. Did I mention these appointments, every 3-4 months, will take 1-3 hours??? The nurse takes his temp, the child has NEVER ran a fever in his ENTIRE life, and he was hospitalized with RSV when he was 6 months old, and checks his blood pressure. She has him prick his finger for a glucose test and tells him to squeeze an extra large drop out. She takes the extra for his A1C blood test. At this point he did the happy dance, realizing he doesn't have to give blood through a vein. LOL In his defense, his veins are still pretty tender from the IV's and everything they pumped into them. The nurse took his 2 meters, home and school, to download their numbers, plus our log book and was off.

No sooner did she leave the room did one of the specialists come in. I recognized her, by her voice, instantly! I have spoken to her every week since Cameron came home. Not even 5 minutes in did the nurse come back in with his A1C number. AMAZING! His number was 7.7, which is FANTASTIC, considering he was 13.5 not even 3 months ago. The ideal number is between 6 and 7, but Cameron is plugging along. We asked our questions and were told Cameron is doing GREAT, like we didn't know this! ;) She checks over his injection sites and fingertips.

Then the cherry on top of the ice cream sundae came...FLEXPEN! Oh yea! Oh yea! It's our birthday! Get our groove on. She brought out of the demo and asked Cameron to show us what he knew. Cameron has a buddy at school who uses the FlexPen, so I knew he had some knowledge. What I didn't know, and neither did the doctor, was that he KNEW exactly what he was doing. As we picked up our mouths from the floor, she said, "Okay Cameron, now let's see if your mom can do it." At this point I began to cry. My amazingly brilliant son, my roll with the punches boy...words can not describe how proud I am of him. I practiced with the pen on the dummy and we were given samples to take home and use TODAY! Double Woo-Hoo!

Finally, the doctor came in. I was still emotional and she asked if I was okay, handing me a tissue. I just explained how proud I am of him. She took checked his injection sites and fingertips. She gave his body a once over, told us what an excellent job we are doing, and she'll see us in 3-4 months! DONE and DONE!

The worst part of the day was in the parking lot when my purse fell into some crap! Purse down! Need to locate and buy a new one SOON! Other than that, Cameron has put weight back on, his A1C number was WAY better than I anticipated, and has graduated to the FlexPen, which has made our life a dream! All in all, I would say we have a MARVELOUS day.

My high may plummet very low on Monday when I begin fighting for authorization for Thursday's Carb Counting class. We'll see.

Red Tape Crap

I started calling the doctor's office, every day, on January 24th. In my last ditch effort, I called again today, I love that my phone times my calls, and was on the phone for 35 minutes. Do you know how long I talked to a human voice? Approximately 5-6 minutes of that phone call. I hate cutting through the red tape crap. If I was poor, without health insurance, my son would have no problem being seen, having authorizations for every appointment, and the bureaucracy would be nil. Instead, we are middle income, have private insurance, and before every appointment we have to get authorization. What happens if the doctor doesn't handle it in a timely fashion? Let's say I call in for the authorization 2 1/2 weeks, when technically the big wig hospital my son is being seen at said a couple weeks notice is ample, and the day before his appointment the authorization still has NOT been faxed! Oh, wait, he has 2 more appointments this month, one next week and one the last week of February. What of those?

"Are they appointments that need authorization?"

Yes.

"Who told you that?"

The hospital staff themselves!

"Do you have paperwork stating that?"

No.

At this point she goes back to the appointment at hand. GREAT!

His appointment is at 10:30 tomorrow morning, which means we have to get up at the butt-crack of dawn to get ourselves ready, pack EVERYthing for Cameron, and get on the road, during commute traffic. Guess what? It's 4:30 and I still don't have authorization for the appointment. IF I need to reschedule? FORGET ABOUT IT, I'll have to pull the money out of my butt, because the next available appointment won't be for ANOTHER 3-4 months!!!

UPDATED: Apparently I had to work them late, but it's amazing how quickly they got the authorization. I received a call at 6:30 pm saying we're approved for our visit in the morning. Now, why exactly couldn't that get done 2 weeks ago? Why have I been forced to waste my time every day for the last 2 weeks? Hmmm...

Wordless Wednesday: A New Friend

We were so excited to finally meet Caleb. Peyton is a day older than Caleb. His Daddy, Jason, and I went to High School together and it amazes me that his wife, Sherida, and I had babies together. Of course, Peyton was my last, Caleb is only the beginning! Peyton kept taking toys from Caleb and eventually, when he saw her coming, he just handed them over.

Check out more Wordless Wednesday over at 5 Minutes for Mom.

Four

Words cannot express the feelings I have with you in my life.

God knew what he was doing, and even though I was pushing his timeline, He knew when you were needed most.

You fit in perfectly, from hour one. You slept with me that first night. A nurse came in, one that was passing our room, and said she couldn't believe her eyes and ears as I cuddled you whispering, "I love me some baby Dylan."

I couldn't believe you slept through the night at 10 days old! A sack rat, like your Mama!

When we brought you home we had to lock Mandelyn outside because she couldn't contain her excitement at, "BABY!" It was Mande that gave you the nickname Baby Handsome. Although you are no longer our baby, we still call you Handsome.

Cameron couldn't have been a prouder big brother. Everywhere we went he talked about his baby brother and what new little thing you could do. He was just as excited as we were when you laughed for the first time, and he would imitate what made it happen just to hear you do it again.

I have never met someone who is a complete copy, not only outside, but in, of somebody else. You were appropriately named and like your dad in every way.

You also have the most incredible vocabulary and the funniest sayings. What exactly is a humongous fungus? How does Loody come out of Brother? I don't know, but I LOVE IT!

I thought when Peyton was born you would get so jealous, but watching the two of you play is a gift I receive every day. Although you are too young to fully remember Mandelyn, you must channel her because you nicknamed your sister Pretty Girl, Pretty for short.

In 6 short months I'll be driving you to Preschool and my days will feel a little empty without you. Oh, but when you return home, the stories you will share and reenact will make up for it.

Happy Birthday my big 4 year old!

I love me some Dylan!

Simple Woman's Daybook

FOR TODAY...February 2nd ... My 34th Birthday!

Outside my window...I saw my shadow. UGH! Six more weeks of winter. ;)

I am thinking...DAMN I'm old!

I am thankful for...my family.

From the kitchen...my traditional birthday dinner, tacos (wishing for the days that Grandma cooked my birthday dinner). For dessert, Coconut Cream Pie!

I am wearing...my flannel jammies.

I am creating...Valentine's gifts and cards.

I am going...well, I was suppose to go to Disneyland for a few hours tonight, but I wasn't feeling well yesterday, so we cancelled. Instead, I'm going to cook my own birthday dinner, sucks, right?

I am reading...Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt by Anne Rice.

I am hoping...to finish Out of Egypt and start Out of Cana today.

I am hearing...the heater humming.

Around the house...I'm getting Cameron ready for school while the other two sleep.

One of my favorite things...spending time with Jason, Sherida, & Caleb on Saturday.

A few plans for the rest of the week: my birthday dinner, Dylan's first dentist appointment on Wednesday, Cameron's first Endocrinologist appointment on Friday, Dylan's birthday party Sunday, still working in the office, and reading. Maybe I'll finally get Peyton's 1st birthday and Dylan's 4th birthday pictures done too.

Here is a picture thought I am sharing...Me about 3 months old, circa 1975.

Happy Birthday to Me!

What's the likelihood that Edward Cullen will come gift wrapped for my birthday? ROFLOL

Menu Plan Monday

Sunday ~ Shells Pasta, Salad, & Garlic Bread

Monday ~ My Birthday Dinner ... Tacos

Tuesday ~ TV dinner for kids & Pizza for Mama

Wednesday ~ Chicken, Mashed Potatoes w/ Gravy, Veggie, & Rolls

Thursday ~ Out

Friday ~ Mama's Stampin' Club, Boys fend for themselves

Saturday ~ Potato Soup w/ Shrimp (we missed this one last week).

Breakfasts: Cereal w/ Fresh Fruit, Bagels w/ Cream Cheese, Waffles w/ Sugar Free Syrup, Eggs & Sausage

Lunches: Pastrami w/ Swiss Cheese on Onion Rolls, PB&J, Leftovers, Salad