Friday

We had a good night, considering we were in the hospital. T-Bear’s glucose stayed in the desired range through the night (drops around 2:00 am are not uncommon, so they tested him around 3:00). Dr. Desrosiers came in early on rounds to check in. Our new day nurse, Magen oversaw as I did T-Bear’s testing this morning, and drew and administered his insulin, so I feel confident now that I can do it on my own. T-Bear is still getting upset when it’s time for needles, but he said after this morning’s dose, “I think I’m getting used to this”, and he didn’t cry nearly as long. We keep talking about it little bits at a time, and I think he is beginning to adjust. We had breakfast together, his IV and monitors were removed, so he was free to get up and around.

Kim from Child Life came by to play with T-Bear, gave him his own “Me Doll” with medical supplies. She talked to him about diabetes, then they set an IV and give meds to the doll, did a finger prick, and insulin shot. Then, after a snack, we went upstairs to the play room for a game of LINGO (hospital Bingo) with half a dozen other kids. William got a prize, a nifty little flying gizmo, and we headed back to his room for a little rest. He needed one more tiny dose of insulin before lunch, but ate just about everything on his 3-carb plate (that’s a lot!), and we’re just waiting for our last meeting with Sarah, and for the doctor’s okay to exit the building. As nice as everyone has been, we’re both looking forward to getting out of here.

Another Update (Thursday)

It’s about 9:30 pm, and we’re about ready to turn in for the night. As of around 4:00 pm, Thunder Bear’s “numbers” are right where they need to be, both his glucose and his bicarb(?). He had his first meal in two days, most of a personal pizza and some sugar-free punch, and his glucose held up fine. Our night nurse, Deadra, came on at about 7:00, and Thunder Bear cried when Maureen left. I did my first test on him, and got my first hands-on lesson in setting up the injection, though the nurse took care of injecting. Thunder Bear is about as over-stimulated by the poking, prodding, and foreign environment as he is able to tolerate, so the last few procedures have been extremely emotional and difficult for him. The IV is still in for additional fluids, and I’m hoping that as he continues to “plump up”, the pricks and pokes won’t be as uncomfortable. A decent night’s sleep won’t do any harm either, and I think they’ll only be waking him once, at 2:00 am, for a glucose check.

A great big “thank you” for all of the offers of support and assistance, and all of the prayers and good thoughts. It’s going to be an adjustment for all of us, most particularly for Thunder Bear, but I’m confident we will transition and move forward. Thunder Bear has an excellent chance of living a long, healthy, full life, and there are technologies which should become available in the next few years which will make on-going management even easier. We are blessed to have access to excellent medical care.

Signing off for now….

An Update

It’s Thursday afternoon, and it’s been a busy day so far. Our Child Life Service person, Valerie, came in to introduce herself, and arranged for the pet therapy lady to come by with her beautiful Golden Retriever for a visit and some tricks. Valerie also arranged for an Xbox to be brought into the room, which was a blessed distraction. Papa Bear, Brother Bear and Angel Bear arrived around 11:00, just in time to meet with the Certified Diabetes Educator, Sarah. She gave us a backpack full of stuff, including books and supplies, talked to us about the disease in general as well as management, and showed us some basics about testing and injecting. Then a quick lunch in the cafeteria before meeting with the dietician, Lisa, who went over Thunder Bear’s meal plan, carb counting, etc. The guys have gone back to our rooms, and I’ve got plenty to read up on this afternoon. It still looks like we’re on schedule to get Thunder Bear’s IV removed this evening, so I’ll probably be getting my first hands-on lesson in injecting then. He can’t wait to eat real food again.

The hospital staff has been fabulous. Thunder Bear has been very well taken care of, and everyone has been very friendly, attentive, and supportive. We are blessed to have received such great care.

A Diagnosis

It’s Thursday morning, and we had a bewildering Wednesday. Thunder Bear had begun feeling ill Tuesday afternoon/evening. Around midnight, he began vomiting, and continued most of Wednesday. I stayed with him in our rooms while Papa Bear took the other boys back to Kennedy Space Center for a short visit. As Thunder Bear was not improving, Papa Bear took him to the local (Orlando) ER in the evening. Within a couple of hours, our little Thunder Bear was diagnosed with Juvenile Onset (Type I) Diabetes. Needless to say, this was a shock.

Thunder Bear was transferred to the Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children, where I joined him around midnight to give Papa Bear time to rest and spend time with the other boys. (Thank you, nurse Scott, for taking such good care of us). By the time IV treatment had been started on Wednesday, Thunder Bear’s blood sugar had spiked above 500, but he responded very well to treatment. By this morning at 8:00, his blood sugar had dropped to 238, which is right where Doctor Banks, our endocrinologist, wants it to be at this stage of treatment. He looks and is feeling better this morning, though still very tired and a little nauseous. Our day nurse, Maureen, hopes he will be feeling well enough to get up and around a bit this afternoon, and possibly spend some time in the play room with the play therapist. The plan is to keep him on IV insulin until around dinnertime, at which point the nurses will train me to test and administer his on-going care. I will probably be meeting with the nutritionist today, and the diabetes educator tomorrow. We are hoping he will be released from the hospital tomorrow (Friday), and that we can return home on Saturday as planned.

I will continue to post updates here as events unfold.

Change of Plans II (Tuesday)

Well, we had our sales presentation, and did not buy a timeshare. Went back to the rooms for a nice nap, and had an awesome thunderstorm in the afternoon. We sat for a while on the screened balcony, until the screens became so saturated we couldn’t see clearly through them anymore. For a few minutes there was rain and hail simultaneously, and at one point it was raining so hard we couldn’t see the buildings across the street. Brother Bear and I both saw the lightening that struck just behind the buildings facing us, and a few moments later brown smoke could be seen behind them, sign of a fire despite the hard rain. By the time the fire engine arrived, the fire seemed to have been doused by the same storm that created it. Angel Bear gets as pumped up by a good lightening show as Papa Bear and I do, and we certainly got a nice show.

Angel Bear's Storm Chasing Gear

Thunder Bear was feeling a bit poorly, so we stayed in and relaxed through the evening.

The Launch (Monday)

Off to the shuttle launch. Brother Bear spent some time checking out the NASA site’s mission information before we headed for the Kennedy Space Center United States Astronaut Hall of Fame.





After a short pit-stop along the side of Challenger Memorial Parkway….








…and a little entertainment in the car…

Angel Bear as Aqua Fina Man.

…we arrived at our destination.

After a bit of wandering about in the Hall of Fame exhibits, and a ride on the shuttle time-warp ride, we zipped outside to see, hear, and feel the launch. Even from ten miles away, though we couldn’t see the launch pad, it was perfectly clear exactly how fast the shuttle was moving, shooting through the clouds and into space.



Then back inside for a bit more exploring, where Brother Bear, Angel Bear and I squeezed into a capsule.

The most important thing I learned today? Astronauts have to be small people. I barely fit into the capsule’s seat. Long-ways, I mean.

The ride home.

Some clouds.

Returning to our temporary home, the introverts (Thunder Bear and I) hung out in our rooms, while the extroverts (Daddy Bear, Brother Bear and Angel Bear) went out for dinner. They were kind enough to bring back dinner for us, including a nice dessert.

On tap for tomorrow: Up early for a tour of the Resort, during which some poor salesman is going to try to sell us a timeshare. Then back to Kennedy Space Center to explore the Visitors’ Center.

Change of Plans (Sunday)

Angel Bear just waking.

Isn’t it nice to have a flexible enough schedule to be able to change your mind? We reconsidered Sea World for yesterday, and decided instead to have a “down day” and go see Star Trek. The kids were devastated (not) since that meant they could hang out for the morning and build their new LEGO kits.

Multi-sized kids building LEGOs.

After a lunch of apple cheddar sandwiches (thank you, Sarah), we were off. On the way to the theater we drove past the Wonder Works building, which kind of freaked out Thunder Bear. We were a few minutes late, and the IMAX theater was packed, but I managed to find three seats for the boys and I to squeeze into (with Angel Bear on my lap), with a seat in front of us for Papa Bear. The kids had never been to an IMAX or stadium seating, but once they adjusted to the huge screen they loved it. The move was awesome, and since Brother Bear had already gotten into the old Star Trek series and previous movies, he was able to identify each of the familiar characters as they appeared. It was one of those movies we’re still talking about the day after. We’ll probably end up going back later in the week.

So, after the movie, we went back to the rooms for a bit, where the guys presented me with some nice Yankee Candle Company candles. Then Papa Bear took the kids to the pool, while I hung out for some quiet time. After a dinner of pizza, the kids played Line Rider for a couple of hours on my laptop, making a special slide just for me for Mother’s Day. A laid-back evening, a nice bottle of wine. Contentment.

The New Star Trek Movie - WoooooooooHooooooo!

We just got back from watching the new Star Trek movie in IMAX, and I have only one thing to say.

WoooooooHoooooo!

Okay, maybe more than one thing...

This film was f-ing AWESOME! Even if you never had any interested whatsoever in Star Trek, even if you're not into SciFi, even if you can even just barely tolerate big, bold, techie type movies - you will LOVE, I mean LOVE this film! The BEST Star Trek EVER!

Go see it, go see it, go see it, rah, rah, rah!

Who's comin' with me?!? I gotta go again! (Oh, yeah, I'm in Orlando...and you're not...shoot!).

Sunday Morning

After hours of swimming, Papa Bear and the boys returned to the rooms, we all showered/bathed, dressed, and headed to Downtown Disney, where we met this guy....

Papa Bear and Brother Bear (aka Indiana Jones)

We had dinner at Rainforest Cafe, where we were waited on by this guy...

Just kidding. We sat on the patio, which is right on the lake, just next to the ferry launch. It had cooled off enough to be pleasant under the ceiling fans. Although the inside was interesting and exciting, I think it would have proved overwhelming for me and for the tired Cubs...waaaay too much noise and stuff going on! The staff was fabulous, especially our waitress, and the Margarilla was stupendous. But the food was a little disapointing - I suppose I was expecting a lot better from a $30 meal. After dinner we wandered over to the LEGO store, where the boys each picked up a new kit ('cause you can never have too many LEGOs), then headed home.

The moon was beautiful last night, almost full, and orange. It's been hot, but not unbearable. Thunder Bear has been drinking like a camel, and actually drinking water instead of his one-and-only-beverage-of-choice, milk. He actually got up in the middle of the night to get more water.

The boys are working on their LEGO kits this morning. We're heading for Sea World after breakfast, for most of the day I'm sure. It's gonna' be hot today - a high of 95 is expected before cooling on Tuesday.



Oh, yeah! Happy Mother's Day!

It's The Little Things...

Have you noticed how easy it can be to let go of much of our self-care once we become moms? It doesn’t happen right away. During the first pregnancy, everyone keeps telling you to take care of yourself, and most of them will even do a little here and there to help you do that. But, once the baby comes, mom kind of settles into the background a bit as everyone, including her, is focused on baby. It starts to seem selfish to take time out for ourselves, to take time away from the family, to utilize family resources for something that can easily be seen as “pampering”, when in fact, for many of us, it is the essence of self-care. An essential element in maintain our own personal equilibrium. We may hold on to some of them, but slowly, over time, particularly if more children come into our hearts and homes, more and more of those little rituals sort of wander out of our lives, until we almost forget we once had them.

Happy Feet Pool-Side

I haven’t painted my toenails in years. It seems like an inefficiency in a life and household that requires a certain level of efficiency to get everything done, everyone taken care of, and spend some time pursuing my own studies. But, I’m on vacation. So, yesterday afternoon I painted my toenails. And, this morning, I painted my fingernails.

It’s amazing what a little nail polish can do for a tired mommy’s soul…

Three Little Piggie Banks

This morning after a quick breakfast, Papa Bear took the kids to the Kids' Club craft activity. Each of the boys painted their own piggie bank. I have no idea which one belongs to whom, but aren't they lovely?

Back to the Pool (Saturday)

After breakfast and crafts, we all headed for the pool. Instead of the mega-pool next to our building, we opted for the smaller, indoor-outdoor pool on the other side of the property. The walk was a nice stretch-o-the-legs. It was worth it just to see the pool-side chess board.

Thunder Bear - contentment.

Brother Bear sidling up to the bar.

Brother Bear found his new best friend, who happens to also be from Georgia. Angel Bear and I enjoyed the delights of the fountain kiddie pool. He, of course, had to figure out a way to make one of the squirting water jets go through his floaty noodle so he could direct the stream. We all enjoyed smoothie drinks and lunch.

Angel Bear enjoying his smoothie and lunch.

Have bandage, will swim.

The rubber band was my idea, to keep the tape from coming loose.

It certainly ain't slowing him down.

I had the most fabulous salad for lunch. I think it was called a "Juel's Salad", or something like that. A bed of dark greens, grilled fresh vegetables (mostly squashes in nice fat chunks), black olives, feta cheese, and grilled chicken, topped with a nice balsamic vinegar dressing. Ay, ay, ay, it was wonderful! Gotta try that when I get home...

An Afternoon Wrap-Up (Friday)

So, yesterday after his meeting, and a short nap, Papa Bear took the Cubs down to the pool for a couple of hours. He discovered the pool-side bar, and the Cubs had smoothies. Everyone returned to our rooms happy, tired, and hungry.



Papa Bear had to run down to the registration desk to get a new card key. Apparently it got too close to his cell phone, or wet, or something. By the time he got back, the kids were practically begging to dive into the platter of tortellini and shrimp on the table. Yum! After dinner, Papa Bear ventured out to Downtown Disney in search of a nice cigar, which he found, and enjoyed.

That wrapped up Friday for us.

One quick side note. Most of you know I buy as much organic foods as I can manage, and the boys know this. Angel Bear, especially, is keen on spotting the organic selections, and has just about mastered picking out the word "organic" on signs and packages. Yesterday we were wandering through the produce department, and he announced he wanted some broccoli. I told him we had some broccoli in the freezer, but he wanted the broccoli he was looking at. Now, since I've been working on upgrading our eating (which I promise I'll get into later), I've become even more leery of produce that comes wrapped in plastic and/or sitting on styrofoam, and this particular broccoli happended to be wrapped in plastic. "Ick", I'm thinking, but what I said was "Do you want that broccoli?" So, he asks me, "Is it organic?". I said "No, honey." As I'm squinting across the produce department to see if they had any broccoli in the organic section over yonder, he says "Is this one organic?" He's got another plastic-wrapped head from the same section. I think it was the first one's neighbor. "No, honey, those ones are not organic." "How about this one?", grabbing the next one over. "No, honey, they don't have any organic broccoli here." After a moment considering the broccoli in his hands, "Then I don't want any." Plop goes the offensive non-organic broccoli, back in the bin with it's non-organic, plastic-wrapped neighbors.

Gotta love food awareness in kids...

Kids in Water

We spent a couple of hours this morning at the pool, the Little Bears and I, while Papa Bear attended a meeting.

Brother Bear - "What is this thing?"

Thunder Bear coming up for air...or flying. Take your pick.

Angel Bear - "This is the perfect pose, Mommy!" I obliged.

Papa Bear arrived around 3:00 pm. Angel Bear and I went for a little grocery shopping for dinner. Papa Bear and the Boys hit the pool again, recreated, etc. while I got ready for dinner and blogged. A nice glass of wine (or two) in the relative silence of our room was involved. Vacations can be good.

Da Pool

There's not much else to say about this "pool". It's huge. It's family friendly. It's got a water slide. What more could you want?

This Morning's Eggs

The kids like cheesey eggs. I like fancy eggs. This morning we had "use what you've got" eggs. I used:

6 eggs, beaten
1/4 yellow bell pepper, diced small
fresh rosemary, finely chopped
goat cheese
salt & pepper

Done up like scrambled eggs. They were yummy! Angel Bear ate up every bite. We won't discuss his brothers.

Senior Doorbell Ditch

Ten minutes after he left for his business meeting, Papa Bear called me from the car. He left his iPod in the room, and asked me to have Brother Bear bring it down to the lobby and give it to him. All three boys were still asleep, and thinking about last night’s misadventure, I took it down myself (being sure to take the stairs, a la French Women – more on that later). On my way back to our room, walking down the hallway, I came upon a gentleman (I use the term loosely) standing in his room’s doorway, dressed only in shorts, and with the most gleeful grin on his face. He was older than me, probably in his fifties, fit, mostly bald, and had a tattoo on one upper arm. He appeared to be looking for someone, like you would be looking for a child you are playing a game with. As I continued walking down the hall, he rapidly tip-toed in the same direction, stopped just short of the door opposite my door, knocked on it, and then tore back down the hallway to his own room. I swear, he was giggling. Now I understood the game, my first thought was “Can I get into my own room before his buddies open their door, and if not, what am I going to say? ‘It wasn’t me’?” Their door was slightly ajar, so apparently this game had been going on for a bit. I did manage to get inside before being spotted. I giggled.

What's Goin' On?!? ... or, Why I Started This Blog

I started this blog because I’ve been jotting down notes about our vacation. Yesterday we drove from our home in Lawrenceville, GA to Orlando, FL for our first “real live family vacation”, as Papa Bear put it. We’re staying at “The Fountains”, A Bluegreen Vacation Club Resort (basically a timeshare condo that they’ll be trying to sell us on Monday, and which we’ll be politely declining). Papa Bear made all the arrangements, booked a few fabulous excursions, and ensured we’ll have adequate down time to enjoy our comfy suite of rooms and the fantabulous pool/water park just downstairs. But, since I’ve got this on-going mental narrative going through my head as we move through our days, realizing I’ll probably be answering the question “How was your vacation” at least a hundred times when I get back, I figured I might as well wrap the whole thing together in one big Blog Burrito and give folks a place to come and see for themselves how our vacation is/was. So, I’ll try to get caught up, and then post as we go from there.

Oh, yeah. I’ve got another blog, which is part of a homeschooling community. There’s some stuff from over there that I’ll re-post over here (I’ll indicate it as a TJEd post in the header so you can skip it if you’ve already read it over there). “So”, you are asking, “why don’t you just post this vacation stuff on your existing blog?” Well, because that blog is pretty specific to the type of homeschooling we do, and that community is pretty conservative, and probably doesn’t want to hear about our vacation or what I’m cooking for dinner tonight. Not that you do, either, but then, you wouldn’t be here, would you?

Off we go….

Getting Started

If you were on vacation and could do absolutely anything you pleased - entirely guilt free - for ten days, what would you do with your time? Me? I would read, and write, and lie in bed, and prepare lovely meals to please myself, and....hmmm....let's see....I would try blogging. Yeah, that's it, I'd try blogging. Every day. Just to see if I like it. Hey, come to think of it, I AM on vacation for ten days. Maybe I'll try blogging. Just while I'm on vacation. Just to see if it fits....

Lost for a Moment or Two

We arrived at the resort at about 8:00 pm. Considering the duration of the journey, the kids actually did really well on this trip. We didn’t get “are we there yet” until about the last two hours, and mostly from Thunder Bear, who tends to get a little anxious about time-related matters. Pulling into the registration lobby, a fire engine, ambulance and police vehicle pulled in behind us, so that was a nice diversion for the boys while Papa Bear checked us in. We found our room, and proceeded to unload four luggage carts full of stuff, much of it groceries and ice chests. Wanting to support Brother Bear’s need for independence and for doing things of importance, we had him return one of the luggage carts to the lobby on his own. Now, this is a secured building we’re in. You can’t get in without a key card, and he wouldn’t be leaving the building, so this seemed like a no brainer. He’d been from the car to the room twice already, and on the second trip up took the elevator with his loaded cart by himself, meeting us upstairs. Well, after dropping off the empty cart, he got lost. He went to the fourth floor, instead of the third floor, got all turned around, and couldn’t figure out where we were. Papa Bear and I had finished unloading the last two carts, and Papa Bear was taking them downstairs when he commented that Brother Bear had not returned yet. A few minutes later, I got a call from Papa Bear asking if Brother Bear was in the room. Nope. Papa Bear located a couple of security officers, and they started looking. Brother Bear showed up at our door after about ten minutes, clearly upset and needing an extended mommy hug. I called Papa Bear and told him all was well.

Brother Bear is one of the most independent, self confident, and adventurous kids I know. Nothing seems to intimidate him. So, I guess I was a little surprised to see him so upset, not because he goofed and forgot where our room was, but because, in his words, he couldn’t find us. He called for us, and we weren’t there. For ten long minutes, he did not have his family, and that scared and upset him. Independence AND strong family bonds. That’s an unbeatable combination.