Ramblings of a Grandmother: October 2012

Sunday, October 21, 2012

Foster Parenting a New Little Boy

I wished for another new born to foster but when we got the call for a four year old boy who has been an insulin dependent diabetic since he was 18 months old I couldn't say no. We had to stay with him for 48 hours inpatient to learn how to measure his insulin levels, count his carbohydrates, measure medicine and administer his injections, charting it all. It ended up being a couple of more days than that because his levels were so out of control. He made it so easy for us. He's so used to the shots. We all fell in love immediatly.

We switched out the diaper bag for an emergency diabetic bag

We traded in two o'clock feedings for
midnight and 3am insulin checks.

We traded in diaper supplies for medical supplies.

We're educating ourselves.
That which seemed so confusing is becoming a little clearer every day.

We've learned to read lables and know every single carb that goes into our bodies. Jennifer and I have taken on making sure he gets the right carb count every three hours.

Tom is the main needle handler but I do my share.
Jennifer is in training.

We're all eating less sugar. Jennifer made these great 15 carb treats for Pipers's birthday instead of cake. They weren't a great hit but we're figuring it all out.

I was shocked to see this picture. It really makes you see the difference in their sizes. Our Jack on the right is only five months older than our new guy on the left. Lily was two in June.