About Me

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i am a stay-at-home mom living, learning and loving by the bay!I love to take pictures. I love to crochet cozy things for my family and friends.

April 28, 2011

outdoors



Most of Easter Sunday was spent at the park.
We flew a kite, painted on canvases and listened to some great tunes.
It was a lovely afternoon.



Goose, Binky and I have been house- and dog-sitting for my mom all week.
We like to walk to the waterfront and check out all the birds.
I knew there would be some baby birds.  There always are this time year!
We were lucky enough to find lots of goslings!



This little one walked right up to us!
His mom was not to thrilled with the idea, though. 
She circled him back to his siblings.





We spent almost an hour just watching them.



The Martinez Shoreline is very pretty.
There's a train station, antique shops and a marina as well.
It's a nice change from the hustle and bustle of our neighborhood.
Tomorrow we will visit John Muir's home here in Martinez.
Did you know that Martinez is the birthplace of the famous cocktail, the Martini?
You can read about it here.
Just a little local history for you!





April 22, 2011

petals

petals by Lisa Crowe
petals, a photo by Lisa Crowe on Flickr.

I found this flower on our morning walk yesterday. It said, "Take my picture!!!"

Happy Weekend!

April 20, 2011

flowers and kittens





Yesterday we went for a walk down by the Berkeley Marina.
It was cold and windy but oh so pretty!
There were flowers everywhere.
Goose had so much fun making this boquet.



One of the feral cats that lives behind our house had kittens a couple of weeks ago.
Goose and Binky are madly in love with all four of them!
We visit them each day.
I want them to come to us so we can spay and neuter them.
The mom and her siblings will not come near us, even though we've been feeding them for years.
So I'm hoping I can at least keep this generation from having more kittens.






They really are adorable.
I have already made it clear that we will NOT be bringing any of these kittens into our home!
Goose and Binky have started kitten journals to keep track of their growth and daily antics.
Binky gets to name this litter of kittens since Goose named the last one.
He wants to wait until they are a little older so he can see their personalities before naming them.
I like that idea!


April 15, 2011

decorate an egg with yarn



All you need is what you see here!
Yarn, an egg, and glue.




Add some glue and begin wrapping your egg.
I started at the bottom.




Keep wrapping...





You are done!
What a pretty egg you've made!




Now you can display your egg for all to admire!

I only had two wooden eggs for this craft.
But it was so fun and easy I may have to pick up some more today!
We are still trying to get back to some sense of normalcy around here.
Day by day.
 This weekend is filled with birthday parties, magic shows,
yard work and lots of sewing.
I'll fill you in on the sewing details a little later!
Happy Weekend!

April 14, 2011

Test Results


Yesterday we found out that Goose does NOT have 
diabetes!!!!!!!
We are so relieved, to say the least!
It was a long waiting period, but
now we can move on with life and get back to our
normal lives.  Well, you know what I mean.
Normal for us!!
THANK YOU for all your support and caring thoughts and wishes!
They really meant a lot!

April 11, 2011

weekend crafting with Goose


a spring book



a doily bowl with fabric stiffener



more doilies



spring button frame



and painting on canvas.

Happy Monday!

April 7, 2011

s p r i n g





Spring is in the air at our house today!
Goose and I decorated some wooden eggs with tissue
paper, fabric and paint.
Crafting while you are sick takes your mind off things!
Aren't they pretty?
I think I'll pick up some more eggs this weekend to decorate.

Goose update
Well, last night there was more wheezing in her lungs
and she was working hard to breathe again.
So off to the ER we went!
A dose of albuterol stopped the wheezing.
After a couple of hours of observation
we were able to go home.  This time with a prescription for albuterol
and antibiotics for a sinus infection in hand.
I hate having to give her all these medications.
I prefer natural remedies, especially for the kids.
But when it comes to breathing, I don't take chances.
I am going to make her an appointment with the osteopath to help
with the healing process.  An osteopath uses very gentle bone manipulation
to help  heal the body.  Binky saw a wonderful osteopath when he had asthma.
Within a year we were off all meds, albuterol, Qvar and steroids, and haven't needed them since!
I am exhausted!  But I am looking forward to happy,
healthy days ahead!



April 6, 2011

solar puzzle plane




Have you ever tried to put one of these together?
It's a little tricky, even for an almost 9 year old.
But once you get it together and put it in the sun for a few minutes
the propeller starts turning!
It doesn't fly on its own, but it is fun to imagine.
Solar energy is so cool!

Goose update
She is sick!  She must have picked up a virus at the hospital.
Most likely the flu.
We spent 3 hours yesterday in the doctor's office just
to make sure nothing else was going on.
We are still waiting for the Colorado lab results.
But I did find out from the doctor that they think
the first lab test was wrong(the positive result.) 
So for now we wait and
focus on making Goose well again!

April 4, 2011

where to begin...

Where to begin...
Well, last Monday night, after martial arts class, Goose sounded terrible.
I could hear her wheezing without putting my ear to her chest.
So off to the ER we went.
Which we are lucky enough to live down the street from.
A Children's Hospital even!
So, after immediately hooking her up to albuterol, they take an x-ray.
She has never had asthma.
The pictures show a bacterial pneumonia!
Well, she isn't responding to the albuterol at all so
we are admitted to the hospital for the night.
At 2am we are transported, by ambulance(Goose thought this was cool), to the hospital's
satellite where they treat respiratory illnesses.
Thank goodness it is only a five minute drive!
Here's a history of what's been going on with Goose in the last several weeks.
She has had stomach trouble, headaches, and she has had some serious frequent urination.
Her doctor, who we visited twice in the last three weeks, said it was all stress.
So back to the hospital, they did a urine sample and the glucose levels were very high.
So they did a blood glucose test which came back very high.
So they did another blood test, a1c, it's called, which gives an average of her blood glucose levels for the past 2-3 months.  It came back showing that Goose was type 1 diabetic.
Well this was not what I was expecting, as you can imagine!
After Goose's breathing was under control we were taken back to the main hospital to meet
with the endocrinologists and prepare for taking home a diabetic child.
This meant two days of education, checking blood glucose levels ourselves and lots of questions!
Goose was scared!  But when she learned how to test herself and got her own insulin pen, she felt a lot better.  Now it looked like Goose was still in the early stages of type 1.  Which meant that her glucose levels were good again and that the pneumonia had caused her pancreas to work overtime which is why her glucose levels were so high.  Basically, that her immune system hadn't killed all of the insulin-producing cells quite yet.  Which is what happens with type 1.  You get sick, like a cold, the flu, or pneumonia, and your antibodies start killing all the "germs" in your body, like they are supposed to.
But, then they begin killing the islets that produce insulin and once they start, they never stop.
Eventually your pancreas loses the battle and completely stops making insulin.
So we were in the "honeymoon" phase of this disease.
There were still enough cells left for her to get by, for now.
We were the classic case as far as how it is usually diagnosed, the right age, the right symptoms and glucose levels.
Well, Thursday night another a1c blood test was done, which they always do before you leave the hospital.
The results were very odd!
They came back in the normal range.
Now, for a blood test that measures your average glucose levels for the past 2- 3 months, it isn't really possible to have such a discrepancy.  And it was a huge discrepancy!
The endocrinologist was shocked.  She fully expected it to be where it was the first time.
So they didn't know what to say, and Friday morning we were sent home.
The conclusion we came to was that one of those tests was done incorrectly.
And now we have to wait for the last blood tests to come back from Colorado
to give us the true diagnosis.  What those are looking for are 4 auto antibodies that would be present, and attacking her islets cells,  if she is indeed positive for type 1 diabetes.
And these results could be two weeks away!!!!!!!!!!
I am already going crazy waiting.
And my poor Goose!  She is scared, exhausted, not feeling well, and terrified that the results will be positive!
She doesn't want to be alone, not even for a minute.
I've had to sleep in her bed since we've been home.
I can only imagine what is going on in her head.  She is worried that her friends will treat her differently if she does have it.  She is worried she might get really sick.  And I don't have an answer for her!

There is so much to do at home, but I think what the kids and I need is to escape for a little while.
I am thinking maybe the zoo today. 
The weather is great and we deserve some fun!!