The Dresses So far...

So here is Anna's dress so far. I have been really happy with how they are coming out. There will be a bow in the front of the dress made out of the ribbon.
This is the bottom of the dress. The ribbon is actually going to be peeking out from the bottom of the dress.

The sleeves were a challenge for me. I have never put in sleeves or a zipper before. My mom was gracious enough to come and sit by me and tell me how to do it. I did all the work, but she walked me through it.

I am very excited about these dresses. Abby's is coming along too. I have not done her sleeves yet, but it will be finished soon after Anna's. I tried to put a pocket in Anna's just incase we got an insulin pump before Christmas (not going to happen). The pocket wasn't going as well as I had hoped. Not to mention, while sniping a string from the pocket, I also sniped the skirt in two different places. And of course the piece I sniped was the largest piece of the skirt!! So, I had to rip everything apart and basically start again. I hadn't gotten very far, but it was still frustrating. I took a couple of days off from the dresses before getting back to work on them. Then I realized, because of my stupid mistake, I was short on fabric for Abby's dress. Luckily the store still had the same bolt of fabric (which I actually kind of think is drapery liner!). I just can't believe that they look like I had visioned, and they are most likely going to be done it time for Christmas!!!! So we are off to the mall tomorrow to buy full, twirly slips to wear under the dresses and maybe some cute ballet slipper shoes.

Is 2009 over yet? Let's go out with a bang!!

So, Not to throw myself a pity party, but we have had a tough year. From a car being stolen out the driveway, broken arm, and now diabetes, I have never been more ready for football season to be over!! But Klein keeps winning! GO KLEIN!!! The Lord sure picked a year that is keeping us busy! Klein went into the playoffs, I think in 4th place in district. Now, 6 weeks later, we have made it to the semi-finals!!! Go Klein!! It really is an amazing thing. We won the quarter finals today against Tyler, John Tyler with a score of 31-7~ Who would have thought?!?!? The Bearkats have definetley proven themselves as a team to wrecken with! Of course, this means Joel is still working 7 days a week and traveling on the weekends. We miss our Daddy! When I told Anna today that Daddy's team was winning she was so excited! That is until I told her that he will have another game next weekend. Then she changed her mind and said she was ready for Daddy to be at home! So, for the Reichling Girls, it's kind of a bittersweet celebration. We love our Daddy, but with only 2 more games left, Let's take it all the way! We play Abilene on Saturday at Baylor Stadium at 2 pm. Then if we win that game, it's on to the State Championship Game! (Which is also the day I turn full term!) So say a prayer that the baby can wait till after football! I would hate for Joel to have to miss either the game or the birth of his child! I am ready to end 2009, but let's go out with a win!

Me and My Big Ideas!!!

Ok, so I don't know exactly what I am thinking, but I have decided to try and make the girls Christmas dresses. Yes, it is already December 3rd, and hopefully before Christmas, I will be having a baby. But what the heck ~ Joel is still in Football, so I have my nights to myself. We will see if I can pull it off. I chose colors that would work for Easter too, just in case. They are going to be hot pink and green. I am really excited about how they look in my head, we will see if that is how they come out! I am using the pattern of the black and white dress, but tweaking it just a little. I have never been one to follow the rules exactly. I always have to put my little spin on it. So why am I blogging about it instead of actually sewing?? Good question! But I hoping that I can get more into this blogging thing, even if no one reads it, for my kids! I think it will be fun for them to read later. Alright, no more procrastinating! I am off to make dinner and work more on the dresses!

The Princess with the Crooked Tiara

Just thought I would add some picture of Abby. Anna's will come soon.

Whew!

So, as it turns out, I am horrible at this blogging thing. When do people have time to sit and write??? Sorry about the absence.

We have been doing great. It's hard to believe that Anna was diagnosed a month ago! In the past month I have discovered that Anna is a lot tougher than I ever gave her credit for. She doesn't cry for the shots anymore (3 a day). Every time we get ready to give her a shot, she will say, "Ok, Can you do it softly, gently and fast?" Every single time. I think it's all about the routine. I have only had one night that I had to wake her up to eat something. She was 59 at 5 am one morning. I think it was due to the fact that she went swimming on Thanksgiving. Yes, I know, who in their right mind would want to swim in 60 degree weather. All it took was for Anna to bat her eyes at Grandpa and say please and he heated the pool for her.

Yesterday Mom and I went down to Texas Children's Hospital for a class on how to use a sliding scale for her insulin dosages. Now we can eat what we want and give insulin to cover it. Before we were on a set amount of insulin and had to make sure to eat the set amount of carbs to cover the insulin. I am hoping it will be easier, but we shall see! I have always loved math equations, but never thought I would have to work math problems to figure out how much insulin to give my daughter before every meal! The next step is to get on the pump. Anna will wear the pump at all times and it will administer the insulin. More on that later! We should get one after the first of the year.

As for everyone else in the family...

Joel is heading to round 4 of the Playoffs this weekend in Waco. They have made it to the quarter finals! Go Klein!

Abby is my princess with a crooked tiara. She loves her sister and runs and hides every time Anna has to get a shot. A couple of times she has tried to hold Anna's hand during the shot, but as soon as I get close to Anna with the syringe, Abby runs behind the couch. And every time, she comes back and says, "Nana shot, Abby - No shot" She was tested for a growth hormone deficency about 2 weeks ago. The results came back okay, but they were concerned that her carbon dioxide levels were too low. It could just be because she was screaming her head off when they took her blood, but now they want to do a urine sample just to be sure. Seriously?!?

And for me, I have a whole new list of reasons I am thankful, and a new pet peeve list. I am reading this book, "Think like a Pancreas." It is so good. It gives all kinds of good information including the history of Diabetes. Only 100 years ago, the life expectancy of some one diagnosed with type one was 1 to 4 years. I almost started crying when I read that. I am so thankful that we live in a time of modern medicine. Diabetes has gone from a slow painful death sentence, to something that is totally manageable. THANK YOU, LORD! As for the pet peeves, it basically all boils done to the this - There is a difference between the 2 types of diabetes. Type 1, also known as Juvenile Diabetes, is caused by a virus that attacks your beta cells that make insulin (in your pancreas). This virus kills those cells and the body will never again make insulin. There is no cure. No diet, or exercise will make her body make insulin again. This is why she will have to have a pump or shots forever. So, what is the pet peeve you ask?? I have had read an article in the paper and seen a clip on a talk show about diabetes that referenced diet and exercise can control your diabetes. While it is true that everyone needs to follow a healthy living style, they need to clarify that they are talking about Type 2 diabetes that can be controlled with diet and exercise. I guess it's a pet peeve because it eludes to the fact that maybe I don't exercise my child enough, or give her the proper nutrition she needs.

Well, I think that is an ear full for now! I will try to write more often, even if it isn't a whole novel at once! Thank you everyone for your sweet words and prayers. I still need them and couldn't do this without them!

"Mommy, I think I am going to have a good day today!"

Well, it's only 11:00am and we are having a great day! Anna woke up this morning and looked at me and said, "Mommy, I think I am going to have a good day today!" Last night all of Anna's levels are back to normal (except for blood sugar, which will constantly be changing). So, they turned off the IV machine. Anna slept great all night. She didn't even wake up when the nurse came in to check her blood sugar at 2am. This morning I did my first finger prick (for blood sugar) and gave the insulin shot. Anna said I did a good job. The hardest thing today has been taking out the IV's. They were each taped and boarded to her arm or hand. Pulling all the tape off was probably just as bad as getting the IV's. She screamed and screamed. She also had 6 electrode pads on her chest and tummy, one on each arm and one on each ankle. I told her we should just take them all of at once. She protested, but agreed. After we got them all off, I gave Anna a bath. So now she is in her normal clothes, with no tubes or monitors. And we have use of our hands again! The first thing she wanted to do was play with the Barbie that Aunt Jill brought last night. Thanks, Aunt Jill!

As for me, I cried with her after I gave her shot this morning. I have a lot of reading to do today. The doctors gave us a packet of papers that we have to read twice before tomorrow. It tells us all about how to take care of Anna. Then tomorrow morning we will attend a class that is about 3 hours long, where they will make sure we understand everything. Then hopefully we will get to come home. Joel's parents are coming in tonight to see Anna and attend the class, as well as my parents and Aunt Jill.

It's going to be a crazy day! We have people coming in and out all the time. I think 4 different people (social workers, diabetes specialist, doctors...) came in while I was trying to give Anna her bath!

Now it's 3:30pm and I am just now getting back to my computer! After her bath, we had Jennifer, Nicole, Valerie and Kristin all come to visit (some of good friends and mom's of Anna's friends)! Now she is on a walk with Grandma so I can have a break. She is doing awesome! Anna is totally back to being herself. Thanks again everyone for all the kind words and prayers. We feel very loved.

Life's New Challenge

I don't even know where to start. Here is our story of the last 24 hours.

Joel and I had noticed that Anna was going to the bathroom alot and had this unquenchable thirst. It has been going on for a couple of weeks, but the last couple of days we noticed that she just wasn't herself. She was really quiet and sad looking. We also started to notice that we was losing weight. Tuesday after school I asked one of her teachers if they had noticed anything different about her. She said that she thought she seemed kinda sad. That's when I decided that would call her doctor and make an appointment. My mom had Abby so we were on our way to have lunch with her when I spoke with her Dr. and made her appointment for 3pm. Anna didn't want to eat much at Chic-fil-a and didn't want to play. She looked horrible, very pale and sad. Right before we were going to leave, Anna threw up all over the place. I left Abby with Mom and ran home with Anna to get clothes and then head to the dr. early. We got there just before 2 and by this time she was in and out of sleep and had thrown up again. The Dr. immediately took us back. As it turns out, she had glucose in her urine and her blood sugar level was 433. It's supposed to be between 80 and 120. I called Joel and filled him in on what was going on and for him to meet us at the hospital. I also called a good friend Dana, who is a diabetic and was so sweet to come and walk us through everything. They sent us immediately to St. Lukes Er in The Woodlands were they got her stable. By that I mean they started her on fluids and gave a little insulin. The whole time this is going on, every time we went into a new place, Anna was looking for where to get a drink. "Mommy, there is a sink over there if we run out of water. We can get more from there." Having such a high blood sugar level makes you very thirsty. Then we had a ride by Ambulance down to Texas Children's Hospital. Her blood sugar was 410 in the ambulance. Anna had to have one more IV put in, which took 3 tries by the nurse because she was so frail and dehydrated. I was promising her anything she wanted! Her requests were 1) sparkly nail polish, 2)sparkly lipstick, and 3) a Sleeping Beauty dress. Of course I told her she could have anything she wanted. We were there for about 2 hours, and then we were moved to the ICU. She was put on an insulin drip for the night to slowly bring her blood sugar back down. This morning her blood sugar was at 117. She got to have pancakes for breakfast, which brought a smile! Now we have to wait to be moved upstairs to a room. They have discontiuned the insulin drip and now we are doing insulin shots. She will need them twice daily now and maybe more later. Hopefully we will get to go home on Friday.

Whew, It's been a long 24 hours, but I am glad that things are hopefully going to get better. Anna really wants to go home and see Abby. It is so hard watching your baby going through this. I hate seeing all the tubes and stickers on her. but we are told that as soon as we move rooms, some of that stuff gets to come off. Thank you so much for your prayers and phone calls. We are doing good at the moment. I will try and keep everyone updated, but hopefully there won't be much more to write about.

Dana shared this verse with me and it has helped more than words can say. Thank you, Dana!

As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. And his disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents that he was born blind?" Jesus answered, "It was not that this man sinned, or his parents but that the works of God might be displayed in him." Another version says so that "the glory of the Lord might be displayed in his life". John 9:1-3

Ginny Owens

I am a huge Ginny Owens fan.  I love her music, but more than that, I love how I feel as though she has peeked into my life a written a song just for me.  Of course, that's not the case, but I like to think that we are that close.  

I still remember the first song of hers that I heard.  I was in college, and for me, college was not at all what I hoped for or expected.  It was a very difficult time in my life.  I can remember feeling so alone and in a valley.  I was driving home late one night from work, wondering why things were going the way they were.  Was it ever going to get easier?  Was I going to find my joy again?  Then, the song "If you want me to," by Ginny Owens came on.  I turned it up as loud as it would go and cried along with the song.  

"The path way is broken, and signs are unclear.

And I don't know the reason why you brought me hear.

But just because you love me the way that you do,

I will go through the valley, If you want me to."

That was exactly how I was feeling.  Not bitter at circumstances, but confused.  Not resentful, but lost.  Where was I supposed to be?  Why did I feel so alone??  But if that was want God wanted me to go through to really, truly, find Him, fall in love with Him again, I would do it.   For the simple reason that He loves me, adores me and truly cares for me.  Of course things brightened up in my life my last year of college.  I had incredible roommates, one who was my best friend from highschool.  Melissa, I love you!  And I started to figure out who I was again.  I only hate that I hurt people along the way.

But, lets get back to Ginny Owens...  So I started going to every single concert that was in town.  I invited my friends to go with me.  One friend in particular also loved the song, "if you want me to."  Her oldest of 6 children had been diagnosed with cancer.  I can remember sitting next to her at the concert me, her and 2 of her sisters, and another good friend of mine.  We all were bawling.  The five of us continued to go to every concert.  At one concert, the sisters decided to find Ginny after the concert and tell her how much we loved her.  We walked up and down this hall way looking for her.  The funniest part was one of the sisters started calling out Ginny's name like we knew her!! I just know that she was hiding from us in some room with a friend, scared of the crazy ladies calling her name.  

My other favorite Ginny Owens moment was when I saw her in Houston.  I have only seen her in concert once since college.  It was at a Chic-fil-a Brown Bag concert.  I was so excited!!  During the performace, Ginny played a new song on a guitar.  She said that she was still learning and to be patient with her.  Well, after the concert, I went to go buy her new cd and a t-shirt.  I stood in line waiting for my moment to come face to face with her (this will have been the closest I have come to her).  I handed her my cd for her to sign and stood there like an idiot.  I kept telling myself, "say something!!"  See, Ginny is blind and is one of the most talented piano players I know.  So, I didn't want to come off as a pysco and tell her that I chased her down a hall way.  I simply told her that I thought we was a great guitar player! She smiled and said that I was her new best friend!! 

Still Figuring It Out!!

I consider myself to be pretty computer savy, but this blog stuff is taking me a while!!  how the heck do I upload a picture? How do I upload music??  I will figure this out.  Wait...  Is that a picture icon at the top of this!!!!!  Is that how I do it???  YES!!!  By Golly it is!!  I knew I was smart.  

Now how do I get the music?????

The Title

So, I am sure you have questions about the title.  

I have this great group of friends and we get together the first Monday of every month and sit around and talk.  Sometimes we make it pot luck, sometimes we bring take out.  We play games and just get to know each other.  LOTS of things have been revealed about everyone over the 2 years that this has been going on.  I have revealed my own thoughts and experiences and my good friend, Jennifer, has a favorite.  One night we were talking about Chocolate, which is almost every girls comfort food.  Everyone that is, except me.  I ended up saying that night that Broccoli is my Chocolate.  I love Veggies.  But don't be fooled.  I am NOT a health nut.  I love to smoother my veggies in Ranch, Cheese, or whatever dip/sauce I can find!