Insulin Pump & the Pumpkin Patch (#TheSundayPost)

The Latest in my Life ☀️

It’s been a busy but fun week. I’ve been off work and I’m finally feeling better after the flu wiped me out. I spent the first few days at home catching up with chores, reading and watching films with my family. Then I got my hair cut and coloured on Tuesday, which has made me feel human again. I also made it to choir on Wednesday after missing last week.

My daughter’s new Omnipod

Thursday was a big day for us as my daughter was fitted with her first insulin pump-the Omnipod DASH.

This wireless pod is filled with insulin using a vial and syringe, then attached under her skin with a tiny cannula. Although we will need to change it every 3 days, she will no longer need to have 4+ injections a day, which is much better for her. Instead, we can control everything with a click of a button on the Omnipod handset.

There’s a lot to learn as it has so many settings, but it’s going to make a huge difference to our lives. It means we have greater flexibility, for example, she will be able to have snacks whenever she likes, change her mind about what she’s eating, easily reduce insulin when she’s active, etc. It should also give her more stable glucose levels long-term and reduce her risk of complications later in life.

She now has 2 bluetooth medical devices attached to her 24/7 as she still has her Dexcom G6 to measure her blood glucose. She’s truly a bionic girl! We are very proud of her for how brave she has been.

We are also very grateful to the NHS for this amazing, life-changing device.

She was very excited at dinner when she was waiting for her injection, only to realise we had already given insulin via the pod, and said “It’s like I don’t even have diabetes at all!” We had a family game night to celebrate.

Bell’s Pumpkin Patch

We visited our local pumpkin patch on Friday at Bell’s Nursery in Benington. It seems to get bigger and better every year. They had a maize maze, traditional fair rides, food and craft stalls, pumpkin carving station, pumpkin canon, kids space hoppers, hay bales to climb and lots of props set up for photo opportunities. We ran into some close friends there and the kids spent a long time playing in the hay and jumping in muddy puddles. My daughter was covered in mud and hay but had the best time.

We bought about 5 pumpkins, which I’m looking forward to painting, carving and making soup and pie out of!

Unfortunately, while my husband was playing with the kids and letting them cover him with hay, some of his things fell out of his pocket. He didn’t notice until he got home and realised that his mobile phone, credit card and driver’s license were all missing! We rang the pumpkin patch and luckily the credit card and driver’s license were handed in the next day. We went to pick them up this morning and my husband went looking for his phone. He could hear it ringing and finally found it covered in mud, hay and rainwater! The screen has a few more cracks, but other than that it seems to be working fine!

My Husband’s Birthday

It was my husband’s 43rd birthday yesterday and we had a quiet day at home. My daughter helped me put up some balloons and banners the night before. I made him a fry up for breakfast, then we watched a movie with popcorn and nachos in the afternoon after he opened his cards and presents. We also had an Indian takeaway for dinner and watched his new Bullet Train DVD after the little one had gone to bed.

Today, we went to my in-law’s for Sunday dinner and he had his birthday cake. I showed my mum-in-law how to use my daughter’s pump and they told us all about their holiday to Cyprus.

Blogging

Here’s what I posted since last time:

• Happy Halloween #WednesdayHodgePodge

Reading 📖

I finished The Invisible Life of Addie La Rue by V E Schwab this week. I loved it and kept staying up until 2 am to read “just one more chapter”. It’s a beautiful and haunting Faustian story with lots of references to art, music and philosophy. It took me on an emotional rollercoaster and made me really think about the nature of life, death, love and memory. 5 stars! I must read some more V E Schwab books. Any recommendations?

“France, 1714: in a moment of desperation, a young woman makes a Faustian bargain to live forever-and is cursed to be forgotten by everyone she meets.

Thus begins the extraordinary life of Addie LaRue, and a dazzling adventure that will play out across centuries and continents, across history and art, as a young woman learns how far she will go to leave her mark on the world.

But everything changes when, after nearly 300 years, Addie stumbles across a young man in a hidden bookstore, and he remembers her name.”

Watching and Listening 📺

• I’m still enjoying The Orville on Star (Disney+) but my sister has told me to get a move on and watch season 2 so we can talk about episode 6 which is, apparently, “everything”.
• I introduced my daughter to Bear and the Big Blue House on Disney+ (also on my sister’s recommendation) and it brought back so many memories of watching it with my little sis. Such a sweet show and the the songs are great.
• Loved Bullet Train-it was the second time I watched it and the first for my husband. He loved it as much as I did. It’s got some dark humour, exciting action scenes and a twisty and unpredictable plot. A cameo from a certain actor at the end made me laugh out loud. One to watch if you enjoy things like The Boys and Deadpool.

Singing 🎵

I was back at choir this week after being off ill. We were practising some new songs for our Christmas concerts. There are a few I don’t know, with tricky harmonies, but I’m excited for the challenge.

Now I’ve just got to sort out a sparkly outfit to wear. Everything I’ve ordered so far has not fit me. This is definitely the fault of careless clothing manufacturers and absolutely nothing to do with my after dinner chocolate habit.

Our next “gig” is at Boston Stump (St. Botolph’s Church, Lincs) on Thursday 24th November at 6:30pm, the same night as the Christmas market and Illuminate parade. Please drop in and see us if you’re in town for the festivities.

Quote of the Week 💬

How was your week? Have you read anything by V E Schwab? Have you done any fun autumn or Halloween activities? Watched, read or listened to anything interesting this week? Let me know in the comments!