Thursday, July 24, 2008

Team Kat-Walk invites you....

Hello Family and Friends,

I am writing to ask for your help.

This year we will be walking in our local Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation Walk to Cure Diabetes on October 5, 2008 (Kathleen’s 16th Birthday!) in Niantic, CT along with one-half million other walkers across the country, as we try to reach our goal of raising $100 million.

As most of you know, in March of this year our lives were forever changed when Kathleen was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. In just four months she has been through a lot and has shown amazing strength though it all. Each day she tests her blood sugar levels at least four times and receives three insulin injections. She HATES needles and is anxiously awaiting approval of an insulin pump. While insulin keeps her diabetes in check, it is NOT a CURE! Without insulin a person with type 1 diabetes will die.

Type 1, or juvenile, diabetes, is a devastating disease that affects millions of people, with a large and growing percentage of them children. To see what a day in the life of diabetes is like, you can watch this video made by a parent of a child with diabetes. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1tiIcHfeMc

There is some good news, though. For the first time, scientists are predicting that we CAN expect to see a cure well within our lifetime! Now, more than ever, you can make a crucial difference. Won't you please give to JDRF as generously as possible? Together, we can make the cure a reality! Until then, Kathleen lives with this disease every day and we will do everything we can to support her.

You can donate the following ways:
Option 1: via our website http://walk.jdrf.org/walker.cfm?id=87051577
Option 2: by check to me (I will add your donation to the tally on the website. Please do not send donations directly to JDRF.)
Or, if you would like to join our team and help fundraise, visit our website and click on JOIN THIS TEAM. I guarantee we will have a great time walking "on the Kat-Walk." (couldn't resist!)

Thank you from the bottom of our pancreases!
Denise, Randy, Kathleen and Shelby

P.S. For more information on type 1 diabetes visit this link:
http://lastbraincell.blogspot.com/2008/04/4-14-2008-type-1-diabetes-awareness-day.html

Just SOME of Kathleen's diabetes supplies - about 1 month's worth:

Wednesday, July 23, 2008

We Spy...ourselves!

A Yahoo Group I belong to has started a new blog called Shutterbug Spies http://shutterbugspies.blogspot.com/ where a challenge is posted each Wednesday and we, the members, take pictures pertaining the that challenge and post them on the blog. Everyone else who wants to participate can post their pics to their blogs and link them in the comments.

I missed the deadline for this challenge. This picture was take a couple weeks ago on a friend's boat. Kathleen took it - I'm used to being behind the camera - not in front of it! I edited it in Photoshop Express.

Make sure you check it out and add your own photos to ours! Here's to a fun blog with lots of interesting photos!

Friday, July 11, 2008

Five-star knitting

This is my latest sock project. My goal this summer is to knit all my sock yarn (so I can buy more!). In the (read: my) world of sock knitting there are varying degrees of difficulty: multiple needles, one circular needle, stockinette stitch, patterns, thick yarn, thin yarn, etc.

Although some may look at these socks as no big deal for them, they are my "Five-star highest degree of difficulty" yet socks. The yarn is 'Magic Stripes' which (duh) 'magically makes stripes' as you knit. The higher degree of difficulty here is that I have made the stripes MATCH for both socks. Also, they are knitted from the toe-up, rather than cuff-down; they have a short-row heel (not a skill I have mastered), rather than a gussetted heel; and they are both knitted on one circular needle at the same time. WooHoo for me!

If you don't knit this may all sound quite foreign to you and you just may well be saying big deal. Well, the approval-seeking side of me just wanted to let you all know that for me, it is.

Tuesday, July 01, 2008

Life's a Beach...or not

I love the beach. The sand, water, smell...everything about it (except the extreme 2nd degree burn I received 6 days ago that still is blistering and in searing pain!). Shelby and I could go to the beach or lake everyday. Some days though the work involved makes me wonder if it's worth it and especially now the $4+/gallon of gas to get there and back is a pain in the a$$.

So, for the past few days we've been toying with the idea of getting a pool. We even went as far as taking a short trip to a local dealer who stocks and installs above- and in-ground pools. Let me tell ya, they are nice...real nice...especially when you're looking at them on a hot day like we were. The low end of the price range wasn't too far out of control, but after 24 hours of consideration we decided that buying a permanent pool isn't for us this year for many reasons.

First of all...$$$. We have other things that kind of money can go towards before a pool. Besides the cost of the pool there's the cost of having it filled, chemicals, electricity, new fence, etc. Next consideration, the time of year. By the time we get the town involved, schedule the install and replace the fence it will be August. That leaves one month to enjoy it. Nah, we'll wait til next spring and if we still want one we'll be able to enjoy it all summer.

Instead we went to WalMart and bought one like this. Not so large that the town will take any interest in it but not so small that we can't all jump in with a few friends and cool off. Shelby is such a water baby I won't be able to ever get her out of it. We will get our money's worth in no time with her alone. Crap, just the lack of "I'm bored"s will be enough to send me into fits of giggles each time I look at it.

I admit, too, that Randy was swayed into the purchase by the promise of a few late-night skinny-dips. I already have a few excuses on hand just in case I decide not to follow through ('water's too cold,' 'too many mosquitos,' 'neighbors might see,' as well as the standard 'too tired' and 'got a headache'). If I don't let him cash in, though, that may kill the idea of a permanent pool next year. Damn. I need a "Plan B."

P.S. I had to edit this because my friend Tara thought this was our actual pool and wondered who these people are. Disclaimer: I do not know these people and this is NOT my backyard. THIS is an ad from the WalMart website. Which is probably copyrighted so now I'll be sued. Thanks, Tara.