One of the most frequently asked questions I get about Mackenna’s diabetes is whether or not she can eat certain things.  How have you had to adjust her diet?  What kinds of things can she eat?  Can she have birthday cake?

And can I just say how much I appreciate the questions?  I love that you have chosen to ask, rather than assume you know.  There are no dumb questions.  About what she can eat, or about anything at all diabetes-related.  It means you care.  It means you know that you might not know.  So ask away!  One more person educated correctly means one less person who may make an ignorant and hurtful comment!

The answer is YES!  Yes, she can eat that!  Whatever it is you are asking about, the answer is yes.  Birthday cake, yes.  Candy, yes.  Regular soda, yes.  Italian food, Mexican food, greasy cheeseburgers, yes yes yes.

Is it bad for her because she has type 1 diabetes?  No.  If it’s an unhealthy food you’re asking about, then it’s bad for her just like it’s bad for everyone else!  Mackenna’s dinner is the same as her brothers’ dinners.  Her plate at a birthday party looks the same as the plates of the other party guests.

Diabetes makes meals complicated…not restricted.  We have a few more steps to take care of before she can start in on that birthday cake, but she will definitely have it.

Halloween was two days ago.  We went trick-or-treating.  We have buckets full of candy.  Mackenna will eat it, in moderation, along with the rest of us.  And there’s actually a very good possibility that one of those fun-sized candies could save her life.  Managing diabetes is a very delicate balancing act and sometimes we get it wrong, and sometimes diabetes just plays dirty.  And in those moments, it’s imperative to have something…a couple of Starbursts or a handful of Skittles to save the day.  Literally…SAVE the day.  So yes, she can eat that…and there are times when her life actually depends upon her eating that.

(I learned a few years back that if I wanted cute photos of my kids in their Halloween costumes, I couldn’t wait until Halloween.  We took these photos a week beforehand and I’m so glad we did!)

November is National Diabetes Month.

When Mackenna was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in 2013, my list of life goals grew by two.

  1. Learn how to manage her diabetes well, and teach her to do the same, so that she can live a long and healthy life.
  2. Educate anyone who will listen about the truth of type 1 diabetes.

There’s a movie in the theaters right now that references diabetes being caused by eating too much sugar.  Wrong.

I have cringed many times while watching TV after hearing a diabetes reference that was just so incorrect.  Ignorant.

I have a lovely friend who is currently educating staff from a chain of movie theaters because her son with type 1 diabetes was not allowed to bring sugar in the form of candy into the theater.  They didn’t know that sugar, for someone with type 1 diabetes, is a medical necessity.

And this week I read a story about a kindergartner who was told by a parent at his class Halloween party that he can’t have juice because he has diabetes.  Wrong.  And to make it worse, when the boy’s mother tried to correct the parent, that ignorant parent told that little boy’s mom that if she lets him have all that sugar, he’s going to end up with his legs amputated!  What?!

See why that second goal is so important?  Not being in the KNOW about a medical condition makes you say and do things that are not only incorrect, but have the potential to scare a child or hurt someone’s feelings.  Living with type 1 diabetes is hard enough.  Ignorance makes it a whole lot harder.

So as I share throughout the month on the blog and on my facebook page, will you do me a favor?  Will you keep an open mind?  Will you consider the idea that perhaps what you know about diabetes isn’t accurate?  Will you learn something new?  Do it for that little boy.  Do it for Mackenna.

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It was so fun hanging out with the J Family a few weekends ago!  They’ve grown in number since the last time I photographed them, and that little boy is loved like crazy by his big sisters!  The gorgeous apple orchard setting, all their beautiful red hair, and our chats about Disney made for a perfect morning.

We got some great shots of these guys!

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Can I tell you a secret though?

I know that grandmas love the everyone-smiling-and-looking-at-the-camera photos.  And I know that those kinds of photos make great Christmas cards.

But secretly, I love the more candid shots.  The ones that show emotion, personality, relationship.  The ones that tell a story.  The ones that take you back to that moment…

See what I mean?!  I bet you smiled a teeny bit wider when you scrolled through those last images.  Am I right?

I met this little guy when he was just an itty bitty.  He was the first newborn I ever photographed, aside from my own, back in 2011.  And now he’s almost four, so inquisitive, so smart, so sweet, so cute!  He even has a super power now…he can make himself disappear and reappear instantly!  IT’s quite amazing to witness!  😉  I’ve photographed Mr. O five times now and it was just so fun to get to know him at this age.  Lucky for me, this winter I’ll also get to see him as a big brother!  I wonder what kind of super power his little brother will have…

 

I’m so blessed to call these guys our friends!  As I think about what to write here, I keep thinking about that song, “Make new friends, but keep the old.  One is silver and the other gold.”  We have been friends for four years, so a fairly new friendship compared to how old we are…but it seems like we’ve been friends for much longer.  And I KNOW that we’ll be friends for a long time.  So I’m not sure if that makes us silver or gold.  Let’s say gold because gold is more valuable.  😉

They are some of my favorite people ever, especially that beautiful mama!  She’s the kind of friend you can always count on to remember the important things…like your standard Starbucks order.  Because she’s also the kind of friend who will find you sitting in your car in a parking lot (because your toddler fell asleep and you are NOT going to wake him up because…well because, just, no) and deliver Starbucks and donuts.  To your car.  In the parking lot.  If you get a text from her asking, “Where are you right now?” do not ignore it!  :)

But she’s also the kind of friend who says she’s praying for you, and you know that she actually is.  The kind of friend who pours into your kids.  The kind of friend who notices new shoes, does not mind hanging out with you even if it’s been an embarrassing amount of time since your last shower, and counts carbs for your t1d warrior so you don’t have to.  I am a lucky lady to have her in my life.

But enough of the mush…look at their beautiful family!

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