Monday, March 31, 2014

Dexcom G4 CGM for Type 1 Diabetes Review

I love the Dexcom G4 CGM! But I also am not the one with type 1 diabetes, or the one wearing it. It's my 9 year old daughter who is testing it and we've had some not so great moments with it. But the pros are outweighing the cons.

My daughters Dexcom is pink.

Madison was diagnosed 2 1/2 years ago with type 1 diabetes. Within 8 weeks we had her on an insulin pump, which made our lives easier (not great, but easier), with managing her type 1 diabetes. Last summer, I started to suggest that she try a continuous glucose monitor (CGM). She wasn't excited for several reasons:
  1. It's another attachment. My daughter is an insulin pump user, which requires an inset to be attached to her body so insulin can flow from the insulin pump into her body. The CGM sensor attaches to your body and then wirelessly sends your blood sugar readings to a device that interprets and shows them in graph format.
  2. With the Dexcom G4 CGM, you have another device to be responsible for. And they are pretty pricey to replace!
The reason I was pushing her to try it was because she started to experience loss of hypoglycemia sensitivity. She wasn't feeling her lows. A month ago, after having quite a few blood sugar lows of 60 and then one at 41 where she didn't feel the lows very well, she decided to give the Dexcom G4 Pediatric CGM a try.

Why we chose Dexcom G4 CGM:
I chose the Dexcom because it was a smaller and a less bulky attachment compared to the Medtronic CGM. It also had a separate receiver, allowing my husband and I to quickly see Madison's blood sugar readings. And from the reviews I had read, it was more accurate.

It arrived in three boxes. One box was the receiver. Another was the transmitter. And the third was four sensors.
 


Our positive and not so positive experience the first week:
  • The CGM sensor/transmitter attachment was a lot bigger and bulkier on my daughter than it was on the adult we saw it on. 
     
  • Having another attachment really was a downer for my daughter and I. She already had her insulin inset attached to her. This one took up so much space on her belly and made me sad that her baby skin was being pricked again.
     
  • First day blood sugar readings weren't accurate at all. I learned why. The CGM is reading bodily fluids and not blood sugar. As such, we have to teach it that what it reads for a bodily fluid number equals the blood sugar reading. It really is cool. In fact, on day two, the results were amazingly accurate and have been since.
  • On day two, my daughters sensor came off. We had it attached to an area just above her butt. It wasn't the best location, because I had attached it right where the top of her pants was. When she went to the bathroom, her pants got hooked on the sensor and ripped half of it off. The company replaced the sensor for us, which we were so happy about!
  • The 2nd sensor lasted us seven days! I loved it! But my daughter didn't.
    • First, why I loved it. It gave me accurate readings of her blood sugar, allowing me to prepare for her highs and lows. It also allowed us to not prick her fingers so much.
    • She loved the fact that it gave her more accurate blood sugar readings, but hated that she had another attachment. The spot on her belly bothered her. It got in the way when she was sitting and felt awkward. We also had to put another piece of adhesive on it to make sure it didn't come off this time. She said it really itched. When we took off the CGM sensor on day seven, she had a rash that looked like it was irritated.
  • It ended without allowing a grace period. I was so pissed! So, on day seven, the CGM sensor had reached it's life at 8:15 am - 45 minutes before we had to head to an all day fastpitch tournament. Later, I found out that it does give you an advance warning, which must have happened when we were all sleeping. Going back to 8:15 am.  I heard this beep coming from the CGM and then saw an image that looked like a red light / stop light. I pressed the button and it turned off. I was so pissed. We were heading out of the house to a softball tournament and the stupid thing ended. I called Dexcom. 45 minutes later they called me back. By that time, I had already changed my daughters sensor. Not without tears though. She shed a few tears because she needs a little more time than a few minutes to plan for stuff like this. She hates needles. She hates doing this. And removing the sensor attachment and putting another one one just wasn't something she was excited to do. But she did it at 8:55 am. Then we had to wait two hours before we got a blood sugar reading. Timing sucked. Exactly when her game started, the CGM receiver beeped asking us to enter two blood sugar readings. Thank heavens she was 5th at bat. We hurried and pricked her finger twice and then entered the blood sugar readings. From that moment on, the CGM was such a benefit. It gave us the most accurate blood sugar readings and we didn't have to prick her fingers during the tournament, except for lunch.
So, we are still in the testing period. As a mom, I love it because I don't have to prick her fingers as much and when she is running around, I get a quick snapshot if her blood sugar is starting to go down. But as a mom, I also hate it, because it covers a large part of her belly and she has to lug around a device so she can get a glimpse of her blood sugar results. She said this sensor attachment doesn't bother her as much. We put it higher so it doesn't interfere with her insulin pump fanny pack type bag. She also likes knowing her blood sugar more often.


Tiny Prints Graduation Announcements and Invitations

Wednesday, March 26, 2014

The Grimmtastic Girls $50 Book Blast Giveaway

About the Books: The Grimmtastic Girls

Book #1

Title: Grimmtastic Girls #1: Cinderella Stays Late | Authors: Joan Holub & Suzanne Williams | Publication Date: March 25, 2014 | Publisher: Scholastic Inc. | Pages: 192 | Recommended Ages: 8 to 12
Grimmtastic Girls: Cinderella Stays Late

Summary: The authors of the hit Goddess Girls series put a fun and girly twist on another super-popular theme: fairy tales! Once upon a time, in faraway Grimmlandia... A Grimmtastic girl named Cinderella is starting her first week at Grimm Academy on the wrong foot. Cinda's totally evil stepsisters are out to make her life miserable. The Steps tease Cinda, give her terrible advice about life at the academy, and even make her look bad in front of her new friends, Red, Snow, and Rapunzel! But when Cinda overhears the Steps plotting a villainous deed that could ruin Prince Awesome's ball, Cinda, her new friends, and a pair of magical glass slippers have to stop them--before the last stroke of midnight! AmazonGoodreads    

Book #2

Title: Grimmtastic Girls #2: Red Riding Hood Gets Lost | Authors: Joan Holub & Suzanne Williams | Publication Date: March 25, 2014 | Publisher: Scholastic Inc. | Pages: 192 | Recommended Ages: 8 to 12
Red Riding Hood Gets Lost

Summary: Red Riding Hood might have a terrible sense of direction, but her grimmtastic friends are always there to help! Once upon a time, in faraway Grimmlandia... Red Riding Hood is thrilled to try out for the school play. Acting is her dream, and she's great at it--too bad she has stage fright! After a grimmiserable audition, Red decides to focus on helping her friends Cinda, Snow, and Rapunzel save Grimm Academy from the E.V.I.L. Society. But when Red gets lost in Neverwood forest and runs into Wolfgang, who might be part of E.V.I.L., she needs her magic basket and a grimmazingly dramatic performance to figure out what's going on!

AmazonGoodreads    

About the Authors: Joan Holub & Suzanne Williams

Joan Holub  
Joan Holub has authored and/or illustrated more than 130 children's books, including Little Red Writing (illustrated by Caldecott Honoree Melissa Sweet) and Zero the Hero. She lives in NC and is online at www.joanholub.com

Twitter | Pinterest | Goodreads

    Suzanne Williams  
Suzanne Williams is the author of nearly 50 books for children, including the award-winning picture book Library Lil (illustrated by Steven Kellogg). She lives near Seattle, WA and is online at www.suzanne-williams.com

Author Blog | Goodreads

    Co-authors Joan and Suzanne have written the Goddess Girls, Heroes in Training, and Grimmtastic Girls series. Though they live in different states and hardly ever get to see each other, they spend lots of time together in Grimmlandia.

Facebook (Grimmtastic Girls) | Facebook (Goddess Girls Books)

Online Author Visits

 

$50 Book Blast Giveaway

Amazon $50 Gift Card
Prize: $50 Amazon Gift Card or PayPal cash (winner’s choice) Contest ends: April 23, 11:59 pm, 2014 Open: Internationally How to enter: Please enter using the Rafflecopter widget below. Terms and Conditions: NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. A winner will be randomly drawn through the Rafflecopter widget and will be contacted by email within 48 hours after the giveaway ends. The winner will then have 72 hours to respond. If the winner does not respond within 72 hours, a new draw will take place for a new winner. Odds of winning will vary depending on the number of eligible entries received. This contest is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Facebook. This giveaway is sponsored by the authors, Joan Holub & Suzanne Williams and is hosted and managed by Renee from Mother Daughter Book Reviews. If you have any additional questions – feel free to send and email to Renee(at)MotherDaughterBookReviews(dot)com.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

MDBR Book Promotion Services


Try the Brainzy educational games program FREE today!

Thursday, March 20, 2014

Maisy and the Missing Mice $25 Book Blast Giveaway

About the Book

Maisy and the Missing Mice

Title: Maisy and the Missing Mice (The Maisy Files) | Author: Elizabeth Woodrum | Publication Date: September 24, 2013 | Publisher: Independent | Pages: 75 | Recommended Ages: 6 to 10 Summary: Maisy Sawyer is not your average fourth grade student. She is a detective with a special skill for solving mysteries. She loves black and white mystery movies, cherry lollipops, and her dog, Reesie. When a thief known as The Black Boot steals the school's mascots and her lollipops, Maisy sets out to solve the case. Can she help return the mice to their home in the science lab? Will she ever see her beloved lollipops again? Find out in the first book in The Maisy Files series.      

Book Trailer

 

Purchase

Amazon | Createspace

* NOTE: Available for only 99 cents through Amazon. OR, you can receive 15% off the regular price of the print version of Maisy and the Missing Mice by visiting https://www.createspace.com/4368649 in the month of March and entering the code RXJN6DUZ upon checking out.  

The Buzz

"Woodrum certainly knows her target audience and does a very nice job with the character development of Maisy. This is an incredibly kid-friendly story that makes a great introduction to the genre of mystery for newly independent readers. It's a quick page turning read that encourages kids to think outside of the box." ~ The Children's Book Review
"My name is Kat. I am 9 years old. I would rate this a five because I like everything about it, the mystery the most. It was fun to read. My favorite part was the mystery and the end. I love this book so much. I think other kids would love it too because it has mystery and most kids would like mystery books. Most mystery books have a good mystery. I would love to read the whole series." ~ 5 Star Review, Heather A., Amazon
"I knew I would love this book simply because I knew it would remind me of the mystery books I read in my childhood. I really love how much trust the teachers and community as a whole put in Maisy. She is well deserving of their admiration as the way she finds clues and finds the mascot for the school is well thought out. This is a story any child would love to read. I hope Maisy continues to solve mysteries..." ~ 5 Star Review, Josh, Amazon
 

About the Author: Elizabeth Woodrum

Elizabeth Woodrum

Elizabeth Woodrum is an elementary teacher in Ohio. She came to love writing when she was in elementary school, but more recently began writing material for use in her classroom. From that writing, grew the desire to write books for the general population of children and adults alike. The Maisy Files, a children's series, is the first series that she has published. The series currently has one book, Maisy and the Missing Mice. Elizabeth plans to add more books to the series, and would also like to publish books for adults in the future. As a reader, Elizabeth prefers the fantasy genre, but she enjoys realistic fiction as well. Some of her favorite authors include JK Rowling, Stephenie Meyer, Rick Riordan, Veronica Roth, Suzanne Collins, and Nicholas Sparks. Originally from Indiana, Elizabeth currently resides near Dayton, Ohio with her two pets: a cat named Butterscotch and a dog named Reese Cup.

Book Website | Author Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Pinterest

 

* $25 Book Blast Giveaway *

Amazon 25 gift card

Prize: $25 Amazon Gift Card or PayPal cash (winner’s choice) Contest ends: April 18, 11:59 pm, 2014 Open: Internationally How to enter: Please enter using the Rafflecopter widget below. Terms and Conditions: NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. A winner will be randomly drawn through the Rafflecopter widget and will be contacted by email within 48 hours after the giveaway ends. The winner will then have 72 hours to respond. If the winner does not respond within 72 hours, a new draw will take place for a new winner. Odds of winning will vary depending on the number of eligible entries received. This contest is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Facebook. This giveaway is sponsored by the author, Elizabeth Woodrum and is hosted and managed by Renee from Mother Daughter Book Reviews. If you have any additional questions – feel free to send and email to Renee(at)MotherDaughterBookReviews(dot)com.


a Rafflecopter giveaway


MDBR Book Promotion Services

Tuesday, March 4, 2014

Last Day Savings Alert: Save on Tiny Prints Collections

Today is the last day to save during Tiny Prints' best sale of the entire year (affiliate link)
 
They are giving you the gift of 30% off everything. There has literally never been a better time to order.

Tiny Prints Cyber Monday

Visit them now (the sale ends tonight at 11:59pm Pacific Time) and choose from any of their products and when you check out, use the promo code BDAY10 to save 30%.