The New Forum & Caring & Sharing Families Chosen

I am so excited, we have finally gotten the New Forum up and running, those nasty spammers were difficult to get under control but with all the new updates and monitoring we have in place we are hopeful that it will all go nicely now.

Register on our new forum:


http://pumpwearinc.invisionzone.com/index.php?act=Reg&CODE=00


View the Forum : http://pumpwearinc.invisionzone.com/index.php?showforum=3


We wanted this forum available so that our community could unite and bond over common interests and issues. We really hope that everyone takes a minute to register for the forum and let us know what you think.



We also sent out this past month all of the announcements for the caring and sharing weekend. This weekend is really unique in that its totally free to the entire family, the only cost to the family is the transportation to get there. We find that in the diabetes community it is rare for families to be able to truly find a place where other parents of children with diabetes can come together, bond, share and have a stress free weekend totally free of cost and hassle.

Last years event was so much more than we had ever hoped for and we know that this year it will be just as special. We can't wait to meet all the new families coming to the Double H Ranch in Lake Luzerne New York. If you are just hearing about this weekend opportunity don't worry this is our 2nd free diabetes weekend and we hope to announce the information for 2010.

Time To Brag!

Ok I just can't help myself! Nikki has a style that is unique to herself. Since she was a little girl she would insist on matching and selecting her own clothes. Let me tell you that i would cringe when she picked the orange stripe pants with the pink poka dot top! (and i am not kidding). When you have a child with diabetes I sincerely believe that you have to pick your battles and what she wore was not a battle i felt I had to fight. If she was happy wearing these bright, different outfits who am I to try and change her.

Through the years (the past 3) Nikki has done some things that really have made me think that we might just have a designer here. For example, one day I came home to find that she had taken several shirts out of her closet that she didn't care for and cut them up, making them look like tube tops that she than paired with other shirts. (I didn't think these looked like anything I would want to wear) but she soon had her friends swapping out there nice looking cute shirts for her new shirt versions. This is just one of the many creations of Nikki Tyler.

A couple of years ago Nikki expressed a desire to learn to sew, now i can't sew a straight line and I really do not have the knowledge to teach anyone how to go about sewing. Sewing is a lost art, it's become expensive to sew and you have to really love the whole process. Fortuately we have someone who is an excellent seamstress and she offered to give Nikki lessons. Now as many of you parents probably know our children may take lessons for music, band,sewing, drama etc, wheter they ever really end up using what they learn is another story.

Well since Nikki has been learning she made her Halloween costume last year by tracing out what she wanted and her teacher taughter her how to take different parts of different patterns to form the princess costume she had drawn, complete with an insulin pump pocket for her pump.

This past summer we did several shows, one at a local park. Since Nikki knew she would be spending several hours with me at this fair she gathered about 6 of her webkinz, without me knowing it she took one of our bins, put a sheet over it and set up her webkinz all decked out with little shirts, coats and hats that she had put together herself, now were there threads hanging absolutely, where hems uneven? absolutely, but you know what she sold all of the webkinz clothes that she had with her and had enough money to purchases some items at the fair with (she is not a big saver!).

Well I just picked her up from sewing class the other day and she had just finished a top she made, I looked at it and it looked cute, this morning she put it on and I was totally amazed at how really nice it came out. It nice when everything they have been learning starts to come together. She was so proud of herself. Her teacher even helped her do a label that says Nikki, so she proudly stitched this into the back of her shirt so if someone didnt believe that she made it she could show them!

So I now look back at all of those crazy outfits and think, you know what you are right to pick your battles wisely you never know some of the crazy things our kids can come up with might truly be a path they are destined to take!

Nikki Tyler is Stylin!

Here is our darling, Nikki Tyler! Nikki is wearing our new pump pouch,with a matching watch and my New York Sweatshirt!

I recently went on a trip to PA, for our annual shopping trip, (not so much shopping as get together of friends). We do this every year about 80 ladies pile onto 2 buses for our annual shopping trip. We leave at 5:15 a.m. sharp and arrive in reading Pa at about 10:00 a.m. As the store doors open we are all set to tackle the day.

I really enjoyed this years trip, for some reason it really seemed much more relaxed people were so friendly and all willing to share their great bargains. We New Yorkers get the added bonus of "No Sales Tax" when shopping in PA. At about 5:00 we all pile back into our bus and go to the hotel. Where this year we waited for the 2nd year in a row 45 minutes to an hour for our hotel keys. (luckily we got to watch a movie while we waited). We can't figure out why there seems to be an issue with the hotel and hotel keys every year. But even this did not phaze us at all, our groups broke off to many differen eatery's. We decided on a restuarant real close (i won't mention names) because it was close to the hotel, easy to get to and would give us time to get back to use the hot tub (love the hot tub its the best part). The service was not the best, in fact we were all kind of in shock that the waitress was sitting down having a soda with at least 6 unclean tables near by. Actually seemed put out that she had to clean a table for us. Well it was still fun and we did eventually get our food, made it back to the hotel for exactly 15 minutes of hot tub time.

Our next day was another beautiful sunny day, calling home everyone was doing well, dad was holding down the fort! (i do believe Nikki was giving him a run for his money) Patrick is pretty self sufficient so he just did his own thing (It hurts to have them grow up and see that they really can take care of themselves.)

On the way home I found this really great sweatshirt in my favorite color green, i found it at the rest stop on the way back into New York. Well I have not been able to even wear it, Nikki saw it on the table and has been using it ever since. Which is pretty surprising seeing as it is a womens Large. It matched her new pump pouch and when she saw that matching watch (yes you are going to be able to get matching watches to the pump pouches coming out) she loved the look! Now she wants several pouches with the watches to match. Personally I really like the watches myself and i'am using the larger pump pouches for my black berry so we are actually matching each other.

I think I better be prepared for a long road of daughter borrowing my clothes, I only wish I was her size and could borrow her things!!!

Hope you all really enjoy this Halloween week, and Fall Season!

Julie

In Honor Of Diabetes Awareness Month "I Test & I Pump Shirts

November is National Diabetes Awareness Month and November 14th is World Diabetes Day. So we thought what can we come up with that would get people talking and asking questions about diabetes. That's when we thought what if we came up with some cool shirts that said "I test" and "I Pump"? Would those two words on shirts bring a response of what does it mean? We think so! When wearing theses shirts you have the perfect opportunity to bring out information about diabetes and the need to find a cure. The shirts are beautifully done in rhinestones and we have some other cute white t-shirts coming also. The are located at www.pumpwearinc.com look under the new products page.


We hope that people will ask alot of questions about them. But most of all we hope that you enjoy them. For the month of November remember to try and bring out as much information as you can about diabetes and why we need a cure. What I like to do is let the schools and city know that November is National Diabetes awareness month so that they can post it on their calendars. On November 14th I will send in a charm croc to each of my children's teachers, as a thank you for all that they do to help us manage diabetes and to also generate more talk about diabetes.

I know in my heart that some day we will find a cure and that our children and adults will experience life without daily pricks and worries. I still remember the first year Nikki was diagnosed we did our first Walk to Cure Diabetes. I remember telling Nikki that we were walking to cure diabetes and she would get to meet lots of new friends as we all joined together to raise money for the cure. The next morning she woke up and wanted to know if we had done it? Not knowing what we were suppose to do she responded as only a then 3 year old could "the Cure " you know we walked to cure diabetes, did we do it? Of course tears came flowing and lots of hugs, how do you explain that no we didn't do it yet, but I know that we will find the cure, and I know that we will find it so that our children and adults can know life without diabetes. So as November is the offical month of bringing awareness to diabetes lets spread the word in everything we do!

Halloween Is In The Air!

This week has been a truly crazy week! Everyone's blood sugars have been running on the high end. (do you think that they have all gotten into the bags of candy I have purchased in anticipation of Halloween)? Either that or there is something in the air. Patrick had to leave school today to come home and change his site. He's 16 and now prefers to change his site at home verus going to the nurse. Luckily we only live a minute away so he can easily do this. Nikki's blood sugar has been all over the place, She has been better about texting me her blood sugars at lunch time, but even with waking with a good number today she came out at a 296 pre lunch. so we have been correcting it all day. I am finding that as they get older we have less and less control on what goes in their mouth. And even though they tell you they haven't eaten anything that would explain the high blood sugar I keep finding empty wrappers from candy and empty bags of cheetos (Nikki's favorites). If you are like us, we tend to have a couple good days and than everything changes, its a constant struggle to get everyone checking and bolusing (before) they eat.

I need a better way to explain to all of my children that the goal is to bolus "before eating". This is a common thread with all three of our children, they eat than they remember to test. If we are with them, than everyone tests first, we count the carbs and than they bolus. This makes the numbers even out and stay within range. All it takes to throw the whole day off is for one of them to eat something and either not bolus or bolus afterwards.

With Halloween approaching I dread the day of highs that usually takes place, even with careful planning it is a difficult day to monitor. This year Nikki is in the middle school so the class parties are done (i hate to say it but i am glad to be done with those). Now its just the after school trick or treat we will have to deal with. For Halloween we usually ride the roller coaster of numbers, because of the activity level and the candy that everyone eats we are all over the place. This year I am determined to conquer this monster of a day. So i will wish you all the best of luck on conquering this. As parents we want our children to be able to enjoy this day like everyone else, I find although a hard day to control even with all of the carbs listed for candy, its well worth the effort to let them just be kids. So we will continue to work hard at trying to maintain normal numbers (does anyone ever maintain normal numbers?)if you don't you are not alone. Some times I think I live on a different planet! I am a constant broken record, did you test, did you bolus, let me see your meter, let me see your pump, how many carbs did you use? Sound familiar? Well Halloween I am going to put it all aside and just do the best we can!

Hope everyone has a very Happy Halloween! Nikki is going to be a witch this year! Last year she made her very own princess costume including a pump pocket for her pump! This year she bought tights that she cut up (she loves to cut up clothing), a mariyln monroe dress and wig with a witch hat? she created the whole thing,so i think we are a Marilyn Monroe Witch! Happy Happy!

Spending Accounts

Spending Accounts. It’s hard to believe that we are already entering the month of October! Just 3 months and 2008 will have ended and 2009 will begin. If you are like me you might be looking at your spending accounts and trying to make sure that you have submitted all of your co-pays, bills and anything else that will amount to getting you the refunds you so diligently have set aside.
For those of you that might not know what spending accounts are here is some information about them:
http://www.bls.gov/opub/cwc/cm20031022ar01p1.htm
Flexible spending accounts
Health care flexible spending accounts are employer-established benefit plans that reimburse employees for specified medical expenses as they are incurred. These accounts are allowed under section 125 of the Internal Revenue Code and are also referred to as "cafeteria plans" or "125 plans." The employee contributes funds to the account through a salary reduction agreement and is able to withdraw the funds set aside to pay for medical bills. The salary reduction agreement means that any funds set aside in a flexible spending account escape both income tax and Social Security tax. Employers may contribute to these accounts as well. If you do not use the amount that you have set aside “You Lose it”. So it is important to make sure that you take advantage of all the options available to you to gain reimbursement.
I have been amazed at how much we as a family have gone through every year in medical necessities, co-pays and day to day essentials that deal with diabetes. I gather everything that I can and submit monthly for all of our expenses. I include all of my documentation, receipts and forms. Doing this allows us to gain reimbursement for something that is draining on our expenses and lives. Even with the use of spending accounts there are still many things that we as parents of children with diabetes do not have the luxury of being able to be reimbursed for. Can you see me submitting for the 14 pencil boxes that I have so patiently filled with drink boxes, cake gel, test strips, fast acting candies and gluco tabs. Are these a medical necessity? When you have children with diabetes that are in school they travel from class to class and kids being kids they don’t always remember to replenish their test strips or replace the drink box they drank the day before. It’s essential to make sure that each classroom has the necessary supplies just in case there is a need. Yet I hardly think that receipts for all of the supplies I hand out at the beginning of each year would be covered. Nor to I believe that the cases of drink boxes and gator aid would be approved either.
So as I finish with this months whooping total and seal the envelope with all of our receipts I wanted to take this time to remind everyone that our pump cases, pump packs, pump pocket t-shirts, pump bands and specialty clothing are used to hold your insulin pump. We are happy to supply you with letters stating what the use is for. We cannot guarantee that you will be approved but many of our clients have gotten reimbursed. And why not submit what we can to help elevate the draining on our finances. If you are just learning about spending accounts be sure to start the new year of 2009 off with one. You will be amazed at the savings. I’ve used spending accounts for years and what really amazes me is that even with deducting this from my salary its hardly noticeable because of the savings I gain on the other end.

Another School Year!

The school year has begun and we are just finishing up our first month of being back to school. There are a lot of new things this year, Nikki has left grammer school behind and has moved up to the Middle School. Since she is our youngest this has been a milestone for us. We have our 504 plans in place allowing both Nikki and Patrick to test when they need to and covering all the other essential things that we felt needed to be in place. We are very fortuante that we have a school system that recognizes the needs of children with diabetes. When Nikki was first diagnoised she was the only child with type 1 diabetes in the school district, now as she enters 6th grade there are 5 type 1 children in her school. I strongly recommend to all parents and caregivers to make sure that you have a 504 Plan in place this will help you through out the school year.

I have found this first month of school very challenging, one issue we have had is with Patrick who is now 16 and driving (do you feel my stress level rising). He is also an awesome golfer and has been on the varisty golf team since 9th grade. He has just qualified for the sectionals at school. He is the only one on the team that has qualified. While this is a wonderful thing for him it requires that he be absent from school for a couple of days, and this also ties up his evenings till about 7:00. Which makes getting homework done in a timely manner and make up work done a little difficult (he's tired you know). I will be happy when it is over so we can get back to a regular schedule. With the schedule he has with golf it has been difficult to regulate his blood sugars, he is always afraid of going low especially out on the greens so he is not correcting his blood sugars correctly. We are waiting for more sensors to arrive so that we can see if we can get our sensors for both him and nikki to work correctly. I love the sensors but we have had a terrible time on having them work consistantly. Of course during the summer we were not able to really use because of all of the swimming. I am determined to get these working the right way so stay tune.

Nikki is loving the middle school, my big problem with her right now is that she goes to lunch tests and than doesn't bolus until like an hour later. She's been doing this now for a whole week, so i finally got a hold of her teachers who are going to try to remind her to test and bolus at lunch. (shes been doing this on her own for over a year) what's the reason why all of the sudden we can't remember to bolus? I am personally wondering if since we are in a new schoolthat maybe she doesn't have the comfort level yet to test and bolus in front of the other kids, i'am just guessing and trying to figure it out. I've resorted to calling her cell phone and next i'll have to start sending her to the nurse at lunch time, something i really don't want to do. I'am sure many of you have also had some of our struggles.

Nikki is really busy she just won the position of treasure for student council, and is doing ballroom dancing. She has put girl scouts on hold this year (whew 1 night of no running). She continues to love being in the christmas show at her dance studio and will start practice for that this weekend. Along with all of this she still makes time to take sewing lessons every saturday. She says she wants to be a designer! Last year she made her own halloween costume (a princess dress) and guess what she even built in her own pump pocket! Future designers beware! Our little designer has also really started to take a more active role in the types of pump packs,cases and styles of clothing items that she thinks others will like. So stay tune for some new energy in our speciality clothing line at Pump Wear.

Adam our oldest has now been on his own for 2 full months. He is happy and doing well, funny we notice that he is now working a lot more hours (do you think it has anything to do with supporting yourself). We have also seen a lot of growing up and responsibility. He has always been a great kid its just different seeing him on his own. He still makes time for his family Thursday nights are dinner and laundry at our house and Friday mornings its breakfast with mom. Mom's out there I think its hardest on us, I still can't believe he is living on his own. 4 guys is a apartment and all of them loving it!

As they continue to grow and mature, remember us moms can never get or give out enough hugs!

Growing Up!

As many of you know I have three wonderful children that happen to all suffer from type 1 diabetes. You often hear me speak about my daughter Nikki who happens to be the youngest and the first to have been diagnosed. I think I probably have a lot to say about her because being the youngest she is the one that is always with me and as most of you can understand when they hit the teenage years theres really a lot you could say about our lovely darlings but don't dare.. I have children in the Tween years, Teen Years and Now the 20's. Did I really say I have a 20 year old son (well almost he will turn 20 in September).


You will see as our little ones hit those great Tween and teen years they will rely less and less on us till they are finally leaving the nest! Each age group poses its own set of worries for us as parents. My son Patrick the 16 year old just got his license today, hence the worries of is he testing before he turns the key, does he have drink boxes with him. As I sit here writing this post I am awaiting his safe return from his first solo trip to the mall. Yes there is always something to worry about and yes i hate to cut the apron strings.

I'am one of those moms that would be perfectly happy with my little ones never leaving the nest but hence they do want to spread their wings and venture out on their own. Our oldest did just that. Adam turns 20 this September and as many 20 years old he is ready for his independence. He hasn't moved far (around the corner from us) with 3 friends of his. Each friend has contributed their own stock of mismatched furniture, dishes, pans. All cramming their beds, dressers into tiny rooms with no closets. Most leaving homes where they had their own roomy, rooms with tv's and computers. These courageous young men are so excited and thrilled to have a place of their own. Instead of seeing no closets they see creative ways to use bins. My Adam who never made his bed (without lots of whining) is now telling me he will stop over after he finishes making his bed and doing the dishes! At our house we call him the cheesy king because he always left the kitchen with a sink full of cheesy pans for someone else to clean up. Could our Adam really be growing up! Adam is now working full time for the Center For the Disabled, we are very proud of him.

After being away from home for about 3 weeks now he has really started to show that he is maturing. This week he called to see if we could set up a Friday morning as a breakfast date, so we can catch up weekly (yes this made my heart melt) knowing that he does indeed miss me and wants to spend time with me. He has been coming over on Thursdays for family night and laundry day so we are all settling into a routine. I'am glad he is just around the corner from us so we know he is safe.

As the school year has now gotten off to a start we are all busy with the fun of gathering school supplies, completing and confirming 504's (yes i think that you must have a 504 in place) and all that involves, training and meeting with teachers our lives can get very hetic. Through all of the craziness as I call it there's nothing like a hug from your full grown son!

So for all of us who are sending our children off to college, school, or adulthood, grab an extra hug and keep them close in your hearts because they will surprise us and make us proud.

The one thing I have to say about having a family of children with diabetes, as many of you can also agree with, we do alot of hugging!

Julie

The Barton Center!

For those of you that are trying to figure out wheter you should send your child to camp I wanted to share with you my daughters experience at The Barton Center www.bartoncenter.org.

This was Nikki's 2nd year attending the 4 day session at Barton. It was a major event making sure that she had all of the right things with her, flash light, swim gear,sleeping bag, clothes and oh lets not forget the dress (or should i say dresses) for the dance they have there. The dance is one of the focal points in Nikki's stay at Barton. Since she couldn't decide what dress she was going to wear she brought all 3 with her. Taking them from hanging neatly on hangers to thrown into her suitcase (not sure she knows what they will really look like when they come out of that bag, wrinkles and all.) The point is that she is happy and so looking forward to going to Barton. This really surprised me since last year she had fun but i truly didn't realize the impact that those 4 days and nights last year had on her.

We arrived at Barton on Sunday afternoon, later than most of the campers so she was anxious to just get to her new friends, with a quick kiss and hug she was off! Now mom's will understand this, I was thinking and hoping she was going to hate the idea of leaving me just a little, but no she had more important friends to make!

My husband and I after 30 years of marriage decided to take a quick 3 day vacation since we felt comfortable in the knowledge that Nikki would be safe and in good hands of the diabetes professionals. We had a great time, but I missed not hearing Nikki's voice terribly. Ok I am sure all of you moms can understand this I have a hard time letting her grow up. A child with diabetes leans on us so much that when that care is shifted we kind of feel like something is missing. To be honest I really missed her! I know how important it is for her to gain independence and I am so happy that she embracing the spirit of The Barton Camp. But I am still a mom struggling with my youngest growing up.

I could hardly wait to pick her up on Thursday, of course I wanted to rush right in and hug her but she was busy still in the dining hall having dinner. When the parents were allowed in we all were surrounded by hugs and kisses from our fearless campers! A beautiful closing ceremony followed. My daughter was beaming and loved having her friends with her. She was a little upset with me because she met up with 2 of her friends from last year who were there for 2 weeks! Why didn't I sign her up for 2 weeks! They all exchanged e-mails and they have already scheduled the session for next year! 2 weeks of course! I know through this experience that she will love it and have a great time. In experiencing the closing ceremony at Barton you can see all of the kids that have returned year after year, many now as counselors and the bond that they all have truly formed. I know that my daughter could not have found a better place to be. Now someone tell me how I will get through 2 weeks without her!

There's A New Girl In Town!

There's A New Girl In Town and her name is Girly Girl Studio! If you haven't checked out this website take a minute to visit www.girlygirlstudio.com. We have been working alot with this company. You will notice that they have a lot of different hand bags and accessories. The unique thing about them is that you can actually choose the hand bag that you like and custom design it with the fabrics and ribbons that you want.

Being able to choose the fabrics we want and the different style of bags has given us the ability to offer a expanding line of items for our community. We've recently introduced a messenger bag that has all kinds of pockets for holding your diabetes supplies, the bag also flips on to the back of a car seat so you can have easy accessiblity to all your diabetes needs. Than to really make the bag a fashion statment we had a matching meter case done along with a matching pump pak. Can you see the possiblities we now have to give our community a growing line of fashion!

Girly Girl Studio has so many different styles and options available that we wanted to share this resource with our community. Girly Girl Studio specializes in doing home parties where you can envite friends and family over to create their own fun bags. (I had one of these parties and my friends loved it!). We all picked out the bags we liked and with the help of the consultant chose our fabrics, ribbon, handles and buckles. It was a lot of fun and I even earned "Free" Bags.

The Home party concept for designing your own hand bags has been taking off and growing, its a new concept that is being very well recieved (not surprised we all love hand bags) and being able to customize your own is a unique idea.

Girly Girl Studio is looking for consultants to help meet the demand, you can check out on their website how to become a consultant. You can also view the bags, fabrics and even order some pre-made bags. Sometimes I just love the fabrics and combinations that they put together.

So if you are looking for a unique fun way to earn extra income and be your own boss check out Girly Girl Studio www.girlygirlstudio.com.

I'll answer the question that is probably also going through your head, what about the boys and men in our lives? Well Girly Girl has not forgotten the men in our lives, they have a Manly Man division and will be offering messenger bags and diaper bags for men along with a growing line of fun accessories. Watch this company grow they are just so much fun!

Still Catching Up!

It's always great to get away for a couple of days but when you return its the mass rush to catch up. Sometimes I think that we would be better going back to the world of no blackberries, computers and cell phones, because than you could truly sit back and relax. Funny hearing that from me since i literally live on the computer, blackberry and cell phone, loving the internet and the constant source of communication. Ask my husband how crazy i get if the internet goes down! That being said it's always good to get home, my sons are growing up so fast that it's hard to get time with them. I actually had to get into my 20 year olds schedule for a family night! As they grow they are constantly busy with places to go and things to do but it is so important just to gather together for a movie or dinner at least once a week. Now that my 16 year old is learing to drive my life has gotten even crazier. (stress level has gone up also) he's actually a pretty good driver, he's taking a driver ed class this summer and wants to be driving by the end of summer, can you imagine! That will give me two to worry about on the road. Both Adam and Patrick also have type 1 diabetes, so if driving alone isn't worrisome than driving with diabetes is totally scary. We are trying to instill in them to test before turning the key and making sure that they have all the the necessary drink boxes and test strips when traveling! Not an easy task, but we are constantly monitoring and teaching! Today I had to have Adam pick me up from the garage where i was having an oil change, i was pleased to see that he tested before leaving, not so pleased to see the garbage in the back of his car. Are all teenagers like this? I think he forgot where the trash can is, because his back seat was litered with soda can's and chip bags etc. You would have thought he would clean it up before giving mom a ride but no. I had to just turn my head and be thankful that i'am not riding around in that car. (i have to pick my battles, he tested, so if he can't find the trash can its his problem, his car.)

Hard to believe the big show is all over and we are back home already, I am new to blogging so forgive me if i carry on. I wish we had more time after the show to just hang out but maybe another time.

Our Latest Trip!

Every year Dawn and I look forward to our trip to Florida for the CWD show, it's a great place for seeing old friends and making new ones! I think one of the things we like the most is our actual drive to Florida it gives us time to regroup and catch up on all the things that are going on in both of our families. We usually fly my daughter Nikki and Dawn's daughter Jen down. Our vehicle is so packed with things we need for the show and the week that we couldn't possibly fit the girls in the vehicle with us. They enjoy not having to drive 24 hours with us!

This year was quite an adventure, after leaving on Saturday, 7 hours into our journey Dawn's blazer died! We were in Marilyn in the middle lane going 70 miles an hour and the blazer stopped! Talk about scary, we were very lucky that the van behind us realized that we were at a dead stop! Behind the van was an officer (who said they are never around when you need them) we were very thankful to the very nice officer that managed to get someone there quickly to move us out of the center lane. That's when the real fun began, we had to get a tow truck to take us somewhere to see what was wrong. Did you know that in Marilyn on a Saturday everything closes at 3:00pm. Our tow truck driver was not happy to be taking us to one place after the other, so we had to settle at the 2nd stop (this guy was not taking us any where else). Since everything was closing we had to leave the vehicle, rent a van transfer everything from the blazer to the van and continue on our journey, leaving the blazer in Marilyn!

The trip was wonderful the show was great, however on Monday, we got word that Dawn's dog Lucky was missing, he is still missing, this is Dawn's baby so for those of you who have animals you know this is very upsetting especially when you are miles away and can't be there to look.

We were so happy to be able to see so many of our friends, Regina,Allison,Peggy,Bridgett,Cindy,Sue,Patti,Cali and the list is endless. The conference I think is enjoyed by us adults just as much as the children.

Nikki who is 10 years old was thrilled to be at the conference hooking up with her friend from last year Carmen and making a new friend this year Alexis. Nikki was thrilled to now be considered a tween! The girls had a great time at the dance Thursday night!

Friday ended the exhibit part of the conference, we were amazed at all the interest in our Pump Bands, Pump Paks,underwear and T-shirts. We tried to demonstrate the products as much as we could so people could really see how everything worked. Several people commented that is was so good to get to see everything up close, sometimes the website just doesn't show the quality and use. Of course it could be that I haven't really mastered the picture taking yet, but I am working at it.

We had to get the girls off to the airport Friday night right after the show. Their flight got delayed 45 minutes because of the storm and Nikki was scared and didn't want to go because of the lightening (there have been so many storms this year). Finally everything cleared and they took off arriving in Albany at 11:00 that night. Of course I couldn't stand that she was crying when she left so i was relieved when the call came that she was home safe and sound and of course not a tear in her eye!

Dawn and I started back Saturday morning, our long trek back to Marilyn, arriving there at 10:30 picking up the blazer which had endured a week of testing to see what was wrong and having nothing found to be the cause. It started right up and we took it to the hotel for the night, to grab a couple hours sleep. Dropped off the rental the next morning, transferred all the pumpwear show stuff back into the blazer (don't know how our husbands ever got everything in there the first time) but it was quite the show trying to get it repacked. Finally getting on our way about 6:00 Sunday morning, all was well till we hit New York and guess what, the car stopped again! This time we got it off to the side of the road, let it rest for a little while, called the husbands, to have them start down the thruway just in case we couldn't make it. The car started up again, so as we drove up the thruway the husbands were driving down! We did make it home OK, and all is well!

What a week, glad to be home, Dawn's dog is still missing and we are all still searching.

We had a great time despite all that went on, like i always say you have to find the positive in all! We ended up with a bigger van at a great price for a rental and we made lots of new friends and the girls had a wonderful time.

It's always an adventure when Dawn and I travel so we will add this to our escapades

The Possibilities Are Endless!

Take a look at our new Justine Meter Bag! We are so excited about these really girly girl bags. The ideas are endless. Next up will be a new Messenger Bag created especially for us, with you guessed it a new matching meter case and pump pak! These bags are being designed by Girly Girl Studio, so feel free to hop over there to create your very own creative bag. They have many to choose from. The great thing is that we get to be totally creative by chosing our fabrics and styles. http://www.girlygirlstudio.com/ . They also offer home parties and web parties where you can create your own handbags and matching pursey paks!

Don't think we have forgotten all the men in our lives, they are also creating a "Manly Man" section on the website where all those fun ideas will be placed for the men in our lives. So stay tune for many, many new creative ideas!

2009 Caring & Sharing Weekend Approved!

It is with great pleasure that we Announce the 2009 Caring & Sharing Weekend!

The 2008 Caring & Sharing weekend was such a success that we are so glad to be able to offer a 2009 weekend. Please be sure to read our message board where many families have drop us notes telling us what the weekend meant to them. The weekend was so much more than we could have ever hoped for. Families truly had time to bond as a family unit and to make new friends with other families.

So if you or your family needs a break and you want to share a weekend with other families of children with diabetes be sure to fill out the recommendation form on our caring and sharing weekend page. 15 families will be chosen, and all families are welcome to apply.

Julie & Dawn

Sneak Preview

We have been working hard on coming up with some products specifically for teenagers and adults and we think we have a winner! Take a look at our new "Double Pocket Ladies Panties". Double pockets are build in to this beautiful pair of panties. The panties are made for comfort, position of pockets allows for easy access while concealing your pump. Finally a fashionable, functional undergarment!

Double Pocket Ladies Panties are due in Mid April, we are accepting pre-orders now through our pump consultants. The demand has already been great so be sure to order yours early to ensure that you get a pair!

We Are On Our Way To Atlanta!

We will be in Atlanta Georgia this weekend displaying at their very popular "Sugar Show" we hope if you are there that you will stop by and say hello! We will have many of our very popular t-shirts, awareness t-shirts, pump paks, and our really cool boys boxers, and yes they all have built in pockets!

This will be my first time actually staying in Georgia (usually i am just driving through). Dawn's brother actually lives there so we will have time this trip to visit for awhile.

We also just found out that our Tennessee Consultant Deanna will also be there with her family so we are really looking forward to meeting her! We are so happy to have expanded our Pump Wear family with so many terrific people!

Watch for my next blog I hope to have pictures of our show!

Julie

March Has Arrived!

March has arrived and I am so ready for Spring. I'am ready to put away all the heavy coats and bring out the short sleeves shirts and shorts. Unfortuately it's still cold here, we have a nice day to tease us and than we are back to the cold, rain and snow. There's not much time left before we will truly start enjoying the spring weather again.

We have a very busy next couple of months here are Pump Wear. Dawn and I are doing several shows even one in Atlanta Ga! So if you are in the area be sure to stop by and say hello. You can see a full list of all of the shows and events that Pump Wear will be present at on our calendar. Our Pump Consultants are also geared up and ready to show you the great products up close. Check often to see if we have a consultant in your area. You can also e-mail them with questions they are available to help you with your Pump Wear needs. Thats the benefit of having a consultant in your area, you get to take a look at products up close and personal!

We have some really cute and fun items coming out, this weekend you will see our new "Positively Jules" line of t-shirts. These shirts express something that we believe here at Pump Wear and that's to always see the positive! They are a beautiful shirt and will be available this weekend. Your getting a sneak peak !

This Weeks Products

What I love about blogging is that it gives us a chance to go into more detail about all the amazing products we have coming out. This week we have taken our popular "Case to Go" and had it done with the popular Race car design. We have received many requests to see more boy designs on various products and we aim to please. The "Case to Go" is a great product because it is big enough to hold a test kit drink box and fast acting sugar, yet small enough to pop into a purse or a book bag. This case comes with a cushion insert, making this case a great option for the omnipod PDM!


Our new "Dancing Slippers" design is done on a soft bella tank top. This t-shirt is really comfortable and you have the option to have a pocket added if you want. We love giving you this option because we like you to have the opportunity to tell us where you want the pocket. We started doing these great t-shirts with pockets back in 2001 when we first opened our doors and they have been a hit ever since. The pockets have a slit in the back so no tubing shows when wearing the t-shirt. The flap on the pocket allows for easy access. All pockets are lined for durability and close with velcro closures. We us velcro because it is easy to open and close and comfortable. Check out our full line of "Designer T-shirts" that have matching pockets. We hope you enjoy , and be sure to contact us if you don't see something you are looking for. We continue grow our line with both adults and children in mind.

Julie & Dawn

Welcome To Our Blog

We are new to blogging, but we like the idea and thought that this would be a great way to keep you posted on what's new and fun!

This week we will be releasing our new Red Heart Softy Meter Wristlet. The case itself is made out of our popular softy material, fashionable an great for Valentines day. Inside there is a white pak cloth that is easily wipeable to keep clean. (if you have little ones this is important). The meter cases have 5 elastics of various sizes, each size will accomodate something different, a large meter, a small meter, glucose tabs etc. Two zipper pockets are great to have, use one for used test strips (yes we are always looking for a place to put those) the other to hold credit card etc.

And to make this especially fun there is a matching softy pak! What a great Valentine's Day treat!

Hope you like
Julie