"That Parent"

I had to be 'That Parent' today, and I'm not even sorry about it.

Trey's Termite Hockey career ended today and he will move up to the next level of Mites next year.  The team had a pizza party for the boys after the game today and I made sure my little "sugar baby" was taken care of.  Jordan talked to the coordinator about what kind of pizza the kids were getting and said he was going to buy Trey a thin crusted one.  The coordinator insisted she would order him one and apologized for not thinking about Trey's needs.  We don't expect people to think of Trey's needs  ...  why would they??  It's Jordan and I's job to think of our son's needs and take care of things accordingly.  Eventually it will be Trey who will need to speak up and make the choices.

When the pizza's arrived, the coordinator asked me to follow her and grab our pizza.  She handed me a box, I said 'thank you' and a fellow hockey mom (and a lady I've known for 30 years)  looked at me strange.  I said, "It's Trey's." and she said, "Oh, does he have allergies or something too?" and I said, "Nope, but it's half the carbs." and I walked away.  Didn't need to get into the whole deal right at that time, but I hope sometime she asks details. I'm happy to quickly explain.

I was "that parent".  I am "that parent" for the sake of my son and I'm not sorry, embarrassed or ashamed.  As a parent, we look out for our children and do what is best for them, right?  That's exactly what I did.  We didn't raise a stink about pizza, Jordan was going to buy the pizza and no one would even know about it --- and in fact, hardly anyone else noticed.

The same mom that made comments to me brought chocolate chip cookies and juice boxes.  I took three 12 packs of PowerAde Zero.

When all was said and done, both Jordan and I thanked the coordinator and a coach for understanding and they both said that it wasn't a big deal and they felt bad they didn't know or think of Trey.

It's such a fine line between your kid being normal and yet your kid being different.  Yes, he could have had regular pizza at 31 carbs per slice, a juice box for 15 carbs, a chocolate chip cookie for 15 carbs and 15 chips for 16 carbs .... and we could've given him a massive load of insulin to cover it and then chased highs the rest of the day.  It's true.  We opted on a pizza that was 16 carbs per slice, a powerade zero for 0 carbs, and the cookie and chips as mentioned above.  He still got 5 units of insulin. (and is running at 150 blood sugar right now  - 2 hours after eating)  Normal, but different. Healthier too, quite honestly!

As we continue with this hockey deal - and any other sport - it's going to continue to happen ... regular pizza, regular pasta, regular gatorade, etc.  Eventually I believe parents/coaches will remember and either just know from previous times or ask Jordan and I.  No, I don't want to raise a stink and he is only ONE child on a team of 20+ ... but he deserves to have the things he needs just like any other child.  Thin crust vs regular crust ... really DOES make a difference.  Regular PowerAde vs PowerAde Zero really DOES make a difference.

I always go to this ... "If a child on the team has a peanut allergy, we would all be fully aware of it and be sure the child is protected. Why isn't diabetes the same?  Because if my kid drinks two juice boxes, eats three cookies and has 2 slices of regular crusted pizza - his blood sugar could quite possibly be so high he ends up in DKA and dead.  Diabetes kills too."

Forever "That Parent" and damn f'n proud to be!