Big oops!

Jack’s school nurse called this morning. “Is it possible that you left Jack’s blood sugar meter and his test strips at home?” she asked.

“Seriously? We left them at home?” I responded in disbelief.

“Ugh, I can’t believe we did that,” I sighed.

“How could we?” I thought.

Guilt immediately set in. I felt awful. If there’s anything Jack needs at school, it’s his meter and test strips. They’re vital to his well-being. Thank goodness, our wonderful nurse (love, love, love her!) keeps a spare meter and vial of test strips in her office. She saved the day! And she saved me from having to run over to the school, which I would have done in a heartbeat, if she hadn’t volunteered her supplies.

I couldn’t believe, though, that we didn’t send Jack to school with all of his necessary equipment. After all, I spent several hours yesterday preparing for the kids’ return to school. I baked cookies, washed and cut vegetables and made hard-boiled eggs for their meals and snacks this week. I made turkey sandwiches, peeled and sectioned clementines and then filled lunch boxes. I created a menu with a tally of Jack’s carbs. I washed and folded laundry. I set out clothes for today. I updated reading logs, found school library books and packed back packs, not forgetting snacks. I completed paperwork and set it out along with two bags of syringes and a new vial of insulin to be delivered to the nurse this morning. I remembered to charge Jack’s cell phone (for emergencies only) and add it to his D kit. I checked to make sure his D kit contained Glucagon, fruit snacks, bottles of juice and water and a full tube of glucose tablets. I am nothing, if not thorough, and I went to bed last night, feeling confident that the kids were all ready for school.

This morning, Gregg went through Jack’s D kit himself. He even unpacked the contents of the back pocket, repositioning the supplies so that they fit better. Obviously, he didn’t open the front pocket! That’s where we keep the meter, test strips, lancing device and alcohol pads. How we managed to send off Jack without his meter and test strips is beyond me! What a big oops!

Sigh…

Besides informing me of our neglect, the nurse also had questions about her meter. It needed new batteries, so she borrowed the extras that we keep in Jack’s D kit. (Oh, yes, there were spare batteries all right! But, no meter or test strips!) But then she couldn’t figure out how to calibrate the meter to the code number on the vial of test strips. Long story short, I talked her through everything so that she could test Jack.

In the background, I could hear Jack. “What’s taking so long?” he asked. “Did my parents really forget my meter and test strips?”

I felt so badly. Big, big, big oops! I wanted to cry. His classmates were on the playground for recess. My kiddo was stuck waiting in the nurse’s office, because his slacker parents failed to send him to school with his essential supplies. And the nurse’s meter told us Jack’s blood sugar was in the upper 300s. Too high!

“I need to drink some water, and if I could just get out of here, I could run around the playground and that would help,” I could hear Jack say.

You have to know Jack to know that when he says stuff like that, he isn’t whining or complaining. He’s more matter of fact.

Tonight at dinner, Jack said, “Hey dad, did you know you forgot to put my meter and test strips in my diabetes kit?”

He wasn’t mad or upset. He was simply recalling the events of the day, but he never once mentioned the fact that he missed most of his morning recess. Gregg acknowledged our mistake and then we both apologized to Jack, telling him how badly we felt.

Jack then attempted to console us, “At least, you remembered my poker and alcohol pads!”

There Gregg and I were feeling guilty and disappointed in ourselves, and Jack was trying to cheer us up and make it all better. He’s such a good kid, and I’m so glad he’s mine.