September 8, 2021

Welcome to Happiness Catching You!

 

Image Credit:  Unknown


Welcome to Happiness Catching You!


I'm excited about taking my blog in a new direction, & with this being my inaugural essay, I would like to welcome you and thank you for stopping by to read my FIRST POST!

I hope to write about the happy, the amusing, and the laughable moments in my life.   I'll be including anecdotes from my past and present as I shape the personality of my blog.

So for TODAY'S LAUGH,

I'll start off with a little story about the mischief that found our Sheltie pup, Alexander, about eight years ago.  I was still working full time, my husband was at work, and our youngest son was at school.

In the process of everyone going to work and school, there were some doors in the house that we would close, in order to keep the dog out.  You could call it damage control.

So the afternoon in question, I picked up our son from school, and as we walked in the door, we expected to be greeted by Alexander.  Instead, we were only greeted by Missy, our other Sheltie, who thought she was THE BOSS.

So my son and I walked through the house looking for Alexander.  We looked in our bedrooms, the bathrooms, living room - thinking that he was asleep somewhere.  We couldn't find him, and he wasn't coming when we called.

As we are waiting on him, Missy is barking the whole time we are calling Alexander.  We just thought she was excited and being noisy.  Then we noticed... she wasn't moving.  She was standing outside of a closed door.  I'll call it Door Number One.  

After searching the entire house, and noticing that Missy was still outside of Door Number One, it dawned on me - could I have closed Alexander inside of Door Number One before I left for work?  

You see, Door Number One was the door to our home office.  I had been in there before I left for work, to grab a couple of papers off of the printer.  Could Alexander have followed me inside?

Still, Missy had not moved from her guard duty station, and was still sounding the call for me to "PICK DOOR NUMBER ONE" to see what was inside!  So I cautiously opened the door, afraid of what I might find.  

When I opened the door, to my relief, and also surprise, I found Alexander!  This is what he looked like when I found him...

Image: Happiness Catching You ©

  

My son and I were both in shock when Alexander happily walked out ~ we were SPEECHLESS!  You can't tell from the photo, but even his lips and his teeth were BLUE!  He looked like a Smurf!  We were just stunned.

Then worry set in, as I frantically tried to find out what he got into that turned him BLUE!  When I walked into the office, I found it.  A blue gel pen had been Alexander's toy for the day.  He had apparently enjoyed it all over the room, too!  At the time, there was light beige carpet in the office.  That day it was light beige with blue spots!

So I grabbed the pen and threw it in the trash.  After changing out of our work and school clothes, we grabbed Alexander and took him to the bathtub.  My son and I were both in there trying to soap up Alexander to get the blue out.  It wasn't working.  At least not with the dog shampoo.  

Image: Happiness Catching You ©
Suddenly, I told my son to go to the kitchen and grab the new bottle of DAWN™dish liquid!  He ran and came back with the new, unopened bottle that we had just purchased.  We were hoping upon hope that this would work "on animals" as the commercials showed with the oil drenched ducks.  

The water began to turn BLUE,  as we scrubbed Alexander's fur.  It took several times of emptying blue water and refilling of the tub with clean water, before Alexander's fur was clean.  DAWN™ did the trick!  What a relief!  We often laugh about it now, and we definitely HIDE the writing instruments from Alexander, and we check the rooms before we shut any doors.

I'm grateful for my precious little "shadow" who follows me everywhere I go.  In fact, he is laying on the floor beside me at this moment, as I am typing this little story about his antics ~ there are many more to come.  😂

Image: Happiness Catching You ©


I hope you have enjoyed, and I hope that you will subscribe to my blog by using the Subscribe to Blog by Email widget on the right, near the top.  

Have a great day, and let a little happiness catch you!  




Here's a great song to make you happy and smile! 









  


September 2, 2021

Having Covid19 & Getting the Vaccine

REPOST from former blog My Type 2 Diabetic Life ©

May 28, 2021


Photo credit: Edward Jenner on Pexels.com

I was really scared of being a Type 2 Diabetic and getting the Covid19 virus. But my luck ran out, and I somehow caught the virus. Then in March, I finally got the vaccine.

The 411

The last week of 2020, I started feeling crummy. I was exhausted, slightly congested, had a cough and sore throat, a headache, and ran a low grade temperature. I went online and found a testing site; scheduled for the next morning, and knew in less than 24 hours that I was COVID Positive. 

Having a long q-tip stuck up your nasal passage, to what seemed like it must be your brain cavity, is not very pleasant. My eyes watered the entire rest of the day, and I felt like the q-tip was still there, even when it wasn’t.

I tried to quarantine from my husband, so that he wouldn’t get sick. But by the next week, he also had the virus. So we ended up quarantining together – New Year’s Eve was all COVID19. We were in bed asleep by 8 pm on the last night of 2020! 

All the right stuff… 

We did everything right – the way it was supposed to be done. Both of us stayed home mostly. We wore our masks any time we HAD to go out – and these were good, multi-layer fabric masks. Also, we washed the masks constantly, and had many extra ones available so that we didn’t have to use them twice.

We cleaned our hands with sanitizer and alcohol wipes every time we left any public place that we went into, and washed them thoroughly every time that we came back into the house. For extra measure, we even took our shoes off in the mud room, so that we didn’t track any further germs into the house.

We did everything right. Yet we STILL got the COVID19 virus. 

Recovery time & COVID19 brain


It took about six weeks to fully recover. I was really sick a good 14 days – fatigue, mild congestion, headache, sore throat, fever. But the fatigue hung on for another month, before I really felt normal again. I am so thankful that I did not have any serious complications from COVID19. 

Photo credit: Pouria Teymouri on Pexels.com

OH, and one thing that was really strange was the “brain fog” that both I and my husband felt. The struggle was REAL! Things that normally we would quickly be able to think to say, or might remember, or something simple that we would do were not normal. It was like the thought process was delayed for a few moments before my brain would kick in. We called it “COVID brain,” and laughed about it or rolled our eyes. But it’s really not funny. COVID19 is REAL and did a number on both of us, physically and mentally – even if it was only temporary.

COVID19 affects on my diabetes

So how did COVID affect my Type 2 diabetes? It seemed that my blood sugars were reading slightly higher than normal for about five or six weeks. I asked my endocrinologist about it, and she told me that was normal when you’re sick. Even my fasting levels were high – as if I’d just eaten a meal. And I really had very little appetite while sick. But gradually, my levels began to return to their pre-COVID levels.

The COVID19 Vaccine

At the end of March, I got a call from my endocrinologist that they were going to have some doses of the Johnson & Johnson COVID vaccine. Dr. Folb called me HERSELF. (Have I mentioned before how FABULOUS my endocrinologist is?) She called on a Friday, and asked me to be there the next Tuesday for the vaccine. So on March 30th, I drove into the Texas Medical Center and got my one dose Janssen COVID19 vaccine. 

Dr. Folb and I had talked a lot about the vaccine. We both decided that if possible, it would be best to get the one does vaccine, because I have experienced anaphylactic shock during previous medical procedures. My side effects were mild. Just a little fatigue, and the need to sleep a lot for about 48 hours. After that, I felt fine. 

There was a pause in giving the J&J vaccine about two weeks after I had received it, but as of this posting has now been resumed. All has been well with me in regards to the vaccine. Dr. Folb recently tested my COVID19 antibodies, and said that I have plenty to fight off any exposure for now.

I’ll say it again – COVID19 is serious! 

PLEASE, go get your COVID19 vaccine. My husband’s uncle passed away from complications of COVID19. We feel truly sad for this loss. Uncle Andy was a wonderful person, and is deeply missed. We know so many others who also have lost someone – several friends lost elderly parents, another friend lost her boss. Take a few moments to GET VACCINATED to protect yourself, your family, and friends. And continue to wash your hands frequently, with warm, soapy water.

Thanks for stopping by to read my blog. I love to get comments and hear what you have to say. Feel free to leave me a comment below.  

In the meantime, live well, and be well! 

*Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links.

It’s Not Im•pasta•ble!

REPOST from former blog My Type 2 Diabetic Life ©

March 4, 2021

Who doesn’t love pasta?!  Lasagna, spaghetti, ravioli, cannelloni, penne, fettuccine.  You name it, I love all noodles!! 

The problem is that pasta is high in carbohydrates. It tends to spike my blood sugars – all night long, and even into the next morning.

I have found some pastas that do not spike my blood sugar, and actually taste like pasta.  I have experimented with whole wheat noodles, and those are pretty good. 

We’ve tried the chickpea pasta, butternut squash spirals, zucchini spirals, and spaghetti squash.  I wasn’t too keen on the chickpea pasta.  The veggie noodles are ok, but the zucchini and butternut squash spirals tend to get mushy. 

What works for me ~ 

BUT… I have found some pasta that I really love, and it doesn’t create an outrageous blood sugar spike, so I can work it into my Type 2 diabetic diet.  The pasta that I really like the most is called “carba-nada” by a company called al dente Pasta Company.  

Image: My Type 2 Diabetic Life ©
These noodles are high protein, high fiber, with lower calories and carbohydrates.  Amazingly, there are 14 kinds of fettuccine! Additionally, al dente offers pappardelle, bonnet, farfalletti, linguine, and some plant based pastas. 

 

Some of their pastas have gluten.  Al dente also offers plant based pastas, so if gludent is not right for you, fortunately, you. still have options.

I thought that life as a Type 2 Diabetic would limit me to never eating pasta again. The best part is that I have discovered (with a lot of trial and error) it’s not IMPASTABLE!  (See what I did there?) 

Recently, I made a delicious meal of chicken scaloppini with carba-nada roasted garlic fettuccine tossed in basil pesto.  It was super delicious!  

Carba Nada Noodles Nutrition
Image: My Type 2 Diabetic Life ©

Got your skillets ready? 

It’s very easy to make.  You just split a chicken breast in half, and pound it out with a your meat mallet. About 1 – 1½ inch thickness is good. 

Dip the breast in a beaten egg (or not, if you don’t like or can’t eat eggs). Lightly coat it with Panko bread crumbs.  Heat a skillet with about 2 tablespoons of olive oil. 

Cook the chicken breast for about 4 minutes on each side, on a medium to low heat. (It should be 165° in the center, to be fully cooked. Be careful not to overcook, or it will be tough.) Place the cooked chicken on a plate to rest while the noodles finish cooking.

The carba-nada noodles should cook for 4 minutes in boiling chicken broth, a nice little trick to give the pasta more flavor.  

Save that broth to use in the next step!  Using tongs, take out all the noodles. Place in a low to medium heated skillet, with a couple of tablespoons of olive oil.  

Get ready for delicious!

Image: My Type 2 Diabetic Life ©
I use basil pesto that I get from Whole Foods Market. Toss the fettuccine around in the skillet (using tongs), adding the pesto a spoonful at a time. I totally eyeball it, as some people like more pesto, others like less.  

Add a quarter cup of the broth at a time. It will keep the pasta and pesto from drying out in the skillet.  This takes all of about 3 minutes.  Don’t toss it too long in the skillet. I’m sure you’ll agree with me, that you don’t want to overcook your pasta.  

Image: My Type 2 Diabetic Life ©
Put about a cup of the pesto pasta on a plate. Place the chicken breast on top, and garnish with a bit of Parmigiano-Reggiano.  I like to serve this with a small spinach side salad.  

This is a great way to satisfy my craving for pasta, without sabotaging my blood sugars.  

 


Finally settled in… 

I know it’s been some time since I’ve posted.  I’ve been pretty busy, but also have had a writer’s block.  Now that things have found their place in our new house, I’m able to sit down to think and write more.

I hope you’ve enjoyed the blog post, and that you’ll take a look at all the pasta options that are out there.  

Thanks for stopping by to read my blog. I love to get comments and hear what you have to say. Feel free to leave me a comment below.  I hope that you’ll subscribe – top right corner of the page if on a desktop, and bottom of the post if using a mobile device.  

In the meantime, live well, and be well! 

*Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links.


When Life Gets In The Way

REPOST from former blog My Type 2 Diabetic Life ©

November 17, 2020

It was not my intention to not post for so long, but life happened.  We’ve just been swamped with moving, establishing utilities, cable, address changes, not to mention boxes galore.

Just a fraction of the boxes that are all over the house!
Image: My Type 2 Diabetic Life ©

If you’ve ever moved, you know that it can take forever to get back into a normal groove. It consumes your life!  I’ve been trying to organize and get things put away in places that make sense.  Then when I try to find them again, it’s like going on an Easter egg hunt!  

In July, we decided to bite the bullet and put our house on the market.  We had a couple of “almost” contracts that didn’t work out, took it off the market and put it back on and within 3 days, we had a contract. Life was changing.  

Those of you who have ever bought and sold homes know that the process isn’t fast.  We had to wait on inspections, and appraisals, then on all the paperwork that has to be done through the buyer’s mortgage and title companies.  In all, it took about 8 weeks – but seemed more like 8 months.  

During that time, we were looking at so many houses, and it became overwhelming.  So thankful that we had an amazing realtor (and friend), Vanessa Thompson, from NAN Properties, in Houston.  

She helped to guide us through the process of selling our old home, and finding the new one.  In fact, we talked, texted, and emailed so much during that time, that after it was all completed, it was like having withdrawals because we weren’t talking as often.  Ha! But we are so glad that Vanessa is a forever friend in our lives.  

We found a beautiful home in League City,  Texas, which is not quite 30 miles from downtown Houston – about a 30 minute drive straight up the freeway.   And we are about 20 minutes away from Galveston Island, Texas.



We have both said this will be our LAST move.  EVER! 

Now, if we can get through a small construction job, we’ll be set.  We’re going to be enclosing the formal dining room and turning it into a home office.  I’m excited, because that’s where I’ll be writing and posting my future blog posts.

I now have a FABULOUS kitchen where I’ll be cooking and trying out new healthy recipes.  I excited to start really using it.

I’m in love with my new kitchen!
Image: My Type 2 Diabetic Life ©

And now for my confessions.  Because of the old house being on the market, and then the move, I’ve not been able to work out as frequently as I would have liked.  We had to take the treadmill apart to even get it out of the room at the old house, then get the parts up a very steep flight of stairs – we did part of this ourselves.  

The movers moved the bottom part with the belt, but my husband and I moved the top part to the new house, and then up the stairs.  This thing weighs about 175 lbs and is very wide – so we had to carry it sideways, and even then, it barely fit up the narrow stairwell.  

We carried it about four steps at a time, until we got it upstairs.  Then it took us another two weeks before we even had time to put it back together.  Let’s just say that it was somewhat of a Lucy Ricardo and Ethel Mertz scenario – or maybe Lucy & Ricky.  But we figured it out and got it done.

Now, the upstairs game room is now a workout room, too.  We’ve got the treadmill set up, a bosu ball, and some hand weights.  We’ve got on order from Amazon, some weighted bars, as well. So excited to have this space to be able to continue this life journey of health and fitness. 

Confessions continued… I’ve not been as diligent with my diet as I have been.  Out of necessity, we had to eat out more than we normally do, and I’ve even resorted to fast food a few times.

The good news is that my fasting blood sugar has been in the 80’s and 90’s throughout this whole time.  There have been a couple of weird days where I woke up to a fasting blood sugar over 100 – which was weird and I have not quite figured out the reason for that yet.

We think that maybe those high fasting levels could have been caused because I’ve had trouble sleeping since we initially put the old house on the market.  I’ve felt sleep-deprived most of the time since then.  

Even though I’ve not been on the treadmill as much, I’ve still been active.  Constantly walking around the new house putting things away, then looking for them again, and going up and down the stairs. Definitely active – but just not like I normally was.  

I’m gradually getting back into my pre-house-selling/moving routine.  I’m working on a cooking idea for one of my next posts, and I’m also going to write about the home gym that we are gradually putting together.  

And since COVID started, we’ve been blessed with not one but TWO grand babies!  Our son had a baby girl in April, and in August, on my husband’s birthday, our daughter gave birth to our grandson!  We are so excited for our family.  The circle of life is continuing.  









Here are two of my favorite pictures of my new grandbabies – Francesca and Callahan. ❤️❤️

These two precious ones have been the highlight of the year for me and my husband. They'll be calling us Baba & D.  At least, that's the plan for now.  You know how sometimes those names get changed by the grands, as they learn to talk.  😁 

Thanks for stopping by to read my blog. I love to get comments and hear what you have to say, so feel free to leave me a comment below.  I hope that you’ll subscribe – top right corner of the page if on a desktop, and bottom of the post if using a mobile device.  

In the meantime, live well, and be well!  Oh, and WEAR A MASK!  

*Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links.

House Selling & Buying

 REPOST from former blog My Type 2 Diabetic Life ©

August 10, 2020

Image: My Type 2 Diabetic Life ©

We have put our house on the market.  Selling and buying a home is stressful to someone who’s in GREAT health.  I don’t know anyone who’s sold a house for fun.  Keeping everything in perfect order for showings, open houses, inspections, and a cornucopia of other “house selling” reasons is STRESSFUL.  

Add to that mix Type 2 Diabetes, and everything can get out of whack.  My blood sugars have been up, down, up, down.  The stress is taking an emotional and physical toll on me, that’s for sure.  There are times when I feel like I just can’t even breathe.

I’ve been working hard to find a balance between my eating healthy, but also keeping the kitchen clean and not making the house smell like I just cooked spaghetti or something.  That’s really hard.  

I’m not sleeping well at night.  I find myself sleeping really hard for about 3 – 4 hours, then waking up around 1 – 2 am and not being able to go back to sleep because my mind is racing.  Being a seller and a buyer at the same time, my mind is constantly racing with thoughts of what all I need to do the next day.  

What appointments are there to keep for tomorrow?  What tasks do I need to complete that day?  Do I have enough boxes?  What about packing material and packing tape?  Which room should I tackle for packing tomorrow?

Millions of ideas and questions are popping up in my head 300 hours a day, every day.  I need to figure out how I’m going to deal with my stress.  Normally, I would work out for several hours, to relieve the stress – but even that workout time has been cut into.

I am praying a lot – talking to a few friends and family and asking for their prayers, as well.  That helps to know that others are praying for me.  My husband and I both have a deep faith in God and believe in the power of prayer.  But we are also human, and it is in the human nature to feel stress at various levels.

Writing this blog is, to a small degree, a stress reliever for me.  It helps me to see what is causing my stress, and what I can do to relieve some of it.

I also am trying to keep busy, so that my mind is not constantly occupied with real estate sales and purchases.  Then there’s also my elderly mother that we have in a nearby assisted living center.  That’s another different source of stress for me.

I’ve got a couple of blogs that I’m working on now,  but they won’t be finished or published until we close on our current home and our new one.

One blog is about a low carb product that I’ve had an opportunity to try, and the other one is about an every day ingredient that I’ve recently read studies on that indicate it lowers triglycerides and blood sugar – I’m still researching this one before I finish and post.

So keep me in your prayers, that I am able to manage my stress so that my blood sugar will remain stable.  

Thanks for stopping by to read my blog. I love to get comments and hear what you have to say, so feel free to leave me a comment below.  I hope that you’ll subscribe – top right corner of the page if on a desktop, and bottom of the post if using a mobile device.  

In the meantime, live well, and be well!  

*Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links.

Recent Labs Report

REPOST from former blog My Type 2 Diabetic Life ©

July 31, 2020

Image: My Type 2 Diabetic Life ©


I wanted to write a short post today, to update you on my recent visit to my endocrinologist. I visited Dr. Folb on July 13th, and I got a call Wednesday with my lab results. All in all, my results were good – better than they have been in a long time. 

I was especially worried that they would not be as good, since the pandemic has slowed down our workout options. We did, however, invest in a treadmill, so I’ve been using that to get some cardio in. I also have some dumb bells, a kettle bell, and a bosu ball that I can use to help with my workouts.

First of all, my A1c was steady at a 5.6 – what a relief. I was really happy about that. My lab results were not perfect, but the definitely were not worse than last time.

My cholesterol was 203, triglycerides 282, HDL 35, and LDL 56. Those numbers are not perfect, but for me, they’re the best that I’ve had in several years, so this is a celebration for me! Yay!! 

I started taking some over the counter fish oils and a multi-vitamin in April, both at the recommendation of Dr. Folb. We discussed me taking Vascepa, but it is so cost prohibitive, that she suggested I find a good OTC fish oil which I did.  

Image: My Type 2 Diabetic Life ©

Here are pics of the fish oil and the vitamins that I got.

Nordic Naturals EPA Fish Oils & 365 Women’s Multi Vitamins

Image: My Type 2 Diabetic Life ©










If you’re interested in these, you can find the fish oil by clicking this image:

And the multi vitamins I got at Whole Foods Market. Unfortunately, Amazon does not carry that vitamin yet. Hopefully soon. 

I’m also supposed to pick up and start taking some Vitamin D – as my level was low. Dr. Folb told me to take 2000 units a day. 

So all in all, I am very pleased with the results of my labs. I can breathe a sigh of relief for now. But there’s still work to be done! 

I wanted to get this blog posted, and let you know that I’m working on a food post soon! 

We currently have our home on the market, and are looking for another one, so much of my time has been totally consumed with that! Fingers crossed for that to all go smoothly! 

Thanks for stopping by to read my blog. I love to get comments and hear what you have to say, so feel free to leave me a comment below.  I hope that you’ll subscribe – top right corner of the page if on a desktop, and bottom of the post if using a mobile device.  

In the meantime, live well, and be well!  

*Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links.

Awesome Amazon Finds for Diabetics!

 REPOST from former blog My Type 2 Diabetic Life ©

June 28, 2020


Image created on WordArt.com

Since we’ve been dealing with COVID19 for the past 3 ½ months now, I’ve been doing a lot of my shopping online, so that I don’t have to get out and mingle with anyone. It helps with my stress level to not have to get out and about so much. 

I decided that I would write a blog post about all of the awesome finds that I’ve found on Amazon, that benefit diabetics.  Clicking on the images or links in the post should open the item directly in your Amazon app or account when using your mobile device or your computer.

So I’m just going to dive right in, and tell you about some of the things that I’ve personally bought for myself, as well as some other items for diabetics that I have found while browsing Amazon. If I’ve not gotten it yet, it is definitely on my wish list.

First, are glucose meters. For those who’ve been following my blog, you know I use the Dario meter.  I’ve said it before, but I’ll say again, that I love my Dario glucose meter because all of my information is stored in the cloud, via the app on my phone.  (Don’t worry, Dario complies by all HIPPA law requirements, so your info is safe.) Click the image below for the Amazon link.

And I love the Dario case for my meter!  Click the image for the Amazon link.

They have two types of Dario cases.  I have both, but I like the smaller case best.  I can put it in my pocket if I’m not carrying my purse. If I travel somewhere overnight, I use the larger case. Click the image below for the larger case.

There are many other meters that you can buy on Amazon, and usually, the prices are better on Amazon than you find other places.  Here are some of the others that you can get from Amazon.

There’s also the Bayer Contour Next EZ meter – click the image.

And there’s the One Touch Ultra 2 – click the image.

There’s also the Auvon DS-W – click the image.

You can check out the Easy Touch glucose monitor – click the image.

And then there’s the Prodigy Pocket glucose monitor – click the image.

And one many have heard of, the FreeStyle Lite meter – click image.

And then there are insulin coolers. There are many different kinds of insulin coolers available. Here are a few – click on the images below. 

   

Working out is a key factor in controlling blood sugar. So finding the right tools for home workouts is really important. 

   

ALERT! ALERT! I’ve also been told to buy a medical alert bracelet or necklace, so I’ve been looking for ones that I would like.  Here are a few that I’ve found. Click image.

   

Yummy!  There are also many kinds of foods that you can get from Amazon.  Here are some of the things that I buy from Amazon, as well as some items that I plan to try.

I love everything from Diabetic Kitchen’s line. I’m adding some of my favorite products from them here, as well as other favorites that I use.

                                

Diabetic readings and cookbooks are also plentiful on Amazon.  

    

Vitamins and supplements are important to everyone, not just diabetics. Here are some links to ones that I’ve purchased, but not by any means the only ones.

    

I will continue to update and add things to this list.  If a link does not work, let me know in the comments, so that I can correct it.

You can also search foods through Amazon Pantry, using this link:

Amazon Pantry

And depending on where you live, you can get fresh foods through Amazon Fresh, using this link:

Amazon Fresh

Also, if there’s a product that has been helpful to your diabetic journey, and you think I should try it, drop me a note in the comments section. I love trying things that help keep me on track with my diabetes.

Thanks for stopping by to read my blog.  I hope that you’ll subscribe – top right corner of the page if on a desktop, and bottom of the post if using a mobile device.  

In the meantime, live well, and be well!  

*Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links.