"I'm so sorry Daddy can't eat Fruit Loops and Trix and Pop Tarts anymore."

Gabriel couldn't fall asleep tonight (a frequent problem). He got up to tell me he'd had a bad dream about the Sombrero ride at Six Flags. His feelings were hurt about getting in trouble with David for not getting his p.j.s on. Since I've been back at work (a month now), he's developed more of a sweet tooth than he's ever had before. So I'm not surprised that that last night's discussion made a big impression on him.

Last night David told the kids about his diagnosis: Type II Diabetes. He got the call Friday that his labs were back, his blood sugar was very high (in the 300s when it should be no higher than 99) and to come in Monday morning.

After the second time Gabe got out of bed to talk to me, I sent him back to bed and told him I'd come talk to him after I got Paloma down. I did so quickly. Almost immediately, Gabe was recounting all of the foods David had told the kids that he can't eat anymore (and it was quite a long list). Apparently the things that made the biggest impression were the brand-named foods Gabe enjoys himself. I guess David used those as an illustration because he doesn't really eat much of the sugary stuff. I'm the one that likes the sugary stuff.

I was telling the kids recently, though, how funny it is to me that now that I'm an adult and could have sweets/ candy any time I want, I almost never do. I don't grab candy bars in the impulse aisles or buy them out of the vending machines at work. I'm not even tempted. But as a kid, Halloween was my favorite holiday because candy trumped even the grandiosity of Christmas. When I was in high school, I ate a bag of chips and a candy bar and drank a soft drink for lunch every day. When I first started eating at Pappadeaux, I didn't eat seafood at all-I'd go in and order a dessert sampler, which was an entree-sized plate of their luscious desserts created by their pastry chef. I still consume more sugar than the average adult, I'm sure, if for no other reason than the amount I take in Coca Cola, but I don't eat whole meals of desserts anymore. We have candy bars in the refrigerator from the opening of Terminal D (over a year ago)--and those were good chocolates, too. What I still crave these days is ice, and that started when I was pregnant with Paloma.

So anyway, we are about to take a crash course in Diabetes, having been prescribed classes by our doctor. I already picked up the books about the diets she recommended he follow: Sugar Busters and the South Beach Diet.

I am trying to be supportive of David, but this is upsetting to me, too, and I'm afraid I haven't been the model partner so far.

Please pray for us as we face this challenge in our family.