Uncle Ed

Well, one year was uneventful! Which was actually nice! I didn't know what to expect, but it was my dog, Shortstop's birthday, so that was a reason for happiness!!! We played BINGO for family bingo night at school, so it really took our minds off of it!

Still can't believe it's a year...

On another note, here's an email I sent to my uncle updating him on the goings on up here. You can tell from the email that we never get a chance to get together... but I'd love for my kids to get to know their Great Uncle, and Grandma's Little Brother!!

Hi Uncle Ed!!

You asked how I'm doing, well... Here goes...

I'm doing well!! I'm in my 18th year of teaching, and I'm so blessed to have such a great job which I love. I have 2 beautiful and perfect children - Jenna, 11 and Jimmy, 6. We live in lovely River Edge - which is right next to Oradell. We've been in our house for over 6 years now. We moved from Wayne, NJ - which is where I used to teach, but now I'm lucky enough to be teaching in River Edge! The schools are wonderful, and both children are thriving! Their picture from the first day of school this year is attached.

They're gorgeous, if I do say so myself!

I married a wonderful man, Jim, who grew up in River Edge, and whose dad was an All American Basketball player in the 40's (if your dad was the "Babe Ruth of Gymnastics", he was just short of that in the college basketball scene in the 40's.) His name was Anthony "Butch" Karpowich. Jim is the baby of the family, so you and he have that in common - you would love him!!! He's a teacher and a coach, and graduated with an Ed.D. in Education - so now he is "Dr. Karpowich"!

Jenna is 11, and in the 5th grade. She excels in school, and participated in band (she plays drums and piano), is a girl scout, takes hip hop dance, starred in basketball, and is in Gifted and Talented in school!!! Softball is starting now... she hopes to pitch and play shortstop. A righty through and through - you'd be surprised to hear that she bats lefty! With strength on her side, she can really hit! She's a delight, and you would get a kick out of her!!! She's a great combination of a free spirit and go-getter!!!

Jimmy is 6, and his life revolves around sports!! He's taken Kindergarten by storm - and the building is still standing!! Basketball finished up, and he was the tallest in the program - in one of his games, he scored all of the points! Now we're waiting for baseball to start. He's quite big and tall for his age, so it should be an interesting season. We were delivered a blow last April Fool's Day when he was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. It's been a year now, and you would be surprised how advanced treatment options have come over the years compared to "back in the day"... Jimmy wears an insulin pump, and is just about unstoppable with it! It sure beats taking shots! I'm sure you remember Dad's brother, Uncle John... He used to take a shot a day and was totally limited as to what he could eat. Jimmy can eat anything he wants at any time - and the pump delivers the insulin he needs while correcting high blood sugars. He does have his share of high and low blood glucose readings, but his level of care is so much greater than Uncle John's because of the amount of research and knowledge they have now. As of now in the world of Type 1 Diabetes, it is predicted that Jimmy will live within 5 years of his life expectancy - but I'm praying that with the advancements in Diabetes care, that that will change and he will not only live to - but surpass his life expectancy!

When I "friended" your shop, "Tattoo Blues" (at the suggestion of Donna), Heath contacted me... I told him that you were my Uncle, and we started up a Facebook friendship! He even looked into diabetic tattoos for me (the color changes to indicate a high and low blood sugar.) Turns out, its not quite the same as a regular tattoo, and it's still not ready for market... Maybe one day it will be. Jimmy has a cousin (Jim's side of family) who is also a diabetic - I'll treat them to their first tattoos when it comes on the market!!!

I keep a blog of the (literal) ups and downs of life with a diabetic child. You can find it at: http://jimmyjdblog.blogspot.com/p/diagnosis.html I keep it as a way to get my feelings down and to have it for one day when I can go back and see actually happened in our lives with diabetes. It's been such a blur and so very busy, not to mention extremely difficult and emotional. It also keeps friends and family updated.

On another note, it will be one year in June since mom passed. I'm so glad that both my kids got to know her. Jenna remembers her before the Parkinson's took over, and before her wheel chair. Jimmy remembers zooming her around in her wheel chair (I think he thought of it as her race car.) She will always have a place in their hearts and memories, and for that I'm so very thankful. Here's a site I put together so you can see the video tribute I made (it's also on Facebook - if Heath can show it to you on his account.) You can find the site at: http://claireschnakenberg.shutterfly.com/

I hope you are well and enjoying life in Florida. I'd love to hear about what's happening with you if you have some time - and I'd especially love to hear any old stories about mom you might remember! I miss her dearly, and reminisce often with Dad, Jennie, Julie and Tom. She's our biggest cheerleader now from up in heaven!!

Your niece ,

June