The airport was calm enough at four in the morning but Devin was not. He was very anxious about flying thanks to 9-11. After running to the airport bathroom to be sick and getting a benedryl, he calmed down enough to proceed. At Security, the alarms went off from the clip holding Devin's pump to his jeans. He was very respectfully patted down and then got to watch as they took off the gloves and put them into a machine to analyze for any trace of explosives. It became a nice Science lesson. He seemed calm but was shaking like a leaf.
After takeoff, snacks were offered which takes up a surprising amount of the flight time. The televisions on the backs of seats on JetBlue helped takeup the rest of the time. JetBlue was comfortable.
Before we even had the plane stop moving after landing in Orlando, Devin got to see palm trees and an alligator right on airport property. That put a smile on his face.
The way to the Orlando World Marriott was pretty uneventful until we were deluged by a tropical rain. No wonder the cars in Florida always look so clean!
Finding our room was unbelievable. Honestly the hotel was larger than our little unofficial hamlet at home. Being the largest Marriott in the world I should not be surprised. The bed was wonderful. The food was phenomenal. The pool,. . . something to not be missed. The sun was stronger than Devin expected though and he received a dangerous amount of burn (despite sunblock) that caused dehydration and ketones. Devin felt absolutely awful. Extra insulin, extra water, air conditioning and extra sleep helped him through it. He now has a "scar" that he considers cool because he is white where his green bracelet signifying his T1 D status had been.
But the star of the whole experience was the conference itself and the people running things.
Richard and I split up to go to different classes where we learned things we didn't know despite dealing with this disease for 8 years. Devin got the chance to attend the classes given for the teens. It was like Planet Diabetic where everyone speaks diabetes. Devin's shyness did get in the way and he hid in the room at one point until a wonderful bunch of teens came with me to the room to encourage him to go hang out with them. When he came back, he asked if I had orchestrated their coming to the room. I gulped and told the truth that I did ask for some help to get him connected to other T1 D teens. I expected his wrath for interfering but instead I got a smile and a, "Thanks!" Even Richard said that I did a good thing by getting them to the conference.
I highly recommend that every teen with type 1, their closest friends and all of their relatives should go. They have childcare for all ages under teen. They even have classes for Grandparents. It was the most welcoming and pleasant atmosphere for Type 1 Diabetics and their families that I have yet to witness. I can't wait to go next year. Now what do I have left to sell?