"This," I said to my mom while pointing to the table full of mid-afternoon party food, "is exactly the kind of situation where I would really benefit from having a pump."

We were in my brother's dining room at his daughter's first-birthday party. The spread included crackers with an amazing cream cheese and pesto dip, mini chicken salad croissant sandwiches, fresh fruit, potato chips and dip and fresh veggies. To the untrained eye, there wasn't much that I should have stayed away from, but in reality there was just about nothing that didn't require insulin.

Mom looked a little confused. "But you'd still have to count carbs," she said.

"Well, yeah, of course," I said. "But that's not really the reason the pump would be so beneficial. I could eat and not have to excuse myself to take a shot."

She nodded in understanding.

"Also, particularly in a situation like this, I could more easily eat something, walk away and socialize, come back for a little something more, leave to socialize and essentially graze much easier the way people typically do at parties.

She nodded again, collecting all this new information.

"I could just take the pump out, push some buttons, and no one would be the wiser," I explained. "Instead of carrying around my insulin pen or taking a big dose of insulin after eating."

"How exactly do you count carbs in a situation like this," Mom asked.

"Well, it's sort of tough, but since I'm taking shots, what I'll likely do is eat and then take a big shot afterwards," I said. "Ideally, I should take a shot first so that the insulin has a chance to work before the carbs do."

She nodded again in understanding. And with that, with nearly 60 people surrounding us, I excused myself to grab my insulin pen and find a hiding place. I don't think I can wait for January.