How many is too many?

Blood glucose meters, that is.  The other day, I picked Ally up from school.  As we were driving to her after school activity, I realized that we had 4 meters with us in the car!

1) In My Purse.  I always carry a small meter in my purse in case we forget to grab Ally's diabetes bag on our way out the door.  I am trying to teach her to be responsible for making sure that we leave the house with her supplies, because one day it will be her responsibility.  But an 8 year old does forget things, so I carry a backup in my purse.  Plus you never know when the battery in your meter might stop working.

2) In Her Backpack.  The first year that we sent Ally to school with diabetes, I was told that she could not carry a blood glucose meter and lancing device on the school bus because the lancet was considered a weapon.  I followed the rules.  She did not carry a meter, just glucose tablets with her.  And then one day she stepped off the bus with a very low blood sugar (despite them checking before she got on the bus).  So year #2, I didn't ask.  I just put a meter in her backpack.  She also carries a card in her backpack with our phone numbers and the most important safety information about her diabetes. 

3) In Her D Bag that she takes with her to the after school activity.  Her diabetes bag that she carries with her when I am not along contains: meter, test strips, alcohol wipes, glucose tablets, glucagon, extra battery, cell phone, emergency card with T1 information and our phone numbers.  (But don't worry, other than when she is at school, she is never away from us for more than an hour or two at a time.  And even on those occasions, I don't go very far!)

and 

4) A Backup Meter that I Keep in the Car (for the same reasons as #1).  Who knows if it would actually work if we needed it.  The different temperatures that it is subjected to in the car (extreme cold in the winter and heat in the summer) must not be good for it.  But it is a backup to a backup (the one in my purse) after all!

Are we over-prepared?  Maybe.  Now, I don't intentionally carry 4 meters with us everywhere we go.  But I guess it's better to be over-prepared than to find ourselves in a pickle with no meter at all.