WATERLOO - Getting ready for school each morning, Ally Eastland is a typical eighth-grade girl. She gets up early to style her hair and carefully apply makeup. And, of course, there's always the decision on what to wear. A girl with a dream to be a fashion designer can't leave the house in just any old thing.

But Ally must make time in her a.m. routine for some extras. She must check her blood sugar, administer an insulin injection and carefully count the carbs in her breakfast.

"It's pretty much second nature," said the petite Central Middle School student, peering over the top of her stylish glasses. "I've been doing it for seven years - half my life."

Ally was 7 when she was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, also called juvenile diabetes. Type 1 diabetes occurs when the pancreas stops producing insulin. She had all the classic signs - extreme thirst, excessive trips to the restroom, fatigue and irritability.

The Eastland family was about to leave for a trip to St. Louis the day Ally was diagnosed.

"I thought they would just give her some medication and we'd be on our way," said Kim Eastland, Ally's mother. "I was so uneducated about it. They said no, you're going to the hospital immediately. We were in the hospital for five days."

Since then, Ally has learned to carefully monitor her condition. She checks her blood sugar five to six times a day, gives herself insulin shots - even in the nurse's office at school - and diligently watches what she eats to keep her blood sugar in check.

"The biggest thing is she has to stay on a routine," Kim Eastland said. "If supper will be late, we have to make sure there are snacks for Ally. For most kids, a late supper isn't a big deal. For Ally, it's life threatening."

Several years ago, the family got involved with the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. Meeting other families who have a child with type 1 diabetes has provided the Eastland's with lots of moral support. The Eastlands, in return, have helped JDRF with its fundraising efforts.

More than 40 family members and friends of the Eastland's - team Ally Cats - will join the family on the 2009 JDRF Walk to Cure Diabetes Feb. 21 at College Square Mall in Cedar Falls. It's the second year for the event locally, and organizers are expecting about 1,000 participants.

"Last year we raised almost $90,000. Our goal this year is $95,000," said Laura Rompot, special events coordinator and outreach for the Eastern Iowa branch of JDRF.

All of the money raised goes directly to type 1 diabetes research at University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics. Researchers there have already found that even in people with type 1 diabetes, the body continues to make insulin-producing cells. The problem is the autoimmune response that shuts them down.

"If we can stop that immune response in Type 1 diabetics, these patients could regain function. That research breakthrough has opened up a world of opportunity for the kids and adults with this disease.

"This isn't some pie in the sky," Rompot said. "This is a curable disease. It will take time and effort, but we can get there."

Contact Meta Hemenway-Forbes at (319) 291-1483 or meta.hemenway-forbes@wcfcourier.com.