Sadbh’s update – July 31st 2013

Sadbh had a very restless night. It would seem that this was a possible result of the homeopathic remedy that she took earlier in the day.

After three she seemed to sleep a little deeper so Helen postponed capping her trach to allow her to sleep as comfortably as possible.

Thankfully her lungs sounded good so she did not require any suctioning.

Sadbh had a fun morning and later on she, Larissa and Mariana headed out for a walk around the block.

Larissa and Mariana worked a little later than usual today and helped me manage trach care as soon as I arrived home.

We had to bribe Sadbh to allow us to do trach care and eventually with everyone’s help she finally gave in.

Trach care went well and soon afterwards mommy arrived home.

Katie’s brother, Karby, arrived from Hong Kong and came over for dinner with Ali-Baba and Lulu. Sadbh was excited to see Ali-Baba and Lulu but was very shy around Karby.

It did not take long before Sadbh gave in to Karby’s charms.

We had a great evening catching up and before we realized the time it was well past Sadbh’s bedtime. She had so much fun with Sophia and Lulu and was completely exhausted.

Yesterday we learned that our insurance company has declined Sadbh’s nursing coverage from August 31st onwards so we have begun the next round of appeals.

New photos.

Photos from July 31 2011.

Photos from July 31 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – July 30th 2013

Helen succeeded in capping Sadbh’s trach for 24 minutes last night. Her blood oxygen level and heart rate were perfect but her breathing was a lot shallower than usual. Eventually she had enough and pulled the cap off and handed it directly to Helen.

She slept great for the rest of the night and woke up very happy to see mommy.

Ali-Baba stopped by with a surprise for Sadbh today. Her cousin Lulu is staying with Ali-Baba and she could not wait to play with Sadbh.

Sadbh and Lulu had a fantastic day and Lulu even read a couple of books to Sadbh when it came time for her nap.

Larissa and Ali-Baba managed trach care and soon afterwards Sadbh was sleeping soundly.

Later in the afternoon Katie arrived home and brought Sadbh, Larissa and Mariana to visit doctor Heron, Sadbh’s homeopathic doctor.

The remedy that she last prescribed had a very positive affect on Sadbh for almost ten days so with this information Dr. Heron felt confident that she was getting closer to a potential solution.

Sadbh had so much fun with Lulu and Sophia throughout the rest of the evening and could not stop laughing when the girls pretended that snakes were chasing her.

Bedtime was a little later than usual and Sadbh was very hyper after such an exciting and playful evening.

New photos.

Photos from July 30 2011.

Photos from July 30 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – July 29th 2013

Sadbh slept until just after 6am and was ready for a nice snuggle with mommy when she woke.  She was looking for Daddy when she woke up and Katie explained that I had to go to work.  Sadbh knew that it was only a matter of time before mommy was going to be heading off and she got very clingy.

Larissa and Mariana worked today and between them both they did a great job of cheering Sadbh up when mommy left.

She had a great day and enjoyed learning her numbers with Mariana.

After a nice long nap it was time for the fun and games to continue. She was in a great mood when I arrived home and was even more excited when Sophia arrived back.

We all had a fun evening and after dinner Sadbh and I went for a short stroll to the end of the block and back.

She loves being out and tried her best to head down towards the chickens.

Unfortunately, I did not have her suction bag and emergency backpack so we could not go too far.

Trach care went well and Sophia got to watch.

It took a while for Sadbh to fall asleep and after a nice big snuggle with mommy she was sleeping her little head off.           

New photos.

Photos from July 29 2011.

Photos from July 29 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh. 

Sadbh’s update – July 28th 2013

Today was another busy day for Sadbh and she started it off by waking up just as Danielle left at 6am.

She seemed tired so after disconnecting her equipment we both headed upstairs in the hopes that she would fall asleep with Katie and I.

She was very happy to see Katie and for a while she was happy snuggling up.

It did not last long and soon she was eager to head downstairs.

At one point she undid her nappy and ended up peeing in the bed. Not fun.

She had a fun morning playing with mommy and Sophia and she must have been wiped out because when it came to nap time she was out before we knew it.

Katie and I were able to manage trach care without any problems and for the first time in ages we were able to admire her beautiful face as she slept peacefully while we managed trach care.

She slept for over three hours and woke up well rested and very happy.

After lunch we loaded up the car and headed over to Alki Beach for a walk.

It had been an overcast morning so the beach was not too crowed despite that the clouds had burned off.

Sadbh could not wait to get her toes in the water and loved how the waves lapped up around her ankles.

The rest of the evening was spent playing with Sophia and making forts in the living room. She loved it and even wore her green frog towel as a space cape.

Bedtime was easy tonight and she was delighted to be snuggled up with mommy.

New photos.

Photos from July 28 2011.

Photos from July 28 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh. 

Sadbh’s update – July 27th 2013

Sadbh woke up immediately after Danielle finishing at 6am.

We had a very busy day planned as we were having a yard sale with a few of our friends and neighbors.

Sadbh had a lot of fun throughout the day and spent most of it playing with Sophia, Ali-Baba, Clodagh and Maya from up the street.

She brought her little stroller to show Maya but she was not prepared to share it. Maya wanted to have a go and this led to a little dispute between the two girls. Eventually Maya brought out her own stroller and they both had a great time walking around with their little baby dolls.

Sadbh's friend Cora also stopped by to say hello for awhile.  It was fun to see them play together, even just for a few minutes.  Sadbh was in heaven with all of her wonderful little friends around to play.

In the evening Su Jin came by to work for a few hours and so Katie and I could get out for a date night.

Sadbh was very happy to see Su Jin but was less than enthusiastic when she realized that we were heading out for a few hours.

Sophia was extremely helpful in getting Sadbh to sleep but she had her work cut out for her. Sadbh finally fell asleep around 10 just as Danielle’s shift started.

New photos.

Photos from July 27 2011.

Photos from July 27 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – July 26th 2013

It was another good nights sleep and Sadbh woke up well rested.

She was in a very good mood and as Katie got her ready she could hear Sophia having breakfast.  Every time she heard the spoon on the bowl, Sadbh giggled like crazy.  It was hilarious.  Knowing that Sophia was up she got very excited and could not wait to join her.

She had a great day and it only got better in the afternoon when Mariana built a rocket ship so Sadbh could fly to the moon and back.

This evening our friends Fayee and Bruce stopped by with their baby son Bastian. Sadbh acted as if she was afraid of Bastian and kept running away. She had a great time playing.

During dinner this evening Sadbh looked at Sophia and asked Katie in a joking tone “who’s that?”, as she has every night this week. Instead of waiting for mommy to answer Sadbh said “Super Sophia!” with a cheeky grin on her face.

Trach care went well this evening and soon Sadbh was snuggling up with mommy.

New photos.

Photos from July 26 2011.

Photos from July 26 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – July 25th 2013

Sadbh was out for the count last night and had a great night sleep.

She woke up in a good mood and ready to get her day started.

She had a good day but took a nice tumble when out walking with Larissa and Marianna. Both knees got well banged up but she cheered up after the initial shock wore off.

She could not wait for Sophia to return home from her summer class and in the evening they both had a lot of fun playing in the back garden.

She had us all in hysterics laughing this evening as I was watering the garden. Every so often I would squirt some water at her and she seemed to enjoy it.

The next time I squirted water at Sadbh she called out very matter of factly, “Wayne, stop messing!” It was priceless.

She was very tried when it came time for her bath and her knees really started to hurt her. She had no desire for trach care and struggled to get out of it. Katie and I persevered and were able to get it taken care of after a minimal amount of stress.

It took a while to get her to sleep but by 9:30 she was happy sleeping her head off in her cot.

New photos.

Photos from July 25 2011.

Photos from July 25 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – July 24th 2013

Sadbh had a good night and a very exciting day.

Ali-Baba came over in the morning and the fun began.  It was all kicked off by a squirrel running up the fence and down in the back after someone clapped loudly.  As a result Sadbh kept clapping. 

Then a cat ran in the house, was chased out and ran screeching across the back deck right in front of them and then up over the fence and out to the driveway.  Sadbh could not stop talking about it. 

Next, a team of 5 men arrived and started climbing up the trees to prune them up.  Sadbh was extremely excited by all the activity to say the least.

Sadbh went down for a nap only half an hour later than usual and slept for just over an hour.  She was very excited to be wearing her big girl panties over her nappy.

When Katie arrived home, we ate dinner and packed up our things to head up to Capital Hill where it was rumored that Macklemore would be filming his next video at Dick’s Drive-in. 

Both Sofia and Sadbh were very excited with all the buzz as we drove closer into the action.  We finally found parking and made our way into the filming area.  Sadbh had fun watching all the people and she was excited when they occasionally cheered at the potential viewing of Macklemore. 

While we waited, a very nice Policeman came up to Sadbh and gave her a Junior Policeman sticker.  Sadbh was very happy for the special attention and she smiled shyly at the officer. 

Unfortunately, the show did not start soon enough and we needed to get home quickly to do trach care and get Sadbh to sleep, especially since Helen would be arriving at 9:45pm.

Sadbh was very cooperative and she sang “Do a Deer” (from The Sound of Music) all the way home in the car.  After a quick bath and a quick trach care routine, Sadbh snuggled up with Katie and was soon fast asleep.

New photos.

Photos from July 24 2011.

Photos from July 24 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – July 23rd 2013

Sadbh slept soundly and Helen was able to cap her trach for 34 minutes. Her blood oxygen level dropped down to 97% but she was still in a good range.

She must have been completely exhausted because she slept until 7:50.She was very unhappy when Katie left for work and Sofia for class, but soon was distracted by Larissa and Mariana.

Sadbh had her post op appointment with Dr. Inglis this afternoon so Katie and I arrived home shortly after noon. Sadbh was still sleeping from her nap so when it was time to go she was not too happy to be woken up.

Dr. Inglis’s visit went as expected. We had not seen much improvement in Sadbh’s condition since the last visit and noticed that her strider was more prominent lately.

He went over our options again and recommended that we stay the course that we are currently on and plan our next visit in 4-6 months.

He determined that we are probably hearing more strider due to the fact that as she is getting bigger she is drawing in more air and since her vocal cords are not opening as much it is causing her to struggle to get enough air in with each breath.

She was in a great mood throughout the visit and gave Dr. Inglis and his assistant Pam Thank You cards for all their help with the insurance problem that we had a couple of months ago. She even told him that she liked eating grass and chives like a cow. She is quite the entertainer.

After we were done we headed off to meet Sophia at University Village and to also get Sadbh some ice cream.

Mommy and Larissa managed trach care as soon as we arrived home and after that we headed off up to the Seattle U campus for a walk.

It was a beautiful evening and we all enjoyed being out in the warm sunshine.

Since we were out we decided to go to Café Presse for dinner and uncle Neil stopped by to join us. Sadbh had a great time with the wait staff and at one stage she was out dancing with Holly and having a blast.

She was pooped when it came time for bed and she was fast asleep in no time.

New photos.

Photos from July 23 2011.

Photos from July 23 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – July 22nd 2013

Sadbh slept like a log. Unfortunately, she did not tolerate her trach being capped, but that’s not much of a surprise lately.

She woke up in a good mood and was very happy to see mommy.

By noon Sadbh was fast asleep and thankfully she got a good two hours rest.

When she woke up she had plenty of people to play with as Sophia had returned home from summer school.

Sadbh and her posse headed out for a stroll through the neighborhood. She really enjoyed being out.

Sadbh was busy playing in the back garden with Sophia when I arrived home and she was having a wonderful time.

Sophia is really good with Sadbh.

When it came time for dinner Sadbh did not want to eat. She had a little bit of a tantrum so it took a while to get her distracted enough to be able to eat something.

Mommy was very sad with Sadbh not eating and when Sadbh saw this she wanted to cheer Katie up so she gobbled up a bunch of food.

Later when they went for a walk in the garden Sadbh started to eat some of the chives by the handful. When we asked her not to she replied with “I eat grass like a cow,  I say moo!”

Maybe she did not want dinner so as not to ruin her appetite when it came to the chives.

Trach care went well and as soon as we finished up Sadbh and mommy snuggled up. Sadbh was very chatty and it took forever to get her to sleep.

New photos.

Photos from July 22 2011.

Photos from July 22 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – July 21st 2013

Sadbh slept well but woke up upset and asking to see her cousin Annabelle. When Katie explained that she was sleeping Sadbh pleaded to see her and said that she wanted to wake her up. Katie told Sadbh that Annabelle loves her and Sadbh gave Katie a small smile and said she loved her too.  She wanted to see videos of Fionn in the hospital. After seeing a few videos and photos of Fionn, she said that he’s getting bigger and bigger.

After breakfast Sadbh Skyped with Nini and her mum Carina in Munich. She was busy telling them about a fall that she took during the week and she was very dramatic in her description.

Later we all pilled into the car and headed off to Snoqualmie Falls to check out the waterfall or “water mountain” as Sadbh calls it.

As we arrived in town we could hear a train rumbling down the track and who was it but Thomas the tank engine. Sadbh was completely blown away and we had to pull over so she could wave at it as it passed by.

The train station was packed with kids so we decided to not risk any chance of Sadbh catching a cold. She was not too pleased about this decision but we got to get up close to Thomas for a photo.

Our next stop was to the water mountain and Sadbh loved getting wet due to the mist. It was very busy there also but we had no problem finding a good viewpoint so Sadbh and Sophia could check out the falls.

On the way back to the car Sadbh stopped to chat with a woman and explained to her what she had just seen.

Sadbh took a thirty-minute nap on the way back to Seattle and by the time we arrived downtown the clouds had burned off and the sun was warming everything up.

Pike Place Market was packed and Sadbh loved it. There was so much to see and we were lucky that she agreed to stay in her stroller otherwise it would have been quite the task trying to keep from losing her.

When we got home Sadbh Skyped with Nana and Granddad. She showed them how well she can climb up and down the stairs and how she can put her shoes on and off without any help.
After she was done Skyping she turned to Katie and asked her to take her trach cap off. She said that it was hurting her. 

The rest of her evening was spent playing with Sophia. The two girls have bonded really well and Sophia read numerous books to Sadbh out on the back porch.

We managed trach care just before bed and afterwards Sadbh only wanted to snuggle with mommy. I convinced her to sit on my lap long enough to give her a saline nebulizer but as soon as we were finished it was time for mommy to take over.

New photos.

Photos from July 21 2011.

Photos from July 21 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – July 20th 2013

Sadbh slept great and Danielle was able to cap her trach for five minutes. Before Sadbh got sick earlier this year she was able to tolerate having her trach capped for three hours while she slept, unfortunately the best we can achieve now is 5 minutes.

She woke up looking for mommy at 7am but instead of heading upstairs we headed into the kitchen for breakfast. She was fine with this idea but did not have much of an appetite.

Katie arrived down a short while later and as you could imagine Sadbh was very excited.

We had a great morning and after trach care we headed to the airport to pick up Nini’s cousin Sophia.

Sadbh was excited all morning for the arrival of Sophia and kept asking when her Sophia was coming.

As soon as she realized that we were heading to the airport to pick her up she was so amped up that she would not take her nap.

At the airport it took a little longer than expected to clear immigration and customs but Sadbh was very happy checking everyone out. It was so busy but she loved the hustle and bustle of the place.

When Sophia came up the stairs Sadbh was thrilled to meet her. She was shy at first, as usual, but soon warmed up and got very chatty.

Later in the evening we stopped by to give Cormac a belated birthday present. Sadbh had napped for only 30 minutes and Cormac had woken up from his nap. Clodagh was away on a sleep over however this did not stop Sadbh from having fun with some of her toys.

Despite the lack of sleep Sadbh had a lot of energy today and we all had a tough time keeping up with her.

Earlier when I was in the garage and Katie and Sophia were in the back garden Sadbh took off down the drive and with the blink of an eye she was gone.

It did not take me long to catch up with her as she was traipsing through the shrubs in the front of the house trying to find some elusive cat.

This evening when we were having dinner with Cormac and his parents she slipped out of her chair and took off for the front door of the restaurant when she seen a bus driving by. I made it to the door just after her and ahead of two waiters but she frightened the hell of everyone.  Luckily, she stopped in the doorway, frantically waving goodbye to the bus.

We were all exhausted when we got home and thankfully Sadbh was fast asleep within half an hour of going to bed.

New photos.

Photos from July 20 2011.

Photos from July 20 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh. 

Sadbh’s update – July 19th 2013

It was a quiet night for Helen and Sadbh slept great until 7. I was getting ready for work when Sadbh came running into the bathroom with a big smile on her face. Usually I’m out the door quite a while before she wakes up so it was a treat for both of us to be able to hug and kiss before I headed off.

She had a good day with Larissa and Mariana. They got to take Sadbh out for a walk in the afternoon and they ended up at the Madrona’s farmers market.

She was practicing putting her sandals on and despite putting them on the wrong feet a couple of times she has certainly mastered it.

She was a little bit upset this evening and had moments where she would bawl her eyes out. We could not figure out what was upsetting her each time, but it did seem that she might have been very tired.

Thankfully trach care went well and afterwards we headed into the kitchen for dinner. She was very mischievous and kept stealing food from our plates as we were getting everything ready.

She had a good appetite and especially enjoyed playing with the olives by wearing them on her fingers.

She was super tired when it came time for bed but despite this it still took over an hour before she fell asleep and by then we were all wiped out. During trach care she watched the Muppet Movie and was infatuated with Fossie Bear.  She loved it when he said “wacca wacca’.  When it came time to go to sleep, every few minutes she would blurt out ‘wacca wacca’ and crack herself up hysterically.  It was very funny, but made bedtime take longer than it should have.  Katie was wrecked.

New photos.

Photos from July 19 2011.

Photos from July 19 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh. 

Sadbh’s update – July 18th 2013

Sadbh slept well and woke up shortly after 7. She was in a good mood and happy for her day to start.

She was tired when it came to her nap and she slept for a couple of hours.

I left work a little earlier than usual and both Larissa and I managed trach care as soon as I got home.

Sadbh was not too keen at first but after we had a little chat she was very obliging and allowed us to get it down without any problems.

Mariana was also very helpful as she kept Sadbh entertained the whole time.

This afternoon was busy with people stopping by.

Brian stopped by to pick something up and when Sadbh saw him she was asking where Aidan was. She was sad to learn that Aidan was not with Brain and that he was at day care.

Soon uncle Neil stopped by and Sadbh was also happy to see him. She was in a very playful mood so we hung out in the back yard while Sadbh played.

Soon mommy arrived home with her friend Carey and Sadbh was so excited. At one point she started putting her toes in her mouth and was surprised to see Carey doing the same thing. Although it has to be noted that even though Carey appeared to be putting her toes into her mouth, her toes did not enter her mouth so I guess Sadbh won that competition.

Erin and Andrew also stopped by and even though Sadbh had not seen them in a few months she was happy when they arrived. She soon had Erin walking through the garden showing off her vegetables and explaining how she takes care of them.

After dinner Sadbh spotted the moon but it seemed to be stuck in one of the trees. She got so excited especially when I grabbed the ladder and climbed up to retrieve it.

It was just like the story that she read a couple of nights before.

It was late by the time she went to bed and she was sad to say good night to everyone.

After a big snuggle with mommy and a few kisses from me she was off to sleep in no time.

The perfect ending to a perfect day.

New photos.

Photos from July 18 2011.

Photos from July 18 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh. 

Sadbh’s update – July 17th 2013

Sadbh had a much more peaceful and insect free night and even slept soundly throughout a big thunderstorm.

Helen tried numerous times to cap her trach but was unsuccessful each time.

Before going to bed last night Sadbh and Katie watched a video based on Eric Carle’s “Papa, Please Get the Moon for Me”. It’s about a little girl that wants the moon so her father climbs a huge ladder to get it for her. Long story short, the little girl get’s what she wants and everyone is happy.

Sadbh really enjoyed it and the first thing to come out of her mouth this morning when she woke up was “daddy got moon and I want to play with moon”.

Looks like I’m in the market for a very long ladder.

Sadbh was happy to see Larissa and Mariana this morning but even happier when Ali-Baba showed up.

They got down to some serious fun and spent the entire morning having a fantastic time.

Ali-Baba brought over a small bird house and both she and Sadbh painted it.

She already has one so she mentioned that this new one was for her cousin Fionn.

They also painted flowers and other things. It was a very arts and crafts type of a morning.

Sadbh slept for almost two hours and woke up looking for her moon again. Thanks Eric.

Sadbh and I had a great evening as we waited for mommy to arrive home. We danced and played hide and seek and both of us laughed our heads off.

As soon as mommy arrived home Sadbh was so excited. She was wearing her ladybird wings and for a moment I thought she was about to fly across the room into her arms.

Katie’s dad arrived this evening and Sadbh was so excited. After dinner we got Sadbh ready for her bath and then ready for bed. Just before we got her into a fresh nappy she asked for her potty. For the first time ever Sadbh had a pee in her potty. You would have sworn we had won the lotto with all the cheering and clapping that was going on. Sadbh had a very proud look on her face.

Trach care went well and soon afterwards Sadbh was fast asleep in mommies arms.

New photos.

Photos from July 17 2011.

Photos from July 17 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – July 16th 2013

Sadbh slept well and Helen tried to cap her trach a number of times. After the fourth attempt she gave up as Sadbh was not having any of it.

She spent the rest of the night chasing a huge moth and an even bigger spider around the room.

The joys of a hot summer with the windows open to keep the room cool.

Sadbh was a little moody when Larissa and Mariana arrived so to cheer her up they brought her out for a walk. Her mood started to improve immediately as she ran around.

Unfortunately, she tripped on a crack in the pavement and banged up her knees. To everyone’s surprise this did not faze her and she got up and continued on.

They ended up going to Nora’s wood and got to meet a couple of the founders. Sadbh was running around like crazy and she kept Larissa and Mariana on their toes trying to keep up.

All the running around wiped her out and she napped for almost two hours.

When she woke up she played in her cot for a while longer and was definitely in a much better mood than this morning.

When I arrived home she was still in a very energetic mood and was running all around the house. I have no idea where she got the energy from today but I could not keep up with her.

At one point when I was making the dinner she was trying to get me to play with her and kept pulling my leg saying daddy, daddy until she started to say Mr. Walsh, Mr. Walsh.

She definitely got my attention and as soon as I turned around she gave me the cheekiest grin ever.

She had a big appetite when it came to dinner and afterwards it was time for a bath and then trach care.

It’s exhausting doing trach care at night but thankfully Sadbh is so easygoing and happy to lie there watching something on the iPhone.

New photos.

Photos from July 16 2011.

Photos from July 16 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – July 15th 2013

Sadbh slept soundly last night but would not allow Helen to cap her trach. She tried once and Sadbh pulled it off without waking up. She was so quick that Helen decided not to try it a second time for fear of waking her up.

When she did wake up, shortly after 7, she was in a fantastic mood.   The first thing she said to Katie was “I was in your belly” and she laughed.  Katie confirmed this and asked her what she had been doing in there to which Sadbh said “I trying to get out”.

Larissa and Mariana both worked today and when they arrived at 8:30 Sadbh was happy to see them.

She had an appointment with Dr. Cavanaugh, her cranial sacral doctor and it went very well. She was in a very good mood and allowed Dr. Cavanaugh to work his magic without any problems.

When they arrived home Sadbh, Larissa and Mariana headed off for a walk. They went to check out the chickens down the street and after that they came across a guy working with a tractor. Sadbh was fascinated so they stood there watching for quite a while.

She did not sleep long during naptime but was in a good mood for the afternoon.

After dinner Sadbh, mommy and I headed out for a walk and Sadbh brought along her trike. She has started to figure out how to use the peddles but more often than not she uses her feet to push herself along since it seems to be easier.

She had a fun time especially when going downhill.

As we arrived home a plane flew overhead and Sadbh stopped to wave and started to say “goodbye Nini, goodbye Granddad” and then proceeded to blow kisses at the plane.

We managed trach care just before bedtime and thankfully everything went well. She fell asleep quickly this evening since she was pooped.

New photos.

Photos from July 15 2011.

Photos from July 15 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – July 14th 2013

Sadbh slept well but needed to be suctioned a couple of times throughout the night.

She slept until 7 and as soon as she was disconnected from all her equipment we headed upstairs to snuggle up with mommy.

We had a very lazy day and after trach care and a short nap we headed off up to Madrona for a walk. Sadbh got to check out the chickens along the way when we got to the top of the hill she was delighted to see the lake sparkling in the sunlight below.

Sadbh found one house in Madrona that she claimed for her own and she headed down the driveway to check it out.

On the way home we stopped off at the playground in Madrona. Sadbh really wanted to play on the slides and swings so Katie and I gave in. She had so much fun and when it came time to go on the swings we could see the dare devil come out in her. She started to take her hands off the chain and the expression on her face was priceless.

She was not very happy when it came time to leave but she soon got over it.

Sadbh was quite tired for the rest of the evening and she got very cranky. During dinner she wanted to watch a movie so we turned on The Sound of Music. She was mesmerized but soon it was time to go to bed.

New photos.

Photos from July 14 2011.

Photos from July 14 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – July 13th 2013

Sadbh slept great Friday night and woke up shortly after 7. She was in a great mood and happy to see mommy.

Katie had a hair appointment so I brought Sadbh over to meet her friends in West Seattle for the street fair. Since we cannot travel in the car without someone sitting next to Sadbh I had to call on the help from Brian to pock me up on his way there with Aidan.

Sadbh was very happy to see Aidan when they pulled up and she was very chatty during the drive.

The West Seattle junction was packed and Casper Baby Pants just started playing when we arrived. Casper Baby Pants is a side project by the lead singer of The Presidents of the United States of America and he specializes in songs specifically for kids.

It was great and Sadbh and Aidan got busy dancing to the tunes.

When the music finished we finally found everyone else so the fun continued.

Sadbh had a fantastic time watching Aidan and Dylan chasing each other and when Cormac was finished eating she practically dragged him out of his stroller.

Katie eventually came by and the fun continued. By now there was another band playing and the dancing continued.

It was well after her naptime when we left for home and soon Sadbh was sleeping in the car.

We transferred her into the house and started to get her ready for trach care but she woke up. Unfortunately she only slept for 15 minutes but since she was in a good mood we gave her a bath and took care of trach care without any problems.

Our friends Carrie and Kelly came to visit for the evening and Sadbh took a shine to Kelly. Every so often she would run up to him, give him a big flirtatious smile and run away.

When it came time to get ready for bed she even wanted Kelly to help out. She is going to be trouble.

New photos.

Photos from July 12 2011.

Photos from July 12 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – July 12th 2013

Another good night for Sadbh although Helen could hear that Sadbh was breathing through her nose and that her trach seemed somewhat blocked. She suctioned and cleared her airway and Sadbh slept even better for the rest of the night.

She had a very busy morning with Larissa, Mariana and Ali-Baba.

We had her trach change scheduled for this weekend and based on Helens report this morning we decided to take care of it today.

Both Katie and I arrived home early from work and with the help of Larissa and Mariana we were able to get Sadbh set up and ready for trach change.

With Larissa holding Sadbh’s iPad, Katie and I set about going through the trach care process. When it came time to change her trach Sadbh was a complete superstar. She held her neck back fully allowing Katie to remove her old trach and allowing me to put in the new one. She did not even cough.

Mariana video recorded the whole thing and commented afterwards how we all looked very stressed throughout and once we were done we all looked very relieved.

Later in the evening Katie and I treated Sadbh to some frozen yogurt downtown. She was so excited to be downtown and could not help but dance when she came across a couple of buskers performing. The buskers were great but Sadbh stole all the attention from everyone who passed by. It’s too funny how she dances like her mammy.

She got to bed a little later than usual tonight and thankfully was asleep just before Danielle arrived.

New photos.

Photos form July 12 2011.

Photos form July 12 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – July 11th 2013

Sadbh woke up very upset after a good night sleep. She was crying in her sleep and the first thing she said was that she wanted to see videos of her cousin Fionn. Katie got her set up on her phone and soon Sadbh was happy watching her baby cousin.

She had a very exciting morning as her new nanny, Mariana, started. It was funny because Marianna, Larissa and Caity, Sadbh’s nurse supervisor, all arrived at the exact same time. It was very intense with a lot going on but Sadbh had a great time hanging out with everyone.

She had a great day and napped for over two hours. She managed to wear her trach cap for a few hours total throughout the day but unfortunately did not wear it when she slept.

In the afternoon she kept talking about Nana and Granddad and after a few calls we were able to get them on Skype. Due to the time difference they had just gone to bed so they had an audience with Larissa and Marianna as well as Sadbh. There is no such thing as privacy when it comes to Sadbh.

She even got to watch Mudhoney playing live on the top of the Space Needle as part of the Sub-Pop 25^th anniversary celebrations. She was busy looking for the Weedle on the Needle since it’s one of her favorite books but had to settle for Mudhoney instead.

Katie and I managed trach care this evening just before Sadbh went to bed. She was very tired but stayed awake throughout.

It did not take long for her to fall asleep afterwards.

New photos.

Photos from July 11 2011.

Photos from July 11 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – July 10th 2013

Sadbh slept great yet again and woke up happy and ready to start her day at 6:30.

She did not have much of an appetite but she did gobble down half a chocolate bar that my parents sent over. Needless to say she was wired to the moon in no time bouncing around the house like the Tasmanian devil.

She had a fantastic morning playing and hanging out with Larissa and when it came time for her nap she was surprised when mommy arrived home from work to help out with trach care.

Everything went well and soon Sadbh was dozing off in mommy’s arms.

Sadbh woke up very upset after a long nap but her mood improved shortly afterwards with the help of Larissa.

She was very hungry and had a big lunch.

When I arrived home Sadbh was very busy loading up her toy stroller and purse, as she got ready to go out shopping. She was very focused and she even had two mobile phones in which she would take turns talking to someone or another.

We had left Sadbh’s stroller in Katie’s car so I loaded up Sadbh’s red wagon with her equipment and the two of us headed off out for a walk through the neighborhood.

She did not want the equipment in the wagon with her so I had to carry her emergency backpack on my back with her suction strapped onto the back of her wagon. She can be so fussy sometimes.

We headed down to see the chickens and then on to Nora’s Wood. Sadbh was a little bossy boots the whole way and would not stop dictating which way she wanted me to go. Regardless it was a lot of fun and both of us enjoyed being out of the house.

When we got home it was time for dinner and after that Sadbh had a nice bath before getting ready for bed.

She started to get upset that mommy wasn’t there to put her to bed but as soon as I grabbed the new nursery rhyme book that she got from Nana and Gerdie she was happy to snuggle up so I could read to her.

It did not take long before both of us were fast asleep snuggled up in her armchair. She is quite the wiggly kid and after a while I was able to move her into her cot.

New photos.

Photos from July 10 2011.

Photos from July 10 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – July 9th 2013

It was another uneventful night for Helen as Sadbh slept without any issues. Her chest did sound slightly goopy at one point but she cleared it on her own without the need for suctioning.

Sadbh was in a great mood when she woke up and was delighted to be hanging out with mommy.

Larissa worked today and was greeted by a happy little girl.

When Katie got ready to leave Sadbh came running to give her a big hug and watched as she drove off.

As soon as Katie was gone it was back to having fun with Larissa.

It was a beautiful day so Sadbh and Larissa spent time playing in the back garden and brightening the place up with colourful chalk.

When the two ladies came in for a snack Sadbh pulled a chair up to the kitchen sink to wash up. This turned into a full dishwashing session with Sadbh begging for more soap.

Earlier in the morning Sadbh and Larissa did a science experiment with baking soda and vinegar. This was fun but Sadbh had more fun washing the dishes.

Good to know.

Sadbh slept for nearly two and a half hours and woke up very hungry. She had a huge lunch and impressed Larissa with the amount of food she devoured.

Sadbh was excited all afternoon for the arrival of her old nurse Audrey. Audrey worked with us almost two years ago and has stopped by every time she visits town. The last time Sadbh saw Audrey was back in December and she was excited to see her when she arrived.

It was great catching up and Sadbh kept asking for her to come back again tomorrow.

After dinner it was time for a bath and trach care. Everything went well apart from me accidentally nicking her neck with the Velcro from her trach tie. She got upset for a split second but soon got over it. I felt bad especially since her neck has been looking so good lately.

It took a while to get her off to sleep after we finished trach care and she was very talkative. She kept telling Katie that she did not need her trach anymore and that she wanted to go visit her cousins Fionn and Annabelle.

Eventually she dropped off to sleep and just in time as Helen arrived not long afterwards.

New photos.

Photos from July 9 2011.

Photos from July 9 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – July 8th 2013

According to Helen Sadbh did not move all night. She was very comfortable squished into the corner of her cot and did not wake until nearly 7:30.

She was delighted to see Larissa and got even more excited when Ali-Baba dropped by to play.

Ali-Baba brought some glue sticks and colored paper so Sadbh could get creative with some arts and crafts. She had a great time and did not notice mommy leaving for work.

After crafts it was time to clean up and get cozy with Ali-Baba and a good book. When the sun finally came out, Sadbh and her entourage headed out into the back garden for some fresh air.

Sadbh showed Ali-Baba and Larissa all the work that was done in the garden and pointed out where I had been climbing while pulling down the ivy yesterday.

Ali-Baba left just before bedtime and Sadbh was sad to see her leave. She was very tired so she helped Larissa get the bath ready so she could have a soak before finally hitting the sack.

When it came time for going to bed she was so busy getting all her equipment ready that she did not notice that she was still wearing her trach cap. It took her a while to calm down but she soon slipped into a nice relaxing sleep and managed to wear her cap for a total of 35 minutes while sleeping.

This is a great achievement and it is all thanks to Larissa.

Sadbh had a nice big lunch this afternoon and for desert she insisted on frozen blueberries. She made a huge mess and her face, hands, arms and dress were all coloured blue by the time she was done.

I arrived home to a very excited little girl and she was quick to show me the craft supplies that Ali-Baba brought her. She got herself into a much bigger mess by the time she was done and it required quite the clean up operation.

Before bedtime we gave her yet another bath and got her ready for trach care. Trach care went well but it took almost an hour to get her to sleep. She was very cuddly but did not want mommy to leave.

New photos.

Photos from July 8 2011.

Photos from July 8 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – July 7th 2013

Sadbh hardly moved all night. I took over from Danielle at 6am and for a moment I thought Sadbh might be waking up. Thankfully I was wrong and she slept on for another hour and a half.

She woke up in a great mood and asked me if Poppy was afraid of fireworks.

Since mommy was still sleeping we headed into the kitchen for breakfast. She did not have much of an appetite but ate a decent amount of food regardless.

Soon mommy joined us and Sadbh was over the moon when she walked into the dining room.

Sadbh spent the morning helping mommy and I to tidy and organize the house. She was very attached to her doll Fionn this morning and we found her sitting in her recliner reading a book to him. It was very cute to watch and we cannot wait until she gets a chance to read a book to her cousin Fionn who her doll is named after.

Sadbh had a second breakfast with Poppy and got to hang out with him before he packed his bags for his return trip home.

When it came time for trach care Sadbh was very tired. She watched a few educational videos on YouTube and after we finished she fell asleep for two and a half hours.

Unfortunately, she slept so late that she could not go with Poppy to the airport and to say good-bye. Thankfully he will be back in a couple of weeks.

Sadbh was upset when mommy was not there when she woke up but she was happy to cuddle up with me for a while.

As soon as she calmed down it was time for lunch. Mommy arrived home half way through and Sadbh greeted her with a huge smile.

As soon as her belly was full it was time to head out to do some yard work in the back garden.

I was up a ladder pulling down some ivy from a few trees and Sadbh kept calling after me to be careful. “Be careful daddy. Don’t hurt yourself.” she would say over and over. She even tried to help gather up all the yard waste.

Next it was time to go play with Maya and her baby sister Elliot. There were several other neighborhood kids out, including Ian (4 yrs), his sister Ivy (14 months) and Ama (6 yrs).  Sadbh had a lot of fun and did not want to come home for dinner.

Over dinner, Katie told Sadbh that Larissa would be coming to play with her tomorrow.  Sadbh immediately asked “and mommy too?”  Katie told Sadbh that she had to go to work tomorrow.  Sadbh said “noooo” and started to cry.  Katie started to cry too.  They cried together.  Then they both started laughing and everything was good again.

When it came time for bed Sadbh wanted a nebulizer. She had not played with her iPad all day so this was her opportunity to do so. She quickly pulled up a few puzzle apps that she enjoys and started to solve them as quickly as she could.

It took a while to get her to sleep and poor mommy appeared to be more tired than Sadbh. Sadbh was very happy snuggling up with Katie and had no desire to let go.

New photos.

Photos from July 7 2011.

Photos from July 7 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – July 6th 2013

Sadbh slept great and woke up at 7:30. She immediately asked after Aidan so we called Aidan’s dad and arranged for a play date at the zoo later in the day.

In the meantime it was time for breakfast and a busy morning playing with her toys.

We were organizing her clothes this morning and she was trying on some of them to see if they were too small.  Sadbh tried on a beautiful dress and she looked cute as a button, but unfortunately she wasn’t too thrilled about wearing it for very long.

She had a great morning and was wiped out when it came time for her nap.

We took care of trach care while Sadbh watched Kermit the frog and his Muppet friends singing on mommy’s phone and as soon as we finished up she dropped off to sleep after a nice big snuggle with Katie.

She napped for a couple of hours and as soon as she was awake we loaded up the car and headed off to meet Aidan at the zoo.

It took a short while for the two kids to warm up to each other but soon they were both having a great time checking out the penguins getting fed.

After that, we headed off to see the baby otters, but they were still being cared for by their parents out of public view.

From there we headed off to see the Orangutan’s and then on to see the elephants.

The elephant’s and penguins were two of Sadbh’s favorite today however I think hanging out with Aidan was the highlight of her day.

When it came time to leave Aidan acted all cool when Sadbh tried to give him a hug and he took off running when she leaned in to give him a kiss. She was determined though and eventually got a big hug from Aidan and even a nice kiss good bye.

It was so funny to watch the two of them.

For dinner we headed over to Shilshole and got to eat dinner looking out over the Puget Sound. Sadbh did not have a huge appetite but was thrilled when the waiter brought out a nice big bowl of ice cream.

Bedtime was very easy tonight and both Sadbh and mommy fell asleep in each other’s arms very quickly.

New photos.

Photos from July 6 2011.

Photos from July 6 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.