Sadbh’s update – day 302 February 7th, 2012

Sadbh had another restless night sleep, however she slept through the night and it seems that she was a lot more comfortable than the night before.

Her night nurse Larissa was quick to comfort her through the night, and this also allowed both Katie and I to get a good night sleep ourselves.

On my way out to work this morning, I popped in to see how she was doing, and a few minutes later she was awake and hungry for breakfast.

I called Katie down, and after ten or so minutes, I had to call her down again.

Even though she had answered on the first call, she thought that she had come down to feed Sadbh, however she was simply dreaming about it.

As you could imagine, Sadbh was delighted when Katie finally arrived down.

Today was very similar to yesterday, and Peggy spent a lot of time helping my father with trach care and keeping Sadbh entertained.

When I say entertained, I am not exaggerating. Peggy can put on quite the show, and Sadbh loves it.

There is singing, dancing and all sorts of fun going on. Peggy is quite the character and she is so good for Sadbh’s development.

It was another beautiful day, so my father took Sadbh on a nice long walk through the neighborhood.

Just before he bundled her up to head out, he handed her a Satsuma and she was really interested in trying to figure it out.  

Sadbh was ready for her nap when I arrived home, so I gave my father a break and went to put her to bed.

Unfortunately she was not having any of it and after almost an hour of trying, I unhooked all her equipment, got her dressed and we headed out to the kitchen.

Her baby signs are getting better every day and this evening she impressed me by giving me the sign for milk.

Who was I to argue with that, so it was off to the fridge to find a bottle of her favorite brand of liquid gold and after heating it up, she was a happy little camper.

I’ve said it before and I will say it again, Sadbh is so lucky to be surrounded by such wonderful grandparents. My father is so good with Sadbh, and the sacrifices that he and my mother have made to help out are incredible. We are also so lucky to have Katie’s mother living so close and available to help out on a regular basis.

Both Katie and I consider ourselves extremely fortunate that we can leave for work each day, knowing full well that Sadbh is in the best of care and will be looked after and cared for like no other.

Not to mention the developmental skills that she is getting every day, we are very lucky indeed.

New photos.

Photos from December 7.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – day 301 February 6th, 2012

Sadbh did not have a night nurse on Sunday night and unfortunately she had a terrible night sleep. She was awake on and off from12:30 onwards.

Not only was she restless most of the night, she required constant suctioning, so that kept both Katie and myself up also.

Thankfully she did not seem to be fighting a cold or anything like that, so we think it might have been a bad case of gas that was causing her discomfort.

Sadbh had a great day overall and later in the morning, Peggy came over to help my father with trach care. Sadbh slept for almost an hour and a half, and after she awoke, it was time for lunch.

It was another beautiful day here in Seattle so Granddad took Sadbh for a walk around the neighborhood.

She just went to bed for a nap when I arrived home from work, so I had to wait until she woke up before I got a chance to play with her.

My patience paid off about 45 minutes later when I could see her fussing on the video monitor. When I popped my head in through her bedroom door, she was ready to get out of her cot.

As soon as she was fed, she was full of energy and was ready to have some fun.

We all had a great evening and while she was wearing her Passy Muir Valve, we even got to hear a few quiet sounds coming through her vocal cords and out through her mouth. 

New photos.

Photos from December 6.

Take care,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – day 300 February 5th, 2012

Sadbh had a much better night sleep and did not awake until 4am, at which point she joined us in bed. After breakfast, she slept for another couple of hours.

It was another beautiful day, so we figured that it would be good for Sadbh to get out of the house and into the fresh air for a while.

We first had to manage trach care, so our goal in the morning was to get Sadbh tired enough so she would have no problem going to sleep.

This meant a full on play session and when the time came, it paid off nicely.

After we were done with trach care, rather than bringing her up stairs to sleep in her cot on her wedge, we placed her in the cot in her bedroom. It was the first time that Sadbh has slept in her cot without the wedge, and she did great.

Shortly after she woke up, we bundled her up and we all headed over to Ballard for the farmers market.

It’s been a while since Sadbh has been to the farmers market, and today she was itching to get out of her stroller. She was fascinated by all the colors, flags and of course all the people.

It was colder than we had expected, so we didn’t stay for long.

On the way home, we stopped off for dinner at Café Presse and thankfully it was nice and quite in there due to the Superbowl.

Katie and I have been going to Café Presse for years, and love it since the food is so good, and the service is quick.

Typically the staff is not the friendliest, and tends to be a little too pretentious.

However, every time we have brought Sadbh in, they all melt and want to flirt with her. She really has a way with people.

During dinner, she ate her first piece of bread, and just like her daddy, she couldn’t get enough.

It was a fun day, but it seemed to have gone by way too quickly.

New photos.

Photos from December 5.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – day 299 February 4th, 2012

Sadbh was wide-awake and crying at 2am. We both tried everything in the book to calm her down, but she wasn’t having any of it.

After an hour or so, she finally fell back to sleep, but only for a short while.

She had a very restless night, but after she joined us in bed, she seemed to sleep a little better.

It was an early start to the day, but that was fine since the weather was amazing.

We got trach care out of the way as soon as we could and Sadbh got a little nap afterwards. We expected her to sleep longer than she did, considering that she did not sleep well throughout the night.

She was in an excellent mood, so we bundled her up in nice warm clothes, brought her playpen out, and she got to play in the sun while we worked in the yard.

Our neighbors, Pat and Anna stopped by to visit Sadbh and she was more than happy to show off how well she stands and moves around.

Later in the evening, Suzie and Clodagh stopped by and Sadbh was in her element.

She get’s this energy when other kids are around, and she could not stop kissing Clodagh. It was very cute and it was great to see how well Clodagh played with Sadbh.

We have to have more play dates for Sadbh as it really helps her with her development.

New photos.

Photos from December 4.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – day 298 February 3rd, 2012

Thursday night was a great night for Sadbh and she slept all the way through to 5am Friday morning.

She joined Katie in bed for breakfast, and afterwards, they both got to snuggle up and it was back to sleep.

Later in the morning, Sadbh had an appointment with her Cranial Sacral doctor, Dr. Stephen Cavanaugh.

It was a great session and Sadbh was very relaxed for the whole treatment allowing her doctor to concentrate under her chin and around her neck.

By the time she got home, Peggy had arrived and after some playtime, Katie and Peggy started the trach care ritual.

Sadbh really enjoyed her bath and was ready for sleep by the time she was dried off and bundled up in her pajamas and swaddle.

She must have been quite tired as she slept through trach care and for another couple of hours afterwards.

The weather was fantastic, so it was a perfect day for a long walk around Greenlake.

Katie, Sadbh and my father headed off to meet with Suzie, Clodagh and Cormac and also with Synthia and her lovely daughter Miss M.

Suzie and her two kids had already walked around the lake, so they took off home.

Synthia was a great inspiration and support for us when we were faced with the decision to get Sadbh a tracheotomy.

Katie and Synthia had a great time catching up and comparing experiences about the development of their babies, nursing care and everything else that comes with it.

I got home from work shortly before Sadbh arrived back from her walk, so I was eagerly waiting as soon as she came in the door.

She was so full of energy, however she first needed a quick feeding before we could play.

Katie and I had a dinner appointment with Suzie and Sarah this evening, so my father watched over Sadbh for a few hours.

Overall she had a fantastic day.

New photos.

Photos from December 3.

Have a great weekend,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – day 297 February 2nd, 2012

Sadbh slept sound through the night and woke up shortly after 5:15am for a snack.

After she was done with her early breakfast, I popped in to see her and give her a big hug.

Sadbh was excited and so was I. I missed her something terrible over the past few days while I was away.

After a while, I had to say good bye since I had to leave for work, but this was fine as Sadbh was soon ready to go back to sleep.

Another new nurse started today. Kara also works with Molly and Su Jin at Children’s and we are very fortunate that she signed up to help with Sadbh.

It was a busy day for Sadbh as she played with both Granddad and Kara and later in the morning they both managed trach care.

Later in the afternoon, all three took advantage of the lovely weather and headed up to Madrona for a long walk.

Sadbh was in her element outside and they could not get her to sleep.

By the time I got home from work, Sadbh was exhausted tired, since she did not nap since trach care, however she was very excited to see me, and we both got some great play time in for at least an hour.

Eventually, it was time to bundle her up and as soon as she hit the pillow, she was fast asleep.

She slept for just over an hour and shortly after Katie arrived home, Sadbh was ready for dinner.

Our friend Neil stopped by, and after Sadbh had her dinner, she came out to play with Neil.

She got to taste a couple of different curries tonight, and was eager for more. Unfortunately for Sadbh, we limited her tasting to only two little samplings, however I think she will appreciate it the next time she needs to fill her diaper.

New photos.

Photos from December 2.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – day 296 February 1st, 2012

Sadbh slept through the night and woke up just a few minutes before 6am, just in time for Mommy to come down and take over for Larissa. 

She had a good night, but Larissa noticed that her oxygen saturation level was a bit lower than normal and her heart rate a bit higher than normal. 

Last time we saw this, she was just about to get her first cold.  But there are no other indications of this now and Sadbh was in great form all day.

Sadbh had a busy day. She enjoyed playing with Grandad, Alibaba and her new nurse Molly.  She was so eager to impress that she decided to try to shove her whole “Cheeky Monkey” doll into her mouth, much to the delight of everyone watching.

Grandad and Molly managed trach care and after Sadbh woke up from her nap and had her lunch, they headed out for a nice walk around the neighborhood.

For dinner Sadbh had her first taste of egg noodles and she loved it.  The little bits kept sticking to her chubby fingers and she had the most fun just trying to get them into her mouth.  Mommy kept giving her more thinking that it was all ending up on her lap, but when Sadbh got out of her chair Mommy couldn’t find the pieces anywhere.  Sadbh must’ve eaten it all!

Daddy returned home this evening.  Sadbh was asleep when he arrived, but she must have sensed his presence because as soon he walked through the door, she started to stir and wake up.  Mommy managed to keep her asleep and Daddy waited until she had calmed down before he snuck in and gave her kisses (and took secret pictures).

New photos.

Photos from Dec 2.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.