Sadbh’s update – September 7th 2013

Sadbh had yet another great night and slept soundly. Danielle was not successful in capping her trach unfortunately.

Katie took over from Danielle at 6 and Sadbh woke up not too long afterwards and was ready for breakfast.

We had a bunch of errands to take care of this morning so as soon as we were ready we headed off. Sadbh was happy to be out in the car but soon fell asleep.

Our first stop was Costco and since Sadbh was still sleeping we transferred her ever so gently from the car to her stroller.

Fifteen minutes or so later she woke up with a surprised look on her face. She loves Costco and wanted everything she set her eyes on.

We later headed to REI to check out a few different bike trailers for Sadbh. She spotted a couple of nice pink kids bikes with training wheels and was very intent on getting one. Unfortunately for her, she did not succeed in persuading us to buy one.

As soon as we arrived home we got everything set up for trach care and trach change. By now she was wide-awake so we had to talk her through the whole process. Usually when we are doing trach change Sadbh is either sleeping or we have a third person available to hold the iPhone so she can remain focused on that when we remove the old trach and replace it with the new one.

Today since it was just Katie and I we had to turn off the iPhone and explain the process and how we needed her to help out.

At first she was reluctant but soon understood that it would be easier to comply.

Thankfully everything went well however as soon as the new trach went in Sadbh got very upset and cried for a while. She was perfectly fine but I think she was a little frightened by the whole experience.

Once we were done with that we loaded up the car and headed over to meet Ali-Baba and Kirk for dinner.

Sadbh fell asleep soon after we left the house but woke up as soon as she heard Ali-Baba’s voice.

She was delighted to see both Ali-Baba and Kirk and was very chatty throughout dinner.  

After dinner we headed to get ice cream and then went over to Sunset Hill to check the sun setting behind the Olympic Mountains. Sadbh had great time playing with Ali-Baba and was very sad when we all headed off home. As we left she started to shout out the window “Bye bye Peggy!” Too funny!

Just before bed Sadbh took her first poop in her potty. It was a joyous moment for everyone up to the point when I had to clean out the potty. Sadbh was very proud of herself, as were we.

New photos.

Photos from September 7 2011.

Photos from September 7 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – September 6th 2013

Sadbh slept right through the thunderstorm and woke up shortly after 7. Katie took over from Helen and Sadbh was delighted to see her when she woke up.

Caity stopped by in the morning as part of Sadbh’s recertification. Sadbh was excited to see her and kept talking about Caity all morning.

After Caity finished up both Sadbh and I spent the rest of the morning cooking food in her kitchen.

Naptime was very easy as Sadbh was worn out from a very active morning. 

She slept for almost two hours and woke up in a very happy mood.

We are members of a few tracheostomy forums online and recently we came across a young woman showing how she has mastered swimming despite having a trach. Sadbh was fascinated and wanted to watch the You Tube video over and over. Eventually she declared that she wanted to swim with her trach too.

Highly unlikely with mommy and daddy in the picture.

Throughout the day she changed her outfit at least three times and her last outfit consisted of a checkered dress over jeans, another dress with a cardigan and a tutu. It was quite the get up.

For dinner we joined Clodagh, Cormac and their parents for sushi and Sadbh could not wait to get some ice cream.

She had a lot of fun with her two friends and there were plenty of hugs and kisses when it came time to leave.

Sadbh was asleep within a few minutes of being put to bed.

New photos.

Photos from September 6 2011.

Photos from September 6 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – September 5th 2013

Sadbh woke up at 6:15 after a nice night sleep. She was in a great mood but wanted to see mommy so I disconnected all her equipment, grabbed her milk from the fridge and we both headed upstairs.

There was a big thunder and lightening storm and Sadbh was frightened at first. After Katie and I explained that there was nothing to be afraid of she did not seem too bothered by the loud thunder any longer. Katie told Sadbh that the thunder was the drums in the sky and the rain was the music.  We all sat in bed and listened to the beautiful music for the first moments of the morning.

The weather was terrible today so Sadbh and I were housebound for the most part. It did not stop us from having a fun morning and Sadbh really enjoyed herself setting her table with all sorts of yummy treats. All of course were plastic so we both had to use our imagination.

We did get a chance to go outside to pick some fresh tomatoes from the garden. Sadbh was determined to pick all the tomatoes that were not quite ripe yet and then squish the ones that were ripe.

Nevertheless, we were able to gather a nice big bowl full and I got the opportunity to teach Sadbh the correct way to say tomato rather than the American way that her mother has taught her.

I found Sadbh playing on her keyboard again and singing into the microphone. She puts the microphone into her mouth to sing so I showed her that it was not necessary for her voice to be heard.

Sadbh was exhausted and slept for three hours and twenty minutes. I never thought that she would ever get up but thankfully she did and she also awoke her appetite. She had a huge feast and as soon as she was done it was time to get stuck into some serious playtime.

When mommy arrived home Sadbh sat down to her second meal of the evening, which she devoured.

As soon as we were done we headed out for a walk around the block. It was good to be out and about even though we got stuck in a quick shower along the way.

Sadbh was in a very good mood this evening and trach care went by very easily. As soon as we were done she snuggled up with mommy and was fast asleep within thirty minutes.

New photos.

Photos from September 5 2011.

Photos from September 5 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – September 4th 2013

Sadbh slept well but would not allow Helen to cap her trach. Helen suctioned once during the night but could not remove the secretions since they were further down in her lungs.

I took over from Helen at 6 and Sadbh slept on for another twenty minutes or so. She was in a good mood so we headed up to see mommy before she got up for work.

It was my first official day home as a stay at home dad and it went really well.

After breakfast Sadbh and I headed up to Capitol Hill for a walk and to take care of a few errands.

Sadbh wanted desperately to walk but since we did not have a lot of time I tried to persuade her to stay in her stroller.

Towards the end she kept standing up in her seat and, despite the promise of ice cream when she got home, she would not sit back down.

It took a while to get Sadbh to take a nap as she was way too busy making food for her dolls.

Eventually, she gave in and within moments of her head resting on her bed she was fast asleep.

She did not move for two whole hours and her heart rate was down in the 70’s from time to time.

My parents called just as she was waking up so Sadbh spent ten or so minutes telling them about her fall the day before and about the bump on her head.

We had a great evening and Sadbh had a nice big dinner. She was in such a great mood and it only got better when mommy arrived home from work.

New photos.

Photos from September 4 2011.

Photos from September 4 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – September 3rd 2013

Sadbh woke up very sad this morning as she new we would soon be packing up and heading home. She had a decent night and made it until 4am before she needed to be suctioned. Her airway was still very dry so we gave her a saline nebulizer as soon as she was awake. Katie suctioned a big mucous plug out of her trach and immediately Sadbh felt a lot better.

We had to be out of the rental house before 10 so it was an early start breaking down all her equipment and packing everything into the car.

Sadbh and her friends made the most of the morning and had a lot of fun playing.

She was very upset when we loaded her into the car and kept asking for her friends.

We planned to meet up in town for breakfast before hitting the road and as soon as we pulled in Sadbh got very excited.

When breakfast was done we headed over to the park and the kids got to play one last time. They really enjoyed themselves and were all quite tired when it was finally time to leave.

Sadbh passed out within minutes and slept soundly for an hour and a half.

She was upset for a short while after waking up but mommy cheered her up and kept Sadbh entertained for the rest of the journey home.

Sadbh was delighted to be home and could not stop hugging and kissing Regal the beagle. Even mommy and I got to got a hug and kiss from Regal. It took us a while to off load the car and get everything set up back in Sadbh’s room. She did not mind as she hung out reading some of her favorite books in the living room.

As soon as we were set up we took care of trach care and headed off up to Capitol Hill for dinner and to get the shopping.

On our way to get Sadbh some ice cream she took a nasty fall and banged her head on the pavement. She went down so fast that I could not catch her in time and nor could she stop her fall.

She ended up with a big lump on her forehead and it took a while to console her.

We were able to get some ice to place on her head but she did not want it. She did not want the ice cream that we got her but soon she was excited about getting some bandages for her bruises.

We kept a very close eye on her to make sure that she did not have a concussion and were reassured when her mood perked up not long afterwards. She is one tough cookie to say the least.

Bedtime was very easy as she was very tired.

Helen is working tonight so Sadbh will be well looked after.

New photos.

Photos from September 3 2011.

Photos from September 3 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – September 2nd 2013

It was a very long night as Sadbh needed constant suctioning every thirty minutes or so.

Her trach was extremely goopy but thankfully her temperature was back to normal.

She slept until almost 8 and woke up happy. She could not wait to join her friends in the kitchen for breakfast so after another few suctions she was able to join in on the fun.

We rented a boat for the day so after we got all her equipment set up we all headed out for a day on the lake.

Sadbh and all the kids had a fantastic time. After a few hours Sadbh started to show signs of getting tired. She snuggled up to Katie and was soon fast asleep in her arms.

Each of the other kids started to doze off and before we knew it they were all fast asleep.

We headed back to the dock so Katie and I could take Sadbh home for trach care. Sadbh woke up before we arrived at the dock and was as eager as Katie and I to get trach care done so we could head back out on the boat with everyone else.

Trach care went really well but Sadbh needed some serious suctioning. She actually needed suctioning throughout the entire day and thankfully she was a great sport about it all.

The fun continued once we got back on the lake but Sadbh was not pleased when mommy wanted to go for a swim in the water. I did a good job of distracting her for a while but soon she noticed that mommy was nowhere to be seen.

This put an end to mommies swimming activities but as soon as she was out of the water Sadbh was much happier.

The rest of the evening was spent playing with her friends and by the end of the evening all the kids were wired to the moon.

Just before bedtime we gave Sadbh another nebulizer to help loosen up the secretions in her trach.

Bedtime came quickly and soon Sadbh was out for the count.

New photos.

Photos from September 2 2011.

Photos from September 2 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.

Sadbh’s update – September 1st 2013

Sadbh woke up in a great mood after a good night sleep. She was quick to give me a big hug and a kiss and wished me happy birthday.

After breakfast it was off down to the beach to hang out with her friends.

It was very stressful for mommy as Sadbh wanted to join everyone in the water.

She had a wonderful time and was very tired when she came home for her nap.

Trach care was very easy as Sadbh fell into a deep sleep after her bath.

She slept for almost three hours and her trach was very dry when she woke up. We discovered that her humidifier hose had come undone at some point while she was sleeping.

We gave her a saline nebulizer and after a few suctions she was right as rain.

For dinner we headed to one of the local wineries for a BBQ. It’s the perfect place for kids as we were seated outside and there is a huge field for the kids to run and play in.

Needless to say Sadbh and her friends had a fantastic time. They competed in a hula-hoop competition and even through they did not win they had a fantastic time trying.

By bedtime Sadbh was exhausted. We checked her temperature and unfortunately she was showing a little higher than usual temperature. Her heart rate was also a little higher than usual so we know she is fighting something. I hope it’s nothing serious and that she will be feeling better in the morning after a good nights rest.

New photos.

Photos from September 1 2011.

Photos from September 1 2012.

All the best,

Wayne, Katie and Sadbh.