and she sleeps, finally she sleeps

For the past two months Katrina has been fighting a battle with her asthma. In early Sept. she had a one night stay at one of our favorite get aways (Seattle Children's Hospital). After that she endured 6 weeks of high doses of her oral steroids and inhalers. She is such a trooper and very cheerful throughout these stints of meds. Unfortunately, they make her completely wired and for weeks we were lucky to get 3-5 hours a sleep total in a day. About 2 weeks ago the meds finally ended and finally she crashed.

Of course, she wouldn't sleep in her own bed for the first day so here she is lounging in mommies big bed. When she awoke she hopped down and came scampering into the kitchen where I was and had the best smile ever! I think she too was happy to get some sleep!

Like mothers like daughters......

Katrina and I have had the good fortune of sharing very good friends! This comes in very handy when us moms (Carrie and I) want to get together for coffee, pastries, and a stroll in the park. Katrina and her very good friends Elyse and Kaelyn enjoy their croissants as we stroll through the Bellevue Park. What a beautiful autumn we are having! Too bad it seems the rain has finally caught up to us.

Good News!

Katrina had a Dr. appointment today with her new Pulmonologist. Although nothing is certain and only time will tell for sure it appears that she may be making some headway with her asthma. We get to back off on her daily medicines and if she hold strong another 6 weeks we will be able to drop her daily inhaled steroid back down to a lower dosage. We appreciate all the people praying for her and ask you to continue!! As for now, we will take this as a success and plan to move forward from here!

Family Fun!

So, last week Katrina and I were able to have Ethan and Avery hang out with us while Leah went to choir. We had so much fun playing that I didn't think the giggles would stop long enough for sleep (which they didn't until they were seperated) but it was a blast!

Since we don't have a kitchen table yet in our new place I lined the kids up and hoped for the best! Soup is a tricky thing to eat without a table and my floor was proof of that!
Note to self- buy mop!

This is a favorite toy right now. You turn it on and it plays music and shoots balls up into the air. Katrina and Avery were so excited by it they actually shared, which is a hard thing for toddlers to do.
How fun to share such excitement!
All the while Ethan dutifully helped them capture the escaped balls and return them to the toy. He was not having fun at all! I promise!

A Day at the Beach

Last week I had a house sitting job in Edmonds. We were only a couple minutes from this beach so we invited Leah, Ethan and Avery to join us for a day in the sun.

Katrina loved wading into the water but wasn't quite ready to run in like Ethan (turquoise shirt in back of picture)

Ethan and good friends Bella and Cameron take a moment to contemplate the day!

Ethan is a great big brother and practices his skills redirecting Katrina back to the picnic. She will follow him anywhere!

As the mom's packed up lunch to move closer to the water the kids explored the sand.

The beach had great strategic driftwood to form little boxes that the young kids couldn't quite get out of. Katrina attempts an escape anyway.

Fathers Day

On Father's Day Katrina and I met up with the Burkes and Laura for a fun day of relaxing. We went to church, stopped by the cometary to say "hi" to Grandpa Larry and then enjoyed a sunny day at the Burkes.

Visiting in Walla Walla

A couple of weeks ago Scott asked Katrina and I to meet him in Walla Walla to visit with his grandma before she went in for surgery. It was a quick trip but we enjoyed the visit and Katrina loved seeing the grandmas


Grandma Irene looking gorgeous as ever

Katrina and Grandma Jackie contemplate the seriousness of the moment.

Ever the beauty Katrina tries to show off after her bath

With those long legs she will be scaling fences in no time!

Dad and katrina

my apologies

Due to technical problems I have been unable to add new posts. I have plenty of great pictures and will post as soon as I can get my computer online! Hopefully that will be soon!

Katrina in the hospital

As most of you know Katrina was in the hospital in Feb. She was admitted into the PICU on Feb. 14th after having a severe asthma attack. She was put on a ventilator with 12 hrs of getting to the ER because her little body was working too hard trying to breathe. While in the hospital we learned that she had pneumonia, a viral infection and a high tolerance to drugs. She proved to be quite the little fighter both of the medicine as well as for recovery. She surprised all the doctors and nurses when she was able to come off the ventilator in just a few days (the Dr. thought it would be at least a week).

Our little angel in a drug induced sleep! We pray we never have to see her with that many tubes in her ever again!
Here she is the morning she was able to breath on her own again holding the teddy bear Daddy bought her for Valentines day!
Still a little hazed she was happy to be held and out of her crib!
This is the way we like to see her, tube free and at peace!
Uncle Skip and Aunt Sarah were among the visitors to lend a hand and stay with Katrina so mom and dad could go get a little sleep.
Once she was moved out of PICU we were able to take her for a wagon ride! On one of the rides around the hospital she picked out this monkey and it became a fast friend.
Can you tell who was able to sleep for 3 days straight and who was not???
We were so happy to take her on outings within the hospital! It was a sure sign of her healing. Our favorite place to visit was the large fish tanks in the lobby. The journey getting there is another story! All I can say is that sleep deprived, pent up parents + a wagon+ a breath of relief with a healing daughter and empty hospital halls/ elevators = one crazy ride!
Katrina and Auntie Leah snuggle!
A quiet moment indeed! Dad and Katrina were happy to be together again. If only the circumstances were a bit different!

We would like to thank all of the friends and family who supported us while in the hospital! The meals, visits and prayers were much appreciated!!

Long overdue Katrina Pictures

Katrina attended her first "friend" birthday party in Jan. She got dressed up and enjoyed all the excitement. HEr favorite part of the party was by far the balloons and chewing on the strings of them.
All bundled up and ready to roll! This winter and early spring gave us great weather for walking and we took advantage of it!
One of Katrina's favorite passtimes is to talk to dad on the phone. Often she gets so excited that she smiles a lot and forgets to talk! The hairdo is a great addition to the picture! If only we could all use food as hair gel!
Our happy girl! This was actually taken the day before her first hospitalization for asthma. Does she look ill to you??? (sorry forgot to rotate it)
This is the last "toothless" picture we have of Katrina! This was taken the day she went into the hospital and by the time she got out she was cutting 6 new teeth! It was quite a week!

Katrina's First Christmas

Tis the season for friends, family, and holiday cheer! Katrina got a taste of it all on her first Christmas! She loved the Christmas tree and actually wasn't trying to climb it yet or eat the ornaments all day! She was a great shopping companion and loved tasting her first Christmas cookie, a spritz of course!A few days before Christmas Katrina had her friends Elyse and Kaelyn over for a mini holiday gathering! They all enjoyed opening the presents and of course sharing them so nicely!
At Grandma and Grandpa's Katrina was in awe of the presents under the tree!
She really enjoyed opening them and helping others with their bows.
Santa even brought her a pop on barnyard! She insisists on carrying one of these with her at all times now!
What a well loved and spoiled little girl! Now if only I knew where to put all the wonderful new Christmas gifts! Thank you to all and we hope you had a very special Holiday Season!

Santa Clause is Coming to Town

Santa seemed to come in a small package this year! Who knew Katrina could get any cuter? Alright, anyone who has met her knows but, come on this is cute!!!Santa Kat visits us all, Grandpa.....
Grandma......
And Mom and Dad!
Although the "real" Santas sure did visit Katrina as well this year!
She loved opening her presents, even if she did need a little help!

Cahill's go South for Christmas

For Christmas this year we headed down to see Grandpa and Grandma Cahill! We had a great time visiting and even managed to squeeze in lunch with the Steins!
Dad begins teaching Kat early about the family tradition of playing Pinochle! She was a natural!


Charming as ever Katrina wriggles her way deeper into Grandma and Grandpa's hearts!

Uncle Skip and Aunt Sarah met us for lunch and Katrina stole the show!
She even tried her first rib!!! Yummy! Of course the bone was all she got but she enjoyed it thoroughly!
Mom and Katrina were very excited to get out of town with Dad!