E.R. Adventures...

Well, Katherine's mystery infection wasn't going away yesterday so we decided to go see the doc.  She just wasn't herself and had been really irritable (which isn't like her at all).  Unfortunately our pediatrician was triple booked, so they recommended we go to the E.R. up on Capitol Hill.  So that's what we did.  I packed lots of food and drink and snacks and we headed out for a loooong adventure.  We ended up being at the hospital for about 5 hours, the girls totally missed their afternoon nap, and poor little Katherine endured lots of poking and prodding.  Both girls were troopers and did amazingly well.  Kirsten came and met us at the hospital, so fortunately we were all there to support each other.  So after a catheter urine draw, blood draw, and some chest xrays, Katherine was diagnosed with some sort of lung infection.  Her blood white count was high, and her lungs were visibly inflamed in the xrays.  So she is on Amoxicillin now and we'll go in for another checkup on Monday.  She seems to be in much better spirits already this morning and is more giggly than she's been, so it seems like she's already getting back to her normal jolly self.  Please say some extra prayers for Katherine and her little lungs though!  Here are some photos I took in the E.R. yesterday.  As you can see, both girls did really well and Katherine really liked her special tired tiger xray dress.

Big Girl Bath

This week the girls got to try their very first big girl bath in the big girl tub (no small baby tub within the big tub).  They loved it and were less eager to scamper and climb right out of the bath as they've been prone to do lately.  In other big girl news, they are both drinking a bit of real whole milk now mixed in with their bottles, as their upcoming 1 year birthday means a transition to big girl milk.  Katherine's been fighting a weird infection, but after a really rough night last night she seems to be doing a little bit better.

Big Girl Bath from Sam Thompson on Vimeo.

Mom and Dad take our first trip!

(without the babes, that is)  Kirsten and I have been really looking forward to going down to Atlanta this weekend for quite some time to celebrate a good friend's wedding and spend time with many of our friends, and it did not disappoint.  We were a little nervous about missing the babies a lot, but we did fine, and so did they.  Kirsten's parents came down from Bellingham to stay with the girls while we were gone, so I think the 4 of them had a lot of fun hanging out.  We Skyped them each day we were gone to say hi to the girls, so that was fun.  Katherine is officially crawling now, and started this weekend while we were gone, so that was exciting news.  This weekend was a wonderful much-needed break for Kirsten and I, and we're so grateful that it all worked out. 

We're back in the swing of things at home now, and I took the girls to the zoo today to enjoy a rare day of Seattle winter sunshine.  They wore snazzy outfits, but as you can see, Annabelle simply is not that into wearing hats... no matter how cold it is or how cute they might be. 

Nanny Cam

We don't of course actually have a Nanny Cam (a surveillance video camera hidden inside a teddy bear, for those who might not be familiar...).  The girls often make the sweetest sounds and play together so well when they are by themselves for a little bit, though, so I attempted to catch some of their sister playtime on camera, but they noticed me pretty quickly.  This video isn't edited down as much as usual; rather it's just a lot of fun sounds and smiles from both girls.  Enjoy.  Oh, and yes- we were indeed listening to Johnny Cash.

Nanny Cam from Sam Thompson on Vimeo.
No, we don't actually have a nanny cam, but this was some sneaky surveillance footage I tried to take of the girls playing together in the crib.  This video is replete with cute baby sounds and laughs.

Trailrunning... sort of

The girls have been hounding me to take them out on some legit singletrack trail for a run for quite some time.  They love pounding miles in the Chariot stroller, but today they really wanted to be out in the woods so they could take it all it... so Dad obliged and gave his new idea a whirl.  We have a couple of front packs to carry the girls in, and we recently got a backpack carrier.  So... one front pack + one back pack + 2 eager babies = successful implementation onto Dad.  It was definitely a bit tricky to get us all situated, but the girls had a blast and we did a loop through the woods on the trails in our favorite park.  It was more of a fast hike, but the girls just loved it.  So did I.

Flu Shot Fun

This morning we headed out to the doctor's office to get our 2nd round of flu shots.  For the first year, I guess babies have to get 2 shots for flu, and they have to be at least 4 weeks apart.  The first round didn't go great, so today the girls wore funny shirts to lighten the mood and lift their spirits... apparently it worked!  They were little angels and didn't make even the slightest peep when they got their shots.  We may have a few nights of bad sleep ahead of us (that's what we found last time around), but who knows- maybe these great shirts will help with that too!

 

Zoo Animals

The girls both got fun zoo animal hats for Christmas (Katherine a giraffe, and Annabelle a zebra), so Kirsten and I took them to the zoo yesterday on a beautiful clear cold day here in Seattle to let them hang out with their zoo animal friends.  They felt very comfortable yesterday with their new found zoo animal identities.  Katherine even borrowed Mom's sunshades for a quick photoshoot by the penguins.

Happy New Year!

It was a fairly quiet New Year's Eve and Day for us, but we had a lot of fun as usual.  On New Year's Eve, Kirsten and I hiked with the girls and played a bit on the playground.  They loved going down the slides, though I think they each enjoyed watching the other go even more than doing it themselves.  Then after the girls went to sleep, Kirsten and I had our own "stay"te (not sure if that's a word or not, but if "staycation is a word, then we can have a stayte)...  We grilled steaks and watched a movie and celebrated the East Coast new year by going to bed well before midnight in our time zone.  Then on New Year's Day, the girls and I were up early for another half marathon nearby in Seattle (The First Call Marathon).  They were itching to better their last half marathon time and I was happy to oblige.  It was super cold, but they stayed snuggly warm in the Chariot and ran strong.  It was 22 degrees when we finished and though Daddy had ice in his facial hair, the girls finished strong for first woman overall!  We ran something like a 1:37, but I'm not exactly sure of the official time.  Regardless, the girls were very pleased and happy to relax and watch some football when we got home.  Another fun hike with Kirsten and some friends in the afternoon made for a perfect New Years and lots of time outside for the girls to enjoy some spectacularly clear, cold, sunny Seattle winter weather!