Ho Ho Ho Merry Christmas everyone!!!

Well, I know its a bit late, but finally got the pics on the computer uploaded of Logan's first Christmas festivities. It was a really fun time and we have thoroughly enjoyed seeing everyone again. It's gonna be hard to head back home. I'm sure Logan is already looking forward to the summer back here. I know Kt is and I will be after my overseas vacation.
Congrats to Molly and Adam on their new little Christmas arrival too. Logan now has a cousin on the Hawkinson side too. They will be great pals, I'm sure.
So tomorrow we endure the flight back home. Coming out here was incredibly easy and much less stressful than we anticipated. Logan slept almost the entire time and didnt cry once on the plane. Tomorrow, however, the security settings may be a bit stricter so hopefully its not too painful of a day. On top of that we will be bringing all of the great presents from everyone.
We are looking forward to getting back on a schedule and Logan sleeping in his crib setup again though. His reflux seems worse here although I'm sure he really appreciates always being held in someone's arms during the day time.
I think he also had a blast being in his first blizzard too. He even had "frosty the Snowman" made for him by his daddy right out the back door. Maybe next year he will be on a pair of skates zipping around.... haha
Anyway, as always, here are some more pics of our Christmas Vacation....

Although Logan cant quite say daddy just yet, maybe six months from now, he can track us with his eyes, smile and lift his head up for a few seconds unassisted. He also loves to kick and swing his legs and arms around all the time. I will try to get a video uploaded if I can figure out how....


Katie, Sean, Logan and Toulie (enjoying Christmas in at Auntie Amy Jos' place)

Logan's One Month Physical

Hello everyone! Yes, its Katie reporting. Sean has been giving me crap about not posting, ever. I know, but I'm so busy!!! I mean, I am a human buffet, and I'm super tired. Anyway, Logan had his one month physical today (he is 5 1/2 weeks though). So he weighed 8 lbs 14 oz, which he was in the 20 % percentile, meaning that 80% of babies his age weigh more than him. The Dr. wasn't concerned though, because he is consistently gaining weight. For his height, go figure, he was in the 90% percentile at 23.5 inches. His head circumference was 40% percentile. So he is a tall little baby!! He also had to get his Hepatitis B shot and he didn't like that one bit, poor little guy. His reflux seems to be a little better. We've still got him on his Prilosec medication and sleeping on an incline, so he is feeling a little better. He is sleeping better at night, so that makes for a much happier baby and mommy =). So as Mollz told me today, 5 more days until we go out to Minnesota, I am soooo very excited to be with my family again. I am really hoping Molly has baby Camron while I'm back there!!! He'd better come out or face the wrath from his auntie! Thats about it for now, I'm sick of typing with one hand, because Logan wants to be held, he had a rough day. Can't wait to see you all!!

new update

Hello again,

Just a quick update as I'm sure there will be more to come in a couple days when he turns one month old. Our appt with the cardiologist went well today. Our pediatrician heard a heart murmur that she hadnt heard before so we did a work up on him today. There is a small hole in his heart which is consistent with his age.
Basically, once a baby is born the blood is re-routed through the lungs so in return the previous route that runs through the umbilical cord needs to heal up, hence the hole... So, the cardiologist said that everything looked pretty normal and shouldnt need a follow up unless the murmur doesnt go away in a couple months.
Logan does, however, have acid reflux which we got medication for. It should take a day or two to kick in but he seems to be a bit happier already. We also have an ultrasound scheduled for the end of December for his hips. As far as we know though, its just for follow-up procedures.
This week was particulariy rough on Katie as I was down at Liggett for some training. I was able to come home a bit early for the appointment today though which was some relief for her. Many of the wives whose husbands I work with brought food over for her though. Some came over to help out with toulie and others even did some cleaning around the house and cooking. It was tremendous help for Katie which we are both greatly appreciative.
Anyway, will write more soon.

S

Three weeks today

Yup, its official, somehow we have managed to keep Logan alive for three weeks now despite feeling like we really don't know what were doing. hehe. Its been an awesome experience to say the least and every day is a new learning experience. Logan is doing well. Sometimes he sleeps almost the entire day and sometimes he cant seem to get enough food in him. Overall, he is a really happy camper though, and generally pretty content to sit in our lap and flail his arms and legs around aimlessly.
Katie has been doing well too. She cant wait get back and workout again. She started back into her studies this week and tries to get as much in between feeding and diaper changes.
This week I am heading on a trip for work. It'll be the first trip since Logan was born and I am hesitant and not really ready to be leaving for such a long time, but at least it's only a couple hour drive in case I need to come back.
In other news, we found tickets to fly back home for the holidays. We're both really looking forward to the family seeing and hanging with Logan for the first time. Katie's mother is the only family Logan has met so far so he's really gonna have to remember some names of cousins and aunts and uncles.
Toulie is coming back with us too. She'll have a blast being back in the snow again.
turkey dinner was great too. We both were in a turkey coma by 5pm last night. We managed to stay up till 11pm last night. Thats about 5 hours more than we have been lately. Our schedule has been pretty much entirely around Logan and when he goes down for the evening we jump at the chance to get some sleep ourselves.
Here is a pic of Logan hanging out in his bopper and sitting on the couch.

Logan's Portraits

Hey everyone,

Well we picked up the portraits today and wanted to share some of the pics with everyone. Although he wasn't the most cooperative, like his old man with photos, he calmed down the later half for some that turned out really nice. Not sure if we are going to get separate ones made up for the holidays, but regardless here are some of our favorites.
We'll probably have some more pics tomorrow for thanksgiving too so stay tuned....

My little sleepy monster

some pics of today!!!

2 Weeks

So another week has come and gone. Logan is now two weeks old and growing. The dr saw him for his two week appt and he needed to gain 8oz in 8 days. Well, KT won the "how much will he weigh?" bet. He is now 6lbs 11oz. For a minute there he was 6lbs 12oz but after we removed his wet diaper he dropped an ounce. My guess was 6lbs 9oz; both of us believed in Logan that he could exceed the expectations of the Dr and sure enough he did. Gotta be from my side of the family eh? haha just kidding...
I'm on my last week of work this week too. Bummer. At least next week is a short week with Thanksgiving.
After that though I will be gone for the week down at Fort Hunter Liggett helping out on some upgrades and spin-up training...
Yikes.
Katie is doing pretty well though. She's coming down with a cold right now which sucks, but hopefully she'll be over it soon with my super awesome hot chocolate...
Today is rainy and cold. I think its the first big winter storm of the year. Supposed to be up to a foot of snow in the mountains... yay!!!

We have been slipping a bit lately with taking more pics, so will get some new ones on the blog asap. Until then check back often


Katie, Logan, Sean and Toulie

Logan's first week

Hello all,

Well one week ago, Kt and I were just getting settled into parenthood at El Camino Hospital. Its been an incredible week for the two of us and one we will cherish.
For myself, one of the highlights of my day is spending time watching Logan wake up. He's sooo dramatic in his facial expressions and the way he moves his arms. It makes me laugh every time I see him try to cover his eyes and tuck his his arms and legs into my warm body as he gets uncovered from his cozy blankets. Eventually a big yawn works its way out as he stretches his little arms over his head. He's all about snuggling too. The minute you pick him up he rolls into you trying to curl his scrawny, lanky legs underneath himself. Also, when I burp him he likes to get his head right underneath my chin and try to lift his head up to see me. Eventually he just rests his head right underneath my collarbone.
His little body blows me away too. I can cradle his whole butt in my one hand when I hold him, and when he lays down his whole body will fit on my forearm and hand.
So, needless to say I can't wait to spend all day with him this week. After that I go back to work, but luckily it should be a short week since its Thanksgiving week.

Katie is doing well too. She's already getting anxious to get back in the climbing gym and start working out again. The weather is changing and the temps are now in the high 50's and low 60"s so its perfect to get a workout in in the afternoon and you don't have to wake up early since it doesn't really get too hot anymore.

In other news, Toulie is doing better too. She is getting better everyday and is slowly becoming her rambunctious self again. Before long she will be back to bugging Katie and I all day long to play Frisbee and ball. As for now though, she is still trying to adapt with Logan in the house and her not being the center of attention anymore. She's coping pretty well though and is extremely curious of him. I think they will be best buds as soon as Logan learns how to share his food from a high chair.

We have also sincerely enjoyed skyping with our families and friends this week too. It makes living away that much easier. I know it's definitely not the same as seeing or holding him in person, but watching him wiggle is always an excellent source of our new entertainment.

Anyway, here are some pics. Enjoy!!!

some quick pics!!!

Its SUNDAY

Good morning,

Well we are off to the start of another bright and sunny California day here at El Camino Hospital. The Dr just came in to see us with our daily update. Turns out Logan is working on getting a suntan already. His Billirubin levels were a bit higher last night, which can be pretty normal from what it sounds like. His level this morning was 12.5 which is still pretty moderate; definitely not severe at all, but since he is pretty young they want him to get some photo light therapy to help out his liver process all of Kt's blood which is a different blood type than his. It can be a couple factors though that can cause him to be a bit jaundiced such as not eating, filtering blood type and a slightly underdeveloped liver. Hes coming along strong though and should be back up to speed soon. All this is more precautionary measures than necessity too, so what we do now will help him out once he gets home...

BTW, Logan already got his first A+ from his old man. Everyone better remember that his first one was from me, because if he ends up anything like me it might be his last... haha

Anyway, they are going to keep him under the light for as much today as possible, and shoot for a late discharge this evening. We're pretty optimistic, but obviously want to do whats best for Logan so if we stay another day its no big deal.

Kt is doing much better today too. The breast feeding is coming along well and they are both syncing this process down to a T.

Uncle Boudie stopped over yesterday to see him for a quick visit but we forgot to get any pics, so will have to catch him on the flip side next month.

I'm in the process of creating a monster to-do list for myself while I am off for the couple weeks from work too, so will be able to keep myself pretty busy hopefully so that I stay outta trouble... hehe

until later....

lunchtime!!

Day 2

Hey everyone,

Well we just went and picked up Logan from the nursery a couple minutes ago and now he is in his practical learning class of how to breast feed.... lucky guy. Haha
Last night we hung out in the room and rested with Logan. Despite my best efforts to name him Puck Kirsch we decided on Logan Alexander Kirsch. Just kidding about Puck, but I did like it....
Katie got about 6hrs of sleep last night, which is 6 more hours than the last 2 days combined so she feels like a brand new momma right now. I got my first two diaper changes in yesterday too. Woohoo. At least they dont stink yet. Give it a couple more days and I am sure that dark brown pudding will have an entirely new aroma to it.
Logan also got his first 2 immunizations yesterday too. Boy, what traumatic day for him.

Today they are going to do an ultrasound on one of his testes since it hasnt dropped yet, but from what it sounds like it can be pretty common and will usually drop within a couple days or weeks. Will keep everyone posted on that.

Some of the boys and fams might stop by over lunch or shortly after work today. Its drill weekend so everyone but me are working. Yeah, Logan started it out right by taking care of daddy. I have the next 2 weeks off for paternity leave so looking forward to catching up around the house and helping out where I can.

Katie's mother, Kathy, is coming out on Monday to help out too. That will be a welcome relief for us since I dont have a clue what I am doing or need to do. I am hoping they have a good grasp on it and just order me around. I promise to try and listen....

So word according to Katie just now, is that Logan is just like his old man and hates his ears being played with. haha, that is so much like me :)

Ok, more later..

Logan's first portfolio

As promised, here are some pics of Logan's grand entrance into this world. Everyone is doing well. Logan pretty much came out crying, which was very reassuring. Kt had a really long night and last couple days. She started the contractions over two days ago now, but we didnt go to the hospital until around 1115pm last night. At that point the contractions started to become severe. It took about an hour to get the Epidural after we requested it; Kt was in excruciating pain at the time too, but when it finally came she was able to relax a bit until early this morning when she had to begin pushing. Logan was born 8:41am and weighed 6lbs 8oz and was 21" long.
So, we have to wait and see how the weekend unfolds, KT really needs some sleep so I left to come home and take care of Toulie for a bit and hopefully catch some zzz's before I go back. I think we will be able to leave El Camino on Sunday. YAAAYYY. For now though its no rush as hopefully everyone will be able to relax a bit.
Anyway, here are the pics.
Kt and I would really like to say Thanks to everyone for their generousity and offers to help. You dont know how much that means to us.
Well without further ado, here are the pics

Peanut's big day

Well, the time is come and we are sitting here in El Camino Hospital waiting for our stork to arrive with baby Peanut. We arrived about 11:14pm last night. Kt is such a trooper. She went soooo long till her first Epidural. She's definitely much more comfortable now though.
Peanut's heart rate is 144bpm so he's doing strong. Not much idea as to how long now, but sounds like he is ready to come out so will be making some calls as soon after as possible. The nurses said it takes a while for the first critter, but that we were moving along pretty fast.
that's all for now. Stay tuned and will be updating shortly...

Thanks to all the thoughts, wishes and prayers. They are greatly appreciated.

love ya

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Well,
Here is the starting line-up for this evenings events...
Starting off is Peanut's, Toulie's, Kt's and finally mine.

Toulies dr appt.

So just a quick update about Toulie. She is doing a little better. The vet was pretty satisfied with her progress although she seems to tweak something sporadically which causes her to yelp in much pain. So, she hasnt moved much at all over the last week and spends her day lounging on my camping pad. They are expecting a full recovery though.
I dont expect her to be out trick-or-treating this year at all though so she might have to pretend to be a statue guard dog this year. We do have some dog treats in a bag as a surpirse for her tomorrow though.
Here is a pic of KT's motherly instincts in full force helping Toulie eat piece by piece.


Sunday is KT's baby shower too. She is having it at the community center right across the street which is really nice for her. Its a really nice center with a big playground for kids. We were going to have families, including husbands, originally, but since so many of the team guys are off TDY right now we decided that it would be better to have a more traditional baby shower with just KT's lady friends. I'm sure KT will write more about the weekends events later.

Less than a month left now!!!

hello everyone,

Well we are nearing the greatly anticipated day. KT and I are really looking forward to it. It might be hard to believe, but I think we are about as ready as we can be. Kt's last appt went well. Everything was normal according to her Dr. Peanut's heart rate was in the 130's which was about 20+ bpm lower than it has been which is consistent and normal for that time in her pregnancy.

In not so fortunate news, Toulie got hit by a car this last weekend on base. We took her to the vet and all the xrays came back negative, however, she still hasnt been able to walk at all. I have to pick her up and carry her outside to go pee and she whimpers often. She has another appt tomorrow morning so hopefully we might find out a little more. Most likely though they will just tell us to give it some more time. We'll try and keep everyone posted on tomorrows news when we can.

In lighter news, KT finished her paper that she has been working on for quite some time. Its been a huge undertaking and she finally submitted it to her professor to much relief. Now, after less than a full breath to relax, shes at it trying to finish up as much as she can for this semesters work load. I think she'll pull off most of the work before the baby comes, but both her professors have given her some freedom if she cant finish before Peanut arrives.

Work for me has been busy too. Next week I will be driving a couple hours south of here everyday for some jump upgrades. It'll be a lot of driving, but better than having to stay overnight given the circumstances.

I think fall has finally arrived here too. Unlike back home when fall arrives and the leaves turn red and yellow, everything here turns green. Kind of a disappointment, but at least the fields look like grass and not shriveled up weeds.

Well, thats about it for now. hope this post finds everyone doing well and happy.

KT and Me.

Less than 5 weeks left!!!

Hello Everyone!!! I'm taking a little time-out from homework to update the blog. I feel like my brain is turning to mush sometimes (I have so much on my mind)!! It is very hard to concentrate on school work when you know you have a little bundle of joy coming soon! Less than five weeks as the title states.
So this picture is of me last week. I got a really awesome package from my friends Susie and Nicolas in France. It contained this b-day shirt, which is gorgeous! AND a TON on baby stuff! Susie works for Disney so there were a lot of cute outfits and stuffed animals, and all sorts of goodies in there for our spoiled little babe. We will for sure be taking pictures of him with some outfits!
I also wanted to shout out a big "Thank You" to the rest of family and friends that either called, sent cards, gifts, or facebook messages wishing me a Happy Birthday. I had a wonderful birthday and felt very loved! As you know my mom was here, so that was great. We shopped a few times, went to the movies, and took it easy. On my birthday as you can see, we went to the ocean and pumpkin patch. Then my surprise for the evening was dinner at the Melting Pot, which is a Fondue restaurant. It is kind of popular around here and I've never tried it, and I really wanted to. Thanks Sean, Mom, Amy Jo, and Chris and Elise for making it a very special evening!
I suppose I should also update our latest doctor appointment too. I went on Monday, and now have to continue to see my OB every Monday!! So everything was fine, I was complaining of a lot of pelvic pain, but the doc said it was pretty normal. It is just my body getting ready to have the baby, but I was quite surprised by it! The doc also said she thinks that the baby will come a few days early!! Hmmm....we will see I guess! Sean and I also figured out how to put the car seats in our cars, so we are all ready in that department. It really makes it seem like any day now!! We will keep you all updated! Hope everyone has a great week!
Love,
Katie

HAAAAPPPYYY BIRTHDAY KATIE!!!

Just thought I would upload some pics quick of the Art and Pumpkin festival today in Half Moon Bay. It's Kt's birthday so we headed out there this morning to chill on the beach and pick up some pumpkins at one of the many pumpkin farms there.
We will have to post the carvings after we have a little pumpkin carving party maybe next weekend.
Anyway, here are some pics of the dynamic duo taking a breather, KT finding her needle in the haystack and the shark patrol.





We will post some more pics and write about the rest of the event filled day later. KT will have to tell everyone about our dinner plans which are still a secret to her... hehe

Until then....

Less than 6 weeks left

Hello all,

Well we are back from a fun filled weekend down in Southern California. Kt's friend Christen and Matt tied the knot on the beaches of La Jolla (pronounced Hoya). It was really fun, the weather was great and and the drive down there couldnt have worked out better.Kt was a bridesmaid so she got to dress up and look fablulous even at 8+ months. It took a little over 6 hours the first day and we found a hotel in Dana Point for the night. Then on Friday we only had a hour drive the rest of the way. Today we drove the entire way back which took about 7 hours total. Maybe a bit more since we had to stop and pick up Toulie at our friends place. Kt handled the drive excellent. We stopped a couple times to stretch and gas up, but otherwise it was pretty smooth sailing even through LA.
Here are some pics of the weekend.




Our hotel was the La Jolla in and we had an ocean view suite. It was really cool. It was only about half a block from the ocean, but we couldnt hear the waves as there was some sort of club blasting music at night; but the view was great. The town is a total artsy town with galleries all over the place. Literally....
My favorite store was Quicksilver, not artsy, but got a cool shirt there... haha
This week will be busy for KT. Her Birthday is next Sat. Kathy, her mother, is flying out on wednesday or thursday and will get to spend the weekend with us. I have monday off for Columnbus Day, so going to relax a bit before a the busy flying week.
Most of the guys are going to be in Oahu... I guess I will miss that one again.

Anyway, hope this post finds everyone doing well, and the date is creeping up on us very quickly so hopefully we will have some big news and pics soon to come.

Sean and Katie