Our Brave Girl

Our worst nightmare came true last week, Kallie had an anaphylactic allergic reaction at school. Kallie's class was eating snack on the carpet when she started to get hives on her arm. I got a call from the nurse and we decided Benadryl would be the best course of action. Kallie has sensitive skin so hives do not worry me. Well unfortunately about 5 minutes later I received another call from school and what I heard next was the worst call of my life "We gave Kallie her epipen and called 911". I immediately started to panic and ran to my car. Thankfully Eric was already on his way because I was at work in Seattle. I drove 80 MPH in the carpool lane and got to school in record time. Thankfully the paramedics made it to school in 5 minutes and Kallie was ok. We drove to the ER where they gave her some meds and observed her for 3 hours to ensure her body would not have a secondary reaction after the epipen wore off.

We were back after a few hours emotionally exhausted and scared. About two hours later Kallie looked at me and said "mom, my throat is getting really tight and it is hard to swallow". Eric and I looked at each other in a panic. We decided to start with Benadryl but quickly moved to the epipen based on Kallie's panic. This was the very first time I had ever used it or even come close so I was in a bit of shock and panic but managed to get it done. Kallie was so brave counting down with the shot in her led while Eric called 911. This time she was transported to the ER via ambulance and monitored for 6 hours. When we left the hospital they assured us whatever it was that made her react was probably out of her system. Even with them saying that I had her sleep next to me in bed for two days just to be safe. I was up most of the night checking on her to make sure she was breathing and thanking God for taking care of our girl.

Happy Birthday Papa

Papa's birthday is December 14th so we decided to get together as a family and celebrate. We went bowling and had family dinner at my mom's house. We talked about papa, shared our favorite memories and shed few tears. Not a day goes but that I don't think about my dad and how lucky I was to have him in my life for so long. I am also grateful that Kallie had 8 years with her papa and many memoires she will cherish for a lifetime. Happy 75th Birthday Papa, we love you always and forever!

Santa Photos 2018

Santa photos were a success. This year Kallie decided she wanted to wear a fancy dress so she could match Elizabeth her American Girl doll. I was excited because she is my casual comfy girl who only wears leggings and t-shirts. I let her pick out a dress at Target and off we went. This year she told Santa she wants the game Twister, LOL dolls and a live chinchilla. Good luck Santa!

Gingerbread House Saga

I thought it would be fun for Kallie and I to attempt building a gingerbread house I mean how hard can it be when it comes in a kit. Well let me tell you, very hard and we even followed the directions. Thankfully even after all the walls fell down Kallie was a good sport. Next year I am using super glue!

Great Season Gunners

We celebrated an undefeated soccer season with all of the girls and their families at the Flying Circus. The girls loved spending time together off the field with obstacle courses, trampolines & zip line. Her coaches brought each girl up one by one and talked about their season and gave them a dog tag necklace that had their name and soccer number on it (#51). They also got t-shirts from the league for winning their division. It was so fun to watch ever girl improve week by week and more importantly love the game and each other.

It's Beginning To Look Alot Like Christmas

We officially in the Christmas spirit at the Bates house hold. We decided to get our tree little early so Mimi and Papa could help us decorate. It was fun telling them all about our ornaments and I think our tree is pretty perfect this year (hopefully it stays alive through Christmas). Even more important Crack Crack arrived as scheduled on Dec 1st with Christmas jammies and an advent calendar. The advent is filled with chocolates which might seem normal to most but to Kallie it was a huge treat because it was made a peanut/tree nut free facility!!! Let the holidays begin.

'Tis the Season

We had a great morning with Grammy at Molbaks to kick off the holidays. I remember going as a kiddo to pick out an ornament every year which made brining Kallie extra special. There are so many holiday decorations and ornaments to look at it is almost overwhelming. Kallie looked a every ornament before deciding on a soccer ball ornament. We even had an impromptu visit with Santa!

When we got home Eric had put the lights on the house so Kallie and I helped with the final touches. We took a trip to the local tree far to hunt for the perfect tree . . . I am happy to report we found it!

Thanksgiving and a visit with Mimi & Papa

We hosted another successful Thanksgiving dinner at our house and having Mimi and Papa in town made it extra special. We had lots of great food, drinks and family time. Kallie loves seeing her cousins and having them play at our house. She is lucky the older boys still play games with her and even let her dress them up from time to time. We also enjoyed the long weekend with trip to the bowling alley and a fun dinner out with the whole crew to celebrate Papa's 70th birthday.

Apple Cup Soccer Tournament 2018 - Wenatchee

Kallie’s had her first out of town soccer tournament in Wenatchee a few weeks back. Since Eric was out of town I decided to pick her up early on Friday so we could start our girls weekend, she was over the moon! She loved exploring our hotel and of course spent lots of time in the pool followed by dinner with a few families from the team. The girls were all up early ready to play some soccer. They had two games on Saturday and won both. Everyone played well, passed the ball a ton and were aggressive (maybe a bit too aggressive since the ref told Kallie if she pushed again she would get a yellow card, whoops)! After the games we had a pizza/pool party at the hotel which was probably the highlight for the kids. The next morning they won their game 3-0 which put them in the finals which were intense because both teams were there to win. Although we dominated the game we went to overtime ultimately ending in penalty kicks and losing 5-4.

I was so proud of Kallie this weekend. She played her heart out form beginning to the very end when she scored her penalty kick. You could tell by the look on her face that she was proud of herself too! Although the came in second she was happy with how she played and loved being recognized in the medal ceremony. I have never seen her so confident!

It was a great weekend of soccer for the girls and a ton of fun for the parents to watch!

Halloween 2018

The build up to Halloween is always full of fun activities starting with family pumpkin carving night at Cougar Club. It is a fun night where families come to carve pumpkins, play games, listen to music and just have fun. We go every year and Kallie loves it. IVE also has Trunk or Treat at school which is always a big hit with the kids. Kids dress up in their Halloween costumes and trick or treat to different cars that parents have decorated. This year they had tons of games for the kids to play too. We basically walk in and don't see Kallie until the end! And last but definitely not least trick or treating and it was a bonus to get good weather this year. We have sort of made it a tradition that Mackenzie and her family come over for pizza followed and then we are out the door by 6:30 trick or treating. The girls (Kallie, Mackenzie, Sara and Kate) go not stop running from house to house for over an hour. The love looking at the creep decorations (some more than others), seeing neighborhood friends and of course THE CANDY!
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Soccer and more Soccer

Kallie started playing soccer when she was 4 years old. Her love for the game has grown each year. This year she is on a Gunners Select team and is loving every minute of it. She is practicing 2x's a week with games on the weekends. It is a big commitment but one she loves so we are all in. Watching her improve her ball skill each week has been the best part. She started a bit hesitant but now has no fear! Defense and midfield are where she excels because she is not afraid to go after the ball and recovers well when needed. You should see her game face, priceless!

The move from rec soccer to select has been a great step for her. She has learned so much and made great new friends along the way (we have too). We are excited to see how the girls do this season, so for they are 3-0!!!

GO GUNNERS

First day of 2nd Grade

This week is all about back to school. We went to the school meet and greet to check out Kallie's new classroom and meet her teacher Mrs. Harper. She was so excited that she has her own desk and how many books are in the classroom library. Although it is sad to see the summer come to an end I am ready to get back to our routine.

This morning Kallie walked down the stairs and said "Mommy I am really excited for school today". I love her enthusiasm, so much that we were at the bus stop 20 minutes early! When I picked her up from Cougar Club she said she had a great day minus hearing about all of the rules.

The sky is the limit my girl, you will do amazing things. Here's to another successful year! We love you