Allergy Challenge Accepted and Conquered!

We found out Kallie was allergic to peanuts when she was 18 months old. I gave her a bite of my waffle with peanut butter and her eyes immediately swelled shut. After a call with the Dr. we avoided peanuts until she was a bit older for an allergy skin test. Although we were devastated and scared when the results came back positive (anaphylaxis)we were so happy she was not allergic to anything else. Over the years we have been diligent at checking labels when grocery shopping, informing restaurants when we eat out requesting the wait staff actually look at the label versus just assuming there are no nuts and make sure she was safe at daycare (lucky for us they were nut free).

As Kallie got older and entered Kindergarten life started to get a bit more complicated when it came to her allergies. We found out the hard way she was now also allergic to all tree nuts which was quite a shock to us. Since we were already avoiding peanuts she has had minimal exposure to tree nuts so we didn't have to change our habits all too much. The hardest part about her allergies is when she goes to birthday parties or playdates. She just wants to eat what everyone else is eating so she doesn't feel different. Kallie knows we can't make exceptions and is able to move on but she has shed many tears before birthday parties b/c she has a cupcake and everyone else was eating cake.

Well when her most recent allergy test came back she to our delight she was negative to almonds. So, we decided it was worth taking the "Almond Challenge" at the allergist. Basically it is a 4 hour appointment where they feed her almonds every 30 minutes starting small and ending at 2 TBS worth of almonds. I was terrified and she was too but man she was such a trooper! It was a long appointment but she PASSED!!! We now feed her some sort of almond product (usually almond butter) a few times a week with hopes that it will help her grow out of her other tree nut allergies. Time will tell but for now we will take this a win and celebrate (with frozen yogurt of course). GO KALLIE!

A few Highlights from Jan & Feb

I haven't been keeping up with my blog as much as I would like to so I figured I would consolidate the last two months. After the holidays life has sorta gone back to normal. We have spent more time at home but at the same time kept busy. Kallie and I had an at home spa day, Eric made her a tent big enough for her best buddies Sara/Kate, she has recently become an expert scattering around the neighborhood, tried rock climbing at her best friend Morgan's birthday party and started year two of basketball with the Super Huskies

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New Years Eve in Cle Elum

I am posting a few months late but better late than never is what I say. We spent our New Years Eve in Cle Elum for the second year in a row, I have a feeling this will be a new tradition. We spend the day sledding, snowmobiling, warming up by the campfire and the evening eating, drinking and playing games. It is a great time for all; kids and adults. This year Hoyts neighbor built his own inner tubing course and rope tow. It was amazing! I think Kallie would have gone down the course all day long if we let her. Here's to a healthy & happy 2018!

A White Christmas

We had a white Christmas this year and it was magical. We went to bed with a dusting of snow and woke up to a beautiful white Christmas. We had a fun Christmas morning opening presents and going sledding with the neighbors before we headed off to Grammy and Papas house for the afternoon. Kallie was one happy girl because Santa brought everything she wanted; karaoke machine, fingerling monkey, live tiger pet and lots of other little goodies!

We had a great afternoon at Grammy and Papa's opening gifts and having dinner with family. Grammy spoiled everyone as usual. After opening gifts Mac Finn and Kallie spent the rest of the day having snowball fights and sledding in the driveway. I think it is only fair that we get a white Christmas every year!

Santa Visit 2017

Our Santa visit was a success! Kallie was a bit shy at first but warmed up for a cute photo. For weeks she had talked about asking Santa for a FurReal Tiger and Fingerling Monkey but to my surprise she told him she wanted a cast and crutches for her American Girl Doll because she is a gymnast and might get hurt?!?!? He smiled and said that sounded like a good idea!

Annual Tree Hunt

We set out to find the prefect Christmas tree at Trinity Tree Farm near our house. Kallie loves it there because there are train rides, a big bonfire, hot cocoa and lots of hustle and bustle. We had fun exploring the farm but could not find a tree we liked so we decided to hit our favorite tree stand just down the road. Well good thing we did b/c we found an amazing tree! I guess you could say we got the best of both worlds.

The next day cranked up the Christmas music and decorated the tree. Kallie loves talking about each and every ornament as we take it out of the box. Our tree is sort of a mish-mash with old ornaments from childhood and new ornaments from our adventures each year. We have a fun tradition of buying a new ornament when we go on vacation, at this rate we might need two trees pretty soon!

Let the Holiday Season Begin

Crack Crack is here!!! As always he appeared on December 1st with a pair of Christmas jammies for Kallie. She was so excited he arrived and just as excited to start opening her advent calendar. Our house is decorated, outside Christmas lights are up and we even found the perfect tree over the weekend. Let the Holidays Begin!