Christmas 2015

Christmas 2015 was a huge SUCCESS! For the better part of a week we had Nana Terry, Bumpa Larry, Grammie Kim, Grammie Merlene, Papa Rick, Great Aunt Linda, Great Uncle Bob, Bob's sister Jane, Uncle Dan, Aunt Nicole, Cousins Hayden & Paisley, Julie, Ted and Maddy. Oh, plus 7 dogs!

The week was filled with cooking, playing cribbage, laughing, playing with toys, watching TV, smiling and so much more. We opened tons of presents, made cookies, made pies, ate and ate and ate, and overall just enjoyed each other's company. We missed a few special folks who are no longer with us but forever live in our hearts.

Here are quite a few photos to show off our fun!

Decorating for Christmas

There are a couple of factors that have lead us to go a little crazy with our Christmas decorations this year.

1. Last year we closed on our new house on December 8 which meant we moved December 9-13 and then were out of town much of the remainder of the month. Alas we did not have a tree, decorations, or really any mention of Christmas in our house (we were at my parents for Christmas itself which had many decorations, so we weren't totally deprived).

2. This year we are hosting Christmas in Washington for the first time ever! That means Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles, Great Aunts, Great Uncles, and Cousins will be joining us in our house.

So why not go all out if you are making up for two years and you have a whole brood of family to help you celebrate!

We started decorating right after Thanksgiving, and took advantage of some awesome Black Friday sales to stock up on more lights and decorations. Maddy was very into decorating and was a huge help. It was so fun to decorate as a family. This week has been mostly focused on the outside and then we'll move to the inside (to coincide with rain coming into town).

Maddy and the Rock

About six weeks ago Ted got a call from daycare telling us that Maddy had put a rock in her ear. After a visit to the pediatrician and then an Ear, Nose and Throat specialist it was confirmed that she had a small rock in her right ear that they couldn't get out. We tried special ear drops for a week with no luck. The rock wasn't hurting her, more annoying than anything. After a follow-up with the ENT we scheduled surgery for November 16.

That morning we arrived at the hospital super early and got all checked in. We had to wait for a while until surgery began but luckily the Children's Hospital had lots of fun toys and games. Finally it was time to go back to surgery. Maddy was not thrilled to leave mom and dad but before we knew it the doctor was out to tell us everything was fine. He gave us the tiny rock (maybe we'll make it into a necklace for Maddy to wear). 

Maddy came out of the anesthesia with no issues and was quickly eating Popsicles and crackers. She has told us many times now that she's not going to put anything else in her ears. Fingers crossed!

Ted's 40th Birthday

On November 14, Ted turned 40! We had a fun party at our house to celebrate. We had a ton of awesome appetizers, more drinks than anyone could count, and so much fun! Ted's Mom even wrote a sort of poem to recount all of Ted's milestones and adventures over the years. Congrats to 40 amazing years Ted!

Julie In New York

Earlier this month I took advantage of a mid-week day off and hopped on a plane to New York where two of my good friends live. I got to see Gina in Poughkeepsie and Kendra in Albany. I drove around New York and Connecticut quite a bit seeing friends in multiple locations. 

The highlight was Kendra and I took the train into New York City. We got to ride the subway, have lunch in the Upper East Side, go to St. Patrick's Church and hang out in the rain in Central Park. 

Four Year Check-up

Maddy went to the doctor last month for her four year check-up. She did really well and boy has she grown. She is now 40.3 inches tall (in the 61st percentile) and weighs 36lbs (in the 59th percentile). That means she grew 3 inches and gained 5lbs since her three year check-up.

She got to wear a paper gown for the first time which looked so cute on her. Of course after the photo she decided she'd rather not wear it and was just in her underwear by the time the doctor came in (so much for modesty).

She had to get her flu shot at the end which did not go well even though we had been preparing her for the possibility and she had even watched a cartoon show about the main character getting a shot and being brave. Oh well, at least it's only once a year. We went and got ice cream after to celebrate!

Maddy's Birthday Party

On October 14 we celebrated Maddy's fourth birthday. This includes a week of birthday fun for Maddy. Since Mom spent the week of (and unfortunately day of) Maddy's birthday at a work training in Baltimore, her birthday was very spread out.

On Wednesday was her actual birthday and Ted kicked off the day by filing her bedroom with balloons for her to wake up to. He took mini cupcakes to her class so she could celebrate at school. He wrapped up the day by taking her to Chuck-E-Cheese which she loved! 

Mom came home on Friday and Mom and Maddy went to Build-A-Bear in the afternoon together and then we did our Davis family party with Grammie, Papa, Uncle Max and Andrea (and tons of presents). 

Saturday was Maddy's actual party with 11 of her friends at the Tacoma Children's Museum. Here are some photos of her birthday party fun!