Christmas Time

We've been decking the halls at the Davidson home... how about you?  

Kendall decorated the felt tree all by herself

The kids helped us pick out a great Frasier Fir this year...

...and this is the 2nd time (I believe) that Micah has got to put the star on the top of the tree.  I'm sure soon he will pass the baton on to Kendall, just like it was passed on to him from Samuel!

The boys each wrote letters to Santa... Micah has been really into this lately - he has written Santa letters every day.  I don't mind because each one is helping with his writing!  :)  Bonus!  

Last weekend we did the first annual Carrillo 5k.  The kids loved earning medals!  

The last week of school before winter break was loaded with Christmas performances & holiday crafts, mug exchanges & class parties. 

  

 Last Sunday, we visited Sunshine Gardens and got to sit & talk with Santa himself.  Samuel asked for a robot that could clean up his room, and Micah asked for a nerf car and a nerf gun.  

Kendall was too afraid to get near Santa herself, but settled for this photo together with the whole family.  Later, she was worried that Santa wouldn't know what she wanted for Christmas, since she never told him.  I assured her he would know.  :)  

Then the kids took a ride on Bubbs, the pony.  

We sure are loving this holiday season so far, and hope you are too!  

Answered Prayers!

For those of you who know our sweet Samuel, you may know that he has had trouble with his ears ever since he was 8 months old.  When he was young he would have frequent ear infections, and his ears couldn't drain fluid in his middle ear through his Eustachian tubes on his own.  He has had 3 ear tube surgeries in his life (14 months old, 3.5 years old & 6.5 years old) to help relieve his ears from the trapped fluid.  

Just after his 3rd surgery in the summer of 2015, Samuel was diagnosed with Eustachian Tube Dysfunction, and through that process, we discovered through 2 types of allergy testing that Samuel also has moderate allergies to lots of things (pollen, dust mites, dander, grass, etc.), and he had developed Oral Allergy Syndrome.  We & the doctors believed that these allergies may be a contributing factor to his Eustachian tube dysfunction, by causing them to be swollen - too much to let any fluid drain.  So we tried what we could - sanitized his sheets & bedding weekly, removed stuffed animals, used a hepa air filter in his bedroom - dusted & vacuumed frequently - as well as used nasal sprays, thieves bedding spray & essential oils applied to his ears & neck daily - in hopes that reducing & removing these allergens would help his Eustachian tubes open up, allowing fluid to drain on its own after the tubes fell out.  

Well, in August we met with Samuel's ENT where we learned with the news that his tubes had not only fallen out (like they should have, after 12+ months), but that more fluid was trapped in both his ears again, and the ENT recommended a 4th surgery in the fall, this time with a bigger size tube (trium-tubes) meant to stay in place for 2+ years.  

We were saddened to know our boy would have to go through this surgery again.  He is old enough to remember the past surgeries, and he really doesn't like the process of being put under anesthesia.  

Nevertheless, we scheduled the surgery (November 1), and prayed and waited and prayed some more to see if the fluid would drain on its own, or if it would still be there at his pre-op appointment, 1 week before the surgery.  On October 25, we met with the ENT and were so surprised to learn that Samuel's ears were clear!  The fluid was gone - and we were able to cancel his surgery!  (The ENT even had a big smile on his face!)

Never before - in his LIFE - has trapped middle ear fluid ever drained from his ears, on his own.  We are praising God because of this miracle!  

This little boy was so happy!  And so was Andrew & I!  So what do we do?  Skip the rest of the day of school, and take the little guy to VG's & enjoy them at the beach, of course.  Because God is so good, and God hears our prayers & Samuel doesn't have to have surgery!  

Soccer Stars

From August through October, we enjoyed watching both of our boys play soccer & do great at it!  

Micah played with the San Elijo AYSO and loved having his next door neighbor on his team, as well as Andrew as the coach!  This was Micah's first time playing soccer, let alone a team sport!  Because of that he had a bit of a slow start and didn't want to play for his first couple games, but soon he figured it out and then couldn't get enough playing time!  He even scored his very first goal.  

His 1st day of soccer!  

            A slow start....                                 ...and then he loved to play!   

Samuel played with Carlsbad Galaxy U10 & Andrew enjoyed coaching along with 2 other player's dads.  The Tanks had a great season - scored lots of goals - and made it to the final round of the playoffs!!! 

Our little cheerleader - Kendall Rose - loved watching her brothers play every Saturday

 

These guys played 4 games in one weekend at the end-of-season tournament and made it to the finals, winning 2rd place!  Go Tanks & Go Samuel!

Both boys enjoyed playing soccer, and had super fun after-season parties & received trophies!  

Samuel's team, the Tanks, got together for a pizza party at Pizza Port to receive their trophies & watch the season DVD.  We are so proud of you Samuel!  

Micah's team, the Red Bulls, got together for frozen yogurt after the last game to receive their trophies.  

 Way to go Micah!

 

Kendall & her friend June (the little sister of another player), were the faithful cheerleaders each & every game! 

We are proud of our little soccer players (& their coach!)