Dear Noah...

Dear Noah,


Please come back to Texas!!!


My nutritionist Ms. Suzanne was here this week and she is NOT HAPPY!


While you were here visiting in June, I gained 13oz!  Two weeks after you left, I dropped 5oz.  And this week I dropped another 1oz.  (back under 18lbs).


I told her it was all the skills that I am learning and the moving that I am doing, but she didn't buy it and said that you should come back and help me bulk up so that I won't be sitting backwards in the car FOREVER!


I know it is hot right now (102 today), but our winters are so much better than those ones in Minnesota.  Please consider the move and let me know.  You can even have your own room Buddy!


Love and Hugs and Kisses,
Aubrey

Aubrey Stands! at OneTrueMedia.com

Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Back from Vacation:)

So we are finally back from a very restful and enjoyable vacation to see family up north:)  So sad that it is over as this week has already started with a bang and August looks like it is filling up pretty quickly too!

I am still sifting through my pictures, but this is a pretty good picture of our vacation.  I ONLY took 550 photos, and that was between me and Woody.  Brenna knows me well enough to know that I could take 100 in one day and so 550 seems minimal, but we were so busy enjoying our littles and those of my sister and just enjoying family and sometimes, the camera just can't capture moments like that...

We drove to Wisconsin to enjoy a wedding reception for my cousin Jessica and her new husband Adam.  They got married out at a vineyard in Oregon last month, but had a reception locally for those who couldn't fly out to be with them on their actual wedding day.

(this is a good example of lack of picture taking...not one picture of them together, but they certainly are a great looking couple:)

Next we headed to Michigan to enjoy a few days at my sisters house.  They live on a lake and have a pool...so enough said, everyone had a great time!  

Cooling off in the pool with daddy!

Ella and Luke on the dock waiting for the "Barge" to come in.

The "Barge" of sad littles who HAD to come in for dinner.

Sometimes icecream makes up for having to come in from the lake!

Back at the house, baby Jake, is not so baby anymore and is gaining fast on his cousin Aubrey.

These two...peas in a pod!

My younger sister and fiance' were also there...but again, no cute picture of the happily engaged couple, but we did get to do some dress shopping and flower girl shopping, so lots of fun and we are getting really excited about the wedding next summer:)

Then it was on to Ohio to see Woody's parents.  We had so much fun there too...shopping...dress up...doll houses...the park...and a trip to the zoo to celebrate Alice's 8th Birthday!

Yes, the polka dots help to keep track of them when we go places!

Can you tell we love polka dots!

A wonderful vacation and way to relax.  Now we're thinking about back to school and getting ready for the fall:)

Time Outs!

I guess that it was only a matter of time, before the trouble maker would have to be disciplined for all her naughtiness...

This happened again last week...so she had to sit on the stair for a minute.  I put the pile of paper in my bathroom to use up and replaced the role.

Next day, she did it again with the new roll:(  Another time out...though they don't really seem to be working...How do you get them to stop laughing and smiling at you?

Two days later...she did it again....(sigh)

We are trying really hard to keep the doors closed.  I don't have much more room in my bathroom basket for anymore unrolled toilet paper!

Yesterday...Ella did it to the last of the roll in our bathroom!  (Maybe she was curious about what Aubrey thinks is cool!  Who knows:)

Oh what to do!

Summer Lovin'

Mark and Brenna have 4 kids just like us.  They are pretty much the Minnesota version of us...except of course they got a boy this last time:)  Are kids are all pretty close in age from one week to three months.

Noah and Aubrey are just three weeks apart in age.  Aubrey being the older women!  They have there moments, but most are filled with love and concern...especially from Noah.

Have to admit, we wouldn't mind her becoming a Hollander some day:)

4th of July

My poor neglected blog:(

The lazy days of summer have not been lazy enough for me...but full of life and fun and we've just been loving every minute of it.

Once school was out we had a week of LOTS of appointments...then a week of Vacation Bible School for all the girls and I led crafts...now two weeks of good friends staying with us:)  And a house full of 8 kids, does not leave much time to blog, but I wanted to get a few pictures from the fourth out there.

We went to a minor league baseball game on Sunday...sat on the lawn in the outfield...and everyone had a great time.

Aubrey loved standing by the fence and "sassing" the players in the outfield!

Trying to get a picture of all 8 kids at the end of a long hot day...

IMPOSSIBLE:)

Top it off with some cotton candy and fireworks and you have a great american holiday with friends:)

More pictures and updates to come...