Our growing baby!

Ainsley is getting so big! She turned 4 months old on January 11 and weighed 13lbs. 14oz. at her 4 month check-up. She's discovered her hands and feet and is constantly trying to chew on them or trying to figure out how to get a toy to her mouth. She wants to sit up so badly that laying on her back just irritates her. And she's starting to eat baby cereal and baby food.

Here she is in her bumbo chair:


And here's some shots of the first night of cereal. She fooled me that night because she didn't cry at all. Every night after that, I was not as lucky. ;) The cereal by itself did not go over so well. Once I added pears to it, it started going a little better. We'll try some veggies this week and see what happens.



We just cannot believe that she's so big already! Before we know it, she'll be crawling around our house. Oh Lord, just typing that sets me into a panic! Let's hope time slows down a little.

p.s. Keep reading to see Anneliese's b-day party pics.

Birthday at Chuck E. Cheese

As promised, here are b-day pics from Anneliese's party at Chuck E. Cheese. A very sincere thanks to all of the grown-ups who came and survived the party! To all of you who have never been to or had a Chuck E. Cheese b-day party - DON'T! It was total rushed chaos and everywhere you tried to sit, stand or walk, there was a kid! But the important thing was that Anneliese enjoyed her party and had a great time playing with her friends and cousins!

The cake:



The birthday gang:




Anneliese with her b-day crown and Chuck E. himself:



Lila could not resist trying on the crown. I think we've got another princess on our hands!


And here's all the kiddos getting in on all the playing action. Their favorite thing to do was the free climbing thing. Maybe this is why we came home with so many tokens.









I don't know if you can tell but this is Mandy braving the inside of the climbing maze with Lila and Kenzie. What a super Mom!


You can tell that they all had so much fun! Anneliese had a great 4th birthday - thanks to everyone who helped her celebrate!

Happy Birthday, Anneliese!

Our sweet angel is 4 years old today! We cannot believe it. Four years ago today our lives changed for the better. Every day we are amazed at what kind of girl she is becoming. She is too smart for her own good, very inquisitive, a great big sister, funny, extremely chatty and sometimes a challenge (probably because of her other qualities). When she's around, there aren't many dull moments! We love her with all of our hearts and are so happy that she's part of our lives. She brightens our day every day. Happy Birthday, Anneliese!


p.s. Check back soon for birthday celebration pics.

The month of December always goes by so quickly and this year was no exception. I went back to work on December 1st so I can safely say that it was the craziest month of my life so far. Adjusting to life with 2 working parents, a 3 (almost 4) year old and a 3 month old doesn't leave much time for peace and quiet or organizing and cleaning. However, we love our loud, messy life and are so thankful for it every day!

Christmas was so much fun! Needless to say, Anneliese and Ainsley got loaded down with gifts. We had a great time spending the holidays with family and only wish the time didn't go by so fast so that we had more time to visit with everyone. Here are some pics of all the fun:


















As you can tell, Ainsley didn't get into much of the action. She actually slept through most of the unwrapping. I'm sure next year she'll be ready to cause a ruckus with her sister and cousins! Thanks to everyone for another wonderful holiday season!

(p.s. I'm not being partial to the Henke family on purpose. My camera battery died before we had our Noska family Christmas so I got absolutely no pictures from that day. :( )

2009 was extra special for us and I'm sure 2010 has many great things to come. We wish all of you a new year full of blessings!

Love,
Brandon, Jennifer, Anneliese & Ainsley

True to the blue, baby!

We finally made it to a SHS game! Anneliese and I actually saw the second half of a game the Friday before Halloween but Ainsley didn't join us until this past weekend. It was time for the annual St. Paul game so the girls and I drove home to cheer on grandpa and those Indians! Anneliese went fully prepared with pom-poms, noise makers and an Indian jersey with grandpa's name on it.


Ainsley doesn't yet have any Indian gear so we improvised a little for the picture. She slept through this whole game but I know she was cheering on the Indians in her dreams.


Anneliese is having a difficult time deciding if she wants to be a cheerleader, a twirler or in the band. She may be the first to do all 3! She may be leaning a little heavier towards twirling because she discovered they get to wear sparkly uniforms. Shelby was nice enough to take a picture with Anneliese.


A few more pics at the game.





And finally, could the long running rivalry be ending?


Probably not but to a 3 year old who loves cheerleaders, it doesn't matter what color they wear! This picture turned out so cute - thanks Kaci!

Unfortunately, for the first time in 19 years, the Indians lost. But as they say, every streak is made to be broken. And I know our St. Paul cousins were very happy. The Indians are headed to the playoffs. I don't know if we'll be able to make it to any of those games but we will be cheering them on in spirit. Anneliese and Ainsley will be ready to cheer them on in full force next season!

Happy Halloween!

Halloween has come and gone and Anneliese loved every minute of it! This year, she got to trick or treat 3 times (and she got 3 wears out of her costume!).

It started out on the Thursday before when we went trick-or-treating in downtown Buda for Boo-da Halloween. Every year the businesses stay open late or set up tables downtown on the Thursday before Halloween to let the kiddos start their trick-or-treating early. It's a great warm-up for the big night.

We got the ballerinas dressed and took pictures with our pumpkins before heading out. (You can't see but Ainsley has ballerina slippers on her onesie.)




This year, the Grahmanns and Whiteds (minus James who was working) were able to join us. All the kids looked adorable and had great fun!




Next came all of the Halloween fun at school. After Mass, the fun started with Halloween bingo.


Then the kids got to walk around the circle and drop treats into their friends' bags. Anneliese had bubbles and Halloween fruit chews to pass out.


After lunch and a nap, the kids got to put on their costumes and head over to the Family Center for the costume parade.

Here's Anneliese with her class - she was the line leader on Friday and was quite proud to lead the line! (Notice the man in black at the right edge of the picture - that's Father Bill, our pastor. We all just love him!)


This is her friend Zoe. Zoe's mom is subbing for me while I'm on maternity leave and she's awesome!


This is her teacher, Mrs. Gosey. Anneliese really likes her!


Finally, it was the real Halloween. We went to Hallettsville so we could enjoy the fun with all of the grandparents. Nickie and Wyatt were able to join us. It was great to see them and I enjoyed catching up with Nickie.

Here's Anneliese and Wyatt with our Geisha Girl who was handing out candy at Mom's house while we trick-or-treated.


Ainsley stayed awake for a little bit of her first trick-or-treating experience. Tonight, she was a jack-o-lantern.


By now, Anneliese was an old pro at getting candy and she went up to most of the doors by herself.


Here's part of her entourage. I don't think there's ever been a bigger adult entourage for one trick-or-treater. ;)


And after walking for blocks and blocks, our ballerina hitched a ride.


Halloween was a ton of fun! We loved being able to celebrate it in Hallettsville. And luckily, Granny and Grandpa had so many trick-or-treaters that we ended up giving out some of Anneliese's candy so we actually came home with a manageable amount.

It is so hard to believe that it's November and the holidays are quickly approaching. My elf and I have already been making plans about when to get the Christmas lights on our house. Where does the time go?

Hope everyone had a fun Halloween and is as ready for the holidays as we are!

Love,
the Noskas

p.s. Make sure to keep scrolling down - I posted some new pics of Ainsley in a separate blog.