2 hours ago
Friday, January 2, 2009
Hottie!!
Becca was here the other night and informed us that Nick has a great rating on RATEMYPROFESSOR.COM. Something like 4.3 out of 5 or something. His "bad" comments included "he's too easy on the marching band" ( not that bad of a comment if you ask me). The other thing she informed us is that he has the highest rating (5 out of 5) for HOT-ness! So I'm cracking up at this point but she continues by reading certain comments. Her favorite is "Dr Holland is the most awesome teacher and he's SMOKIN' HOT!!!! I was about to pee in my pants. I of course think he's a hottie but to know his students do was just too much!!!
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
What's in a name...Part Deux
As we were posting last night, Nicholas sent a shout out from his bedroom for us to not forget how he got his name. So, we thought we'd toss in the history behind the names of our children.
When Karen was a little girl, she used to tell her mother Mary that when she grew up she was going to get married, move to North Carolina, and have a blond-haired boy named Nicholas. What everyone didn't know was that Karen was prophetic - she grew up, married, moved to North Carolina, and was expecting her first child. Before we knew the sex of the baby, we had already decided that if it was a boy, he would be named Nicholas. Karen decided to name him after his father, grandfather, and great grandfather on Nick's side, and we named him Nicholas Vedder Holland, IV, and I couldn't be more proud. When he was little, Nicholas used to call himself "Nicholas Vedder Holland the force."
Karen and I were expecting our second child in 2003, and we always thought that if we had a girl, we would name her Hannah (we both love that name). When we found out we were having a girl, it seemed that everyone we knew had a daughter named Hannah. So, we decided on Caroline, which is a family name on my side, and a tribute to my home state of North Carolina. Initially, we thought her middle name would be Ruth, but in the same week that we learned Karen was pregnant, a very dear friend of ours in Memphis was shot and killed. His name was George, and he was a Sheriff's Deputy delivering an arrest warrant. We were very close to his family–his wife Jessica and their two girls Taylor and Payton. We decided to honor George and his family, and made Caroline's middle name Georgia. It turns out that it serves a dual purpose, which is to honor George Selby and Karen's home state of Georgia (even though she was born in Virginia). Consequently, that's how Caroline Georgia Holland was named. When Caroline was little, she would would refer to herself as "Caroline ju-ja the first". Only later did she get "Georgia" and "Holland" in there, but she was always "the first". God threw away the mold after this one...
And by the way, Nicholas also wanted to make sure there were enough pictures of him on the blog...what do you think? Let us know if you need more of "the force".
When Karen was a little girl, she used to tell her mother Mary that when she grew up she was going to get married, move to North Carolina, and have a blond-haired boy named Nicholas. What everyone didn't know was that Karen was prophetic - she grew up, married, moved to North Carolina, and was expecting her first child. Before we knew the sex of the baby, we had already decided that if it was a boy, he would be named Nicholas. Karen decided to name him after his father, grandfather, and great grandfather on Nick's side, and we named him Nicholas Vedder Holland, IV, and I couldn't be more proud. When he was little, Nicholas used to call himself "Nicholas Vedder Holland the force."
Karen and I were expecting our second child in 2003, and we always thought that if we had a girl, we would name her Hannah (we both love that name). When we found out we were having a girl, it seemed that everyone we knew had a daughter named Hannah. So, we decided on Caroline, which is a family name on my side, and a tribute to my home state of North Carolina. Initially, we thought her middle name would be Ruth, but in the same week that we learned Karen was pregnant, a very dear friend of ours in Memphis was shot and killed. His name was George, and he was a Sheriff's Deputy delivering an arrest warrant. We were very close to his family–his wife Jessica and their two girls Taylor and Payton. We decided to honor George and his family, and made Caroline's middle name Georgia. It turns out that it serves a dual purpose, which is to honor George Selby and Karen's home state of Georgia (even though she was born in Virginia). Consequently, that's how Caroline Georgia Holland was named. When Caroline was little, she would would refer to herself as "Caroline ju-ja the first". Only later did she get "Georgia" and "Holland" in there, but she was always "the first". God threw away the mold after this one...
And by the way, Nicholas also wanted to make sure there were enough pictures of him on the blog...what do you think? Let us know if you need more of "the force".
Monday, December 29, 2008
What's in a name?
I'm sure many of you are wondering how our dogs got their names. The stories are all quite funny. "Hal" is short for "Halbo", which is short for Hallelujah. I wanted to name him "Starbuck", or "Jedi" or something with pop to it. When we were riding back to our house in Greensboro with him, Karen and I kept trying out names. At one point, Karen had shared some good news with me (which I can't recall), and I said aloud, "hallelujah". Halbo perked right up, and began wagging his tail. We tried other names to elicit the same response, and got nothing. I said "hallelujah" again, and Hal wagged away. The rest, is history.
Otis' full name is Otis Javier Lopez Holland, which is amusing in and of itself. Otis was given his name from the breeder, and named after the Otis from the Andy Griffith show (the local drunk). The name seems to fit him perfectly, so we kept it for our family. The middle name is a bit more exotic, I guess. Otis was born on Cinco de Mayo, the Mexican day of Independence (May 5th). We wanted his middle name to have some Latino spice, but couldn't decide on the name. We thought about Helio Castroneves (the Indy-car driver & Dancing with the Stars champ), but settled on one of our favorite Atlanta Braves of all time, Javy Lopez. And so, Otis Javier Lopez Holland was born.
Alexis was also given her name by her breeder, Big Momma, and we kept it too, if for no other reason than the way "Otis and Alexis" sounded together when shouted! Her middle name was given to her by one of our star baby-sitters, Becca Wood. The first day Becca met Alexis, she agreed we should keep her first name, and then suggested her middle name be Shar-Pay for two reasons. Primarily, Alexis was acting like a real diva that day, and put Otis in his place rather quickly. Secondly, the name is also a tribute to Hallelujah, who is a Chinese Shar-Pei. It all fit so beautifully, and Alexis Shar-Pay Holland was settled. By the way, we chose the "High School Musical" spelling of "Shar-Pay" in honor of our own little diva, Caroline.
The More You Know...
Otis' full name is Otis Javier Lopez Holland, which is amusing in and of itself. Otis was given his name from the breeder, and named after the Otis from the Andy Griffith show (the local drunk). The name seems to fit him perfectly, so we kept it for our family. The middle name is a bit more exotic, I guess. Otis was born on Cinco de Mayo, the Mexican day of Independence (May 5th). We wanted his middle name to have some Latino spice, but couldn't decide on the name. We thought about Helio Castroneves (the Indy-car driver & Dancing with the Stars champ), but settled on one of our favorite Atlanta Braves of all time, Javy Lopez. And so, Otis Javier Lopez Holland was born.
Alexis was also given her name by her breeder, Big Momma, and we kept it too, if for no other reason than the way "Otis and Alexis" sounded together when shouted! Her middle name was given to her by one of our star baby-sitters, Becca Wood. The first day Becca met Alexis, she agreed we should keep her first name, and then suggested her middle name be Shar-Pay for two reasons. Primarily, Alexis was acting like a real diva that day, and put Otis in his place rather quickly. Secondly, the name is also a tribute to Hallelujah, who is a Chinese Shar-Pei. It all fit so beautifully, and Alexis Shar-Pay Holland was settled. By the way, we chose the "High School Musical" spelling of "Shar-Pay" in honor of our own little diva, Caroline.
The More You Know...
Welcome to ALEXIS!
We should've known...it was beautiful foreshadowing. We were leaving the breeder's house with Otis on July 26th, and our breeder said these words...
"THEY'RE LIKE POTATO CHIPS...YOU CAN'T HAVE JUST ONE..." Could you hear the thunderclap in the background, the "mwaaahaaaahaaaa" from a voice known only as "Big Momma"?
Well, Big Momma (the breeder) was right, and November 24th, we brought home Alexis on a trial run. Big Momma graciously allowed us to bring her home for several days, to make sure our world and all those that live there were copacetic to an influx of fur. Otis was (and still is) in rehab from his knee surgery, and not supposed to be agitated. Hal was (and still is) just plain grumpy.
So, we test drove Alexis and I certainly had my doubts. It was quick on the throttle, but not very responsive to steering, and it seemed REALLY loose in the rear end at just about any speed. However, Big Momma was right. Bostons do much better in pairs, and we couldn't have just one...
You are cordially invited to enjoy this slide show of our newest family member, Alexis Shar-pay Holland!
"THEY'RE LIKE POTATO CHIPS...YOU CAN'T HAVE JUST ONE..." Could you hear the thunderclap in the background, the "mwaaahaaaahaaaa" from a voice known only as "Big Momma"?
Well, Big Momma (the breeder) was right, and November 24th, we brought home Alexis on a trial run. Big Momma graciously allowed us to bring her home for several days, to make sure our world and all those that live there were copacetic to an influx of fur. Otis was (and still is) in rehab from his knee surgery, and not supposed to be agitated. Hal was (and still is) just plain grumpy.
So, we test drove Alexis and I certainly had my doubts. It was quick on the throttle, but not very responsive to steering, and it seemed REALLY loose in the rear end at just about any speed. However, Big Momma was right. Bostons do much better in pairs, and we couldn't have just one...
You are cordially invited to enjoy this slide show of our newest family member, Alexis Shar-pay Holland!
We got the BEST Christmas gift!!!
On Christmas Eve I really didn't feel like going to church. I was tired and a little grumpy! Nick had a horrible couple of days thanks to a certain coworker, I was training for my wonderful new job, it had been raining forever and my back door still leaks...... get the picture? But Nick says "lets go" and so we did! I am forever thankful that I did. While we were at church my sweet little (not so much anymore) Caroline asked Jesus into her heart-- What more could a mom ask for? I am so very blessed that both of my child now have an eternal future with the most Amazing God!!!!
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
An All-American, Our Big Boys, and a new TOM
During the last two home games of the year for Memphis Football, we enjoyed some neat moments. First, Nicholas was named to the Crosscheck All-American, All-Academic team! It was a big honor, as the boys had to have a 3.5 GPA or higher. He has a 4.0 so far, and we're very proud of him. The All-Americans from the Memphis area were recognized by joining the traditional "march-a-round", which begins every pregame for all Tiger football games - it's a big deal, and Nick's band leads the way every game. Here's a couple snaps of Nicholas in his big moment...
Also, Caroline got to visit with two of her favorite band members, Brandon and Randy...She calls them her "big boys", and they are two of our very best trumpet players. Here's a shot of Caroline and her "big boys"...(Randy is on the left)
Finally, the Memphis community said farewell to our Bengal Tiger mascot TOM II, who passed away earlier this year after a bout with mouth cancer. We were fortunate enough to introduce this year his replacement, TOM III, who is an 11-month old tiger cub. Normally, TOM parades behind the band at the march-a-round in his very large, air-conditioned trailer. This game, TOM III enjoyed making his debut in a much more understated fashion. No doubt, he'll enjoy all the spoils of being the most beloved Tiger by thousands in Memphis...
Also, Caroline got to visit with two of her favorite band members, Brandon and Randy...She calls them her "big boys", and they are two of our very best trumpet players. Here's a shot of Caroline and her "big boys"...(Randy is on the left)
Finally, the Memphis community said farewell to our Bengal Tiger mascot TOM II, who passed away earlier this year after a bout with mouth cancer. We were fortunate enough to introduce this year his replacement, TOM III, who is an 11-month old tiger cub. Normally, TOM parades behind the band at the march-a-round in his very large, air-conditioned trailer. This game, TOM III enjoyed making his debut in a much more understated fashion. No doubt, he'll enjoy all the spoils of being the most beloved Tiger by thousands in Memphis...
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