MIA-again

Yes, my life is that boring and there is nothing new to post.  Kidding, kidding.  Apparently I forgot I even had this blog and have only been checking in on my sister-in-law's blog.  Oops! 

It is hard to believe that February has come and is almost gone.  If it wasn't for that extra day we like to call leap day, we would already be in March!  How crazy is that?

February has been an exciting month.  Here is a quick overview of what went on.

February 2nd-8th I went to the amazing state of Hawaii! I was on the island of Maui and it was gorgeous, breathtaking, a little slice of heaven...I could go on and on. My husband, who is amazing, stayed home with the boys and I was able to go on my own.  It was exactly what I needed!!  My lovely cousin, Amanda married her best friend, Jake, while we were there and I am so glad that I was able to be a part of their special day. I hope to one day return to Maui, with my husband and maybe the boys and spend 10-14 days. It is a long flight and time flies by because there is so much to do!  Some of my highlights of the trip were swimming in the ocean/laying on the beach, a traditional Hawaiian Luau, the wedding, whale watching, shopping and the Road to Hana.  I could post litterally hundreds of pictures, but I will only do a few.  It is hard to pick and choose!

 The beach right in front of our hotel.

 The bride and her girls!

Jake and Amanda

Also this month, we got to meet Baby Bella from Montana!  Her dad and my husband are cousins so that is the connection there.  They came to visit and also get her baptized which is always a special time.  She is super cute and it is fun to have a little girl in the family with all of these boys!

While we were in the cities for Bella's baptism, we took the opportunity to have some fun!  That Saturday we went to MOA and Hunter, Craig and our friend Brett got wristbands and had a blast on the rollercoasters and other rides.  Once again Hunter proved to us how brave he is by taking on some of the biggest rides.  A couple more years and he can ride them all!  I was shocked that he went on the rollercoaster that spins you in circles as you go.  I haven't been on it, but I'm sure it's quite the thrill.  Brody and I did a couple of rides (he's still not a fan but tolerates them...kind of.) with Cassie and Ollie before lunch.  We had lunch at Rainforest Cafe and the big boys continued to go on rides while us girls and little boys shopped and walked.  It was a fun filled afternoon!  We also had a birthday party for Jasper that night too (Craig's other cousin's son).  It was a blast and a fun day filled with friends and family.  That Sunday evening, Craig and I snuck away from the hotel-ok, we actually had his sister babysit-and went out for supper at Osaka.  It was a lot of fun and yummy food!  Craig was hesitant about a Japanese steakhouse, but I think he enjoyed it quite a bit.

 It was even a train!  I literally had to force him down.  There was an occasional "choo choo!" from him.

 Brody and Ollie-Hunter thinks Ollie is his other cousin :)

 Bumper Cars

Happy Birthday, Jasper!

We finally had a couple inches of snow!  The boys loved getting out and playing in it!  Grandpa Al has some man-made "hills" that was fun to climb and slide down.  Uncle Alex made it fun too!

We also had a playdate here and each of the boys had a friend over.  Yep, you did the math right.  4 boys ages 5 and under!  It was exciting, but they all had fun and were well behaved.

Another exciting this is that my brother got married!  It was a total shock and we didn't find out until a day and a half before, but luckily we were able to make it to St. Cloud for their courthouse wedding on Feb. 27.  Jude wants to adopt Misty's 3 sons but until their married they couldn't move forward in the adoption process, so they got hitched.  I'm still in shock, but wish them a lifetime of love and happiness.  Hunter was a little upset he couldn't stand by his Uncle's side, but the judge was so nice and let him sit in his chair for a few pictures.

 Judge Hunter

 The wedding.

 The Happy Family

 My brother, the boys and me

 Check out those rings!

 Just Married!

Brody is pretty tough!

Also, today, leap day, a new little addition to the family arrived!  Hudson Lee Lamb was born at 3:44 AM weighing 9 lbs. 11 oz and 22 inches long!  We had a snow storm last night so I'm not sure how the roads are to go and see him but really want to!  So far from what I have seen in pictures he is pretty cute!!  For now, Hunter is out with all the neighbor kids as they enjoy a snow day!  That is all from here!  Hope you had a great February!  And I promise to post more in March!

Mexican Cat Dance

And no, this wasn't posed.  This is how I found her.

Happy Birthday, Kiley!!!

Happy Birthday to my wonderful friend, Kiley!  Who would have thought that the new girl in American Studies my junior year of high school would become one of my best friends.  We have shared many wonderful times together-trips to Fargo to see our then boyfriends now husbands, Burger King, proms, graduation, going to college, the birth of my two boys (which she even flew down to Texas to help us just days after Brody was born.  I'm still sad we weren't able to go shopping to St. Cloud the day Hunter was born), our weddings, discovering a town named after us (you can see the bright lights of Kianel on I-94 between mile markers 33 &34) and so many more.  Kiley is the type of friend who will be there for you no matter what.  She will always be there to listen to you when you need someone to talk to.  She knows exactly what to say no matter what you're facing in life.  She has a heart like no other.  And best of all, she is so much fun to be around.

So, Happy 25th Birthday Kiley!  I can't believe that you're a quarter of a century old.  Thanks for always being there for me and I can't wait to see what the next 25 years hold for you!!  Love you Ki, Ki! 

 Seriously, how could you not be friends with a person who looks this cool?

I got my Tackys on.

Hunter: Hey, Mom!  Can I wear my tackys today?
Me: Your what?!?
Hunter:  You know, my tackys.
Me:  I have no idea what your tackys are.
Hunter:  You know, my white pants so I can pretend I'm in the Navy.
Me: Oh!!  Your khakis!
Hunter: Yeah, that's what I said.

Middle Name Confusion

Apparently my boys try to take after celebs with weird name trends.  I know, Craig and I are no where close to being celebrities and we would never think of naming our children after food.  However, they think it's a great idea.
When Hunter was around two, he believed that his name was "Hunter Chicken Zappe" instead of Hunter Christian Zappe.  It was hilarious and he eventually figured it out.  Yesterday, Brody was eating some ice cream and I can't remember exactly how he said it, but something to the effect that it was just like him, "Brody Ice Cream Zappe".  I think our child is convinced now that his middle name is Ice Cream instead of being named after is grandpa and great-grandpa with the middle name of Augustine.
But for now, we'll let it slide.  He'll figure it out soon enough that his parents aren't that weird to name him after a sweet treat.

Funny Question

Like a lot of married couples, we have a few pictures here and there on display from our wedding day.  Pictures to remind us of the love we share, the wonderful memories of a special day and also to remind us how much skinnier we used to be.  Ok, so that's the case for me and not all.  Every now and then we flip through albums to relive the memories and remind ourselves how lucky we are to be married to our best friend.  A pretty special thing if you ask me.
Hunter was looking at a few pictures from mine and Craig's wedding day.  Then he asked me this really funny question, "Mom, do you think that other girls were sad and cried that day because Daddy was marrying you and not them?"  Let's be honest.  The answer is probably yes.  I mean, just take one look at Craig and you will probably be sad too that you didn't get the chance to marry him.  And I'm the lucky one to call him mine for the rest of my life. :)

OKLAHOMA! Where the wind comes sweeping down the plains!

Man, I don't know how many times that phrase was used during our move back from Texas.  But it made the trek across the state that much better.  I have a feeling that we will be saying that phrase a lot this summer.
Craig found out this week that Craig will be sent to Hunter, OK for his next project. (Hunter is pretty pumped about the small town's name.  I'll be honest, it's a great name and when we go down there, I am hoping to find some cool signs that have "HUNTER" on them and photograph them.)  We definitely were not expecting Craig to get assigned to another project this fast, but we're happy about it.  A little stressed, but happy.  It's crazy news to receive after a 2 week break from work.
We have been very lucky with the previous two project assignments being relatively close to home.  We knew that this was part of the package with us buying a house and the boys and I being here.  It just means that we'll be making more trips to airports and we'll have a much longer drive when we go to see Craig.  But hey, it's a job and they must think he does all right to put him right back out on a project vs. sitting in the office with 100+ other employees who are typically on the road.
And I'm really hoping that on this project, we can arrange things so I can finally get to the top of a turbine.  Fingers crossed!
We know that this will be another challenge for our family.  Hard for the boys (and myself and Craig) to say good-bye after 3.5 short days knowing that there will be 17 days that we won't be seeing him.  And just knowing that he's not just a quick drive away.  It will take planning and a possible hotel stay.  But, we will do it because we have to and it's just another adventure in this crazy thing called life.