Our Vegas weekend

Disclaimer: There are lots of pictures. If you think it is painful for you to check them all out imagine how much of a pain it was for me to load them all. Not to mention the agony of deciding which ones to post!

This past weekend was a much needed vacation for all of us. It was so nice to get away, and my only complaint is that it went by way too fast. Even though we had two babies and one pregnant lady things were wonderful. On Friday we met up with Jason, Tawnie, Dustin and Darlene in St. George and enjoyed lunch at the Senior Citizens Center, aka Chuck-A-Rama. Then the girls headed for the mall while the guys checked out some trailers at an RV dealership. Guess which group took the babies with them? Need I ask... After shopping (why is it that I can't ever find clothes that fit unless I swear that I am not going to buy anything?) we headed to the Nut house in Beaver Dam. I can tell that we are getting older...this year I think we were all in bed that night by 10:00. But we did have a full day ahead of us. The next day we decided to cruise the mini-van to Vegas. It seats 7 and we had 8 so it was a bit of a squeeze, but well worth it. It's much more fun to drive in a large group. The first thing we did once we got there was go to the New Orleans casino for their buffet. It is a few blocks off the strip, but so worth the detour. I highly recommend it, and I normally am not a fan of the buffet. Jason and Tawnie accidentally found it a couple of years ago and never miss an opportunity to eat there. This year we decided to do things a bit different. Instead of wandering aimlessly down the strip we had actual destinations. The first was Hoover Dam, at Jared's suggestion. It was a bit chilly, but the sights were incredible. I can't even imagine taking on a project like building that, or the new bridge that is going up.

Tyler and Brynlie's first trip. I'm sure that they really appreciated the experience and will look back on their memories fondly.






I really liked the first picture that was taken of Jared and I more than this one, but Jason just can't help himself and had to stick his hand in it and ruin it. Actually, he had to ruin a lot of the pictures that were taken. Just like he always does.




I was so impressed that I got all three of us in the picture!


After Hoover Dam we hit the strip and picked up some gifts for the kids at the M&M's store and the guys rode the roller coaster at New York, New York and then the Nascar ride. Ever since having babies I get so sick that I don't even try to ride the rides anymore. If I do, I'm sick and ornery and have a headache for the rest of the day. Jared used to try to get me to ride the rides; now he refuses to let me because he knows what a wreck I am after.

That night we went to Mandalay Bay and saw the Shark Reef. I don't think that I have ever been in that casino before, but I really liked it. The exhibit was a lot of fun, and a great way to end the night. We have a picture of the three of us that I will have to scan and post later.

Look how gross the glass was... You couldn't see the nasty finger prints and smears until the flash lit them up. GROSS!!!
I had lots of really great pictures of Tawnie, but knowing that she has a blog of her own, and plenty of ugly pictures of me, I am not posting any of them. You are welcome, Tawnie!

Darlene was such a good sport the whole weekend, even though she is pregnant and has morning sickness. As I told Jared, if it had been me, you'd have heard me complain about every three steps. Which is why we decided at the very last minute last year not to go.

I have always known that I have a great baby. Brynlie is just so easy going, and rarely fusses, and does long stretches between feedings. But this weekend she really impressed. We could not have asked for a better baby. She was so content to sit in her stroller, or be packed around, even when she was tired. And she didn't cry once on the drive to or from home. Not once! The only time that she got cranky was Saturday night. It was about 2:00 in the morning when we got back and she had been up most of the day and was off schedule and missed her bed. I loved it though because she never lets me snuggle with her and she was so tired that she snuggled right into my shoulder and let me rock her to sleep. I really wish I hadn't been so tired so I could have enjoyed that more.

Sunday we got up and stopped at Wingers with Jason and Tawnie on our way home. After enjoying such mild weather we were greeted with a miserable storm on the way home. Jared was in the back watching a movie and I was trying to not kill us on the slick roads. I have been spoiled working from home all these years and discovered that I don't practice driving in bad conditions nearly as much as I used to.

When we got back into town we stopped at Vince and Meagan's to pick up the two girls. They were so excited to see us and tell us all about their adventures they had while we were gone. Thank you so much to Vince and Meagan for taking the girls Sunday (so Kristi and Chuck could get home for work) and entertaining them and baking cookies. They love spending time with Vince and Meagan and we are so lucky that they live so close. We also need to give a huge thanks to Kristi and Chuck who came down from Logan and spent the weekend at our house so that we could go. Not only did they spoil the kids rotten taking them to the aquarium, Carl's Jr, and visiting puppies, but they also took the time to clean the house and do some laundry before they left. How cool is that to come home to a clean house? Seriously, I couldn't have been happier! And I'm sorry Mom and Dad that you may not end up with as many grand kids now that Kristi and Chuck have sworn off having kids of their own. Maybe with enough time they will forget the weekend long enough to have one of their own!