Sin City - Day 2

Day 2. Rookie Mistake: I didn't pack any tennis shoes. But in my defense, I did pack my most comfortable flats. And I wore them the entire second day. We walked the ENTIRE STRIP. In shoes that are not tennis shoes. I had a bit of a blister, but nothing too bad. Stay tuned for Day 3 when I address this problem.

Like I said, day 2 we walked the strip. I loved seeing all of the different hotels. They were beautiful and different and elaborate. We stopped in each casino to play a slot. or two. or three. or ten. It all depended on the hotel and how "hot" the machines were.

While in Caesar's Palace, we stopped for some shopping and a drink. Josh and Melissa ordered first. They got two simple, mixed drinks. Nothing fancy. No request for the finest of liquors. Just two mixed drinks. The bartender rang them up and as Andrew and Freddy noticed the price pop up on the screen, they quickly turned and walked away leaving Josh and Melissa with their THIRTY SIX DOLLAR DRINKS! Needless to day, they were the only two that ordered from that bar and they drank every. last. drop.

Everywhere we went, Andrew and Kacie seemed to get stopped by someone selling something. Those of you who know Andrew likely think this is strange that Andrew didn't just tell the guy to buzz off, huh? Me, too.

We stopped for lunch at the ESPN bar at the New York New York just before we rode the roller coaster there.

And then...then something wonderful happened. We were playing the slots and I cashed out when I had won $10 - which brought me up to a total gain of $22. I went to find a machine to cash out my ticket. I heard Freddy calling me. He had won! Nearly as much as we had set aside to gamble away. Hooray! My $10 looked really pathetic next to his big winnings.

Next we were off to Minus 5 - a bar made entirely of ice. The walls, the chairs, the bar itself, the cups, the tables - basically everything but the floor. They give you parkas and gloves, of course.

This is Melissa showing off her XS parka.

You encounter a lot of "characters" on the Las Vegas strip.

You would think that after the incident at Caesars, we would have learned to ask how much the drink is before we order it, wouldn't you? Well, we didn't. Freddy ordered an $18 drink. But at least we got to keep the...cup?

That night we had tickets to see Cirque de Soleil's Mystere. It was AMAZING! AMAZING! AMAZING! We love Cirque.

Besties!

Sin City

There is a lot to say about our trip to Vegas, so I think that I will blog about it one day at a time.

This trip was an item on my Thirty by Thirty List - "It's a secret until I do it". Well, the secret was that I wanted to surprise Freddy with a trip to his Disney World - VEGAS!

I found a good deal on Southwest Vacations and in a matter of two days I had organized our vacation. We had friends going with us, Hag, Natalie, Andrew and Kacie and Josh and Melissa. They all knew that it was a secret and that Freddy would only find out when our friends popped up at the airport and the hotel. It was a brilliant plan.

I surprised Freddy with the trip as an Anniversary gift. He was surprised and sooooooo excited. Neither one of us had ever been.

Then Hag spilled the beans. Freddy said that it wasn't necessarily a bad thing because it gave us the opportunity to plan activities together.

And after Hag RUINED EVERYTHING, he ended up not going, which also took Natalie out of the mix.

And a month and a half lately we were off...

Melissa and I were huge dorks and wore matching outfits on the plane.

When we got to the airport, Freddy and Melissa each played a dollar slot. Freddy lost his buck, but...

Melissa won $10. And it wasn't even her lucky slot - the double diamond.

The boys managed to make it to the sports betting place and bet on Monday Night Football. They won! We were off to a good start.

And just to give you a little insight on how I gamble...if you had asked me at any point in the vacation how much I had to lost or won, I could tell you. "I'm up five. I'm down ten. I've only lost 13. I'm back up 23. " My saying for the week was "Cash Out!". Freddy and I are complete opposites in that way.

We stayed at the Treasure Island. It was fun for first-timers, but next time I will want to stay closer to the middle of the strip. The room was beautiful and we had an amazing view of the strip. Too bad I couldn't get a good picture through the glass. You would have liked it.

Monday (the first day) was REALLY rough for me. I don't know why, but I was BEAT. I could barely keep my eyes open. I downed gallons upon gallons of coffee in an attempt to not face plant in to my dinner or a slot machine. My eyes have never been that heavy.

That first night we went and saw Jubilee - the burlesque show - typical Vegas with huge, elaborate head pieces, kick lines and topless women. Yeah, I know. My review: The costumes were beautiful, but I likely won't go back. The show started at midnight Texas time, so I was battling to stay awake.

Bed time could not come soon enough.

I was a brave grasshopper, or so I was told.

Even before the 3 Day came my experience with Vietnamese food. I knocked another item off of my Thirty by Thirty list when I tried a new cuisine.

My good friend Sara took me to one of her family's favorite Vietnamese food restaurants. She said she opted for this one because the one she really wanted to take me to was a hole in the wall with ripped booth seats and she wanted me to be impressed adn not frightened.

I must say that Sara was a total trooper. Yes, Sara. She listened to T-Tiny cry and scream for the entire 30 minute car ride there and back. Does it come as a surprise that I tell you she is also a mommy? Thanks, Sara, for being so patient.

Once we got to the restaurant and Carly knocked over an ENTIRE glass of ice water, she was fine. No more crying.

Sara was beyond excited to walk with me through this experience and I was glad to have done it with her.

I really liked all of the food (except for some egg thing that is Sara's favorite and the boba tea at the end, but more about that in a bit). It definitely reminds me of Chinese food, but it is much lighter and healthier. I actually want to go again and experiment a bit more, especially with the spices and seasonings. Did you hear that, Sara?

Unfortunately, I cannot tell you what all I ate, but if you would like to know, you can check out Sara's blog. I think that she kept everything relatively "safe" for me when she ordered.

A few people mentioned to me beforehand that I should try this coffee drink with eagle brand milk in the bottom. Sara had no idea what I was talking about and ordered boba teas instead. Next time I am going to ask a waitress about the coffee drink. The boba tea itself was good, but the jelly-like balls that come rushing up your straw in to your unexpecting mouth were just not for me. That's why I spit them out in to the water glass.

Okay, Sara. I am ready for round 2. Perhaps we can talk the SMS girls in to having the Christmas Party at a Vietnamese restaurant?

Three Day Hay Day

Way, way, back...in a month called November...two of my friends walked in the 3-Day. It's a 60 mile walk that benefits breast cancer research. Carly, Sara, Austin, Josh and I went to cheer on Melissa and Jodi on their last day.

We made festive shirts (thanks, Shelby, for the idea) and I even made Carly a matching bow. I thought it looked HUGE on her, so I took it off after this picture.

Carly was a SMASH HIT! Walkers, spectators and passers-by all stopped to comment on how cute she looked. Some even took pictures. Can you blame them?!

Here we are with our 3-Dayers! They did an amazing thing that weekend and I am proud to call them my friends.

The event (which basically consisted of standing in the street cheering on walkers) was AMAZING! I was inspired, touched and moved to tears on more than a couple of times. Kleenex was everywhere! I highly encourage everyone to look up this event next year and head to a cheer station at least once over the three day weekend. You will get more out of the experience than you can imagine!

Where have I been?!

Where have I been? Why haven't I been blogging? Should I blame it on the holidays and all of the busyness that comes with it? An increased work load? I mean, I DO work for a non-profit and it IS last quarter. My vacation! It was, after all, internet-free. Nope. I can not use any of those excuses because the blame falls flatly on me. The thought of sorting through the HUNDREDS of pictures I have taken lately has not been on my list of things I want to do. And the fact that I am yet to figure out how to upload my pictures in the order in which I want them to appear only makes matters worse.

But...I have decided that it is time for me to suck. it. up. Be forewarned, you are about to get caught in my blogging blizzard!

To start it off on a good, happy, cute, adorable note...Here is a picture of me and T-Tiny watching the Cowboys.

Fishy Face

Carly has a new trick - she makes a fishy face ALL the time! Isn't it cute?

She is most definitely OUR child

Freddy and I ALWAYS cover heads with pillows while the other one is getting ready in the morning. You know, to block out light and sound.

So when we found Carly like this we knew she was going to take after us.

Please ignore the random pink sock. That was a naptime casualty that I forgot to take out.

Besties!

Who else? Lola and Carly!

This is how she rolls

She leans back.

She props up her leg.

She's ready to roll.

Carly's First Halloween

I wanted to take Carly to a pumpkin patch to have her picture taken, but Freddy insisted she was too young to appreciate it. I never did find the time to take her, so I plopped her down in the front yard with her mini-pumpkin. She didn't really dig it, so Freddy may have been on to something. The pumpkin patch probably would have been a bust this year.

Later that night the neighbors gathered at our house to hand out candy - we do it every year. Sara and Austin came costumeless, so we found some accessories for them. What do you think?



Melissa and Josh were headed to a party, so they were all decked out.
All of the girls.
Carly and I were matching flowers.



My mom and I made our costumes. I don't know the exact total, but all three came in under $20 together. Freddy's shirt says "Clark Landscaping". Get it? Even Lola was in on it. I couldn't leave my puppy baby out.



Here is Carly with her first trick-or-treaters. She was either unimpressed or frightened. Good thing Nana was there!





And of course Kinsey and Kasen had to stop by to show off their adorable outfits! Carly loved pulling on Kinsey's pedals.

Carly's Baptism

Shame on me! Carly had a very special day on October 25th and I am just now getting around to blogging about it.

Carly was baptized!

It was such a special and wonderful day. My Godfather and uncle, Uncle Bob, came down from Minnesota to be Carly's Godfather. My sister Cathy and her husband Charlie were the Christian Witnesses (aka non-Catholic godparents). And of course all of the grandparents were there along with my brother David and other sister Christy.

Check out that gorgeous baptismal gown. I saw it online and wanted it BAD, but Freddy said that I COULD NOT spend $120 on it. So then I found it on ebay for $50 - brand new! Go me!

She can always find the camera, can't she?

She never cried - not once - not even when Uncle Charlie was making strange faces at her.