WE'RE BAAAAACK!

Hey all! sorry I missed posting for a couple days! But we were in VEGAS BABY! OK SO I guess i am not much of a vacationer. We drove so it took us 2 hours to get out of the valley on Friday because we took too long getting the van ready to leave with his mom( had to do an overhaul on the interior) and then do some piddly stuff before we could leave town so it was Friday rush hour on our way out! not smart. anyway the drive was fine, fun to talk alone without all of the little ears and big mouths butting in. So we got into Vegas about 10pm and checked into our hotel and just hung out and the went to bed around 1:00am. Saturday we woke up around 10:50 so we missed the breakfast buffet at the hotel. and then all of the others were already on to lunch. So I had this idea I needed to see the Las Vegas outlets! Well we drive over there and I realize it looks like a glorified AZ mills and change my mind. There was a Zappos.com outlet we went to but there was very little in my size, Huge bummer! So we decided to go back to the hotel and take the 2pm shuttle to Mandalay Bay,(that is where the shuttle went) and see what there was to see and do. So we got there and bought tickets to the 6:00 show of Mama Mia!
(Loved it! We got 4th row seats middle of the section! I cold see the music director playing the keyboard and dancing and singing along! So rad! )

Anyway we had a few hours until we needed to be to the theatre and we sat and did a little gambling on the slots! Not my favorite thing, but you gotta do it a little when you go to Vegas, right? So once we figured out how to did it, with the players card and the fake money papers (cash vouchers), we ended up making 40 bucks along the way for spending 20 between us. but I totally could never be addicted to that, one of the few things in my life I could NOT be addicted to. BECAUSE THERE ARE SO MANY OTHER THINGS I AM ADDICTED TO.
Anyway then we took the tram to the Luxor and caught a dinner buffet! it was actually really good food! and really the assortment of dessert was right up my alley! I am all about dessert!
We found some cute poodle purses for the little girls at the gift shop across from it. and I saw Wayne Brady, talking to some people in the casino as I walked by. then we went to Excalibur and looked around a little, gift shops! Got some stuff for the big boys there and then went back to Mandalay Bay in time for our show! I bought the program which looked cool but was not that great, I wish I would've saved the ten bucks for the $35 CD instead! I really wanted the CD but Lance wasn't feeling it before the show and after there was a long line, so bag that, I'll have to get it somewhere else. Lance really liked the show and we both felt it was totally worth the money.
I wouldn't pay for my kids to go though! as much as I'd think they'd like it, I wouldn't pay $110 bucks a ticket for them to go. So after the show we made our way finally to New York New York! to see about the Statue of Liberty we wanted to get for Liberty! We found a fabulous one there! and she was thrilled to have it! After that we hiked down to the Paris to go to the top of
the Eiffel Tower!
and from the top we watched the water show at the Bellagio! Lance recorded it on our camera but I'm not sure how to load it from the memory card onto my blog. but it was really cool and since we got a better view from the top, we didn't actually go to the Bellagio. But the recording in the elevator kept saying "everything is sexier in Las Vegas"! Funny I thought!
So then we Hiked back to the Excalibur to take the tram to Mandalay! and holy crap my feet were tired but we didn't feel compelled to stand in line to get a taxi! I thought I was wearing comfortable shoes but I apparently missed that fact there was a huge seam on the inside of my sandal, therefore rubbing the crap out of my sole of my foot!I thought i had developed a blister! I was so wiped by the time we got back to the hotel. We were glad to just sit . So we got up in time to hit the buffet before checkout and then decided to head home. We stopped a couple places in town though to mail postcards to the kids and get drinks and it was amazing to me there were mini casino's in the Albertson's and gas stations that offered free drinks if you sat and gambled! Freaking alcoholic beverages offered! in the morning! amazing! anyway, We drove home and had every intention of stopping and taking the tour at the Hoover Dam! But my feet still hurt from the night before , and it was truly packed. so we passed that sucker by, but Lance was quite fascinated after watching an episode of Extreme Engineering about the new highway going over the dam. Whoo hoo! such an engineer! and Lance was also disappointed to discover that you can no longer go down inside the actual dam. I guess he did once as a kid and it was super cool! But you know they guard the Hoover Dam really carefully now because if say a terrorist decided to take it out with a car bomb, it would wipe out the entire valley, including Phoenix! and i would have to assume that is why you can no longer go inside it too. Who knows what kind of crazies would want to blow up a dam but I'm sure there are some somewhere.

Anyway We got back around 6pm and the kids were thrilled to have us back. I was really nice to go alone somewhere, and just be together. If i ever go again without kids we'll fly and stay on the strip. Just for ease of use and more time to see stuff! And there are no pictures of us because I am a dork and am not into asking strangers to take pictures of us. and I didn't think of the hold it up and snap one, kind of picture until it was too late. Really no big deal but that is why you don't see a picture of us together here. FYI! I hope everyone had a great weekend too!