a work in progress

the valentine's feast:

grandma joi would be proud of all of the color!

the musical entertainment:
worth it all.

every last bit.

some thoughts floating through my mind today:

opinions are great. sometimes they're not. it's like a car accident. you don't wanna look, but you've gotta! i have this urge to always ask what other moms do. recent examples: car seats and weaning. why do i do this? i know what my gut is telling me before i ask, but yet i still MUST ask. i always end up going with my original gut, feeling silly this time around for bothering everyone for their advice! feeling embarrassed for asking and not taking the advice. so if i've asked you for your opinion and gone with something else i'm sorry:-) i'm still working on trusting myself.

let's just say i'm a work in progress:-)

and i like that.

i wuv you to bits!

i

love
you.
can you believe we made this?
more please:-)
...

i love:

that you know who you are.

that you speak spanish, te amo mi amore.

the way you wear a white shirt to church every week, knowing your deacons will eventually do the same.

the way you stay up late to laugh and talk in bed.

the way you tickle brennan until he cries from laughing so hard.

the way you love me.

the way you tease me.

the way you get up to put the binky in in the middle of the night.

the way you let me sleep in when i'm tired.

the way you read books in bed with me.

the way you love the lord.

your integrity.

your character.

the way everyone that meets you loves you.

your sense of humor.

your intelligence.

the way you clean the bathroom for me.

the way you soak your dishes;-)

the way you dream with me.

your memory.

the way you tickle me.

the way you kiss me.

the way you hug me.

the way you can't keep your hands off of me!

the way you say i love you.

the way you love date night.

the way you love my whole wheat pizza...and cookies...and lasagna, and everything i've ever made.

the way you make me happy.

the way you taught me how to be me.

the way you adore me.

the way you put me first.

the patience you have with me.

the way you love my family.

the way you love our family.

the way you look when you haven't shaved in three days, mmmmm.

the father you have become.

the husband you are.

i love you.

happy valentines day my love.

ice cream, be mine?

dear ice cream,

will
you

be

my

valentine?

love,

brennan

dolphins at the mirage

the "dolphin guy" told us that dolphins only let half of their brain fall asleep. the left side will sleep and the right side will stay awake to tell it to come up for air, then the right side will sleep and the left side will stay awake to tell it to come up for air.

the one on the right was sleeping:

brennan was mezmorized by the cute little blonde girl next to him.

totally lost interest in the dolphins.

weighing and feeding the dolphins,
brennan was talking to them, so cute
little high pitched noises
the trainers thought it was so cute

the end.

20 runners and a business man

story

there was a girl who was on vacation.

it was glorious.

it was cold, but is was glorious.

she took hot bubble baths, ate lots of glorious food, enjoyed a good book

there was a boy.

he was the most handsome man the girl had ever seen.

they had a beautiful little pork loin.

and the most wonderful grandma in all the land.

on vacation they laughed, and ate, and toured the land.

every morning the girl would take the handsome man to his conference.

on her way there they played a game.

they would count all of the runners going up and down the strip.

they would point in amazement of the masses of runners!

they would giggle as they watched a fully suited business man do the same.

but not for the exercise.

the end.

ours to keep & yours to imagine

we ate here.
it was rockin.
my husband is the luckiest man alive.
i brought our camera.
planned to take tons of amazing pictures:
sean riding the new york new york roller coaster
our tailgate appetizer that we split as an entree
me dancing on the dance dance revolution arcade game
us with the harley davidson bike
sean on the harley davidson bike
m&m world!!!! and the most expensive bag of m&m candy i've ever bought in MY LIFE.
imagine the most beautiful wall of m&m's. how could i not grab a bag?!
dark chocolate, peanut butter (oh how i love thee), mini's, one color, two colors, mixed colors, 27 colors
alas, my memory card was left inserted into mom's laptop.
so the memories are ours to keep and yours to imagine.
isn't that romantic?
yes, it is.

to buffet or to not buffet. that is the question.

my rasberry lemonade at cheesecake factory today. brennan and i were in drinking heaven. dad was in CSM (physical therapy conference).

buffet.

the word makes my nose squish up and my mouth pucker.

i don't know when i started to dislike buffets.

there was a time i would rush to the front of the buffet lines.

although, mainly to have an unlimited supply of the sundae bar.

sean just called me.

he is on the top floor of the mandalay bay schmooj-ing it up with the prez of the APTA.

he said they are getting the first class treatment at their private party.

and that if i would run around in my birthday suit he would track down some binoculars to find our room.

this is not where i planned for this post to go.

where was i?

oh yes, buffets.

so i don't like them, but that is where everyone from sean's class is going for dinner tonight.

i don't need the finest of dining to be satisfied, but i do enjoy some pampering on special occasions.

our avocado rolls from cheesecake factory. we gobbled them up immediately.

we are the luckiest kids on the block to be at mom's timeshare.

it has left us with some extra funds for pampering.

so where will we end up tonight on our night out on the town?

will it be

here?

you'll have to tune in tomorrow to see.

until then, i leave you not knowing myself where we will be eating.

do you think it's selfish of me to not want to do the buffet?

i would love to go for the people. i love the people.

but passing up a chance to live la vida vegas with my hubby and a grandma to babysit for free??!!

who could pass THAT up!?

updating on "but not the cold":

there was a high of 53 today!!! it was "no 70," and definitely not the "normal 62" that the weather man so lovingly shoved in our warm weather intended gazes, but it's not the 30s they're getting in salt lake!

aquarium at casear's palace

shopping forums

but not the cold.

it is cold.

did you know it's cold in vegas this time of year?

me neither.

i know i mentioned this yesterday, lonely flip flops, making the best of it.

so far my attempts to make the best of it:

crank up the heater to 80.

eat warm oatmeal (with whole milk and blueberries)

go back to bed, letting grandma take care of the pork loin. i love vacation.

check the weather. it's 50 with a breeze.

it's a dry cold right, not like san francisco 50.

i'm from there, did you know that?

vegas 50 will be much warmer:-)

i lived here once, did you know that?

i'm off to find inside luxuries today.

globe trotter (my momma) mentioned forum shopping. i like the sound of that.

she also mentioned cheesecake factory. my avocado roll loving heart fluttered.

so did my peanut butter cheesecake heart.

it deserves a post in itself (peanut butter, that is...)

lights.

lots of lights.

did you know the motel 6 has fancy dancy lights on its sign here. i know, so fun:-)

i can see the new york new york hotel from my toilet. it's awesome.

i've discovered that red lipstick is truly enough make up for me.

i may never wear foundation again.

have you joined the revolution yet?

BTW,

the pork loin has begun throwing everything and anything off of the table.

actually it's more of a side to side swiping method.

i'm thinking of throwing out the dining room table b/c he's basically eating off of the floor these days anyway...

i've been all about big open spaces lately...did i tell you i rearranged my coffee table last week? it's slanted now, facing the couches diagonally.

i LOVE it.

every time i walk into my living room i think "love it."

kind of like the lights in vegas.

but not the cold.

7:04am

7:04am

that's when i woke up.

...

this is what i heard:

silence

...

this is what i found with further exploration:

grandma C and the pork loin watching cartoons in the big fluffy white bed.

...

things we have done today:

treated ourselves to whole milk in our oatmeal, with heaping blueberries

caught up on our current events

thai food

grandma C got sick (not due to thai food)

nap

cuddling on the couch (my favorite part so far)

things to be done:

free stuff on the strip

...

i love vacation.

p.s. my flip flops are lonely in the closet. did you know it could feel like salt lake in vegas? it can. it is. cold and windy. i am determined to make the best of it:-) so glad i brought long sleeved shirts, two hot men, and one kickin' grandma.

i'm glad i'm here too:-)

one thing that spiced up my day (besides sean):

biting into an extra spicy jalapeno (we're talking red face & watering eyes folks). it was like a "spicy surprise!" b/c it was hidden in my coconut soup for lunch.

woooooo-weeeeeee.

that's what i said. really, i did. you can quote me on it.

i don't think we're in kansas anymore...

i'm on vacation!!!!!!

highlights: the picture show

crazy weather=amazing sky scenery

breaking in the new car seat...and dad's sunglasses

(we had to hold his hands down to take this picture, and i put spit in his hair so it would be kodak ready)

since it's sunday the kid is on no naps at this point, so the meltdown began and i jumped in the back with mom

(which ended up being much more spacious than the front)

brennan getting sauced up on the way,

hey, anything to keep them entertained in the car;-)

s.d.gib had just changed an "ehem" in the back seat.

we were parked at subway people, come on, we wouldn't do that while driving!

he was explaining something really important, but i decided to tune it out and snap a shot instead

(you know, to fulfill my vow of putting more pics of him on the blog)

we packed light

it's a really high rise hotel,

super fun,

couldn't figure out how to get to our level.

we had to use a fancy schmancy key to get access to our level.

wooooo, i know!

after this picture we had to ask two lovely gentlemen in the lobby how to work it.

they gladly showed us the proper way, and off we went.

my bellmen

our humble room,

well, the dining room part at least;-)

"Toto, i don't think we're in kansas anymore!"

can't believe the view from our room

complete awe of our view.

seriously, we can see the entire strip!!!

mgm grand, luxor, mandalay bay, Excalibur, new york new york, monte carlo,

well that's from one view

grandma C's accommodations:

you know, she can switch beds every night.

sunday on the left

monday on the right

tuesday on the left

well, you get the idea...

(our room was the first pic folks, scroll to the top again)

at the expense of being cliche i must add:

viva las vegas!!!!