What happens in vegas ....

.... goes on the blog!

Eight of us girls skipped work, left our families, and enjoyed a weekend in Vegas. It was fantastic. We left on Friday morning and were back in our own beds by Sunday night. Just two nights away, but so many laughs and good times were had. None of us are big gamblers, so no major donations were given to the casinos, but some of us certainly stimulated the Vegas economy by shopping.

We stayed at the Mirage. One Friday night, we ate at Tao, a swanky asian restaurant in the Venetian, and on Saturday night, we enjoyed steaks at Mon Ami Gabi, a french bistro at The Paris. On Saturday, Nikki and I enjoyed a relaxing day at the Canyon Ranch Spa at the Pallazo, while the others spent the afternoon buying HOT clothes to wear. On Sunday, we feasted on the impressive and delicious food at Hash-House-A-G0-Go, and then tried to walk it off up and down the strip. The highlight of the trip for me was seeing LOVE, the cirque de soleil performance to Beattles music. Awesome.

Oh yeah, and to make it truly a girls-only weekend, we took the "Stripper 101" class where we learned how to swing on a pole (seriously, it was a tough workout). We also went to "Thunder from Down Under" -- boyish good looks, totally cheesy and low production quality, but I am not sure I have laughed that hard ever. Well worth the price of admission.

More than anything, the weekend was a nice reminder that I can still dress up and go out, without always having food smeared across my shoulder or a baby on my hip. Don't get me wrong, being a mom is great. I just do not often get the occassion (or time) to be a lady anymore. So, thanks girls. I loved the weekend, and appreciate your friendship even more.

Water baby

We have not taken Carolyn swimming since the outdoor pools closed in August. At first, she was a bit skeptical of the water, but after some time, she warmed up to it and began swimming like a fish again.

19 Months

Let's see .... at 19 months, she has new words every day. She moves fast, she comprehends what we say, and boy does she have a temper. Her favorite word right now is probably, "NO!" That said, most of the time she is super-sweet and giggly. She loves giving hugs and kisses.

Below are a few videos of her playing on the evening of her 19-month birthday. In the first video, she is saying "sock" which she put on a hand like a glove. In the second video, she is showing you all of her best dance moves.

Night, Night Biscuit

We realized that we had not heard any pitter-patter from Carolyn's feet for a while, so when we turned the corner we found her putting Biscuit to sleep. She covered him with blankets, was rubbing his back, and said "Night Night, Biscuit."

a perfect way to end the year

On New Year's Day, we were treated to a beautiful blue sky and lots of fresh powder from the snow storms the night before. Fortunately, Carolyn's daycare was open, so we took advantage of the conditions and enjoyed a day of skiing at Alta with Michelle, Joshua, and Sean. Michelle had a new camera and took some fantastic pictures.

Who would not want to learn how to ski after seeing these pictures? Beautiful day.

Oh, and as we were driving down the canyon, the traffic came to a stop. We then saw the med-flight helicopter coming up the narrow canyon and landing about a 1/2 mile ahead of us on the road. We turned off the car and waited, figuring there must be a car accident below us. After about a half hour, the helicopter took off and the traffic once again started moving. As we descended to the area where the helicopter landed, we saw lots of fire trucks, search and rescue vehicles, and news cameras. Then, we were stopped again. The helicopter was coming back and landing on the road right in front of us. We were just a few cars behind the action. Apparently, some guy was ice climbing on a frozen waterfall (see first picture). He fell three hundred feet and had to be rescued. The helicopter flew up to the face of the cliff and hovered, while the rescue worker lowered the basket and loaded him into it. The helicopter then landed on the street again, so they could put the guy inside the helicopter and take him to the hospital. Although we had no idea what we were really witnessing at the time (i.e., whether they were rescuing an alive or dead person), we found out later that the climber only suffered a broken leg and pelvis.

It was indeed a beautiful day to be outside, but I am pretty sure I have no interest in ice climbing, no matter how pretty it is in the mountains after a snow storm.