The Trip

Hello, my dears. We're back. And it's March!! March 3^rd.

{Anybody mind telling me what happened to the second half of February?}

We've returned from a little vacay in Las Vegas.
We had a great time…thanks for asking.

This is our second trip to Las Vegas.

The first time there were two of us.
Spence and I. We were freshly married. As in very freshly married. As in only been married for twenty-four hours kind of freshly married. Thanks to Spencer's sister, Liz, we stayed in the Excalibur in a honeymooner's suite. She had the hook-up. We were there in the middle of July. It was hot. And humid. One day we walked the entire strip. From the Excalibur to Circus Circus and back to the Excalibur. And then we cranked up the AC and slept the rest of the day. It was SO HOT. Times were different back then. There were two of us. We slept when we wanted and ate when we were hungry. If we longed to spend the afternoon wandering aimlessly around the Strip, we did. If, at 2:00am, we were craving ice-cream we'd go out in search of ice-cream. We were poor college students at the time. Our trip was funded exclusively on monetary wedding gift. Every time we spent money in Vegas it meant we would have less money for groceries when we returned home. We picked the shows that we attended solely on ticket price. Spencer wanted to see the "Blue Man Group". I told him we couldn't afford it. We instead saw the "Tournament of Kings Dinner Show." We had a buy one get one free coupon. We would eat one meal a day. At an all-you-can-eat buffet. Our sole souvenir was a little jackpot toy from M&M World. We never took a single shuttle or taxi. We walked everywhere.  We were younger then. Spencer got ID'd in the Casino. He was 23. Spencer would call me his wife. I would smile. It seemed so strange. Strange, yet exciting. Spence and I spent a lot of our down time making life plans. We dreamt big. We discussed what we wanted, what we expected, what we hoped for. In Las Vegas. It was just the two of us. A lover's retreat. A poor-man's vacation. A celebratory get-a-way in honor of us. Our new life. Together.

::Spence and I in Las Vegas.  With eyes shut!  July 2003 on our Honeymoon::

This time it was different.

There were more of us. Spence, me, Brynlee, Jace and my little sister Katie. We stayed at The Trump International Hotel. Because there's no casino. And no smoking. Plus it had a kitchenette…perfect for warming sippy cups and some Easy Mac when needed. We requested a baby crib. And would pull it into the oversized bathroom every afternoon for Jace's naptime. Brynlee went swimming in the Jacuzzi tub with swimming suit and Dora floaty. We brought princess movies and Barney to watch during down time. We Built-a-Bear, went to M&M world, ate at Rainforest Café and spent an evening at Circus Circus. We'd spend our days pushing baby strollers down the strip and comforting exhausted kids. Our daily itinerary was planned around lunchtime and naptime. When kids (and adults) were tired we'd opt for a taxi instead of walking. And we would take the long route to bypass the Casino. We'd be sure to have the kids tucked safely into their beds before Las Vegas would wake-up for the night. Then at night we'd rotate. One night Katie and I went to the "Phantom of the Opera". One night Spence and I went to the "Blue Man Group". And one night Spence and I walked the entire strip. This time I wore a jacket. It wasn't anything near as hot as it gets in July. We held hands and walked from one hotel to another. Sometimes in silence. Enjoying the quietness. The escape. Other times in conversation. Conversations that would always, somehow, end up about our kids. How perfect they are. How much we love them. How happy they make us.

Oh, how time changes things.
Isn't life funny?
Isn't life perfect!?!

The gang in Las Vegas.  Feburary 2010.