On November 10th the long awaited K-1 Crew girls trip to Las Vegas commenced and it was all we had hoped for and more.
This is what happens when a group of Moms leave town. They still have to make sure things are running at home without them.
We aren't exactly party animals so it was kind of a funny choice to meet in Las Vegas, but it also happened to be an easy (and relatively cheap) place to fly into from different locations and since we really didn't care where we met it seemed like as good a choice as any.
First stop was The Cheesecake Factory. We like to eat family style wherever we go. The only thing better than eating at a nice restaurant is getting to try 5 different dishes during the same meal. Our plan was to hit restaurants around 4 p.m. for an early dinner and miss the crowds.
Yeah, it was as delicious as it looks.
The malls along the strip are definitely more extravagant than anything I've ever seen. This particular mall looked like you were walking through Italy at dusk. The roof was painted and lit to make it look like an evening sky.
After dinner we made our way to the Bellagio to see the famous fountain show.
After the show we called it a night. It was 6 p.m. and a great time to get away from the strip before the real crazies started coming out. We ran to get the 6:15 shuttle back to our condo, but just missed it. Fortunately sitting around talking for an hour while we waited for the next one was no problem since that is all we really wanted to do anyway.
Heather hooked us up with a 2 bedroom condo with a kitchen which was the perfect place for such a gathering.
The next morning Heather took one for the team and went to some owner's meeting at Worldmark so we could all get discount tickets to a variety show that night. While driving around we saw this guy standing on a corner with a sign that said, "Parents killed by Ninjas. Need money for Kung Fu lessons or Chuck Norris." There are some weird people hanging out in Vegas.
As Heather sat through her meeting we may or many not have gone back to the Tropical Smoothie Café for another round of green smoothies. Delish.
Once Heather was done we headed to Red Rock Canyon for some hiking.
I was in charge of the group selfies.
We finished in time for an early dinner at PF Changs. It was my first time eating there and I left a fan. It helped that I got to try 5 dishes and not just one.
Then it was back to the strip for a family friendly variety show. The theater was in a different mall that made you feel like you were walking through the streets of Morocco in the late afternoon.
Seriously, you really did feel like you were walking around outside.
Our digs for the weekend.
On Saturday we were just going to run to the outlets for an hour or two so Kaylynn could do a little shopping. I'm a non-shopper myself, but was more than willing to go along for the ride. Once there, however, we all started finding deals and before we knew it one hour quickly turned into 5 and even I started to enjoy myself. Weird, I know.
I had to take Ker-dog to the airport in the afternoon, but came right back for more. I can honestly say I have never spent all day shopping before. We had to stop when we were out of room in our luggage to take it all home.
We missed Ker-dog at our last dinner at an Italian restaurant.
This is what happens when 5 women spend 5 hours at the outlets.
Before attempting to pack our suitcases we all took a turns showing each other our purchases and sharing what great deals we got. There was enough oohing and ahhing and "Wow! What a great deal!" to make anyone feel like a true master shopper. We even clapped at the end of each presentation. Too bad I don't always get such positive reinforcement when I "have" to shop, I might actually start to enjoy it. he he
Sunday morning we arrived at the rental car return at 7 a.m. so we could catch our 8:45 a.m. flight out of a very busy airport. We rented a mini-van for the weekend and I was the designated driver on the rental agreement. When we got our stuff out of the van I didn't realize that my phone had fallen between the front consul and the seat. In fact, I didn't notice it was gone until we were already on the shuttle to the airport. The shuttle ride was a good 15 min so even though I stayed on the shuttle and went right back it the return place it had been a full 30 min since we turned the car in. By that time they had already moved the car to have it cleaned and they didn't know exactly where it was. I was in a panic, of course, so when I realized it was going to take a lot more time to track down the car and look for the phone I had no choice but to leave it and hope they would find it and send it to me. It's a good thing I was wearing running shoes because I had to make a mad dash back to the airport so I wouldn't miss my flight. I ran out of the rental car building and jumped in a cab and yelled, "Get me to the airport as fast as you can!" just like they do in the movies. The driver got me there in record time and after running through the airport and quickly moving through security I made it to the gate in time. I didn't love being without my phone for 4 days, but the good news is that they did find it and I got it back on Wednesday night. So, how much does it cost you to forget your cell phone in a rental car? 60 bucks. $20 for the taxi ride and $40 to have them mail it to you. Ouch, I know. I'll never leave a rental without checking for my phone, again. Lesson learned.
Fortunately I was able to get home on Sunday in time for church arriving only about 10 min. late for Sacrament meeting. Adam survived at home with the kids and I doubt they really noticed I was gone. It's always fun to have Dad in charge. Jameson had an art show at his preschool while I was gone. Here he is with his treasures.
On Monday Jenna had her first ballroom dance competition. It was originally planned for the Saturday before which was when I was going to be in Las Vegas, so I was really happy it was moved to the Monday instead. We are ballroom dance rookies so I really had no idea what to expect, but they did give us very strict instructions on how to do her hair and make-up. I learned that this competition was a practice competition with only her company so it was the shortest competition they will have all year (only 4 hours), but it didn't take me long to realize that investing in a stadium chair with a back for future competitions might be a good thing. Bleachers get really hard after 4 hours! The first 2 to 3 hours was the actual competition, the last part of the event was the floor show where they performed their team dances in costume. Jenna competed in the Cha Cha and the Tango. This is the first time I have ever seen her dance and I was impressed. She and her partner even made it to the semi-final round in the Cha Cha.
I tried to keep her in the middle of this video if that helps you see which one is her.
Here she is in full competition makeup complete with false eyelashes. Her good friend Gracie came to support her.
Her team during the floor show. She is in the front.
Perfect form in the dip.
I didn't have my phone back from Vegas yet, so my pictures were from other cameras. Jenna loves everything about ballroom dancing and we are quickly learning how to navigate the world of competitive ballroom. There are more girls than guys so they had to do each routine twice so all of the girls would have a chance to perform.
It snowed for the first time this week. Agh, I guess winter has to start sometime. It seems that no matter when it comes, I'm still not ready.