VIVA LAS VEGAS!!!

Oh man, Oh man did we have a great time! Before I even start I have to give a HUGE THANK YOU to Karen and Melissa for coming and taking care of the kids. Karen had them 2 days ALL by herself and did a great job. I have to say that I did not worry ONE time about them. I really was able to enjoy myself and my time away to the fullest. Yes, I did miss them like CRAZY...especially towards the end of our trip, but I had an absolute BLAST!

We got to Las Vegas on Tuesday morning at 10, so we had the entire day....or I did. Matt's conference started at 3. I have to say that the resort we stayed at was, HANDS DOWN, one of the best places I have ever been to. It was just beautiful, so modern, and just sooo relaxing. It's in Las Vegas, but it is not on the Strip. About 10 miles from The Strip. However, it did have a shuttle which was nice b/c those cab rides are HIGH DOLLAR!

We met up with our dear friends Vince and Jaclyn. Vince and Matt have the same job with Wells Fargo, but Vince works in Lubbock. We love any excuse to see them. Jaclyn and I met in San Francisco about 18 months ago at a Wells Fargo conference when we were the stow aways, and we immediately clicked. She's the type of person that after 10 minutes of meeting her I felt like we had always been friends. We had so much fun in San Francisco. Even though we lost touch since then, we immediately picked right back up where we left off. I love friends like that. Having them there made this trip even more fun.

So while the boys were stuck away at their conference, Jaclyn and I spent the afternoon touring the hotel, having a wonderful dinner, catching up, and sitting outside by the pool waiting for Matt and Vince to be finished. It was a relaxing first day.

SO once Matt and Vince were done we hit the casino in our hotel. Here is a little info about me. I have NEVER gambled REAL MONEY before. Not even bought a lottery ticket. It's just not my thing. I'd be perfectly fine sitting there watching other people throw their money away while I held my cash in my hands. Matt cashed in 100 dollars for chips and we sat down at some card table (I forgot the name). We made a deal that once the 100 dollars was gone NO MORE gambling for the rest our time there. We watched Jaclyn and Vince play for a bit and immediately Jaclyn makes 200 dollars. Like within 5 minutes. SO we start to play and seconds into it I start sweating bullets. I picture that the chips are grocery's. (I'm not too much fun at the casino table as you can tell). So Matt makes me lighten up, and the only way I could enjoy it is that I just pretended it was pretend money...not our own. We played for quite a while. We'd win, then lose, win then lose...you know how it goes. So when we were getting tired (at 9:30...in my defence it REALLY felt like it was 11:30) we put everything we had on the table (not much at all), and WE BOTH WON. So we ended our first night making 50 bucks and not losing anything.

DAY 2.

I slept in till 8 (10:00 here) so that was really great. I worked out at the amazing spa/gym there. Got my morning Sarbucks, soaked in the tub while watching morning TV. It was heaven. I met up with Jaclyn later we had lunch then headed to the Strip. Remember this was my first time to LV so I was pumped to see it. We walked through several hotels. My favorites were: The Wynn (all the flowers...wow), Cesar's Palace, and The Bellagio. I have never been around so much smoke in my entire life. It was gagging gross. It sure makes you appreciate all the smoke free Texas laws here. Matt and Vince met up with us around 4ish, so we had the entire evening there. We all went and had dinner at Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville. It was really fun b/c we sat outside on their 3rd floor balcony. Afterwards we walked around and watched the fountain at The Bellagio. I LOVED IT! I could have stayed there the rest of the evening. I loved all the different songs they played and just how beautiful the fountain was synchronized to the music. Makes me want to watch Ocean's Eleven again. We then went to another casino and yet again we came out on top. I kept waiting for that 100 bucks to disappear! Then we went back to our hotel and stayed out late! Matt and I did not go to bed until 2!! I was so proud of us.

Day 3:

SPA DAY BABY!!! AHHHHHMAZING!! I got up really early and headed down to the best Spa that I have ever been to. It was so relaxing from start to finish. They want you there 1 hr early so you can enjoy the hot tub, sauna, and steam room. So I did it all, and took a shower in the best shower. It was one of those rain showers where the entire ceiling just rains on you. AHHH! So I got in my comfy robe and slippers and drank hot tea while I waited. By the time the actual massage came I was sooo relaxed. I had a full body sugar scrub then afterwards a full body massage. It was fantastic. No words. Worth every single penny and more. I have never felt so pampered in my life. Matt really out did himself that day for me. Matt's conference ended around 11 and we went and spent the afternoon laying by the pool. The whole time we were in Vegas the weather was perfect perfect perfect! High 70's/Low 80's during the day and 60's at night. We really enjoyed ourself. We later took the shuttle to the Strip for our last night. We got all ready and went out. We had so much fun just the 2 of us. We had dinner at New York, New York and dessert at Caesar's Palace. It was so fun. Then we finished out the night at another casino and we finished our trip with an extra 100 bucks. We did not lose a penny....thank goodness. I told Matt that that was enough gambling for me!

I loved seeing the strip at night. It was great. I loved seeing all the beautiful hotels and casinos. My only regret is that we did not see any shows. If we ever go back that is a must for me. However, if we do go back I want to stay at the very same place we stayed. I am a resort junkie, and this place was so amazing. I could have stayed there the entire time and never left. I left feeling totally spoiled!


Day 4: TRAVEL DAY! By this day we were DYING to get home. The excitement to get home to the kids was FAR GREATER than the excitement of leaving. I missed them so bad that it was an aching inside. We could not get back to San Antonio any faster.

Day 5: GET HOME! Saturday morning we got up and got to Love Field early early. Good thing we did because it was PACKED with Spring Breakers! We made our 8 am flight and walked in the door here by 9:30. It was sooo good to be home. They say "home is where your heart is"....well, it's true. San Antonio felt like home because my heart was definitely here with my kids. We were exhausted from the time change, but had a blast being with the kids all day Saturday and Sunday. They were happy to see us too, and they were great while we were away. As wonderful as it is to get away, coming home is always sweeter. I loved every second of being away with Matt. You don't realize how much you need that until you actually are away enjoying JUST yourselves. It was better than great just having him all to myself! He's the sweetest, funnest, most wonderful man I know!

So below I have a couple of pics from our time away, AND for those grandparent readers I have pictures of the 2 sweetest faces I know!



Our Room.





Gotta love that tub! Ahhh relaxation!

View from our floor. Oh, you gotta love that pool...and that is only like 1 of 10 thats out there.



Where we spent our afternoon.


Me and my hub!

Our sweet friends.

Love all the lights!

Better not be the closest I get to Paris!

AND NOW FOR THE KIDDOS!



Harper trying to get Hudson.



Almost there...



Wanting Ace's food.

The famous face.



Hud and Mickey enjoying our afternoon picnic.

Harper enjoying it too! (Thanks Kristen O. for our FAVORITE bib!)

My cute boy having lunch outside. Our daily routine here.

AND a clip from one of my most favorite places in LV!