The last of Vegas

I didn't get many pics of our time in Vegas...but my mom and I did catch a few good ones at the garden inside the Bellagio. The minute we entered the Bellagio she made a beeline for the flowers. It smelled so yummy in that room.




She loved the huge butterflies hanging from the ceiling and the giant flowers and bugs all around.

She loved running around the casino's and trying to climb into the slotmachine chairs. I definitely would not want to go again with a kid but, it was fun to have her spend so much time with Denise and my mom. She kept saying "Denise buh-bye" over and over when Denise dropped us off at the airport this morning.

A visit to Vegas...

Denise is in Vegas doing a show called "Peep Show" (need I say anything more). Its a nursery rhyme show for adults. The original "Scary Spice" is one of the leads as well as Kelly Monaco from General Hospital and Dancing with the Stars. Well, Denise wanted to show us some of the rehearsal videos and Natalie was sitting on my lap. As the girls were dancing around a pole we told her they were pole dancing. Then all she kept saying was "po dancing, po dancing" b/c she wanted to keep watching. Hey, we are in sin city right, might as well get her aquainted with the scenery.

We drove to Vegas to bring Denise her car....luckily we fly home. Natalie got so sick of the car the last hour and refused to sleep. So between not eating lunch, just snacks, no sleep and a little deliriousness, she had a meltdown the minute we got to the hotel room and puked all over my mom. Were staying at a Residence Inn where Denise's show is paying for her to stay for 2 months. We set Natalie's pack n play in the bathroom between the toilet and tub as that is the only place to put her with a door. You have to shut the door to set it up and then can barely squeeze out when you leave. As I read her a story on the toilet to go to sleep she kept trying to play with the toilet paper. Ahhhh, the joys of traveling with a baby.

So far we have only been to Ceasar's palace but Nat loved the Forum shops and the huge Fish tank by the Cheesecake factory. The pics posted are of her playing on some car arcade with Denise

Our room from hell...

When we bought our townhome it was finished with two bedrooms and an option to have a 3rd done as an upgrade. We left it undone and have used it as a storage room. That was until Zack started working from home and then it suddenly became a necessity. The study room does not have a door and so Natalie and I have become prisoners to the upstairs so as to not bother Zack especially when he is on conference calls.



Well I thought it was a one-day project. I mean the ceiling and one wall were already framed. We started this project of finishing over two weeks ago. We spent a day framing, stuffing insulation, and wiring electrical. Then another half-day for to frame the closet and insulate the ceiling. So after all that hard work I thought no biggie, one more day to drywall and we will be good to go. Man that wasn't so bad. Boy was I wrong. Nailing sheet rock to the ceiling nearly gave Zack a neck attack, and my wimpy muscles fell short many times on driving the nail in before it would bend. (Those bastards- Ron said swearing was aloud for projects of this nature.) So after a full day of that horrendous project came the mud. Oh that mud. It is not fun. Swipe, swipe, swipe. I can spend two hours and not have all the nail holes and seams covered once. Which I might add they generally need three coats, and did I mention you have to sand each time it dries. I have dust suddenly moving in. Everything is now covered in a white layer of powder. Well today- I decided to bust out to Elvis as I needed some good booty shaking to make me tackle this room again. I thought if anyone could see me now, rocking out to Oldies in my grubs. As soon as "You're the Devil in Disguise" came on I knew I made the right choice.

I loved San Fran....

Most people or at least chocolate lovers know Ghiradelli was founded in San Fran so we visited the square early Sat morning. It was only 10 o'clock and I made Zack order a hot fudge sundae with me. (Of course he barely had a few bites.) Below is us enjoying our treat.



This is a pic at the top of Lombard street. Its the famous (very steep) crooked street. It zigzags the whole way down- you can't tell from the pic b/c of how steep it is. We were on the cable car back to our hotel so we didn't get off to see it. Maybe next time



Before we hitched a ride on the cable car (or trolleys) we were walking up part of Nob Hill and saw the TransAmerica building in the background. Thats me in front of it.




At the Fisherman's Wharf we visited Pier 39 and there were all these seals on the docks. Then we read a sign that stated in the early 1900's they took over the docks and so boats haven't docked there since.

There is Alcatrez in the background. We didn't have time to take a cruise to it.

Here is Zack and I on the pier....thats Golden Gate in the background

Beautiful view of some of the city behind me. No one told me it was NYC with a CA flair. No wonder they are the two most expensive cities to live in. I love the fast pace, walking, and feel of these cities. I can't wait to get Denise to go here with me sometime!

We didn't get to many photos since it was a fast trip. On Friday night we went walking around Union Square which is kind of like SoHo and 5th Ave in NYC. Tons of shopping with stores like Neiman Marcus and Barney's. After we ate and shopped we walked past this bar called the Gold Dust Lounge and had to stop in. It was like an old western saloon and they had a live band playing music from the 30's, 40's, 50's and 60's of classic rock and roll. They were playing Johnny Cash, the Steve Miller Band, and John Denver. When they busted out Country Roads everyone in the bar was singing along. It was fun, unfortunately Zack and I were tired so we didn't stay more then an hour.

Taking a Walk

Natalie must be part dog. The other day she asked me to help her put on her shoes randomly. After I did she walked to the front door saying "walk, walk" and then patted it. (We have taken her on a walk to get the mail a few times before.) Then this morning first thing upon coming up stairs she went to the door saying it again. When I told her it was too early and cold and she started crying.

Its like having a puppy who whimpers when they want to be walked, its sad. Makes me anxious for spring and summer when we can go outside more.

Winter Accesories

Most kids hate to wear their winter clothes right? Not Natalie. She loves to find her winter hats, gloves, and scarf and run aound the house with them on. She ran into the living room to find me wearing this hat. (She also loves to sit and flip through all my books- not her's, mine. She's gonna be a reader in the future!)



Temp wise it was nice outside so I decided to take her out in the jogging stroller for a run. I put one of her gloves on and then decided to leave the other off so she could eat snacks and she kept holding her other hand out and saying glove over and over. I finally put a sucker in it and she shut up about it. She must have thought I was the idiot for not putting them both on.

The scarf she has my sis Denise knitted for her. Everytime she wears it I ask her who made it for her and she says "Dnis and Mikl" (thats what it sounds like). Its so cute b/c Michael is Denise's roomate and he did not help make it...however, she remembers them both as a package from the NYC trip we took.

Playing Mommy

Natalie was so funny this morning with her baby. When I asked her to sit at her table to eat Oatmeal she put her baby in her chair and sat in the other. She kept saying "baby" then "seat". Well i ended up at Kmart today to pick up some things and they had this baby set for 20 bucks. It came with this swing and high chair.



As soon as I set it all up she instantly wanted to feed her baby and give it a sippy cup that came with it. I put water in it and it would drip all over the baby when she would tip it up. Then she would come over to me saying "more, more". I guess I shouldn't have put water in it in the first place and had her use her imagination. Pretty soon the baby was soaked.