Pre-Halloween Festivities

Pumpkin carving in the HOT HUMIDITY! (It just doesn't feel right)

Andrew pulling out the "guts" as he called them.

Helping Mommy separate the seeds for toasting!

Such a good helper!

Watching closely as Mommy carves the design.

Big CHEESE for our finished product...that you'll see later!

Headed to the squadron Halloween party at the hangar.(He just woke up)

The flower and the bee! Drew's costume is a surprise for tomorrow.

Andrew and I sang a Halloween Karaoke song. To the tune of row row row your boat: Have you seen the witch, flying by the moon? Tip toe tip toe Halloween is soon.  Have you seen the bats hanging from the trees?  Tip toe tip toe; I hope they don't see me.  Have you seen the ghost hiding in the house?  Tip toe tip toe; I hope he don't come out...BOO!

Home again to test out our Jack-o-lantern!

Look for more pictures tomorrow after trick-or-treating!  Happy Halloween!

VEGAS (Day 3)...Who Dat?

Our Sunday started with Football!  Andy and his boss picked us up and we headed over to a local pub called "seven-eleven bar."  (Ironically enough it was right across the street from a 7-11 gas station.  We heard about this place from Chris and his friends.  The owner is from New Orleans and every Sunday Saints fans come from all over to watch the game with other fans.  They not only come to watch the game, but also to enjoy some (free) good 'ole Cajun cookin'!  They serve anything from gumbo, red beans and rice, to lima bean soup (which is what we had).  It was delicious!  The whole place was filled with Saints jerseys and the atmosphere was great!

Drew and I wore our Saints jerseys too!

If you watched the game then you know it got off to a rocky start.  The fans were getting a little depressed and some of them were yelling at the tv!

We spent the first half and the seven-eleven bar, but when our lungs couldn't take any more smoke we moved over to the smoke-free ESPN zone at New York New York where we enjoyed a brownie sundae and a very exciting game!!  Go Saints!

We spent the rest of the afternoon walking around the other end of the strip.

We walked over to the MGM grand to see the lions.  They were sleeping on top of the walkway.

Their handlers were sitting with them, so Drew thought he'd be cute and touch the "butt" of one of them.

We paused for some photo ops on our way into the Excalibur and Luxor.

After walking what seemed to be at least 50 miles, I was pooped.  (especially after the stiletto experience the night before)  So we walked back to the car and Andy dropped us off at the hotel around 7.  I needed a nap!  So I had a little one.  Drew went downstairs to play some poker.  After an exhausting weekend I wanted to spend my last night enjoying our beautiful room while relaxing with a good book!  (I love the reflection in this shot)

We had to leave at 4:30 am to get to the airport in time, so we decided to stay up all night.  I spent most of my time enjoying the view...

Thank you Mom and Dad SO MUCH for coming to stay with Andrew so that Drew and I could enjoy a little time together.  We haven't been able to get away since he was born, so it was a long time coming!  Thank you so much!  And a huge thank you to Chris and Roxy for making our trip very special!  To all my readers:  The next time you make it out to Vegas, I HIGHLY recommend staying at the Wynn!  You won't find better service or a more beautiful atmosphere anywhere!

VEGAS (Day 2)...We're movin' on up!

So I mentioned yesterday that we stayed at the IP...well NO MORE!  Thanks to Drew's high school friend, we're "movin' on up."  He works at the Wynn and was able to get us an employee rate for Saturday and Sunday night!  He picked us up at the IP around noon and drove us to the Wynn.  We told him we'd just walk, but he'd have none of it.  Besides, he told us he had a surprise for us.  When we arrived at the Wynn, he pulled into the Tower Suites entrance.  Surprise!  He got us upgraded to the tower suites!  (by the way...at this point I'm wearing a cotton shirt and brown shorts with flip flops!...totally under-dressed!)

Anyway, we got checked in and he escorted us to our room.  It looks a little different than the one at the IP don't you think?

Again we had floor to ceiling windows with a view of the strip.  

Our room faced Las Vegas Blvd.  The Palazzo blocked most of our view, but in this shot you can see Treasure Island and part of the Mirage.  

Our room was fabulous!  I don't think I've ever stayed in a hotel so nice in my life!  My favorite part, by far, was the bathroom!  Take note:  There's a 19 in. tv on the right wall!

There was a phone in the toilet room.

The shower was great, but the best part was the tub.  It was the perfect length for a tall girl.  It was nice and relaxing with my lemongrass citrus bath tea.  I had the water so hot that I think I boiled my skin!  Oh well...it was worth it!

I was so spoiled by this room!  It came with all kinds of "perks."  We had push button curtain controls by the bed, so at the touch of a button...DARKNESS!  It was great.  We had a lush robe and slippers to enjoy during our stay.

The TV even welcomed us to our room!  It says "Welcome Mr. Ladner!"

We knew that because we had to turn on the TV as soon as we got to our room.  We may have been in Vegas, but it was still gameday!

Shortly after arriving in our new room, we had a couple of surprises.  One we knew about: Drew's best friend from Auburn flew into town to do some training for the Air Force at Nellis (which is in Vegas) so he came to hang out with us for the day.  Then we had another knock at the door.  It was room service.  They brought up a bottle of champagne and chocolate covered strawberries.  It was a surprise from Chris! How nice!

Since I don't drink, I let Drew and Andy toast to our wonderful weekend!

I took care of the strawberries!  Look how glamorous they are!

I also took care of the bowl, which was made of chocolate!  (I'm in heaven!)

While we're on the subject of food:  Our room had a nice array of snacks; available for purchase.  We've all seen things like this in hotel rooms right? 

Well take a closer look at the attached note...

That's right...don't look for longer than 60 seconds or you'll be charged.  The snacks were sitting on pressure plates, so they knew if you picked them up for longer than 60 seconds!  Needless to say I didn't partake in the $8 jelly beans!

The rest of the day was pretty lazy.  Drew and Andy went downstairs to watch the game while I stayed in the room.  Yep, we watched football all day long!  I started getting dressed for dinner, but had to take a few "night time views" pictures.  

Our nighttime plans were a little complicated.  My friend Jonathan was celebrating his 30th birthday, so I went to dinner with them.  Drew's friend Chris managed to get us free tickets to the show La Reve, so he and Andy went to that.  We met up after dinner.  Anyhoo, here's a picture of the birthday boy with his sweetie!  Aren't they cute?  Jonathan and I lived in the same dorm my freshman year at Auburn.  We've been great friends ever since!  Happy Birthday my friend!

After dinner, I literally RAN back to the Wynn to change clothes.  My friend Tina made me buy this dress when I was in Albertville last spring.  It was on sale for $19.99 so I caved.  I told her I had no business buying this dress and she told me that it would be perfect for Vegas.  So here ya go Tina...I wore the dress!  (AND the shoes...even though I couldn't walk the next day, and I'm even falling over in this picture!)

Chris and Roxy got us in to XS, the hottest night club in Las Vegas, for FREE!  We walked downstairs and saw the super LONG line to get in the club.  *I hate lines*  Oh wait...we didn't have to stand in it!  We got VIP treatment!  We stood in the small VIP line and walked right on in, not having to pay the $30 cover.  (If we had to pay, I can assure you we would NOT have gone)  This place was gorgeous!  There was a huge indoor dance area that opened to the European pool, which was surrounded by private cabanas.  It was gorgeous.  

I was on the lookout for famous people all night, but I didn't see anyone...except for NFL wide receiver Brandon Marshall. (but I didn't know it was him until we read about him being there the next day in the paper.)  Here's a shot of Mark, Roxy, Chris, and myself dancing the night away.

Never again will I go dancing in stilettos!  I didn't last very long because I lost feeling in my toes and walked back to our room barefooted!  Not to mention I had trouble walking the next day!  Man, I'm getting too old for this!

So after a very long, but very exciting day.  We hit the hay!  We have another  busy day tomorrow.  BUT...aren't we supposed to be on vacation?? :)

VEGAS BABY! (Day 1)

Drew and I left Hawaii Thursday night on the red-eye to Vegas.   Our flight left at 10:50 pm Hawaii time and arrived in Phoenix a little after 7 am.  Drew and I didn't get to sit together. (I guess that's what you get when you wait until Tuesday, 2 days before your flight to buy your tickets.)  I sat between two older men.  One of whom had garlic shrimp for dinner.  I knew this because he slept with his mouth WIDE open!  The aroma was so strong that Drew thought someone had brought their dinner with them to eat on the plane!     Both of these gentlemen fell asleep soon after take off and at one point or another had their heads on my shoulder and their legs in my leg space.  Needless to say I didn't sleep a wink.  I dozed a little bit between our initial descent and the landing in Phoenix and adrenaline had kicked in from Phoenix to Vegas, so no sleep on that flight either.  

We arrived in Las Vegas at 10:30 am.  Drew decided to go to the ATM to get some cash.  When he reached for his wallet, it wasn't there!   I ran back to the gate to check the plane.  No luck.  (don't panic) So we called the Phoenix airport and lo and behold they had it in the lost and found.  (Hallelujah!) They shipped it fed-ex over night and told us it would arrive Saturday morning at our hotel.  

A friend picked us up from the airport and took us to our hotel for one night, the IP (Imperial Palace).  We thought we'd save some money by staying in a cheaper hotel.  Cheap is a good way to describe it.  We got to our room around 11:30 to find that there were mirrors on the ceiling.

There was even a "love tub" complete with mirrors above it too!  You couldn't pay me enough to get in it though.  It looked less than clean.

After a good laugh at our accommodations, it was time to meet Drew's high school friend, Christopher, for lunch.  He works at the Wynn, so that's where we met him.  We had lunch inside the Encore at a place called Society.  The decor was amazing.  I felt like such a tourist, but I had to take some pictures.  It was beautiful.   

So elegant!  The black and white was accented with neon pink and green.  It sounds crazy but it was gorgeous!  

I had the "lunch box" special.  Salad with spring greens, figs, plums, pears, cranberries, walnuts with a pomegranate vinaigrette. The half sandwich was a turkey club with apple wood smoked bacon.  For dessert there were 2 homemade doughnut holes.  Yum!

Among the tables, there were also booths, which as you can see here were pink.  I took this one for you Annah!  You would have loved it there.  

After lunch, Chris gave us a tour of the hotel/casino.  It was absolutely gorgeous.  Here's a walk way with a restaurant/bar in the middle.  All the trees and flowers are real.

Peacock-not real!

Next, we got a special treat! We got to take a tour of one of the nicest tower suites at the Encore.  This bad boy was a two-story suite with over 2,800 square feet.  The following pictures do not do it justice.  You can only imagine what a room like this might cost.

Yes, I'm aware that the lighting in this picture is terrible, but you can see the view and the floor to ceiling windows!

This is a panoramic shot standing at the window looking back at the front door.  

Did I mention that this room came with a "massage room?"

AND a game room?

The beautiful stairway (if you're not in the mood for stairs you can always use your own personal elevator!

Hallway upstairs looking down to the 2nd master suite.  Notice the open balcony on the left overlooking the living area downstairs.

Obviously a corner unit...here's the master bedroom.

One of the master bathrooms.

There were also 2 full kitchens with stainless steel appliances, but I was so busy pulling my jaw off the floor that I didn't take pictures of everything!  Even the elevator lobby was beautiful!

Seeing that suite was absolutely amazing and quite possibly the highlight of my trip.  All I know is we need to make some more money so I can stay in rooms like that! (No mirrors on those ceilings!) 


We spent the next couple of hours walking around the different casinos.  This picture was taken in one of the lobbies of the Palazzo.  I love all the fall colors.

I think this one was in the Venetian.

While in the Venetian, we stopped by a little cafe and paid $6.50 for this fruit tart.  (worth every penny!)  We sat outside and listened as the gondolas rowed on by.  

With a belly full of fruit tart, my lack of sleep was catching up with me.  Drew suggested I take a nap since we had tickets to a late show.  (He really just wanted to go play poker) but he'll tell ya he was just looking out for my well being.  So I took a quick nap and Drew played poker.  We met up with some friends of mine from Auburn for dinner. The guy in the red is the reason we're here.  (He's turning 30!)  

After dinner Drew and I saw Ray Romano (from Everybody Loves Raymond).  It was such a good show.  He and I both laughed until we cried!  I wasn't allowed to take pictures inside the theater, which was  bummer, because we were sitting very close on the third row!  It was a great way to end our first day in Vegas!