HIGHLIGHT OF THE WEEK: Working on my tan each day-that is vacation and I also have to
mention the HUMAN NATURE show we saw on the strip and my photo with them-HIGHLIGHT OF HIGHLIGHTS
BUMMER OF THE WEEK: It’s gone far too quick
WORD OF THE WEEK: Take that biatches……
This is the forth time I have been to Las Vegas. My first time was on a famil (work trip) in 2002, the second time was for my honeymoon in 2004 and the third time was in 2010 with my ex-sister in law. So the party scene has been done, I have been into most, if not all of the Strip hotels, I have visited the Grand Canyon, The Valley of Fire, seen a few shows and had a flutter, only once to say that I did it. This trip to Vegas was to visit a long-time friend Tippy and her family for a week. I have been so busy the last 4 weeks, it was nice to have some ‘family’ time in Las Vegas and not feel guilty that I am not out and about sightseeing as I have done a lot of it here already. Guilt free travel days are the BOMB. Tippy and I used to play squash together for the same club (her families courts) in Brisbane and we trained together in the Australian Institute of Sport for a few years in the 1990’s. She was, and still is, one of my best friends and when we are together it is like we are 17 again and time has just stood still. We have always been like that, years can, and do pass before we see each other again but when we do we are those 2 girls back in Brisbane with hopes and dreams and 21 years on we still have those same hopes and dreams. They maybe a little varied now, but I guess some things don’t change, except she now has 3 energetic boys and a husband. Me? Well I am on my 440ish days of travel, husband-less, home-less, job-less and car-less, but the happiest I have been in my entire life. And why not, I have a wonderful boyfriend, a move to Africa and a new start for me at the age of 37, and of course a week with my mate Tips. Maybe 37 is the new 21…….. I bought a gift for the boys while I was in Easter Island. They are Polynesian looking necklaces with a bone symbol on a leather chain and it looked like they really liked them. They have been wearing them all week which is a buzz for me that they weren’t just being nice and still like them a week later.
The boys finished school for the summer on Thursday with a half day of school and it was nice to be here to see them say goodbye to all their friends. It isn’t just for the summer, the McElhinny Family are moving to Oklahoma in a few weeks’ time so they are finding it a little tough trying to comprehend that. I am glad to help Tips with that and also the boys, they really can be a loving handful-and I mean that in the nicest possible way. After meeting some of the mothers the day before I was like an old friend already. It was cool to see the kid’s burn off some energy and not letting the 35C heat put them off. It is a dry heat but it is hot all the same. We decided to hit the Country Club that afternoon and use their pool facilities and let the kids run wild with an ulterior motive of the adults getting some hot Nevada sun. Just to top off our busy afternoon we had a daiquiri to try and combat the burning hot sun. Ahhhhhh this is vacation time. Don’t get me wrong, I am a tourist through and through, but it is also nice to have some down time. Tan baby tan.
Living with 3 energetic boys for a week can be a challenge, one that I am happy to take on and help where I can. I see it as pre-training for my return to 7 weeks with my beautiful God-daughters and all their nieces and nephews. Tippy needs an award for what her little guys put her through daily and any mother in fact, with multiple children I can tell you are not given enough credit. They are little devils with angelic faces, don’t be fooled and NEVER look them directly in the eyes, their cute-ness will win you over every time. So how have we been spending our days now that the boys are on ‘vacation’ as they say here. Well the other thing Vegas is known for besides the strip is their amazing desert weather. It is a dry heat and the temperatures have been in the low 100’s, which to us metric people is 38C with the sun high in the sky and not a cloud to be seen it is perfect tanning weather. I didn’t even get this type of weather when I was in Barbados and it is another thing that Tippy and I have in common, our love for the sun and working on our tans when we can. We are sunshine babies that is for sure and this is what we have worked into our busy daily routine. We have been to the club pool, where the kids have more things to keep them entertained, but we have used the home pool more, so the kids can come and go as they please in and out of the pool. With drinks in our hands, music from the house we catch around 3 hours each day. Is there a point where some-one can be too brown? I sometimes look at people and think they are too brown, but myself, I always think I can use some more sun. Maybe I have a sunorexia, when I look in the mirror I don’t think I look as brown as I actually am. It always takes some-one who’s not as tan for it to actually make me think I maybe browner than I am. I’m just getting some final rays before getting back home to Brisbane and into a winter there where everyone will be white and I will be BROWN. The sun is so hot here that the arms of the sun lounge are too hot to touch. I have found as the days go on I am sitting in the pool with my book rather than sitting in the lounge chairs as the heat is so, well hot…… To over compensate the pool water is so cold, but once you are in you get used to it, but with your body temperature so high I guess getting into a cooler body of water would seem colder than what it really is.
It is great to spend time with the boys. Nick is the oldest and the computer/tech wiz of the family. Next is Luke and he is the sportsman of the family and then little Jake is the baby and he is the singing/drama kid. He definitely has a career as an actor and he actually sings quite well. Zoe is the same age as Jake, so it has given me an idea on what she will be like in regards to talking and comprehension. They really are mini adults at this stage and just listen to everything you say. And I thought I had to watch what I said 2 years ago. I really would like to see the guys in Oklahoma next year and it will be interesting to see how they develop over the next 12 months.
Since Tippy is leaving Vegas in a few weeks’ time, she has decided to pull in a few favors that have been offered over the years and that she has never had a chance or time to use them. She knows of my LOVE for Human Nature who is still performing at the Imperial Palace and knows some-one that works with the show. So after a few messages we are booked in for Sunday night and I might, just might, even get a chance to meet the guys as well. OMG that would be insane. I have already text Shelly and told, okay bragged, about it all and I really hope that I can get something signed from them if nothing else. What a great opportunity. We got tickets for the kids as well and I hope they enjoy the show as much as I did and a chance to get onto the Strip just once while I am here.
We left our family ‘bubble’ on Saturday night for a trip to the Sugar Factory, located in Paris, where Tips knows the General Manager. We had messaged him in the morning to see if it would be okay for us to come in and Perry said it would be great to see the boys and meet me. We didn’t have a problem finding a park on the strip which surprised me. Each hotel offers free self-parking they call it and you don’t have to spend a cent which also surprised me. The Sugar Factory is a The Sugar Factory flagship retail location is a sweet-lovers’ dream filled with 6,000 square-feet of delectable treats, scrumptious chocolates, and an incredible array of candy-inspired apparel and novelty items, with Sugar Factory's signature Couture Pops taking center stage. The shop also offers signature sundaes, milkshakes, cupcakes, gelatos, ice creams, and café treats. Sugar Factory American Brasserie takes guests on a breathtaking, visually-inspiring journey from beginning to end. The 30,000 square-foot space in the heart of the Las Vegas Strip offers one-of-a-kind culinary experiences in our expansive dining room, flagship Sugar Factory retail store, decadent Chocolate Lounge and more as it serves up delicious cuisine and desserts to patrons 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The mouthwatering menu at Sugar Factory American Brasserie has been handcrafted by a team of world-class chefs, including Executive Chef Michael Sellmann and Chef and Restaurateur Bryan Ogden, and features perfectly executed classics such as pizzas, burgers, pastas, salads, steaks, seafood, sandwiches and more. It was really busy here and I think we were lucky that we knew someone to get a table. The restaurant is located directly across from The Bellagio so we were able to step outside to see the fountains do their dance at one stage as well which was pretty cool. We had a great meal, and the boys were good, besides the boys going to the toilets 4 times, not sure what the attraction was in there but it must have been pretty cool. The boys were lucky they were allowed to get a free bag of lollies (sorry candy) on the way out. Just what they needed a sugar load before bed. But Perry was very generous with our bill and also the free candy bags it was a great night.
Sunday was a home day. The family went to church in the morning and then we went up to the Country Club for brunch and a mimosa and then we were back home again to the pool for day 4 of our tanning. We are averaging around 3 hours a day with kids coming and going in the pool, kicking balls, splashing games and we are happy just chatting and catching up. Monday and Tuesday were pretty much the same deal and actually I didn’t even leave the house in Tuesday at all. Ahhhhhh vacation time. Tippy has had some squash coaching to do while I have been here, so I been able to look after the boys in her absence to help out when I can. We are now starting to look quite brown, I may look a little red, but I will just start to ‘brown’ by the time I get home. We are officially blackberries and we love it.
So that pretty much sums up my week in Las Vegas. It has been a ball. Lots of talking, lots of catching up, lots of sun and lots of kids stuff including 2 casks of red wine, a bottle of vodka, a bottle of white wine and 2 daiquiri mixes we have had a very social week. Oh that’s just for the 2 of us. I’m going to miss Miss Tippett and until we meet again Tips take care of you and the family and I hope to see you all in Oklahoma next year.
No comments:
Post a Comment