Hi, honeys, I'm home!

Did you miss me?

Wait, maybe I don't want to know the answer to that...  I'm going to assume you all did.  Even the lurkers (mwah, big kisses to all lurkers!)

We had a lovely vacation.  Thanks to some lovely parents (mine), we had a free hotel room (just barely off the Strip) by redeeming some of their Marriott Rewards points.  In fact, we had a 2-room suite!  A sweet suite, if you'll forgive me.

Because we had no hotel bill to pay, I felt fine indulging in my favorite hotel pastime.

Not that. Geez, you guys, get your minds out of the gutter. No, my favorite hotel indulgence would have to be-- ROOM SERVICE!

I especially love it when it comes with teeny tiny things.  Screw the environment, I want individual ketchups and Tabascos...  And jams and even honeys.  All in teeny tiny glass containers.

We had a lovely time.  We drove, and on the way down hit a big huge pipe in the road somewhere in Utah.  We found a mechanic who was able to confirm we did NOT do any damage, so we kept on.  On the way back, in a road work zone, a big ole rock hit the windshield and left a quarter sized star.  Again, in Utah. I no longer like Utah.  Fortunately, our insurance covered the repair with no fee, so that's now all better.

We're not big gamblers.  So why go to Vegas?  Well, we are big eaters.  (It shows, I know).  And big shoppers.  This trip, we left the Strip and explored.  We were rewarded by two of our best restaurant finds, ever.  Really.  Almost good enough to persuade us not to come home.  Except, we did sort of miss those kiddos...  Find #1: All you can eat Sushi place.  In the desert.  In a ratty strip mall far from the main drag.  Sound like a bad idea?  It wasn't.  For $20 pp, we had any and every kind of sushi, made fresh to order, plus anything else from the menu.  And it was goooood.  And, they had the best slogan I have EVER seen on a sushi joint.  You made need to click to read it- this photo is kind of small.

Find #2 was directly due to my desire to go fabric and yarn shopping. More on that later. (I'm such a tease.) M&M soul food cafe. Oh My God. It was in a nasssssssty little shopping center. I think the yellow puddle I stepped over on my way in was not water, if you get my drift. The booths were falling apart and our table was more uneven than the Senate majority. But, the food. The food, the food, the food. If I didn't think I would quickly have a heart attack and die, I would eat there every day for the rest of my life. Here you can see: smothered fried chicken, yams, mac n cheese, cornbread stuffing, corn bread, and sweet tea. You may gain three pounds reading this post.

What else did we do? The first night, we enjoyed a buffet dinner in the Middle East.  Have to do a casino buffet at least once while there, right?  We did some outlet shopping and I got me an FCUK T shirt...  We ate dinner at an old favorite that has left Denver behind, wah.  We saw a "traditional Las Vegas variety show"- aka showgirls, comedy and stunts.  Did I mention that room service?  And the sushi and soul food?  We also ate dinner right on the Strip, with a great view of the Bellagio fountains, at Mon Ami Gabi, a fake french cafe in the Paris casino complex.

We breakfasted in Rome

and took in a show- an amazing Cirque Du Soleil show- in old Hollywood.

Don't we clean up nice?  I wore my new hot dress, and my hot "I'm not a mommy tonight" shoes.  And my feet hurt later, but it was sooooooo worth it.

We even visited Nerd Heaven for The Hubby.

We were entertained by The King

or a reasonable version thereof, and then, we finished off the trip with some cheap prime rib and a trip downtown.

Friday we drove home, encountered that rock, and finally made it back in almost one piece.  Train Boy rewarded us by getting up 4 times in the night, and today, Princess Girl treated us to, so far, two rounds of vomiting.  Right now, I'm supposed to be at a friend's wedding reception.  We made it to the ceremony, but then had to come home for the sick girl.  Even with all this fun, it's still great to see them again.  Train Boy especially has been very clingy all day, and it's nice to know he loves his mama.  Cross fingers that the puke is all done.  We have big family plans tomorrow.

Remember that tease about fabric and yarn shopping? Since this post is more like the beginning of a book than a reasonable blog post, I'll save that for tomorrow.  Besides, I haven't photographed my loot yet, and I know you want to see it.  So, come back soon, ya hear?

Comments

[Nancy]

Welcome home! Sounds like you had a great time. But I have to ask, did you do anything except eat? LOL!

[Samantha]

LOL! We did eat, lots. We also walked, and shopped, and sightsaw(?), and saw 3 shows, and, well, you saw that privacy sign on the door, right? LOL! But I can talk about the food in public safely... I promise, quilt shop details to follow!

[Jenn Moody]

Welcome back! I sure missed reading about your quilty adventures. Sounds like y'all had a great time! :)

[Susan]

Sounds like a wonderful time. You and my best friend would get along great - I thought those little jars in the cabinet were to be used. =)

I love your writing. You have such great voice. I hope your post tomorrow tells me that you enjoyed the same quilt shop I did!

[Linda_J]

sorry you came home to a sick kiddo. Train Boy probably missed you both and is showing you how much. Granny come out unscathed??

Glad that you could go and celebrate that anniversary in style.

[Beth]

Wow! I am so envious...we have YET to get away since we got married in 2002!

I don't know if I can wait until tomorrow about the fabric (and yarn) stuff!

Seriously, happy anniversary! You two are adorable!

[Susan]

Your down home dinner makes me homesick. It is so true that the best home cooking is found in the rattiest of rundown diners. Can't wait to see your new purchases.

[Kim]

Sounds like you had a blast - glad your back!!

[jessica~]

That looks like a great adult vacations!! Much deserved, no?

Mmmmmm...cornbread stuffing...

[Secret Pal]

What a fabulous time you look like you had. Glad to see you back though, I missed you!!

[Mary-Frances Main]

Welcome home! Looks like tons of fun! Tell hubby we'd like the geeky stop too! Plus, my husband is dying to get our vows renewed by an Elvis! (ugh!).

[Cathi]

I'm glad you had such a great time- can't wait to hear more about it!

[JudyL]

Sounds like you two really know how to celebrate an anniversary. Glad you had such fun!

Judy L.

[Laurie Ann]

Welcome back, I did miss you! I kept thinking, why isn't she posting, then I would remember you were in Vegas. Nice to have you back, your blog is one of my faves. All you can eat sushi, yeah!!! Yams, grossssssss!!!!!!!!!

[patti]

Of course we did! So glad you had a marvelous time.

[Melissa]

Looks like you had a blast! Can't wait to see the yarn!

[Jenifer]

Sounds like fun! :)

[cher]

ALL RIGHT! sounds like you enjoyed every second-which was the whole idea! looking forward to seeing/checking out the new stuff you could not leave behind :-) welcome back to blogland and yes, of course I missed you, silly!

[Evelyn]

Hooray for celebrating your anniversary in style. Hooray for grandparents too!

Cheers!

Evelyn