- Two more days until vacation. I told my class yesterday, "I love you all, but I need a break from you so that I can like you again."
- Last night, Matthew did the entire shower process by himself. My boys have been doing baths and showers by themselves for a while now, but last night was different. Last night he washed his hair by himself!!! Huge night for the mom who is beckoned nightly to the shower to wash his mop. I watched him do it last night...right amount of shampoo, right amount of scrubbing, and right amount of rinse. I walked away slapping my hands together in a joyous tone singing...YES, YES, YES!!!
- It's conference week at school. I can almost see the finish line, eleven more to go!
- A shout out to all parents who make a conference appointment and actually keep it!!! It's appreciated. Thank you, All Teachers of America.
- And speaking of conferences, will the Matthew Marini who is the ideal student in Room 25 everyday please tell the Matthew Marini of his household to share the goods. Thank you, Your Mother and Father.
- The last three Sundays I have worn my pajamas all day and watched football all day long on the couch with my boys. Not proud, just truth.
- And finally....EIGHT MORE DAYS UNTIL I AM IN WEST VIRGINIA WITH MY SISTER!!!!!! Can you tell I'm excited????
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Tidbits
Thursday, September 15, 2011
License and Registration, Please.
Uhhh! I don't know how this started. I have no idea when it started. All I know is that it has become a fixation and it needs to stop before it gets even MORE embarrassing.
So, a while back we were driving in the car and Matthew asked, "Why haven't you changed your sticker?" I looked at him in the rear view mirror and said, "What sticker? What are you talking about?" He said, "You know, your 2011 sticker, the one that is on your license plate." What??? "Oh, that sticker. Um, I'm not sure. Probably when my registration is due." Then the conversation started of him asking what is registration, why do you have to pay for it, how often do you have to pay, when do you get the sticker and why does it come in the mail. You know, all necessary questions for a seven year old to know in order to get on with his day. I thought we were done with it. So not the case....
It seems like every car we pass, whether it is in the Target parking lot or while actually driving down the road, he is paying attention to EVERY ONE'S registration. "That one is May, that one is January, that one isn't until December." It's like driving with a cop, who is only working for the DMV.
Then one day he asked, "Why do some people have different months?" I told them that it depends on what month the car was bought and that is usually the month the registration is due. I told him that every year during that month, people have to pay the Department of Motor Vehicles to "have permission" to drive their car. (Regardless if that is right...it's my story for him and I'm sticking to it) Of course there was a lapse of about three minutes in the conversation with dead silence and then he said, "Well, so, if it's 2011 and their month has already passed and they still have a 2011 sticker...what does that mean?" Well crap... "Um, it usually means that maybe they just forgot to put their sticker on or maybe they haven't paid the DMV yet and that's why they don't have their sticker." Dead silence.... Then he says, "Well, what happens if the police see that they don't have the sticker?" I say, "Well, maybe the police just ask them if they haven't put their sticker on yet. If they don't have it to put on, then sometimes the police give them a ticket." Out of nowhere, Ryan chimes in, "HAVE YOU EVER GOTTEN A TICKET????" I assure him that I haven't and the conversation is over.
In all of this education of the laws of registration, never in my wildest imagination did I think the kid would remember any of it. Which is my own fault, because as he always says, "I've got the best brain in the family for memory." Which, he's kind of right....my memory sucks!! Unless we are talking mindless TV and movie trivia, then I'm your girl!!!
Here's where it has backfired.
About a week ago we are getting out of my car at school. Walking in, passing all the cars in the parking lot as we do every morning, when it happens. "Mom!!! Look, *^$&%#$ (name omitted due to confidentiality) has a 2011 sticker and their month is March! MARCH MOM! I need to tell them that they need to pay their registration so they won't get in trouble. I'm going to go find them now." Me (screaming) "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!" He doesn't get it. I wait until we are in my classroom to explain to him that it is not our business, I am sure there is a perfectly good explanation as to why they haven't put their sticker on and I remind him again to stay out of it!!
It's September. My registration month is October. The boy has been asking DAILY about when am I going to get my sticker because it is almost October and he.....can't.....stand.....it!!!!!! Finally, it came. Rich came home the other day, walked through the door holding the mail and told Matt the good news....my registration was finally here. Every night he asks...."When Dad? When can we put it on???" Believe me, his brain will function well again when that sticker is finally put on. Saturday morning a time has been set for the sticking of the sticker and all will be good again in Matthew's world.
Welcome to the insight of the Marini Family.....We can't make this sh*% up!
So, a while back we were driving in the car and Matthew asked, "Why haven't you changed your sticker?" I looked at him in the rear view mirror and said, "What sticker? What are you talking about?" He said, "You know, your 2011 sticker, the one that is on your license plate." What??? "Oh, that sticker. Um, I'm not sure. Probably when my registration is due." Then the conversation started of him asking what is registration, why do you have to pay for it, how often do you have to pay, when do you get the sticker and why does it come in the mail. You know, all necessary questions for a seven year old to know in order to get on with his day. I thought we were done with it. So not the case....
It seems like every car we pass, whether it is in the Target parking lot or while actually driving down the road, he is paying attention to EVERY ONE'S registration. "That one is May, that one is January, that one isn't until December." It's like driving with a cop, who is only working for the DMV.
Then one day he asked, "Why do some people have different months?" I told them that it depends on what month the car was bought and that is usually the month the registration is due. I told him that every year during that month, people have to pay the Department of Motor Vehicles to "have permission" to drive their car. (Regardless if that is right...it's my story for him and I'm sticking to it) Of course there was a lapse of about three minutes in the conversation with dead silence and then he said, "Well, so, if it's 2011 and their month has already passed and they still have a 2011 sticker...what does that mean?" Well crap... "Um, it usually means that maybe they just forgot to put their sticker on or maybe they haven't paid the DMV yet and that's why they don't have their sticker." Dead silence.... Then he says, "Well, what happens if the police see that they don't have the sticker?" I say, "Well, maybe the police just ask them if they haven't put their sticker on yet. If they don't have it to put on, then sometimes the police give them a ticket." Out of nowhere, Ryan chimes in, "HAVE YOU EVER GOTTEN A TICKET????" I assure him that I haven't and the conversation is over.
In all of this education of the laws of registration, never in my wildest imagination did I think the kid would remember any of it. Which is my own fault, because as he always says, "I've got the best brain in the family for memory." Which, he's kind of right....my memory sucks!! Unless we are talking mindless TV and movie trivia, then I'm your girl!!!
Here's where it has backfired.
About a week ago we are getting out of my car at school. Walking in, passing all the cars in the parking lot as we do every morning, when it happens. "Mom!!! Look, *^$&%#$ (name omitted due to confidentiality) has a 2011 sticker and their month is March! MARCH MOM! I need to tell them that they need to pay their registration so they won't get in trouble. I'm going to go find them now." Me (screaming) "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!" He doesn't get it. I wait until we are in my classroom to explain to him that it is not our business, I am sure there is a perfectly good explanation as to why they haven't put their sticker on and I remind him again to stay out of it!!
It's September. My registration month is October. The boy has been asking DAILY about when am I going to get my sticker because it is almost October and he.....can't.....stand.....it!!!!!! Finally, it came. Rich came home the other day, walked through the door holding the mail and told Matt the good news....my registration was finally here. Every night he asks...."When Dad? When can we put it on???" Believe me, his brain will function well again when that sticker is finally put on. Saturday morning a time has been set for the sticking of the sticker and all will be good again in Matthew's world.
Welcome to the insight of the Marini Family.....We can't make this sh*% up!
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Weekend Fun!
We had our first weekend in a while with no sports...YEAH! Don't get me wrong, I love the sports and the boys playing...it's the laundry and "stuff" that comes with me bring prepared and ready to leave the house at 8:30 and not come back until 1:00.
This weekend Mike and Stacy came up with the kids. Mikayla got Taylor Swift tickets for her birthday and the concert was Saturday night. She brought up a friend to go with her, Stacy and Nana. They had an absolute blast at the concert and Mikayla looked so darling all dressed up for her big night!
Funny story...Ryan was SO excited (Matt too--but Ryan more so) that Mason and everyone else (yes, in that order) were coming up to Lodi. He knew that Sharon, Stacy and Mikayla were going to be gone and I was the only girl that was going to be home. He kept saying, "Mom, it's a boys weekend. You're not invited, you know, because you are a girl." I told him I was fine with that...I was more than happy to spend a nice quiet evening to myself. What was hilarious is that Ryan repeatedly said, "It's going to be me, Mason, me, Matt, Daddy, me, Uncle Mike, Papa, and me." He was definitely NOT going to be left out of boys weekend!
Here is Mikayla and her friend looking fab for the concert! So grown up!
Here is all the girls right before they left! Sooo cute!
My favorite...I just love this girl!
And these turkeys!! Don't they just look like trouble!
One of the few times they were all together! Love!
THANKS TO AUNTIE STACY FOR THE PICTURES!!! :)
This weekend Mike and Stacy came up with the kids. Mikayla got Taylor Swift tickets for her birthday and the concert was Saturday night. She brought up a friend to go with her, Stacy and Nana. They had an absolute blast at the concert and Mikayla looked so darling all dressed up for her big night!
Funny story...Ryan was SO excited (Matt too--but Ryan more so) that Mason and everyone else (yes, in that order) were coming up to Lodi. He knew that Sharon, Stacy and Mikayla were going to be gone and I was the only girl that was going to be home. He kept saying, "Mom, it's a boys weekend. You're not invited, you know, because you are a girl." I told him I was fine with that...I was more than happy to spend a nice quiet evening to myself. What was hilarious is that Ryan repeatedly said, "It's going to be me, Mason, me, Matt, Daddy, me, Uncle Mike, Papa, and me." He was definitely NOT going to be left out of boys weekend!
Here is Mikayla and her friend looking fab for the concert! So grown up!
Here is all the girls right before they left! Sooo cute!
My favorite...I just love this girl!
And these turkeys!! Don't they just look like trouble!
One of the few times they were all together! Love!
THANKS TO AUNTIE STACY FOR THE PICTURES!!! :)
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
It's a "Hairy" Situation
Matthew 1....Mom 0. That's the score in our house with regards to the new "hairdo". I have not been shy about my objection to the longer look of his hair. And he has not been shy about his objection to my objection. Bottom line, I lost and the hair isa' growin'. I am very fond of the hair when it is brushed to the side and takes on that "Bieber-ish" look, but let's face it...he's a boy and the minute he runs off to the playground it is back in his face again. Oh well...it is the hill I have chosen not to climb.
What I do have to share is a picture that Rich's mom recently found an gave me. It is of Rich (obviously) when he was younger, sporting the EXACT cut. I love it!
Just sayin'...they might share the same DNA. :)
What I do have to share is a picture that Rich's mom recently found an gave me. It is of Rich (obviously) when he was younger, sporting the EXACT cut. I love it!
Just sayin'...they might share the same DNA. :)
Saturday, August 27, 2011
GEAUX SAINTS!!!!
Are you ready for some football????? We are!!! Last weekend kicked off Matt's new flag football season! I missed last weekend, but this weekend I was prepared with my camera. He played the entire game, had a great catch on a punt return, and came home and passed out!
The headband is necessary or else his hair will be in his eyes! Oh, and the black marking underneath apparently very necessary, "Because that's what the pros' use Mom!"
This year it is a little different with referees and flags being thrown for penalties.
One of the first runs of the day.
Andres is SO close!!!
And down he goes!! Luckily the cowboy player was caught.
Tired and hot! Gonna be a long season!
GEAUX SAINTS!!! (That's for you Auntie Noelle) ;)
The headband is necessary or else his hair will be in his eyes! Oh, and the black marking underneath apparently very necessary, "Because that's what the pros' use Mom!"
This year it is a little different with referees and flags being thrown for penalties.
One of the first runs of the day.
Andres is SO close!!!
And down he goes!! Luckily the cowboy player was caught.
Tired and hot! Gonna be a long season!
GEAUX SAINTS!!! (That's for you Auntie Noelle) ;)
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Girls Weekend!
*Be patient with the song...it will make sense in a little bit.
You know you are looking forward to going somewhere when you are packed and ready to go (minus bathroom room stuff) two days before you actually leave. That was me last Wednesday...packed and ready to head to Tahoe. In fact, not only was I packed, I might have already been mentally there Thursday and Friday...just saying.
Friday afternoon Emilie came into town long enough to meet the Notorious TED, pick me up, pick Melissa up and head up the mountain for our getaway. Melissa had invited us to go up to her family's house and we were not going to miss the chance to do so!!
Here's our "pad" for the weekend.
Shout out to the Marini Family!!!!! Hello old friend!!!!!!
Funny story...the weekend way back when us girls came up we were outside getting ready to go somewhere and we see this red Trans Am drive by...it was Rich. He was there for the celebrity gold tournament and his cabin was right down the street from Melissa's family's place. It was so crazy that at the time I knew two people who had places in Tahoe and they were both located on the same street.
Here is me getting a closer picture of the cabin. I had to be careful because there was a man inside watching me take the pictures and let's be honest...that's spooky. Crazy girl doing drive by shootings is probably not to common up there!
And the view wasn't too shabby either!
It was definitely a hat day!!!
Later that night we decided to go to a nice dinner and then to the casinos. As we were getting ready Melissa had her iPod playing. (Back story---We we used to live in Chico together, there was ALWAYS music playing. Mostly from Melissa, but it seemed like someone always had their stereo on. And what I love about these two girls is that they are 80's music FREAKS!!! They have been to every Def Leppard concert east of the Colorado border. Bottom like--they have good taste in music) As we are getting ready, singing along to every song that comes on, it hits me....BEST PLAYLIST EVER!!! What then sent me over the edge was when the song "Lookin' for Love" from the movie Urban Cowboy came on I ran to the bottom of the staircase and screamed to Melissa...."BEST PLAYLIST EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Who??? Who??? Other than me and my sister...who would possibly ever put this on their iPod???? MELISSA!!!!!!!! She is my playlist goddess!!!
You know you are looking forward to going somewhere when you are packed and ready to go (minus bathroom room stuff) two days before you actually leave. That was me last Wednesday...packed and ready to head to Tahoe. In fact, not only was I packed, I might have already been mentally there Thursday and Friday...just saying.
Friday afternoon Emilie came into town long enough to meet the Notorious TED, pick me up, pick Melissa up and head up the mountain for our getaway. Melissa had invited us to go up to her family's house and we were not going to miss the chance to do so!!
Here's our "pad" for the weekend.
Right after we got there we put the pregnant woman to work making dip while we sipped our beverages. I felt kind of bad....just kind of . :)
About 10 or so years ago we all came up here for a weekend and I love that if I posted a picture from back then...the living room would look identical.
Shout out to the Marini Family!!!!! Hello old friend!!!!!!
Funny story...the weekend way back when us girls came up we were outside getting ready to go somewhere and we see this red Trans Am drive by...it was Rich. He was there for the celebrity gold tournament and his cabin was right down the street from Melissa's family's place. It was so crazy that at the time I knew two people who had places in Tahoe and they were both located on the same street.
Here is me getting a closer picture of the cabin. I had to be careful because there was a man inside watching me take the pictures and let's be honest...that's spooky. Crazy girl doing drive by shootings is probably not to common up there!
Gordie on a walk with Melissa and I. He was BEYOND good. Such a sweet puppy!!!!
After our walk we headed down to a beach...which the name escapes me...and had a very relaxing lunch.
And the view wasn't too shabby either!
Melissa and Emilie...soakin' up some sun!
It was definitely a hat day!!!
Later that night we decided to go to a nice dinner and then to the casinos. As we were getting ready Melissa had her iPod playing. (Back story---We we used to live in Chico together, there was ALWAYS music playing. Mostly from Melissa, but it seemed like someone always had their stereo on. And what I love about these two girls is that they are 80's music FREAKS!!! They have been to every Def Leppard concert east of the Colorado border. Bottom like--they have good taste in music) As we are getting ready, singing along to every song that comes on, it hits me....BEST PLAYLIST EVER!!! What then sent me over the edge was when the song "Lookin' for Love" from the movie Urban Cowboy came on I ran to the bottom of the staircase and screamed to Melissa...."BEST PLAYLIST EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Who??? Who??? Other than me and my sister...who would possibly ever put this on their iPod???? MELISSA!!!!!!!! She is my playlist goddess!!!
We went to a great restaurant called the Riva Grill. Nice view for a late Saturday night dinner!
Thanks girls for a great weekend! Emilie I hope you had a relaxing weekend before chaos ensues with the addition of another boy to the Eliasen Family! And Melissa thank you for opening your home to us and planning a great weekend! xoxo
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Ryan's Soccer!!
First of all....let me knock on wood...he has played in every game so far. I think we were ALL holding our breath these past couple of weeks. Would this be the game he decides he's done? Would we have to resort...AGAIN...to promising him everything just short of a brand new car when he is 16 to play five minutes of a game??? Because we came close last season, very close!
We are three weeks in and we have three weeks to go. There has not been a "green socks" sighting yet...but, we think we'll play him soon. There has been a "you know that number 4 kid" and a "that kid with long hair like Matthew". These are all opponents that he has played against and thinks about after games. We discuss them at length during the week and I do my best to assure him that we either won't be playing them again OR that he will be fine playing against them if they do meet again by chance. These are the conversations we have all week....ALL week, I say!
Morning warm-ups. He looks....well, you decide for yourself.
Fyi---"Boy with long hair like Matthew" is the one to the left. He was quick, very quick!
Every time Ryan had a break away, "boy with long hair like Matthew" was right there.
Yeah...it was that hot.
Ryan with his teammate Zoe. Her dad is the coach and he is fabulous and soooo good with the kids.
Yep, there he is again. I found myself yelling..."Ryan...Man on, man on!!!" Then it occurred to me...he doesn't know what the hell I am talking about and that this is TOT SOCCER!!! I need help.
Score one for number 7!
We are three weeks in and we have three weeks to go. There has not been a "green socks" sighting yet...but, we think we'll play him soon. There has been a "you know that number 4 kid" and a "that kid with long hair like Matthew". These are all opponents that he has played against and thinks about after games. We discuss them at length during the week and I do my best to assure him that we either won't be playing them again OR that he will be fine playing against them if they do meet again by chance. These are the conversations we have all week....ALL week, I say!
Morning warm-ups. He looks....well, you decide for yourself.
Fyi---"Boy with long hair like Matthew" is the one to the left. He was quick, very quick!
Every time Ryan had a break away, "boy with long hair like Matthew" was right there.
Yeah...it was that hot.
Ryan with his teammate Zoe. Her dad is the coach and he is fabulous and soooo good with the kids.
Yep, there he is again. I found myself yelling..."Ryan...Man on, man on!!!" Then it occurred to me...he doesn't know what the hell I am talking about and that this is TOT SOCCER!!! I need help.
Score one for number 7!
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Oy Vey!!
My cup runneth over. Not only has it runneth over, it's dripping off the counter and there is a puddle on the floor. Too much going on a once makes Mommy a little off her rocker. I feel a little rest in the horizon, so all should be well shortly.
My sister and Natalie were here for two weeks!!! It was Noelle's 20 year reunion and so it was the perfect excuse for her to come out for the visit! We had so much fun, doing nothing really, just hanging out and being together. Toward the end of the trip when I would walk into my mom's house, Natalie would take me back to the front door as to tell me to leave because she had figured out that every time I showed up, I usually left and took Noelle with me. She was done with us having our outings!!
Ryan...right smack dab in the middle of Natalie's "book display". Doesn't he look guilty of something????
My sweet girl!!! I stole as many kisses as possible.
The annual "lets put them together and hope one turns out" picture!
Noelle and Natalie!!
Don't be fooled by these next two shots....they only want ONE thing and they are trying to use their charm to get it.
The ipad for Angry Birds supersized!!! Even though they loved Angry Birds, we held some pretty serious Yahtzee games as well. Matthew hates to lose, so after Nana posted the highest score, he was in the zone!
Love!! Love this picture!! The boys and Noelle right before she left for her reunion.
Noelle and Lynn!!!!
Me and my girl!!!
In mom's classroom waiting patiently for the bell to ring!
My sister and Natalie were here for two weeks!!! It was Noelle's 20 year reunion and so it was the perfect excuse for her to come out for the visit! We had so much fun, doing nothing really, just hanging out and being together. Toward the end of the trip when I would walk into my mom's house, Natalie would take me back to the front door as to tell me to leave because she had figured out that every time I showed up, I usually left and took Noelle with me. She was done with us having our outings!!
Ryan...right smack dab in the middle of Natalie's "book display". Doesn't he look guilty of something????
My sweet girl!!! I stole as many kisses as possible.
The annual "lets put them together and hope one turns out" picture!
Noelle and Natalie!!
Don't be fooled by these next two shots....they only want ONE thing and they are trying to use their charm to get it.
The ipad for Angry Birds supersized!!! Even though they loved Angry Birds, we held some pretty serious Yahtzee games as well. Matthew hates to lose, so after Nana posted the highest score, he was in the zone!
Love!! Love this picture!! The boys and Noelle right before she left for her reunion.
Noelle and Lynn!!!!
Me and my girl!!!
And in all of this craziness....SCHOOL STARTED!!!! Shortest summer ever!
Just look at that face...still somewhat asleep...isn't he darling!!! Ryan started on the same day as Matthew and I, so I took Matt and Daddy took Ryan.
The big third grader! He's still cute...but I am losing the hair battle. He REFUSES to cut it and I have no clue whether I have any rights to shave it while he's asleep.
In mom's classroom waiting patiently for the bell to ring!
And finally...the best picture from the visit!!! Yep, we got lucky!!!!
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Blog Slacker
I am literally spinning out of control with so much going on. Let me get through my sister leaving, the start of school, Back to School Night, and the 14 piles of laundry I have...then I'll be back. Promise! Ciao.
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
"The Trip"
Well, we are back from our Vegas vacation. And, I use the vacation term lightly. I don't really feel it was a relaxing trip...just a fun trip. There was not a lot of time for relaxation, only a morning we had set aside for pool time (I'll explain that later), and that was it. We were in one of four locations at any time during the trip....car, hotel, casino, or outlet mall. That was basically it!
We left Saturday night and drove to Primm, the hidden jewel in the middle of the desert, for our shopping extravaganza part 1. All four of us were piled into Rich's car, with limited luggage because room would be needed for all of our purchases. There was an ice chest in between Lynn and I in the backseat and approximately two inches between our knees and the front seats. It was...cozy, to use a nice term. Now, what was so drastically different with this trip compared to the other dozen or so that Rich and I have taken this way, is that he had people to talk to. So he talked, and talked, and talked. And talked. At one point I turned to Lynn and said, "Is this the most you have ever heard from Rich...ever?" He's not used to people responding back. When it's the two of us in the car, I am either asleep or have my nose in a book for hours at a time and I usually say "yes", "no", or just grunt as a response to whatever he is saying. I have no problem with just sitting and not speaking for long periods of time. Rich took full advantage of the opportunity to have non-stop conversation for seven straight hours!
Sunday morning was Lynn's birthday!!! We started the morning with Starbucks and the outlets!!!!
After a few blissful hours of shopping, we headed into Vegas and stopped at Town Square for lunch at Tommy Bahama's. I think I can commit to saying this is turning into one of my favorite restaurants EVER!
A few pictures of the happy couples who are at a restaurant, relaxing, and not cutting up children's food.
The last time we were here, we had ordered an appetizer sampler and it was fabulous. This time we changed some of the selections. Here are the the Little Chicken Lollipops.
Crab Cakes...
Jumbo Coconut Prawns
The birthday girls meal...BBQ Cheeseburger.
My fish sandwich. As you can see, I had to cut off fish because it was like they fried an entire fish and put it on the bun! I really think you can put grilled caramelized onions on anything and I would eat it. So good!
This was Rich's Lobster Tacos.
Jason's Fish Taco's....which were fabulous!!!
Last month when Lynn and I were already planning our meal and what to have from the online menu, we came across this dessert. The description is...Baked upside down with caramelized pineapple, infused vanilla, cane sugar, topped with “from scratch” caramel sauce. Need I say more? We both decided that we had to have it. Well, after lunch the waiter came over with a tray and asked Lynn what dessert she would like for her birthday and he went through everything on the tray and then said the only one not here is the upside down cheesecake and Lynn said, "We'll take that!" I had completely forgotten about it and screamed a little when I realized we totally almost forgot about the only reason we went there!! Here is the dessert!
After lunch, a few pictures of the travelers. We had to shoot them quickly...it was 107 outside!
After lunch, we headed in to Vegas to check into our rooms. This was the only down side to the trip, separate hotels, but they were free. Free always works! Especially when the saved money went toward other "stuff". :)
Here was our room at Mandalay.
Lynn and Jason's at Rio. Funny thing/creepy thing....see the "mirror/window" on the wall to the right of the bed? It's a window. So the person who is in the shower can see into the bedroom and the person in the bedroom can see into the shower...I have no comment.
Drinks in had...it looks like we are heading out to a nice birthday dinner, right???? Wrong, we are about to leave for the second outlet mall of the day! Who needs dinner when there are multiple outlet malls in Vegas!
A quick picture before the night out!
After shopping, on our way to the buffet for Lynn's not-my-idea-of-a-birthday-dinner, we went through the Bellagio. I would love to bring Boy 1 and Boy 2 here...when they are of age...and let them look around and at the cool stuff.
Ryan asked if we went on this...
And this... :)
Now...the deal with dinner. I had this whole plan to take tons of pictures of our dinner! We were going to try this new place called the Wicked Spoon Buffet at the Cosmopolitan. We have all been reading about the crazy ridiculous cool things they had and I was excited to see what it all looked like. We got to the casino around 8:15ish. We were looking around and signing up for players cards and playing our allotted free ten bucks. At about 8:48pm we decided to head to dinner. The buffet closed at 10:00, so we thought we had plenty of time to eat. After we finally found it, I noticed a bathroom outside and I said I have to go clean up since we just played slots. The four of us, clean hands and empty stomachs head to the counter to start dinner...it is 9:03pm. The "wet behind the ears" young boy tells us that the buffet is closed...it closed at 9:00pm (which is NOT the time on the website). We say, "Oh, your kidding!!! Please, can we just come in...it's her birthday!!!" The smirking, pompous nineteenish year old simply says, "Sorry, we start pulling food at 9:00, you wouldn't be able to eat." Now, at this point Rich and Jason start losing it. Like, want to jump out of their skin lose it! Because here's the deal...he wouldn't let us speak to a manager AND, if we had showed up at 8:59pm, we would have all paid for a $47 per person dinner that they would have stopped serving???? Bullsh%#!!!! So we go with plan B...the buffet across the street. It was not great and by then it was 9:45pm and THEY were closing at 10:00, so we felt we had to eat fast. It was just not good all around! We owed her a good meal!
The next morning was the only designated relaxing time of the trip. Lynn and I had talked Rich into setting aside a few hours of pool time to grab some sun and R-E-L-A-X!! The four of us headed down to the Mandalay pool...what a mistake...it was like CRAZY busy!!! There must have been over a thousand lounge chairs and every single one of them was taken. And there were kids EVERYWHERE!!! And, we love kids...we have kids for crying out loud...but I don't love kids in Las Vegas. I don't want to hear screaming, crying, yelling, or playing. I wanted quiet and this place was a zoo!!! So, we decide to head to the Four Seasons pool, which is located on the other side of the wall from the Mandalay pool. Rich and I know this because when we are there for the sports show in November, we sneak out to the pool to just look around. So, we thought...let's go there, I bet it is not as crowded!! And we were right. The slight...major...problem was that we are not guests at the Four Seasons. Apparently you have to be and they take that seriously. So, as we walk out to the pool area, we see an abundance of lounge chairs available and....wait for it....NOT A KID TO BE FOUND!!!!!! Bulls-eye!!! So, we go grab lounge chairs, soak up some sun, Jason gets in the water to start doing laps, all while enjoying the peace and quiet...until the pool boy comes up and asked for our room number. Here's where I lost it...
Pool Boy: Hi, can I get you room number?
(Lynn and I---speechless)
Rich: (thinking, stumbling with putting a sentence together) Yeah, it's 38011, or 38101.
(the pool boy staring at Rich)
Rich: I'm not sure, I'll ask him when he gets out of the pool. He's swimming right now.
(the pool boy still staring at Rich)
Pool Boy: Um, okay, let me know when he gets out.
As the pool boy is saying this, this is my cue to bolt! I hate lying...I hate being put in uncomfortable situations (Remember when Rich lied about us staying at the MGM to get me on the bus out to Primm for free and I thought the entire time that at some point some man was going to come and get me for not paying the LOUSY $12 that I would have happily paid!!! I hate uncomfortable situations!!!) I get up and say I have to go to the bathroom to make my escape and I have no plans for returning. I left Lynn (who soon joined me in the bathroom) with Rich dealing with the pool guy and I also left poor Jason who has NO IDEA that Rich just threw him under the bus and that he is going to have to come up with an excuse as to why he doesn't know the room number that Rich just told the pool boy he knows!!! I HATE UNCOMFORTABLE SITUATIONS!!!!!
So, after I make it very clear to Lynn that I will not be going anywhere near the pool, Rich, or the pool boy, we decide to head up to the room and get ready for....the mall.
Rich, wanting to know why we are resting...
Because when we relax, we look this happy!
Don't rush us...shopping is not a fast sport.
Heading in to the Wynn....
Lynn and Jason's son Camden's middle name is Okada...which is the name of a restaurant in the Wynn. How cute is he!! My Asian husband! :)
Representing!
Here is my very first dirty martini and Lynn's amaretto sour.
Here is me drinking my last dirty martini....
We HAD to makeup for the ridiculous dinner fiasco from the night before!! Rich and Jason had a dinner date by themselves at the Texas de Brazil Restaurant. For those of you that have seen Bridesmaids...yes, it's the Brazilian place that has cuts of meat on sticks that men deliver to your plate. As this is a much nicer place than the one in the movie, Lynn and I decided to skip it and just have dinner at a safer restaurant...The Grand Lux Cafe. Rich and I have eaten here many a time, so I knew no bathroom scenes would follow!
Here's her crunchy caramel chicken.
Here was my chicken and scampi. Both dinners were delicious!
Here is me making fun of Ja Locke's hat that is built for all weather types and is mission impossible indestructible.
We had such a great time on our trip!!! It was not quite as relaxing as some vacations should be, however we laughed so hard we cried at times and that makes for good times!! After Jason scored a major deal with two pairs of shoes he said..."This alone is worth coming back here!" I'm totally going to hold him to that!!!
We left Saturday night and drove to Primm, the hidden jewel in the middle of the desert, for our shopping extravaganza part 1. All four of us were piled into Rich's car, with limited luggage because room would be needed for all of our purchases. There was an ice chest in between Lynn and I in the backseat and approximately two inches between our knees and the front seats. It was...cozy, to use a nice term. Now, what was so drastically different with this trip compared to the other dozen or so that Rich and I have taken this way, is that he had people to talk to. So he talked, and talked, and talked. And talked. At one point I turned to Lynn and said, "Is this the most you have ever heard from Rich...ever?" He's not used to people responding back. When it's the two of us in the car, I am either asleep or have my nose in a book for hours at a time and I usually say "yes", "no", or just grunt as a response to whatever he is saying. I have no problem with just sitting and not speaking for long periods of time. Rich took full advantage of the opportunity to have non-stop conversation for seven straight hours!
Sunday morning was Lynn's birthday!!! We started the morning with Starbucks and the outlets!!!!
After a few blissful hours of shopping, we headed into Vegas and stopped at Town Square for lunch at Tommy Bahama's. I think I can commit to saying this is turning into one of my favorite restaurants EVER!
A few pictures of the happy couples who are at a restaurant, relaxing, and not cutting up children's food.
The last time we were here, we had ordered an appetizer sampler and it was fabulous. This time we changed some of the selections. Here are the the Little Chicken Lollipops.
Crab Cakes...
Jumbo Coconut Prawns
The birthday girls meal...BBQ Cheeseburger.
My fish sandwich. As you can see, I had to cut off fish because it was like they fried an entire fish and put it on the bun! I really think you can put grilled caramelized onions on anything and I would eat it. So good!
This was Rich's Lobster Tacos.
Jason's Fish Taco's....which were fabulous!!!
Last month when Lynn and I were already planning our meal and what to have from the online menu, we came across this dessert. The description is...Baked upside down with caramelized pineapple, infused vanilla, cane sugar, topped with “from scratch” caramel sauce. Need I say more? We both decided that we had to have it. Well, after lunch the waiter came over with a tray and asked Lynn what dessert she would like for her birthday and he went through everything on the tray and then said the only one not here is the upside down cheesecake and Lynn said, "We'll take that!" I had completely forgotten about it and screamed a little when I realized we totally almost forgot about the only reason we went there!! Here is the dessert!
After lunch, a few pictures of the travelers. We had to shoot them quickly...it was 107 outside!
After lunch, we headed in to Vegas to check into our rooms. This was the only down side to the trip, separate hotels, but they were free. Free always works! Especially when the saved money went toward other "stuff". :)
Here was our room at Mandalay.
Lynn and Jason's at Rio. Funny thing/creepy thing....see the "mirror/window" on the wall to the right of the bed? It's a window. So the person who is in the shower can see into the bedroom and the person in the bedroom can see into the shower...I have no comment.
Drinks in had...it looks like we are heading out to a nice birthday dinner, right???? Wrong, we are about to leave for the second outlet mall of the day! Who needs dinner when there are multiple outlet malls in Vegas!
A quick picture before the night out!
After shopping, on our way to the buffet for Lynn's not-my-idea-of-a-birthday-dinner, we went through the Bellagio. I would love to bring Boy 1 and Boy 2 here...when they are of age...and let them look around and at the cool stuff.
Ryan asked if we went on this...
And this... :)
Now...the deal with dinner. I had this whole plan to take tons of pictures of our dinner! We were going to try this new place called the Wicked Spoon Buffet at the Cosmopolitan. We have all been reading about the crazy ridiculous cool things they had and I was excited to see what it all looked like. We got to the casino around 8:15ish. We were looking around and signing up for players cards and playing our allotted free ten bucks. At about 8:48pm we decided to head to dinner. The buffet closed at 10:00, so we thought we had plenty of time to eat. After we finally found it, I noticed a bathroom outside and I said I have to go clean up since we just played slots. The four of us, clean hands and empty stomachs head to the counter to start dinner...it is 9:03pm. The "wet behind the ears" young boy tells us that the buffet is closed...it closed at 9:00pm (which is NOT the time on the website). We say, "Oh, your kidding!!! Please, can we just come in...it's her birthday!!!" The smirking, pompous nineteenish year old simply says, "Sorry, we start pulling food at 9:00, you wouldn't be able to eat." Now, at this point Rich and Jason start losing it. Like, want to jump out of their skin lose it! Because here's the deal...he wouldn't let us speak to a manager AND, if we had showed up at 8:59pm, we would have all paid for a $47 per person dinner that they would have stopped serving???? Bullsh%#!!!! So we go with plan B...the buffet across the street. It was not great and by then it was 9:45pm and THEY were closing at 10:00, so we felt we had to eat fast. It was just not good all around! We owed her a good meal!
The next morning was the only designated relaxing time of the trip. Lynn and I had talked Rich into setting aside a few hours of pool time to grab some sun and R-E-L-A-X!! The four of us headed down to the Mandalay pool...what a mistake...it was like CRAZY busy!!! There must have been over a thousand lounge chairs and every single one of them was taken. And there were kids EVERYWHERE!!! And, we love kids...we have kids for crying out loud...but I don't love kids in Las Vegas. I don't want to hear screaming, crying, yelling, or playing. I wanted quiet and this place was a zoo!!! So, we decide to head to the Four Seasons pool, which is located on the other side of the wall from the Mandalay pool. Rich and I know this because when we are there for the sports show in November, we sneak out to the pool to just look around. So, we thought...let's go there, I bet it is not as crowded!! And we were right. The slight...major...problem was that we are not guests at the Four Seasons. Apparently you have to be and they take that seriously. So, as we walk out to the pool area, we see an abundance of lounge chairs available and....wait for it....NOT A KID TO BE FOUND!!!!!! Bulls-eye!!! So, we go grab lounge chairs, soak up some sun, Jason gets in the water to start doing laps, all while enjoying the peace and quiet...until the pool boy comes up and asked for our room number. Here's where I lost it...
Pool Boy: Hi, can I get you room number?
(Lynn and I---speechless)
Rich: (thinking, stumbling with putting a sentence together) Yeah, it's 38011, or 38101.
(the pool boy staring at Rich)
Rich: I'm not sure, I'll ask him when he gets out of the pool. He's swimming right now.
(the pool boy still staring at Rich)
Pool Boy: Um, okay, let me know when he gets out.
As the pool boy is saying this, this is my cue to bolt! I hate lying...I hate being put in uncomfortable situations (Remember when Rich lied about us staying at the MGM to get me on the bus out to Primm for free and I thought the entire time that at some point some man was going to come and get me for not paying the LOUSY $12 that I would have happily paid!!! I hate uncomfortable situations!!!) I get up and say I have to go to the bathroom to make my escape and I have no plans for returning. I left Lynn (who soon joined me in the bathroom) with Rich dealing with the pool guy and I also left poor Jason who has NO IDEA that Rich just threw him under the bus and that he is going to have to come up with an excuse as to why he doesn't know the room number that Rich just told the pool boy he knows!!! I HATE UNCOMFORTABLE SITUATIONS!!!!!
So, after I make it very clear to Lynn that I will not be going anywhere near the pool, Rich, or the pool boy, we decide to head up to the room and get ready for....the mall.
Rich, wanting to know why we are resting...
Because when we relax, we look this happy!
Don't rush us...shopping is not a fast sport.
Heading in to the Wynn....
Lynn and Jason's son Camden's middle name is Okada...which is the name of a restaurant in the Wynn. How cute is he!! My Asian husband! :)
Representing!
Here is my very first dirty martini and Lynn's amaretto sour.
Here is me drinking my last dirty martini....
We HAD to makeup for the ridiculous dinner fiasco from the night before!! Rich and Jason had a dinner date by themselves at the Texas de Brazil Restaurant. For those of you that have seen Bridesmaids...yes, it's the Brazilian place that has cuts of meat on sticks that men deliver to your plate. As this is a much nicer place than the one in the movie, Lynn and I decided to skip it and just have dinner at a safer restaurant...The Grand Lux Cafe. Rich and I have eaten here many a time, so I knew no bathroom scenes would follow!
Here's her crunchy caramel chicken.
Here was my chicken and scampi. Both dinners were delicious!
Here is me making fun of Ja Locke's hat that is built for all weather types and is mission impossible indestructible.
We had such a great time on our trip!!! It was not quite as relaxing as some vacations should be, however we laughed so hard we cried at times and that makes for good times!! After Jason scored a major deal with two pairs of shoes he said..."This alone is worth coming back here!" I'm totally going to hold him to that!!!
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