vegas baby!

i went on a much needed "escape from the frozen tundra of the provo bubble" adventure to las vegas last weekend with chad's family and had a fabulous time [although i really do understand now why its called "sin city" ew!!] it was so nice to break away from wendy's and the cannon center and finally eat normal food, explore vegas, and spend time with the fam! chad, derek, and i left school thursday afternoon to road trip it down there.

the bellagio light show on our way into town!



derek checked into the hotel and chad and i went and got his mom from the airport, then stopped at walgreens to stock up on snacks, and by "stock up" i mean we literally filled a whole shopping cart full of food for the weekend (and ran out of cereal a day later). we went back to the hotel and talked for a while, which is always so funny when karen and the boys get together, especially after 11 PM! friday we walked around downtown, did a little "special shopping" at the coke store, ate lunch, and walked some more!

friday night we went to the criss angel magic show.  if you're ever considering attending this show ... unconsider.  so unimpressive!! you could see the ropes he was attached to, his assistants were obviously moving things around, opening boxes, and unattaching ropes while he was talking, pretty much we just sat there on the verge of a seizure from the horrid lights they flashed to distract us and knew how almost every trick was done.  and honestly from the gross music he played and his attitude, i had a sneak preview of what it may feel like if i don't make it to the celestial ... motivation enough for me!

the strip at night!

when we got back to the hotel, we ordered pizza and i taught everyone to play speed skip-bo which led to many heated games, and ....... we made use of karen's coca-cola store purchases! probably one of the funnier nights i've had!

although this may be misleading ... its dr. pepper and diet coke

[you might need to scroll all the way down to the bottom and pause the music if you want to hear]

saturday morning, chad's dad flew in from texas and we spent most of the day walking around the rest of the strip we didn't get to friday.  the bellagio really is insane ... it's crazy how much they can fit into one building and how over the top it all is! caesar's palace was equally amazing, with a full size mall inside of it and just SO big.   after walking around we went back to the hotel and layed out by the pool ... on top of the hotel (in february!!!!), and listened to the BYU basketball game which we won!

i think its safe to say this man had a rough night ... sadly you can't see his black eye

saturday night, chad's parents went and saw the donny and marie show while chad, derek, and i went to the lion king broadway.  we tipped a very kind usher a couple bucks to move us down a whole section to the handicap seats which made a HUGE difference and it was seriously one the most amazing shows i've ever seen! the costumes and singing and stage were just incredible, please go if you haven't!!

courtesy of google images ... but really? check out those animals!!

sunday morning we went to church ... in quite an interesting ward (lets just say the "youth" speaker who was really the bishop's wife not once looked up while reading her very basic talk and there were many what we would call "old fashioned" members, but also very happy and welcoming.) afterwards we ate lunch at the bellagio buffet, and then drove home! it was so nice just to get away from provo for the weekend and be in warm, sunny weather and be carefree for a couple days!! thank you so much to chad's wonderful parents for the weekend and it was so fun to see you! i am starting to think i should do weekend adventures more often! can't wait for my roadtrip to california with my mom and chad in april! :)