Happy Turkeyday!!!

First of all... Happy Thanksgiving!! We all have sooo much to be thankful for... and our day was filled with fun!! It's amazing I didn't take a single picture on thanksgiving... too much was going on!!! We had a crew of 21 people at our house for the holiday, including two guests from England. It was a great day of conversation, family, and of course the yummy food that we all enjoyed. Thanks to everyone for making thanksgiving such a huge success... and hope the rest of your holidays are just as great!!!

Winter Photo Shoot....

So, every year the girls' get their holiday pictures taken and every two years we do a "family picture". Well, this was "the year"... so off we went... we were pretty pleased overall... the last picture on this post is our favorite.... enjoy!!!

Las Vegas Baby!!

wow... what a whirlwind trip!! We left wednesday morning, headed to Las Vegas, and arrived around 10:30am (their time). The flight was beautiful... made it very easy to take pictures out the plane window of the snow on the rockies, the vastness of the grand canyon... and then see the "nothingness" of the desert we were flying into...

We stayed at the Luxor, which looks like a HUGE pyramid on the Las Vegas Strip. The weather was beyond perfect the whole time - low 80's and BRIGHT sunshine!! We even got tan while we were there.


Some pics along the "strip"....These pics (below) are of New York New York... and the Venetian... two of my favorite casinos.... the designers deserve HUGE applause for all the detail that went into making these such a HUGE success!!! We enjoyed seeing several shows, Circqe Du Solei Mystere (was beyond incredible!), and a David Space Comedy Show (he rocks in person just like in all his movies!!).

We had several nice dinners, but the BEST by far was at the Eiffel Tower Restraunt. We were seated at a table overlooking the Bellagio (I think we were around15 floors up in the air) and every 20 minutes there was a beautiful water show. We also did a full day tour of the Grand Canyon, Hoover Dam, Lake Meade, and a quick stop in Dolan Springs. That trip was breathtaking... just seeing the shear size of the canyon... wow... it was over 4000 feet to the bottom, and they have NO rails or obstructions, so it's a clear view... We then had lunch at a cowboy ranch, then went on a hike to a secluded section of the canyon. Only half of our group went (there were 10 of us in the whole group...) and got some magnificent pictures... no words can describe the beauty of the Grand Canyon!!!

Beyond all of that fun, we put MANY miles on our legs walking ALL over the city, including checking out "Old Las Vegas" also known as Fremont Street. This was the "original Vegas" before the glitz and glam that is here now. That area is MUCH more laid back and just gives you the feeling of "stepping back in time". That is with the exception of the arched "ceiling" they put over fremont street, that shows a light show every evening on the hour... complete with millions of LED ligthts and music... It's another you must see to believe it!!
We even fit in an early morning run on the strip, some gym, time, and of course lounging by the pool with drinks in hand....

These are a few "last shots" of Vegas on our "last evening there"....

and yes, there are slot machines even in the airport...

we got home yesterday (sunday) and are now attempting to "get back to reality"... but it was fantastic trip, and there are MANY pictures to check out... I took over 700, so I put together several (ok, 11 of them!) collages so you can see then all clumped together as to what the pictures are!!

Oh, and MANY thanks to my parents' who watched the kiddos for us while we were away... and aunt erin for toughing it out at the "sleepover at her apartment"...

Happy Halloween!!

Whew... hard to believe Halloween is already past!! Well, this year was nice and warm, just like many of the past, but this year was also quite wet... The day was filled with showers, then breaks, then more showers. When we headed out for the trick or treating, it was mild and NOT raining, but about a half a mile away, it started raining nicely... then harder, and then finally we got home. The girls had a great time and didn't care that they were wet... they got PLENTY of candy... and can't wait for next halloween already!! Hope you had a great halloween also!!! Oh yeah, Elyse was still Turtle Tuck (from Wonderpets) but Angela decided to go for the "princess look" instead of the pediatrician last minute... they were too cute....

And yes, that is Ollie the bunny in a "witch costume"... the cats hid well enough but Ollie didn't realize what he was in for... but he was good sport... and an EXTRA cute witch too!!

Halloween Spooktacular at Sesame Place

Each year after the "regular season" ends at Sesame Place, they decorate the park for halloween and it's called the "spooktacular". We usually get to go a few times, but this fall was SUPER busy and so we finally got there on the LAST day Sesame was open. And it was even more SPECIAL because grandmom Reedell was with us!! Everyone enjoyed the day despite the rainy weather... at least the temps were warm, so even while being a little wet, everyone had smiles on their faces!!! Hope you enjoyed your halloween day too!!

grandmom and the gals at 123 Sesame Streetand at big bird's mailbox

It's pumpkin carving time...

the girls were VERY excited when we went pumpkin picking about a month ago... and it was "finally" time to carve in on friday night (halloween eve). So I cut the top off, and then the girls dug in. They kept saying "there's more pumpkin guts in there, keep working"... it was tooo cute. So, they cleaned it out and got to see our frankenstein jack o lantern the next morning... it was LOTS of fun.. maybe next year Angela will be able to work on her "own" pumpkin... we shall see!!!