Vegas - Monster Jam

This year Sallie, Jerry, Krista & Kendrick came with us to Vegas. Krista is a friend from work and her son Kendrick. We left to go to Vegas on Wednesday, March 19th at about 8:00 a.m. We drove in two cars, mine and Krista’s. We made pretty good time and arrived in Vegas about 2:00 their time. We had to wait an hour to check into the hotel, so we walked next door to In-N-Out burger and had some lunch, then went back and checked into our hotel. The kids really wanted to go swimming so we let them for a little bit. It wasn’t very warm, so they spent most of the time in the hot tub, but as long as they are swimming they don’t care. We left to go to Fremont Street about 6:00. We spent a couple of hours walking up and down Fremont Street mostly people watching. The kids loved watching the dancers. We left after the first light show at 8:00 p.m. Then we went to the Stratosphere. Eric and Maisie wanted to ride a ride so they went on the one that is on the point of the Stratosphere that shoots you up and then drops you. They thought it was awesome. They were lucky enough to get to ride it twice, since there weren’t a lot of people and there was another couple that wanted to ride it and they needed two more people to balance the ride. Maisie loves crazy rides. I don’t mind them, but I’m okay not riding either. Parker does not like rides. We enjoyed spending time looking out at all the lights from up high. It is relaxing. Then we went to the little pizza parlor at the bottom of the stratosphere for a snack.

Thursday, we got up and ate breakfast. We stay at the Wild Wild West Inn which provides a free Denny’s breakfast. After breakfast, we went to get our tickets for the Tournament of Kings show for that evening. I had one some Vegas rewards by playing a slot machine game on Facebook which got all the adults free tickets. Thank goodness or it would have cost me a fortune. That took a little bit to get the tickets, but it was a lot smoother than I thought. Then we headed out to Hoover Dam. We did the plant tour, which was interesting to see how the dam and plant work. It is amazing what they were able to make the dam in the 1930’s. After that we went to the Excalibur and the kids played the video games for while. We were able to go into the Tournament of Kings at 5:30. It was a fun show and dinner. The kids really enjoyed it. Then we walked the Strip. We walked down to the Bellagio and watched two water shows and then headed back to the car. It is fun to just walk the strip and watch people. There are some interesting people. We went back to hotel and just hung out in the room. It is fun just visiting and hanging out.

We didn’t wake up too early on Friday. We ate breakfast and then let the kids swim for a couple of hours and then about 1:00 we went to the Silverton Casino to see the big aquarium that has mermaids. We had to wait a little while for the mermaid to show up and then when she did it wasn’t too exciting. There was also a Bass Pro Shop in the Silverton, so Jerry and Eric walked around the store for awhile. Then we headed out to the Monster Jam Pit Party. When we left the Silverton we lost Eric and Jerry behind us. Eric was not happy. He had to figure out how to use his GPS on his phone to find his way to the Sam Boyd Stadium. He is not used to having to use his GPS cause I always do it when we travel. He was not a happy camper, but he got over it fast.  We were only there for about an hour and then they did the truck parade. We ate dinner there at the pit party. While Eric and Jerry went to the car to get our jackets, we just hung out on the grass. We went into the stadium just after 6:00. The Friday night show is the racing. It was really fun to watch and Sallie, Jerry, Krista, and Kendrick loved it. It was their first time coming to the Vegas show. After the show, we just hung out in the parking lot until the cars started moving, so we didn’t have to wait in a huge line. Then once we got back to the hotel we were all exhausted and went to bed.

Saturday, we didn’t get up too early and then ate breakfast and then headed out to the Monster Jam Pit Party about 12:00. We stopped at Walmart and got some more drinks and a few snacks for the ride home. It was pretty hot on Saturday. At least a lot hotter than we were used to in Logan. It was just under 80 degrees. The kids had to sit in the shade a couple of times, cause they were melting. They had a stunt show going on with bikes, motor bikes, and a car that was fun to watch. We ate dinner at the Pit Party again and then went into the show about 6:00. Saturday was the freestyle which is always the funnest to watch. This year because they separated it into two different nights, the track had a lot more jumps which was a lot rougher on the trucks. There weren’t too many that actually went the whole time. They usually crashed or rolled over before their time was up. It still was a lot of fun. Metal Mulisha ended up winning the freestyle race. We again hung out in the parking lot waiting the the cars to thin out. Then we headed back to the hotel. We were all bummed that our vacation was over and not looking forward to the drive home. We decided we had better get up about 7:00 to get started on the drive home. We went right to bed when we got back.

We got up early Sunday morning at breakfast and then we were on the road. I drove to Cedar City and then I jumped in with Krista and he drove the rest of the way. We stopped at Famous Dave’s in Layton for a early dinner and then we were home. We were all glad to be home. It is a long drive. Then it was laundry time. We had a great time on our trip.

March 4 - Busy couple of weeks

We have had a busy couple of weeks. Jarom and Launa's baby, Lincoln, was in the hospital for a total of 16 days. It was very stressful and worrisome for all of us. He had a few good days the first week and then he didn't show any signs of improvment. Finally, on Monday, February 24th, they decided to life flight him to McKay Dee Hospital in Ogden. Their doctors specialize in babies with pneumonia. Once he arrived there the doctors were not as concerned. They just explained that he needed time to heal. He got better every day and was able to finally go home on Sunday, March 2nd. We were all so glad he was able to finally go home. They still have to be really careful that he doesn't get sick while he continues to heal. I can't wait to meet him this Friday when I get to take a few pictures of him.

A couple of weeks ago, I had the the sudden urge to go to school. Coming from me, I thought I would never do this. I have never wanted to go to school before. I am not sure what changed. Maybe a midlife crisis. I finally realized that I do not want to work in this same job for the next 30 years and the only way for me to move up the career ladder at USU is to get a degree. I know that it is going to be a long slow process, but in some ways I am excited for the journey. We discussed this as a whole family and how it doesn't take just a commitment from me, it is a commitment from the whole family. We were all in the car one evening and I asked everyone if they were okay with me going to school and Maisie says, "I am about 80%." It was the funniest thing for her to say. She really wants me to go to school, but she knows how much it is going to change our family time and that I will need more help at home. I started the whole admissions process and decided to start with an online open entry course. It is a nutrition course, NDFS 1020. Which allows me to take a class after the semester has already started. I am also studying for the math placement test. WOW!! Math can be so confusing. I am hoping it will all come back to me with a little practice. Math was my favorite subject in high school, but that was 18 years ago. CRAZY!!! I am hoping I can complete my bachelors degree in about  6 - 7 years.

I am still going to the Logan Rec Center for my workouts. I have been trying to go about 6 times a week unless if something comes up and I can't go. It has been nice to be able to work that into our routine. The kids are now use to it and have accepted that mom just needs to do it. I hope in the long run they will see the importance of exercise.