I Need a Vacation

...You might, too, after reading this.

For some reason, I always come home from a vacation feeling like I need a vacation. I think it has something to do with packing too much fun into too little time. Next time we go somewhere, I think I'd like to go to the beach where I can lay there and do nothing. Wouldn't that be wonderful?

But the Vegas vacation was fun. Here are some of the details:

Friday:

~We dropped the boys off at Grandpa's and headed to the airport. We arrived two hours early, as requested, got our tickets, left for some breakfast, went back to the airport, went through security, and waited 1 1/2 hours to board the plane. It's a very small airport; I really don't know why we needed to be there so early. I had my first experience with air-sickness. I even got to use one of their special baggies. Yuck! Luckily, it was a short flight and we were soon in Vegas and on our way to Caesar's Palace,* where we enjoyed a large room with an equally large bathroom. I wish I had one like it at home.

~We were pleasantly surprised by David's sister, Jen, showing up; it was especially nice for me to have someone else there who doesn't want to just gamble the whole time. Jen also had a bad plane experience: the airlines lost her luggage on a direct flight. So ridiculous. But she finally got it back at about 2 A.M-- a mere 12 hours later.

Saturday:

~We surprised David's grandparents at the bingo hall. We sang "Happy Birthday" as they came out the doors. I thought Grandpa W. was going to cry. He said it was the best birthday ever, and the most memorable day of his life, replacing the previous winner: being circumcised at age 13.

~We just kind of bummed around casinos all day while the Aunts and Uncles gambled**. I played a few penny slots and even won $100 at a Wheel of Fortune machine. After that win, I was back in the black for the trip.

~Went to Margaritaville. I got a virgin Mango Margarita. It was delicious, apart from giving me brain freeze, and I got to keep the glass, which is about a foot tall.

~We met up with our friend Josh, who is the guy that introduced David and me. We had fun hanging out and catching up...

~In the evening, we went to Fremont Street and watched the giant TV. They put on a pretty lame show this time (I've seen better), but it was huge-- 2 blocks long and one street wide. Fremont street has a ton of musicians and artists that are always fun to watch, so that was one highlight.

Sunday:

~Got up way too early, went and played bingo with David's grandparents. I got the second bingo of the day, and won $50, which almost covered the cost of David and me playing.

~Jennifer, Max (a cousin) and I went to the Shark exhibit at Mandalay Bay. Very cool; probably the highlight of the trip for me. I decided that my second favorite animal is Jellyfish. They are weird and fascinating. I hope my pictures turn out.***

~I decided that rather than gamble away the rest of my money, I wanted some ice cream instead. But on the way to Swensen's, I saw a little kiosk with pearls for sale. For $13.99, you can open up an oyster and there's guaranteed to be a pearl inside (the oysters just come from a farm, but they're still real). So I got one. My pearl was very beautiful, and the gal at the kiosk was avery good saleswoman, so for a few extra bucks ($4o, to be precise), I had it mounted to a pendant. It's my favorite souvenir.

~We met up with a good friend of mine, Tina, who I've known since middle school (we were locker partners a gazillion years in a row). She and her husband live in Vegas, and we went out for Thai food with them.

Monday:

~We were supposed to arrive at the airport two hours early, but didn't quite make it. We spent an hour in line to go through security, and had to run to get to the plane in time to board. I made it through this flight with no incident; it helped that I slept, and did not drink any ginger ale prior to going through turbulence.

~I saw a little boy at the airport greeting a relative with a hug and a kiss, and for the first time all weekend, I really missed my boys. They were napping when we got home, and when they woke up and I went to get them, they just looked at me like, "Where have you been?" A trifle disappointing, but we've had lots of hugs and kisses since.

*David's uncle got comped a room at Caesar's, and let us stay there while they stayed at their timeshare. It was so luxurious!

** There really is so much more to do in Vegas than gamble. There are shows (clean ones!) to see: magicians, comedians, musicians; all for any price you're willing to spend, great or small. There are amusement parks, zoos, exhibits (clean ones!) . There is shopping galore, and even if you don't gamble, every casino has such incredible architecture, they're amazing to walk through and just admire. Every time we go, we say, "We should do this or that..." but we mostly just gamble. So sad...

***Would you believe we forgot our camera?? So David's uncle gave us a disposable one he'd gotten for free. I don't think the flash against the glass aquariums will make for great photography, but maybe I'll be surprised.