Vegas 2014 Continued

Vegas has continued to be fabulous!  Yesterday I spent the day relaxing and shopping.  There is a mall directly across the strip from the Bellagio so I walked over there while Brian was in meetings.  It is so rare that I get to go shopping without the kids and for myself so I made the most of it!  I hit my two favorite stores GAP and Loft.  Thankfully they were both having great sales!   I shockingly found two pairs of jeans that I loved and several tops as well. Usually when I'm actually able to shop for myself I'm not very successful finding things.  

After shopping I spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing and getting ready for dinner. We started the night with drinks at Yellowtail in the Bellagio. Then we had dinner at Fix (also in the Bellagio).  Yummy!  

After dinner we tried our luck at the blackjack table…the house always wins!  

Today I spent the day relaxing and catching up on some reading.  Tonight we have another work dinner to top off our trip.  I'm sure we will try to win back some of the $$ the casino took from us over the past 4 days too.  😉

The trip has flown by and I can't believe we are heading back home tomorrow.  I think next year we may need to extend the trip for an extra day or two.  Time truly flies out here!  But I am definitely eager to hug the girls and hear all about their time with MeMaw and PaPaw!  I'm also ready to start the Christmas decorating!!  Hard to believe that the year is coming to a close!

Vegas Baby (2014)

Our annual Vegas trip is in full swing and we are having a blast!  We arrived Saturday morning and hit the ground running with lunch at BurGR (Gordan Ramsey's restaurant at Planet Hollywood).  Amazing burgers and fries!  And the milkshakes looked delish but we just didn't have room. 

We are staying at the Bellagio again this year (the conference was here 5 years ago as well).  Bellagio is probably our favorite Vegas hotel (although they are all amazing!)  The view from our room is spectacular!  I was a bit bummed we didn't get a fountain view at first but when I saw the sunset over the red rocks my mind was completely changed!

We spent our first afternoon and evening with Brian's boss and his wife in their new Vegas suburb.  They took us to see the red rocks and gave us a tour of their area.  It sure is beautiful here! Then we went to dinner with them at an amazing restaurant near their home called Echo & Rig.  It was definitely one of, if not the best meal, we've ever had!   And that's saying a lot since Vegas has so many incredible restaurants!

Sunday morning we started our day at our favorite Bellagio breakfast spot – Jean Philippe.  The Nutella crepe is mind blowing!  We certainly don't go hungry while here.  

We always like to do a little bit of video blackjack while we're here, but our bets are always very low. That helps our losses to be low as well.  As of this morning (Monday), we are only down $15. Pretty good for two days of entertainment.  

Speaking of entertainment, we decided to go to the Boyz II Men concert at the Mirage last night. We were not disappointed!  It was definitely one of the best concerts we've ever attended. I became a high school girl groupie and even got to give Nate a hug.  Definitely a highlight of the trip!  23 years after they debuted they are just as good if not better. 

Before the show we had a late lunch/early dinner at Giada's new restaurant at The Cromwell.  Yet another amazing meal. We sampled several different antipastas including truffle pecorino cheese and an amazing beef salami.  The restaurant was beautiful and the food was so tasty and light.  And she got an amazing spot on the strip with great views.

Today and tomorrow Brian is busy with work meetings and such, but I will get to attend the work dinners each night. Those are always top notch meals!  While he works I'll spend my time resting, shopping and simply enjoying some down time.  

The girls are having a blast at home with MeMaw and PaPaw and we are so thankful to be able to take trips like this knowing that they are in great hands!

New York, New York

We survived...barely.  We made the big trip to NYC with Hannah last week and it was quite an adventure.  We flew out on Tuesday afternoon and came home on Sunday.  Hannah seemed to have a lot of fun (LOTS of smiles!) but I came home exhausted.  I need a vacation from my vacation! 

For the first 3 nights we stayed in a hotel in the city (The Hilton Manhattan East, which I highly recommend!)  The 3 of us were in one room (a small room!) and Hannah did not sleep well.  She woke several times each night (several nights it was every hour).  I couldn't let her cry it out because we were in a hotel with people all around us, and I swear she knew it!  So the only thing that would calm her down and put her back to sleep was to feed her.  UGH!  After spending weeks weaning her off the night feedings at home, we were back to square one.  There was even one night where I fed her 4 times...FOUR!  Needless to say, I was tired!  And don't even get me started on the napping situation.  We were lucky if she would even take one nap per day.  But despite the lack of sleep, she was surprisingly happy and loved the big city!  It was very cold and she wasn't a fan of getting all bundled up before heading out, but once we were moving, she loved it.  We were amazed at how much we didn't do while in the city.  We knew we wouldn't be able to do all the things we normally do, but we had no idea just how hard it would be to do anything.  Literally all we saw while we were there was Toys R Us, FAO, and Times Square....that's it!  We didn't see the window displays at Macy's or even the big tree at Rockefeller!  Awful, I know, but there really wasn't any time with Hannah.  By the time we got her ready to go out into the cold, took the train down to Rockefeller (the subway is definitely NOT baby friendly) and started heading toward all the sights, it was time to feed her and then head back to the hotel for a nap.  Yikes. 

For the last 2 nights of our trip we stayed in White Plains in a two bedroom suite with Brian's dad.  It was so much better!  Hannah still slept horribly, but at least we didn't have to hide out in the bathroom while she fell asleep.  We actually had a living room to watch tv in and didn't have to go to bed at 9pm.  However, I will say that one of the highlights of the trip was eating dessert in the hallway of the NYC hotel and playing cards while Hannah slept.  On the last day of vacation Hannah got to meet her Great Grandma Vaccaro, which was definitely the best part of the trip.  It was so wonderful to see Brian's family and made all the sleepless nights worth it.  But by this point in the trip you could tell that the lack of sleep was catching up with Hannah and she wasn't quite as happy as she normally is. 

We were all thrilled to head home on Sunday and sleep in our own beds!  Funny that when we arrived in Atlanta there were snow flurries, while that morning in NY they were having a warm front.  Go figure.

Traveling always makes me appreciate being home even more. 

Happy Thanksgiving

A trip to the beach to watch the sunset

Playing ;-)

With Uncle Brent and Aunt Lauren

4 Generations!

We had a wonderful trip to FL for Thanksgiving. We left on Sunday night at 5pm and arrived at 11:30pm.  It was definitely a good idea to drive at night because Hannah ended up sleeping the majority of the trip.  She did such a good job on the way down and was in a fabulous mood the entire week!  She smiled the majority of the time and slept very well while we were there.  She hit a few exciting milestones during the week as well.  She started pulling herself up in her crib and she got her first tooth!  She handled the new tooth like a champ! :-)

It was great to spend time with my parents (MeMaw and PaPaw) and Hannah got to meet her Uncle Brent and Aunt Lauren for the first time.  It was so good to see all of them and made us realize just how much we wish we lived near our family. 

We came home yesterday and drove during the daytime, which was definitely not as easy as the night.  Hannah took two short naps during the drive, but was definitely ready to get out of the car during the last hour or two.  I ended up driving for the second half of the trip and Brian sat in the back with Hannah, to give me a break from the entertaining.  When we got home Hannah was in quite a mood - she obviously missed all the attention she had been getting.  She slept horribly last night and so far today has cried through both of her naps.  She is definitely paying us back for the car ride yesterday.  Maybe she's getting another tooth and this time isn't taking it so well?  Not sure what the problem is, but she is miserable. :-(

We have so much to be thankful for this year - a healthy baby, wonderful family and friends, a secure job for Brian that he loves, the provision Brian's job provides that allows me to stay home with Hannah, our health, our home, and most importantly our Savior who loves us unconditionally!

Siesta Key

I realized I never wrote about our trip to FL.  We spent a full week (July 3-10) in a condo on Siesta Key.  It was so relaxing and beautiful!  We decided to fly, to avoid the 10 hour car trip with a 4 month old and I am so glad we did.  The flight was relatively uneventful, although Hannah did have a minor meltdown on the flight over.  But as soon as the engines came on, she was passed out.

Hannah got to meet her great-grandparents (Brian's mom's parents) and they loved her and she loved them!

Hannah was not a huge beach fan, but it was really hot, so I don't blame her!  She is just too little still.  I have a feeling that she will love it once she can sit up and play in the sand!

The fourth of July took on a whole new meaning...instead of really being able to enjoy the fireworks (we had the most amazing view from the balcony of our condo!) I was worried about Hannah waking up.  But thankfully the condo came equipped with a very loud box fan, which we put on full blast to block out the noise!

Overall, it was a great trip and we really enjoyed spending time with Brian's family!  Here are a few more pics from our trip....

Out of town....

We are leaving BRIGHT and EARLY this morning for FL!  We are so excited and can't wait to spend a week with family, relaxing at the beach.  While I am gone, I have scheduled a few different posts for your reading pleasure.  (I didn't want you to miss me too much!) :-)

I'm sure I will have lots of pictures to share when we get back....sure to be a few shots of a little girl in some 4th of July gear! :-)

Vacation

Just typing that word makes me happy....VACATION!  :-)  We are leaving early Saturday morning to head down to Siesta Key for a week long vacation with Brian's family.  We have rented a condo right on the beach and can hardly wait to get there!  Brian's grandparents live in Sarasota, so the main point of the trip is for them to meet Hannah and for us to get to spend time with them.  But we also plan on relaxing on the beach and in the pool everyday!  Can't wait!!

We decided that we should fly down instead of making the 9+ hour drive with a 3.5 month old.  I realize that at this age, she is probably the most portable she will be for a while, however I just can't stand the idea of her having to be cooped up in the car seat for that long.  She is starting to really not like being in the car, so I can only imagine how awful it would be.  What used to be a 9 hour drive would quickly turn into 10 or 11 with all the stops we would have to make....not to mention how messed up her schedule would be.  So we are opting for a short plane ride (1.5 hours in the air...but of course you have to also factor in the time it will take us to get to the airport and the fact that we have to be there at least an hour early.)  So I am thinking from door to door it will probably be 5 hours, tops.   That's a lot better than 10 or 11 hours.  Plus Hannah will not have to be in her car seat for that whole time, since she will be in our laps on the plane.

Since this will be Hannah's first flight, I am a little nervous about how things will go, but I have a plan (of course!)  Our flight leaves at 8:45am.  Hannah normally wakes up at 6am, eats and goes right back down til 9:30 or 10am.  So instead of putting her back down, we will just feed her and get her ready for the trip to the airport.  Hopefully (but probably not) she will sleep on the way to the airport and while we wait for the flight to take off.  And wouldn't it be amazing if she actually slept on the plan....HAHAHAHA  I highly doubt that she will sleep at all once we get her up at 6am, but one can hope. :-)  I plan on nursing her during take off and during landing (even though that is not her normal feeding time) to help her ears regulate.  And she will have her paci for the flight too.  A couple toys and mommy and daddy to entertain her and hopefully she will be fine.  Then if all goes as planned (which it rarely does), we will arrive in Sarasota at 10:30am and take a cab to our condo.  Hopefully Hannah will get to take her normal afternoon nap (between 2 and 5pm) but with all the family around, I'm just not sure.  The goal is to keep her schedule as normal as possible, to avoid too many melt-downs!  We'll see....

Packing is definitely a challenge, but thankfully we will have a washer and dryer in the condo!  So I plan on packing light and doing laundry while we are there.  Our goal is to not have to check any bags (trying to save a few bucks....HATE that they charge for luggage now!), which could be tough since we are packing for 3 people for a full week.

Please share any advice or tips you have for flying with a 3 or 4 month old and any ideas for things to bring or not bring for her.  I can use all the help I can get!!

Vacation

Sorry I didn't post the last few days....we were on a short vacation.  We went to Blowing Rock, NC where my parents rented a cabin for a few days.  My sister and her family came also and got to meet Hannah for the first time.  It was great to see everyone and get to spend a few days with family.  Oh how we wish they all lived in Atlanta!! 

Hannah did great on the trip.  The only rough time was in the car on the way they when she pooped through her clothes.  She hadn't pooped in several days, so you can imagine!  She did this again, two days later while we were driving on the Blue Ridge Parkway, seeing the beautiful sights.  I have learned to always bring a spare outfit for her! 

We are all feeling so much better after the nasty cold we had.  Thankfully Hannah never got worse and was feeling much better after a couple days.  I still have a runny nose, but I can handle that. 

Hannah will be 12 weeks old tomorrow, which I can hardly believe!  My little girl is growing SO fast!