Adventures in Vegas

Tyler needed to attend a seminar in Las Vegas for three days and rather than send him alone we decided to make it an adventure for the big kids. It turned out to be a lot of fun, although harder on Brig and Darla and Mom than expected. Since it was just the walk-able's while Daddy was in classes Mom and the three amigos wandered all over the strip and beyond and saw some amazing things.

I didn't get pictures of our favorite part - Elevators, Escalators and Revolving doors. We must have ridden up and down and gone around and around a million times and went out of our way to ride over and over again. We also loved taking turns pushing all the buttons. Seriously - I was the coolest Mom ever when I just stopped in front of the biggest revolving door I'd ever seen and we walked around it 12 or 13 times. Everyone was staring, but my kids thought I rocked!

We went to the biggest Bass Pro Shops and Outdoor World I'd ever been to. There was a full-size giraffe and a lion pride habitat exhibit. We were fascinated with all the animals and displays - like a stuffed zoo.

Kabe gave me this "I'm cool" face all over and it cracked me up.

We loved the fountains at the Bellagio. We waited for over 30 minutes to see them and then, unexpectedly they did three shows in a row. It really was beautiful and worth the wait.
Kabe kept trying to scare me by climbing higher. I told him if he fell in he'd have to swim to the other side because I wouldn't be able to climb over and save him. That was enough to make the girls nervous and we ganged up on him to hold on tight.
We went to the Ceasar's Palace mall and I loved the ceilings - they were all painted like clouds and I decided someday I'll do that in one room of my house. Every hallway had a big statue in it and the fronts of the stores were so elaborate. It was over the top for a mall, but fun to see.
The kids loved the 'moving statues' which I thought were really corny and over-dramatic. I wasn't a huge fan and wouldn't walk that far again, but the kids just loved it.
The aquarium at the Silverton was amazing. It is the biggest salt water tank I've ever seen and the little sharks and rays were so beautiful. We sat and watched them for a long time and every time we moved to a new spot the rays would come and sit at the bottom of the tank at Kabe's feet. It was like they were following him around and he loved it.
This is the light in the lobby of the Bellagio. It was incredible - tons of little glass flowers or what I thought looked like jellyfish all hung together at different levels. It was really beautiful and although the kids weren't terribly impressed I had to stare for a few minutes.
The gardens there were all decorated in the Chinese New Year theme with dragons that moved and blow smoke and incense. Again - everything was so over-the-top but cool to see. This was the most crowded lobby by far but also the cleanest and we didn't have to walk through the casino in this one.
On the streets there were 'performers' dressed as characters. I know that they wanted me to pay money to take their picture but I wasn't going to. This lady pretty much attacked my kids and made them pose with her and when she tried to get Kabe to make a peace sign he just looked at her like she was the strangest thing ever. I don't think he knew what she was getting at and was anxious to get out of her space.
He DID want this picture though - he got really excited when he saw them and then asked if they could turn into cars for him. I laughed and asked weren't they supposed to be bigger? He just said they couldn't walk around with people if they were their car size.
One of the highlights of the trip was the m&m store. They loved the 3-d movie and insisted on spending all the pennies and quarters that they brought to buy m&m's of their color choosing. Of course then we put them all in the same bag and it looked like the $1 bag you'd buy at wal-mart, but I guess it was all about the experience.
This is the MGM Grand lion habitat. It was cool to see them up close and Ayvri had climbed right up next to the glass when they let them out one of them ran right up to the glass and she scrambled so fast to get away it made me laugh. We also got to walk under them while they were sleeping and the kids liked seeing their drool and breathe on the glass.
Again - the lobby was decorated so elaborately and they had a beautiful garden space in the rotunda with the Chinese New Year theme.
Of course they loved staying in a hotel and got all excited about 'hanging' out there. We had to move Kabe to the floor on night #2 because Ayvri is such a wiggler she kept kicking the other two. We stayed at the Stratosphere and I didn't get pictures but we did go up to the top and look off. Ksenya and Daddy got a real kick out of the heights and the rest of us tried to stay calm on the couches while they explored. I don't love heights and neither does Kabe. We went to Circus Circus and saw some amazing acrobats and a clown, Ayvri was especially impressed with how "bendy" the girl acrobat was.

We also saw the pirate show at Treasure Island. There was fire and big splashed, fireworks and music. I could have done with a change of costume and the kids were less than impressed with their lack of modesty. It was interesting to watch them react to things like the little 'business cards' that they pass out on the strip, to the driving billboards with 'naked pictures' on them, and to the homeless people begging on the street. The kids are so compassionate. They are always looking for the good and I think that they learned some good lessons. Mostly it was fun to just spend time with them and talk a LOT. I got my fill of Vegas for a while, but the best part was having an adventure with the kids.