Could He BE Any Cuter?

I think not. Here are the results of Andrew's latest fashion shoot...aka...Christmas photopalooza. Feel free to leave a plethora of comments regarding his spectacular cuteness, etc. Pardon the shot with me in it, it couldn't be avoided! There were lots more shots but the place where we took the pictures (which shall remain un-named but the initials are KK), are kinda stingy with photo rights and I haven't scanned in the VERY EXPENSIVE prints I bought yet.
Andrew is excited about the upcoming holiday, although threatening that Santa is watching is not getting me as much bang for the buck as it did last year...maybe I overused it? He wants a firetruck set he saw at the planetarium MONTHS ago-I swear this kid's memory is like a steel trap...what I wouldn't give to remember the things he does...

I am entering the holidays with mixed emotions as a single mom. I can't shop with wild abandon like I could a year ago, which isn't the end of the world but definitely something to get used to. Also, I am apprehensive about the visitation schedule for Christmas since we have mediation on the 17th and that is where such things are to be decided. Nervous! I will keep you posted but am looking at the definite possibility that I might be spending this Christmas...ALONE! Let's hope for the best, shall we?

Special Delivery!

Fall Makes Me Happy!

I have been meaning for awhile to post about the wonders of fall. It has always been my favorite season and not because of Halloween or Thanksgiving or any other specific date on the calendar. My favorite holiday is Christmas and I am not a fan of winter in general. Fall is beautiful! Beyond beautiful. Makes me feel serene and happy. Which as of late is saying something! Love watching the colors on the mountainside behind my house change, love watching bushes that were green last week turn red, not rust, not pink, RED! In the past I have loved taking lots of pictures in the fall, and just generally try to spend as much time outside as possible, enjoying the scenery. This year, with all the personal "turmoil" in my life, which for those of you who don't know includes my separation and impending divorce, I have not had the inclination to do much of it (or much of anything for that matter), and feel I have really missed out on something special. I took Andrew to the zoo this weekend, which is where I took the above picture, and I was much more taken with the falling leaves and amazing color changes than I was with the animals! It was nice to get out and do something that felt like the "old" me for awhile. So, although the season is drawing to a close, I hereby pledge to make the most of the last few days of the most picturesque time of the year. Heading outside to go roll in the leaves...maybe start a leaf fight!

NO TEARS!

My son got to have lunch with me today at school. We had chicken nuggets, fries, carrot sticks and chocolate milk. It was fantastic! One of the best lunches I have ever had-not because it was prepared by a gourmet chef. Not because I got to eat with my son, although that was very nice. The reason I loved my lunch so much today was because it marked the first day since kindergarten started that Andrew has made it through the entire school day without crying. Lunch with mom was the reward. Don't even think about telling me bribery is wrong. Bribery is the bomb. Wish me luck on tear-free day #2!

Rite of Passage

Andrew started kindergarten yesterday and nothing does a worried mom's heart more good than her son taking an instant liking to his sweet kindergarten teacher. The first thing he did when I introduced him to Mrs. Moffett was hug her, and although he is a friendly child, that is not his typical stranger greeting. Mrs. Moffett seems like such a loving, nurturing person, I just know she will be good for Andrew. And clap for me-I didn't cry! I had butterflies in my stomach and my heart was beating like crazy, but no tears from momma bear.

Andrew had a fun morning in Kindergarten but when I went to peek in on him during my recess (I know don't hover mom!), he was in tears over some kind of bathroom incident, which he is still refusing to talk about. From what I can gather it has something to do with not wanting to go to the bathroom by himself. I don't know...kids! Anyway, according to Andrew, Mrs. Moffett sang songs, read a book about a shark starting school and gave them a snack of goldfish and pretzels (he only ate the pretzels). His favorite part of the day? Typical boy...RECESS! So my boy is on his little way in the world...I'm just glad I'm only across the building in case he "needs" me!

What is the Meaning of This?

I lost 15 pounds this summer resisting all manner of goodies, treats and not so good for me food at home. Start back to school today and can't stop rummaging around for everything fattening! Currently scarfing down a multitude of mini kit-kats which I don't even like that much. What does this mean? Hello again 15 pounds!

Think maybe I'll start updating my blog again but don't dare say so because everytime I do, I lie. Will definitely be blogging about Bubba's first day of kindergarten today as soon as camera is home to upload pics. Come back soon! (ish)

Little Fish

So much for my twice a week blogging resolution eh? No sooner do I set a goal then I lose all motivation and follow through whatsoever. I am really making the most of the LAZY days of summer-emphasis on lazy! Well, here I am blogging about what I meant to blog about two weeks ago, but better late than never is my mantra!
Andrew has been a little fish this summer, showing off his skills at swimming lessons -where he was the smallest and oldest in his class and could barely touch the bottom of the pool, but that didn't slow him down one bit!-to the Plunge and slip n slide at Meemaw's, to Lagoona Beach-wasn't much into the slides but requested at one point to move to "deeper water!" Andrew has always been comfortable in the water and unlike some kids his age, it doesn't bother him to get his face wet. In fact at swimming lessons, he got in trouble (not from the teenage swimming teacher mind you-but his mother on the sidelines) for having his face in the water TOO MUCH. So much that he wasn't hearing anything the teacher had to say. Still having trouble differentiating between water "playtime" and water "learn time", but at least he is having fun, learning a few skills and most importantly becoming comfortable in the water. This is the third year I have enrolled him in swimming lessons and our first at Surf and Swim in Layton.

Last year he had private lessons from one of my student's sisters and one-on-one learning with her has been the most effective by far. His teacher recommended he take Level One again next year, mainly because of his size. We'll keep trying!

One thing he doesn't stand for when it comes to water is being splashed in the face as our friends Carter and Kathryn and our cousin Rylee can tell you. You don't see Andrew mad often, but if you want o see him throw a hissy fit, go ahead and splash him in the face. I wouldn't recommend it.

Happy Birthday America!

This is the first year I think Andrew has begun to understand what the Fourth of July is really about. Of course he has never minded going to parades, partaking of endless candy, barbecuing with family and friends, and strangely has never complained about watching amazing awe-inspiring fireworks displays.

I remember his first fireworks when he was only a couple of months old and although we were very close to the river where they are shot from in my hometown, the kid slept through the whole thing. Now that's talent-have I mentioned his love of sleep? But I digress...

Until this year I don't think he has the slightest idea what all the fuss of the Fourth was really about.This year we discussed the birthday of our country and all the blessings we had to be grateful for because we live here. He sings the most delightful, off-key but precious rendition of ,"The Star Spangled Banner," that begins,"Oh..Grace can you see?" He learned the tune and then made up his own words from going to the assemblies while in daycare at the Northridge High. I can't get enough of it but of course he will very rarely sing it for me because I think maybe I request it too much. But on our country's Independence Day, he sang it loud and proud and pretty much all day long (while waving his requisite free-at-the parade flag). That was a nice touch.

Normally, we head down to the river to watch,"The biggest fireworks display west of the Mississippi," but this year we mellowed out at home and did our own little street display. Since I have an unreasonable fear of fireworks (stemming from an incident with a sparkler down my shirt in Jr. high), Andrew probably wouldn't have had the chance to hold the sparkly stick of pain had it not been for my mom and sister's insistence. All was well, no burns or traumatic incidents thank goodness.

So, we still had parades, lots of food, family and fireworks, but this year the holiday was made a little sweeter knowing that my son is beginning to understand the importance of patriotism and what it means to be a citizen of this great country of ours. How was your Fourth of July? What tradition does your family have for the holiday?

Ahhh Naptime...My Daily Respite!

I am setting a goal to rededicate my blogging efforts. Originally, the purpose of this blog was to closely document the happenings in the life of my little guy, Andrew, "Before I Forgot," which I tend to do so easily. I have gotten distracted lately and am finding that those little things he says and does which are so precious at the time, are once again becoming lost to me forever because I am forgetting to document them. So, this is my renewed pledge, to blog about Andrew at least twice a week for the rest of the year. I can do it! Let's start with the wonder of naps, shall we?

Can you believe my darling five year old child still takes naps? He not only takes naps but:

1) Lots of times, when feeling sleepy, he'll tell ME that he would like to go to sleep, rather than the other way around. This is not a forced nap, believe me!

2) He sleeps for between 1 1/2-3 hours, STILL!

3) This gives me a nice little "me time" every day where I can tend to "mommy" business, such as, blogging, reading e-mail, facebooking, scrapbooking, chatting on the phone, or heaven forbid, have a little nappie time myself. (Any guesses as to what my little guy is doing RIGHT NOW?)

4) He wakes up cheerful and refreshed, not grumpy as I am told some children do, ready for whatever the rest of the day might bring.

5) He still goes to bed between 8:30-9:00 every night, no arguing. He likes his sleep. He does wake up rather early though, between 6:30-7:00, so there's the trade-off.

6) He's a non-discriminatory napper. The nap does not have to take place in a bed, wherever he is, he's going to have his nap. The car, friend' houses, heck, The San Diego Zoo(see picture above-sorry not very good I had to scan it). If he's tired, he will NAP!

I really am such a lucky mom in many ways, but today I wanted to pay special homage to the beauty of the daily nap. How is the poor child going to make it through kindergarten in the fall without his daily sleepy time? Do any of you still indulge in daily naps on occasion? If so when and how often?

Busy Time with Meemaw

My mom (Andrew's Meemaw) came for a visit this week. I spent the several days prior to her arrival running around the house frantically, trying to unpack the last of the boxes from the move and be sure every room would pass the infamous one-handed white glove test (which is actually a figment of my imagination, but I always think she might just surprise me one time and whip a white glove out). Like I have said before, I am not a complete pig, but my mother is an immaculate housekeeper, so I am always a little intimidated when she comes to visit. Not to mention the fact that we just moved and I was still working up to the week before she arrived, so it was all I could do to get everything done! (Excuses, excuses!) Anyway, after staying up several nights in a row I began to realize there was no possible way I could get every room ready in time. I gave up and made the best of it by shoving what I could in closets and making sure the front rooms were presentable. My mom could not have been sweeter! She complimented me on what I had been able to get done in the house so far, and spent every other second of her time with us being totally about Andrew and me and making sure we were well settled in our new place. She and I stayed up together every night (it's much more fun staying up late when someone else is staying up WITH you!), cleaning, reorganizing, washing, folding, decorating, and matching three boxes of unmated socks!!

It rained pretty much the whole 4 days she was here so we took Andrew to a place in Bountiful called Kangaroo Zoo. It's full of all kinds of bouncy toys and slides and he really liked it. Unfortunately, scatterbrained me forgot the camera for that particular outing so you don't get to see how cute he looked on the bouncy toys.

The next day we lucked out and it was clear outside, so we headed to Wheeler Farm in Murray. I liked it because it was free, the boy liked it because tractors are involved (and he made me promise in advance to steer clear of the geese), and my mom had never been so it was perfect. We lucked out again because it started raining just as we left. Then we headed to Kohl's and mom bought Andrew some new church clothes.

Due to the fact the Andrew's OPU (Other Parental Unit-Thanks for the perfect terminology Emma!) had visitation Wednesday evening and Fri-Sun., mom and I even managed to sneak in a couple of movies. It has been months since I have seen a "grown-up" movie, so I took full advantage. We saw Terminator, starring my angst ridden boyfriend, Christian Bale, and another movie that shall not be named due to the R-rating (we didn't realize until after we bought tickets or my mom would not have gone), and very inappropriate content. I have to admit I did laugh in the second movie a couple of times between wincing and cringing.

I will not lie-I am EXHAUSTED, but the house looks AWESOME! I could not have accomplished so much so quickly without my mom's help and encouragement. It was fun having time just the two of us to bond and have girl talk. It's too bad that sometimes you have to go through a lot of trials and unpleasant changes in life to come to a realization about how much people mean to you. I don't think I have given my mom enough credit for everything she has done and continues to do for me. Thanks for everything mom-I love you!

Pink USED to be my favorite color

until it showed up in BOTH Bubba's eyes this morning. Yes, the wonders of the bacterial infection known as PINK EYE (aka conjunctivitis)! Supposedly only dirty people, "white trash" and those who don't wash after using the potty (which I suppose would actually fall into one category since dirty people generally are trashy and don't wash their potty hands) are cursed with this affliction and this is our third battle with the beast in the last two years. I am designating a new category of people whose kids get pink eye-the working mothers whose kids have to go to daycare (if they want a place to live and food to eat) and whose kid went to a birthday party with a bunch of kids Saturday and who maybe got it from some potty handed kid at church on Sunday group. How's that for a category? Totally not what I need right now! I am taking a day without pay today to be able to stay home with him since I am fresh out of leave at work. Gee, I wonder why I would be out of leave with only 9 school days left? Sigh...when it rains it pours! I was rushing around the house this morning saying, "We're late Andrew, gotta hurry!" and then I looked over at his crusted over little eyes and said,"Nevermind, we're staying home," which of course thrilled him. He's a trooper-hasn't complained one bit from being poked and prodded by the doctor to having cold and slightly stingy liquid repeatedly squirted into his eyes. He's such a good boy and I am so lucky to have him-pink eyes and all! (Now watch my cats will get it and I'll spend twice as much on them getting it cleared up as I did on my human child.) Pray for me please!

Not Dead-Just Stressed

Well, yes, dear reader, I am still alive! I just noticed and was quite alarmed that I have not posted on this blog for almost a month! Quite shameful! And I have missed you, dear reader, as posting on this blog has always been something I have rather enjoyed. I guess the reason why I have been missing in action lately is that I have been going through some stuff-shall we say? I will have more time to explain after school is out (9 days-whose counting?) but until then, I am fine, Bubba is fine, we are well and starting out on a new adventure together! I figured that although I have nothing terribly exciting to share, if I didn't post soon, I'd forget how-maybe this will reinvigorate me and I'll start posting more often like the good old days.

(Don't you love cryptic messages that leave you wondering what the heck is going on? Yeah, I hate them too!)

Wicked Awesome!

Last weekend my mom, sister and niece were in town to help me celebrate my 35th birthday. With all the drama that has been going down in my personal life lately, it was really nice to get away from it all and have some fun with two of my favorite people. We did a little shopping at Gardner Village, went out to eat at Macaroni Grill, took the kids to Discovery Gateway and then, last but not least, we went to see this...
I have been wanting to see Wicked for a long time and let me just say that it was worth the wait. I think I am borderline obsessed I liked it so much. Worth every penny! Two thumbs up!! Four stars!!! It was the cherry on top of a very fun birthday weekend sundae.

Spotlight: Andrew at Five

I did one of these kid's favorites posts when I first started this blog, but the boy just turned five and as I read through the old list, some things have changed. Here's the update:

Favorite Color(s): Silver, black, white, red and pink (this child will not be tied down to one color, and generally chooses whichever color from the above list happens to drive by us in a cool car that he spots and admires)

Favorite Book: The one that is requested the most is probably: Knuffle Bunny Too! by Mo Willems (sequel to the beloved Knuffle Bunny adventure). Darling book and I Andrew loves the illustrations that are black and white photographs with cartoon drawings on top of them. Are you surprised the favorite book does not involve trucks, cars, trains, airplanes or construction equiptment. Yes, interesting.

Favorite Movie: Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (the classic version). He loves singing all the songs, especially the Oompa Loompa warning about too much TV and getting fat-it is hilarious! He has also taken to quoting entire scenes of dialogue (repeatedly), which has caused us to seriously limit Wonka viewing. So amazing that five year olds aren't bothered by low-budget special effects and less than stellar acting-it's all about the Oompa Loompas!

Favorite Food: Frozen Marie Calendar's Chicken Pot Pie . I know, not the most nutritious meal for a toddler, but it will do in a pinch for a fast dinner on SEP night or lunch on a Saturday and he loves the things! It's not like he's eating them everyday and no I am not defensive! (They have carrots and peas in them!) Favorite Toy: Dad's Pliers. (Should I even be letting him play with pliers?)This child has millions of the latest and greatest toys to play with, but he cannot get enough of a pair of old pliers he found in the laundry room the other day. They have transformed into dentist's tools, sea monsters and remarkably-pliers, all in a matter of a few days.

Other Likes: Jumping on the trampoline, pop tarts, playing at the park, Caillou (the bald cartoon kid), playing games with mom and dad (a recent fave is Pictureka which he is surprisingly very good at), sucking his thumb (STILL!!! although it is becoming much less frequent), Oreo shakes, cheeseburgers ("KETCHUP ONLY! no pickles, no mustard!"), going on field trips, trucks, our cat Rocky (not so much our cat Boo), cake (it's the only way we can get him to attend friends' and family's birthday parties without complaining, juice boxes, entertaining, watching movies.

Dislikes: Cleaning his room, riding his bike (I know, weird-we have to FORCE him), being away from mom and dad, going poop (it bothers him-did I mention this kid is QUIRKY?), shopping (he always asks, "are we just getting ONE thing?"), cheese (unless it's melted on a burger), raw carrots (cooked are fine).

Monsters vs. Aliens

I took Bubba to see this little gem today and we both quite enjoyed it for very different reasons. Andrew liked the army troops, helicopters, tanks, spaceships, aliens, monsters and battle scenes. I liked that the hero of the movie is a girl (played very sweetly by Reese Witherspoon), who learns crucial life lessons about female empowerment, self-esteem, and the importance of good friends. Andrew is reenacting the army scenes as I write this but I am hopeful that someday, if I do my job correctly, he will come to understand the "other" essential parts of this movie. I give 4 1/2 out of 5 stars and recommend it to anyone who is looking for a couple hours of low maintenance (translation: I get to sit on my bum and do nothing while my child is highly entertained) family fun! I would tell you all about the spectacular 3-D effects, but unfortunately my neighborhood theater didn't feature the 3-D version.

A Birthday to Remember

I think I am finally recovered enough from last weekend's festivities to try and blog about them. We had so much going on and had so much fun, I don't think I will be able to begin to do it justice, but I will try.
My family came into town early Friday evening and we headed to Garcia's for dinner. It wasn't meant to be a birthday dinner, but someone asked Andrew if he thought it would be fun to get to wear the "birthday sombrero" and be serenaded with Happy Birthday, Mexican style. Of course, he was all about it, especially when he heard fried ice cream would also be part of the deal-OLE'!
After dinner, we were off to Disney on Ice-Mickey and Minnie's Adventure or something like that. It was fun, but mostly for Rylee-Andrew lost interest pretty quickly. Funny, he enjoyed the ice show plenty when we took him when he was three. His tastes are becoming much more discriminating as he gets older I suppose. It weren't no MONSTER TRUCK RALLY- He's becoming a true boy's boy!
The next day was the Big Day-Party Day! Andrew chose a construction theme (he actually couldn't decide between construction and Spiderman, so I made the final call). I think the results were pretty darn cute, if I do say so myself. I served Andrew's treat choices-Doritos, Cheetos, Peanut M & Ms and Skittles in little plastic dump trucks. I threw in carrots and dip so it looked like we were at least TRYING to be healthy. We had traffic cones, caution tape and balloons outside for decoration. Andrew invited 10 of his little friends and cousins and 7 of them ending up coming, which was plenty! Every kid got a pair of goggles, a carpenter's apron and plastic hard hat to wear. Funny, not very many of the kids chose to wear theirs-I thought kids just loved to play dress up?

We played three games:
1. Tower building contest with legos

2. Tool Relay-the kids had to load a series of plastic tools into their tool pouches and then unload them so the next person could go lay them back down in the line. I think it was probably the most fun game.

3. Beanbag toss into the back of a plastic dumptruck

(I had more games ready, but we started getting short on time).

Then the kids decorated cookies my sister made in the shapes of hard hats and dump trucks (Thanks Hill!) Then we opened presents and Andrew got a TON of great new things. He was opening them so fast, I had a hard time keeping track of what was from who, but some of his favorites were some cool truck videos from Meemaw, a motorized shark monster truck from Rylee, and of course the trampoline from mommy and daddy.

Finally, it was cake time (which Andrew had been asking for since before the party started as soon as he saw the cake). He kept asking, "Are we going to have cake yet?" The people at the bakery did a great job making up for my inability to make a homemade cake-I thought his construction cake looked fantastic! Andrew loved it too, and that's what really matters, right?

After the party, everyone worked on getting the trampoline put together until it was time to go to dinner. Andrew got to choose where he wanted to go, and much to the delight of my dad, he said he wanted to go to,"the place with the buffalo head and pink butter" aka Maddox in Brigham City. So buffalo head and pink butter he had and a pretty good birthday too, if you ask me. Good thing you only turn 5 once!

Happy 5th Birthday Bubba!

Here's a big birthday shout-out to my very favorite kid in the world! I am so teary and emotional today. He is turning five and I am at work. We celebrated (big time) over the weekend but I feel like the time is slipping by so quickly, I just wish I could be with him, today of all days! I couldn't ask for a better boy to be my son and I don't think I appreciate and treasure him as much as I should. He really is a GREAT kid! Party details to come...

Planning THE Party

I have been MIA for the last couple of weeks. Apart from recovering from my vacation, working my fingers to the bone, and spending too much time playing with my new toy, Facebook, I have been occupied with important business. The business of planning THE party. My boy and only child, Andrew, the Bubba, apple of my eye and center of the universe is turning five on the 16th. (Moment of silence while I shed a tear-they really DO grow up too fast!).


Thus, a party MUST be had. A party to end all parties. A party the likes of which has never been seen before. And the party's theme will be...DRUM ROLL PLEASE...Construction! I think I have mentioned before that my son aspires to drive a dump truck or if he's REALLY successful a tow truck. (I am not slamming people who do this type of work for a living-I just want to make sure he at least gets a college education first!)


So, I am expected to plan an unforgettable shindig with nothing but dump trucks and bulldozers as inspiration? Well, that's what the boy wants and so he shall have it! So I have been googling and running from store to store to find the best cake, games, toys, prizes and goody bag loot to be had. The party is Saturday and if anyone shows up, I think it will be really fun. I will be sure to post pictures and a full report as soon as I recover from the social event of the season. If you have any brilliant ideas to contribute, I would love any help. Over and out.

I'm Ba-ack!

Actually, I've been back since Monday, but am only now caught up and recovered enough from my mini-vacay to actually talk-rather, blog-about it. It was a fun, yet surprisingly exhausting trip. Aren't vacations supposed to be relaxing and regenerating? I guess not if you go to the city that never sleeps.

We flew in late Thursday night and after taking forever (and risking our lives in one of the city's shuttles)to get from the airport to our hotel, party animals that we are just ended up checking in and going to bed. That was after spending an hour changing rooms because they put us on a smoking floor and my sister's room was excessively stinky. The next morning we wanted to start off Vegas style so we went to a buffet and then spent the rest of the day wandering aimlessly around the strip, in and out of casinos-seeing the sights.

Friday night we saw Tony and Tina's wedding which was funny but stressful because the cast is all up in your face the whole time trying to interact and get you to dance, etc. I guess I am the kind of spectator that just likes to watch and be entertained because it got on my nerves that I couldn't just sit there and enjoy-I had to be worried about who was coming my way and what they were going to say or try to get me to do. One of the cast members was very disappointed because he had pegged me as the "crazy lady" and had expected me to be wild when he saw me laughing and being loud outside in the line for the show. He was especially let down when he wanted to loosen me up with a drink and I had to inform him that I do not partake.

Saturday was shopping at the outlets which was fun but pretty unremarkable. I didn't find anything I couldn't live without, although I did end up with two new pairs of shoes. Go figure. We had dinner at the Rainforest Cafe. A little pricey but I guess you pay a little for the fun ambiance and moving jungle animals. (The picture is of Hillary and I trying to escape a vicious man-eating snake. Can't you just sense the fear?) That night was my favorite when we went to see Cirque Du Soleil's KA. It was breathtaking and as I had expected, worth every penny. If you have never seen a Cirque show, you have to put it on your list. I spent the whole time amazed, wondering over and over again, "How did they do THAT?" AMAZING!

Sunday we got up early and went to Hoover Dam, which Hillary hadn't seen before. Although I've seen it before, it was worth seeing again. It is pretty cool and definitely a piece of modern history. That afternoon we split up and Hillary and Justin went to see the Bodies show which had been in Salt Lake the month before so we had already seen it. Kent and I went to see the sharks at Mandalay Bay. On the way through the casino, I stuck my traditional $5 in one of the slot machines. Three spins into my play, I won $200! JACKPOT! I cashed out, considered myself lucky and ended my gambling streak right then. That was pretty cool.

Sunday night we did the "famous" Rio buffet, then headed to Madame Tussuad's Wax Museum at the Venetian. It took some doing (and about an hour of wandering around aimlessly) to find it, but we managed and it was pretty fun. You have to look twice at some of those wax people they are so real looking! We figured we better call it a night at that point since we flew out the next morning. So that was my trip to Vegas. Lots of fun, but it flew by really fast. I guess time always does when you're having fun!

Viva Las Vegas!

I am ever so reluctantly leaving all this:
To spend a few days relaxing here:

Looks pretty relaxing, no? The forecast calls for temperatures between 65-71 degrees throughout the weekend. It will be difficult, but I will try to enjoy myself. Now, how can we, you may ask, middle-class average citizens that we are in the midst of a terrible recession and economic slump, be jetting to Vegas to party our cares away? No we cannot afford it and I don't know what we were thinking when we planned the trip except that the air fare was ridiculously cheap and we just received our measly TAX REFUND which we wholeheartedly intend to blow as we do our part to stimulate the weak economy! We are patriots, through and through! Plus the trip is our anniversary AND Valentine's Day combo celebration. We didn't even get each other a card so we could save every penny for our luxury getaway. We are leaving the boy with his Meemaw (my mother) and my sister and her hubby are coming with us. We get to go see this:...which I hear is hilarious and dinner is included-BARGAIN! We will also be seeing this:
Not a bargain, but I have seen a couple of other Cirque Du Soleil shows and they are fantastic and worth every penny. We'll call that our splurge. None of us are much for this:

So we can save more money for doing this:
...at the outlets of course! Vacation on a budget-what a way to travel! I guess we are what you might call "low-rollers." I'll be sure to report on my fantastic trip upon my return.