Vegas Shenanigans

Remember when I got to go Disney Princess Half Marathon it up in Orlando?  Yeah, that was a blast and a half.  I’m STILL talking about it.  Well I got to do that, and JMan go to go to Vegas with his friends.  Except this turned out to be a couples trip, so I lucked out and got to do both!  I’m a lucky gal. 

So you may have already figured out from my super cryptic puzzle I gave you on Monday about Where in the World is Ricole Runs, this weekend we headed to Vegas for a little sun and fun.  Although the sun could have done a better job of impressing me the fun did not disappoint.  I didn’t work, I didn’t blog, I didn't refine my dissertation proposal, in fact I didn’t do much of anything except hang out with JMan and two of the funnest folks around, Mike and Molly, eat my way through Vegas, and read my book at the pool.  Although the weather was  far from ideal, on Sunday afternoon it was nice enough in the secluded (i..e, wind-free) area of the MGM pool to lay out for a bit.  A bit cold for any pool-dipping but reading and hot-tubbing happened

 

This is a really good picture of all of us.  Very flattering.

In case you didn’t know, we lived in Las Vegas a few years ago, but moved away in 2007, so I always feel really nostalgic when we visit.  It was where we lived for the first year JMan and I were married, after all!  Moving from Vegas to Seattle, the #1 thing I absolutely terribly miss is the SUN.  Obviously.  It is sunny there every single day, even when it’s cold (it can be deceiving, as it was on the last day when I dressed in shorts and a tank top only to find it was 50 degrees and very windy!). 

That's our adorable little house we used to live in.  Yes we pulled a "drive-by" and reminisced.  Stalker much?  Look at that blue sky!

Things I don’t miss though are the associated dirt and dust, nothing is green, and you never get that deliciously fresh smell the forests of the Pacific Northwest afford. 

A variety of different Vegas shenanigans happened.  

We all got our poker on at Bally’s (a bust) and Excalibur.  JMan and Mike played poker at pretty much every single casino in Las Vegas but Molly and I aren’t such big gamblers.  Gambling wise I lost $1 on slot machines and about $20 at poker.  Yep, I’m a high roller.  And you can bet I was devastated about that $20.  THAT COULD HAVE BOUGHT ME A 5K RACE ENTRY! 

 Slot-machines were pretty much the extent of our gambling.  I lost my $1 but Molly cleaned up.

Molly and I left the gambling to the boys.

 I got in trouble for taking this picture.  Look how stern that lady looks!

  

 Hat competitions happened.  I saw this hat and instantly called it the Blossom hat.  Agree?!  If you don't know what Blossom is we have a problem.

We stayed at New York New York and it was adequate.  Their pool was closed for maintenance which they failed to tell us when we booked the room or when we checked it.  They tried to appease us with 2 measly free drink tickets that we didn’t even end up using (which goes against my policy of not getting any and all free things!).  Very disappointing NYNY.  The plus from this I guess is that the MGM Pool (where we could go instead as it’s in the MLife Family) was waaaay nicer than the NYNY pool.

 Our room at New York New York.  Simple, but classy.  And don't forget cheap.  That's the #1 ammenity we look for in a hotel room.

"Casino-crawling" our way down the strip happened. 

Hugging horse-dragon statues happened.  Remember how I'm going to have at least two horses on my farm?  Well make those dragon-horses instead please.

And also hugging ancient warrior statues happened.  Yes I wear Nike's with skirts.  Deal with it.

And my very first ever trip to the famous Las Vegas sign happened!  Can you believe I'd never been here before?  I got duped by the lady ofering to take our picture "for a tip".  JMan and Mike were not amused by my naivety. 

Two thumbs up for a fun trip!

Now back to the battle of the exes real world challenge real world. 

Have you been to Las Vegas?  What's your favorite Vegas Shenanigan?  Where's your favorite place to stay and what's your favorite thing to do?