Las Vegas Vacation - Part One

Hello friends and followers...and for those here in the US, happy Labor Day!

I have returned from a MARVELOUS (and very much needed) Las Vegas vacation and once I catch up on sleep and get back on Iowa time, I will feel very refreshed. We had a lovely time and did all sorts of fun things! We stayed at the brand new Vdara Hotel and Spa, pretty much in the center of the strip (right next to the Bellagio)...our room was quite something - everything was run by remote (even the window treatments) and we had a 39th story view of the fountains at the Bellagio - it was extremely quiet without a casino, and I thoroughly enjoyed the clean, crisp, contemporary/modern decor. The sculptures and artwork were quite something - including the tree of canoes in front of the hotel (seen below). We did spend quite a bit of time next door at Vdara's sister the Aria Hotel and Casino (also brand new) where my husband could play cards and do a little gambling.

We rented a car - and not just any car, a 2010 black Chevy Camaro - and if you saw any of my tweets, you know we did quite a bit of sightseeing in the area. Our first full day of seeing the sights, we drove to the amazing Mt. Charleston Lodge, tucked away in the Spring Mountains - oh my goodness, was this drive beautiful - and although it was 103 degrees in Las Vegas, it was 68 degrees in the mountains - we sat outside at the lodge and had a delicious lunch (the photo below is the view from our outside dining table). Besides the smell of pine, one of the neatest things about sitting outside...hummingbirds were flying everywhere - they were zipping around our table for the entire meal - it was like being in a storybook.

We then drove to red Rock Canyon - and another super cool thing happened - just as I was making fun of the "Burro Crossing" signs, we came upon (guess what?)....a burro crossing the road to get a bite to eat...he was adorable and I wanted so badly to get out and pet him (but refrained) - I guess the burro and wild horse crossing signs are no joke! Red Rock Canyon was awe inspiring...so very beautiful and so very quiet...the drive through the park was amazing and we stopped at all of the scenic overviews to get photos and walk some of the short trails.

Then it was back to the city for another fabulous dinner and some gambling, followed by seeing Blue Man Group at the Venetian - we had special Allegiant Air tickets, right in the center, right in the front - it was a fantastic show - then we got to go to the Blue Lounge for a meet and greet (with two other couples)...which was totally cool, as one of the members actually spoke and let us ask lots of questions (check out my tweets for a photo of me with a member of Blue Man Group!)...and then each of the members signed our tickets by placing their blue fingerprints on them - a totally unique experience. And I almost forgot to mention - earlier in the day, when we stopped at the Venetian to pick up our tickets, we went to Madame Tussauds Wax Museum - what a hoot this was! - if you haven't been there, all of the stars are posed, so you can have your photos taken with them - we had so much fun walking through each room and "seeing" all sorts of famous people - and they do look SO VERY real! If you read my tweets, then you saw a funny photo of me between Johnny Depp and Justin Timberlake (talk about a dream)...the museum was great for a bunch of laughs and giggling and I would definitely go back.

The next day found us making a trip to Stitcher's Paradise, Quiltique (thank you Kathryn for the GREAT suggestion), and the Hoover Dam and Bypass Bridge. Stitcher's Paradise was phenomenal - truly heaven for a needleworker - and although I didn't buy much stash (as we all know, I have enough to last a lifetime), I truly enjoyed my visit. Quiltique - well let's just say, I think this is my favorite quilt shop I have ever visited - I was seriously speechless when I walked in the door - and I did buy some stash, in fact, probably more than I should have - my husband even left for a bit, so I could do some serious shopping - it is a FANTASTIC quilt shop! We then made out way to the Hoover Dam and Bypass Bridge - we had visited there in February and wanted to see if the bridge was completed - but they are still working on it. We saw so many neat things - I will be back with more photos soon....

Today, we celebrated Labor Day with my husband Travis's parents - we had a lovely late lunch - Travis barbecued pork loins....and I made a bunch of sides, including that great green bean salad I shared with you last month....dessert was cheese cake...mmmm, yummy....we all had PLENTY to eat (and there are lots of leftovers)! If you are in the United States, I hope you are enjoying your holiday weekend...