Take A Little Trip With Me...

A view of the Paris Hotel Eiffel Tower
from the Bellagio Hotel

As some of you may know, I took a short vacation this past week...which is pretty much unheard of...it had been over five years since I took some time away that didn't involve a work trip or walking 60-miles for charity. My husband, close friends, and family pretty much had to *force* me to go - I felt extremely guilty taking time away and I knew we couldn't afford it - but truth be told, it did lighten my load a bit. I wasn't quite sure how to relax, as I have such a set daily schedule and I am pretty much on auto-pilot at home...and although I was up and ready to go each morning before 6:00 AM and I still got in a training walk each day, I do feel like a had a little time to just breathe. My husband had made arrangements to take me to Las Vegas for a few days....we stayed on the strip at the beautiful Aria Resort & Casino...and I didn't have to take care of work obligations, cooking, cleaning, the yard, or dogs for several days. We rented a car, so we could go out and do some exploring - the lights of Las Vegas are wonderful, but there are so many beautiful things to see in the area...

We arrived on Monday afternoon - enjoyed a leisurely lunch - explored some of the resorts/casinos on Las Vegas Blvd. - including the Bellagio (it's not a trip to Las Vegas without visiting the Conservatory & Botanical Gardens)...and we had a light dinner and cocktails at Javier's.

Our hotel room with a view at Aria...

 Fiori di Como chandelier by glass sculptor Dale Chihuly - Bellagio Hotel Lobby

Summer Garden Party Exhibit at the Bellagio Hotel Conservatory & Botanical Gardens

Summer Garden Party Exhibit at the Bellagio Hotel Conservatory & Botanical Gardens

Summer Garden Party Exhibit at the Bellagio Hotel Conservatory & Botanical Gardens

Summer Garden Party Exhibit at the Bellagio Hotel Conservatory & Botanical Gardens

Javier's in the Aria Hotel - Tequila Tree (my new favorite thing!) - I enjoyed
several AMAZING hand-shaken jalapeno margaritas during our stay...

Tuesday, we traveled to Grand Canyon National Park and although it rained off and on for most of the trip - we really enjoyed the day! It was quite a bit of driving, but we felt it was completely worth it....especially since my husband had never seen the Grand Canyon before. We went to the south rim...and spent almost a full day exploring this beautiful National Park. We got in quite a bit of walking on several of the trails...including one that follows the rim of the canyon. We saw elk, mule deer, and quite a bit of wildlife...including (you guessed it) a squirrel! Then made a stop at In-N-Out Burger (another first for my husband) for a quick bite to eat on the way back to the city.

Wednesday, we explored some more hotel/casinos in the early morning, met Travis's cousin for a late breakfast/early lunch, then made our way to Red Rock Canyon for more amazing Nevada scenery, hiking, and walking. Afterwards, we made the drive to Mt. Charleston Lodge (on of my favorite places on the planet). We took the more scenic (longer) drive to the top of Mt. Charleston, then enjoyed a delicious dinner outside on the deck at the lodge - the view is spectacular...and hummingbirds were buzzing around...it is a magical place and a "must visit" every time we are in the area. Afterwards, we drove back to Las Vegas, where my husband played in a poker tournament (he won!) and I did some exploring/walking on my own...

Red Rock Canyon

Red Rock Canyon

Red Rock Canyon

The deck from Mt. Charleston Lodge - view from my seat...

The view from Mt. Charleston Lodge...

The view from Mt. Charleston Lodge...

Thursday, we decided to make the drive to Death Valley National Park - another all day excursion, but worth the drive. It was a balmy 115 degrees (better than a humid 90 degree day in Iowa), but we still did some walking/hiking and had fun visiting quite a few of the scenic stops. Once returning to Las Vegas, we enjoyed a quiet dinner and did a little bit of gambling, before it was time to rest up for our very early morning flight.

Death Valley - Zabriske Point

Death Valley - Zabriske Point

Travis exploring Death Valley -  Devil's Golf Course

Death Valley -  Devil's Golf Course

Badwater Pool (yes, water in Death Valley!)

Death Valley - Badwater Basin - 282 feet below sea level...

Yes, we crammed in as much as we could in such a short amount of time...but I wanted to see as much as possible...especially since it may be years before we can take another vacation. I hope you enjoyed my photo journey of the Las Vegas, NV area...it was an inspiring trip...

Las Vegas Vacation - Part 2

I bet you thought I would never return with the second half of my vacation photos...but I finally have a moment to post. I have a good excuse...I've been finishing up the new release design files for my printer and getting caught up on the 984 emails that came in while I was gone on vacation - I am still working on replies, so if you sent me something that needs attention or a response, please be patient with me, I will get back to you. The good news is the three new designs are now at the printer getting ready for production...and tomorrow I will finally be sharing "Blessed Beyond Measure" with you (you know, the new needlework tool and accessories I have been working on). Today, however, I am going to share a few more photos with you from my fabulous Las Vegas vacation...

One of my favorite places to visit on the Las Vegas strip is the Conservatory & Botanical Gardens at the Bellagio Hotel. The current summer exhibit was whimsical and wonderful - an unbelievable gardening exhibit - filled with over-sized flowers and flower pots, gardening tools, bumble bees, ladybugs, butterflies, mushrooms, snails, frogs, and even hot air balloons suspended from the ceiling. I think I took over 100 photos while visiting the Conservatory. Bumble Bees and ladybugs are some of my favorite things...and seeing these large floral "happy insects" immediately made me smile!

One of our most amazing experiences was visiting Valley Of Fire State Park. This is the oldest state park in Nevada and gets it name from red sandstone formations, formed from great shifting sand dunes 150 million years ago. The vibrant colors and unique formations had us speechless. We thoroughly enjoyed our visit to this park and stopped at each of the viewing areas along the way. At the Visitor Center, we were totally amused by the white-tailed antelope ground squirrels...we could see what seemed like hundreds of them running all over the rocks and formations. The most adorable thing - they would flatten out on the concrete to cool off (I spoke to a park ranger to find out about this - she also told me they can fan out their tails like umbrellas to shade themselves). I had so much fun watching them - they were super cute! But, the most awe-inspiring thing we saw was a group of four bighorn sheep in their natural habitat in the "White Domes" - we couldn't believe this sight!...and although we were not dressed in the proper attire, nor are we rock climbers, we couldn't resist climbing as high as possible to get an even closer look and some photos - it was truly a once in a lifetime vision. It was a phenomenal afternoon.

I hope you have enjoyed these images from our vacation - I have had so much fun sharing them with you! Remember, tomorrow I will be back with a new post...giving you a glimpse at the upcoming release "Blessed Beyond Measure"....

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...