vegas and california (feb)

In February we went to Vegas for SCI (Safari Convention International). I might not be quite as interested as Mike is in it, but it's still really fun to look around at all the cool stuff! Vegas is definitely a lot different with a baby but Paxton did great and we had fun. We were there for a couple plans that me and Paxton caught a ride on the plane with my grandparents to Santa Maria for a couple days at home with my family. We had fun playing with grandma ranae and uncle steele!

^ Chillin watching cartoons ^

^ Grandma let Paxton pick out whatever jammies he wanted and he couldn't keep his eyes off these dino ones :) ^

^ It doesn't get any cooler than this ^

^ Just staring out at the world ^

^ my little man ^

^ this guy flies in style - private plane, don't mind if we do! ^

^ on the way home we lucked out with an entire row to ourselves ^

labor day in vegas

Vegas has seemed to be the central meeting spot for my family of late, as it's halfway between my family's two locations. We missed Mike over the weekend, but had an amazing time, as always. I'm so blessed to have such a FUN family. There is never a dull moment, especially with Steele running around and making us all laugh.

We stayed at Mandalay Bay, we love their pool! It was perfect for the hot weather. We had fun riding our the waves in the wave pool.

Yes. This is what my brother looks like... when he's NOT flexing. Man I wish I had his 'problem'.

It was Trygve's birthday the week before so we celebrated at Capital Grille. It was so good! Steele loved his lobster!

My brothers are the best! They may be five years apart but they are so close. Steele looks up to Chad so much. It's the sweetest thing.

On the way home Shelby picked up some shock tarts, or shockers, or whatever they're called (I forgot how good those things are!) and was making the FUNNIEST faces! She couldn't help it... and I
couldn't help laughing.

Here's to another amazing weekend with my family! Thanks mom!

And can you believe how nice Steele is.. he gave me his iPad! Last time I was at home he noticed that I was playing on it a lot and so he wanted to give it to me. How lucky am I to have him as my brother!

vegas

At the last minute I decided to go to Vegas and spend the weekend with my family before we all drove out to Lake Powell. I loved watching my brother Steele in his basketball games - he's quite the little baller. The high school team needed an extra hand and my brother Chad (the football stud) got recruited. I can't believe I get these two as brothers!

The weekend was H O T. Luckily the Mandalay Bay has a pretty fun pool/beach/lazy river/wave pool. With 115 degree weather, we spent most of our time in the water. I couldn't believe how much of a swimmer Steele had turned into. I thought Michael was the fish in the family but I think Steele is going to give him a run for his money in that department. 

The weekend wouldn't have been complete without a little speed and shopping. Pole Position is a ton of fun. As always, Chad showed everyone up on the track and took first place in all the races.

I loved all the LeBron championship gear at Niketown :)

Awesome HUGE display at Niketown

I was so happy to spend time with my sweet Mom and brothers. I love them too much! On Tuesday we drove to Powell to meet up with the rest of our family and the Weekes who went a day earlier. I finally got to see my hubby and had missed him so much. On Wednesday we were off for a week in paradise. That post coming soon :)

viva las vegas

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Mike and I took a little weekend trip to Vegas for some business. Chase and Mckenzie and their cute girls were down there too so I got to play with them while the boys worked. We played at the pool and had tons of fun. Those girls are so precious and I'm grateful to have them as nieces! Mike is so great with them and going to make an amazing dad one day.

I love taking pictures, but for some reason just didn't this weekend. Mike even made a joke about it one night and said I was slacking on my instagram pictures (kind of embarrassing). So... I pulled out my phone and snapped some after dinner. I couldn't let him down :) I had never been to Brio so we went to this cute little shopping center in North Vegas and enjoyed an amazing dinner, pretty lights, and gorgeous architecture. If you haven't been to Brio, you're missing out. It's incredible!

Of course the trip wasn't complete without a trip to Serendipity! I seriously LOVE that place. Besides the fact that the frozen hot chocolate is heavenly, it just makes me happy! The movie is one of my all-time favorites which is definitely a big reason I love it so much too. Mike was sweet to take me. He said he was taking me somewhere and didn't tell me where. I was happy he had the same idea as me :)

We hung out at the Forum shops at Caesars Palace on Saturday. I love how they designed it, it's such a cool place. We picked up some silver Tory Burch sandals while we were there, I was a happy girl! We were at Mandalay Bay and we thought it'd be cool to check out the shark reef. It was really neat! I loved seeing all the sea life. Sharks are amazing to watch... Behind glass!

I can't get enough of this girl. She fell asleep with Cheetos in her mouth and her hand in the bag :)

Thanks for a great weekend Mike, Chase, and McKenzie!

california

We had the most amazing time in California last week! I love any chance I get to visit my family. We're lucky to have such great friends in James and Andrea, who took us on the trip, along with Mike's parents. We have so much fun with them! We tagged along on another trip with them in February to Sun Valley, Idaho and Vegas. It was my first time in Sun Valley and it was BEAUTIFUL! Mike's family is good friends with the Osmond's so they got us tickets to see the Donny & Marie Show. It was so much fun to see them up there dancing and singing their hearts out. They were amazing!

I'm from Santa Maria, California (about 30 minutes north of Santa Barbara, on the coast) and although Santa Maria might not be much, it's one of the prettiest areas in California. I love it! It was great to drive through Santa Maria again, I hadn't been back since New Year's, but it definitely doesn't feel as much like home anymore. Especially because my family's house is 30 minutes outside of town, in the mountains (more like hills). Now THAT, will ALWAYS feel like home to me. There really is no place like home...

It was a short trip (Friday-Sunday) but just what I needed. I hadn't seen my brothers since my wedding. I honestly think that's the longest I've ever gone without seeing them. They mean the world to me! I can't even describe how excited I am to have my brother Chad in Provo. Trust me, I'd have a countdown if I knew the day he was coming (the end of June sometime). My brother Steele has grown so much since January! They are both such manly/sporty/guy's guys ever, and yet, they both have the biggest hearts of anyone you'll ever meet. I'm one lucky girl to have them in my life.

We were in LA Sunday until Tuesday. I was so happy we went to The Grove on Monday, I love that place! It's like a little shopping village, and is the prettiest and coolest place during Christmas. Monday night we went to The Bazaar at the SLS Hotel. It was one of the neatest things I've ever experienced! You only have one bite of each plate because everyone shares, so you order quite a few different things. The food is composed different than normal. For example, we ordered tortillas and they came in a small cup with different layers of egg, potato, etc. It was a tortilla deconstructed. Some of my favorites were the brussel sprouts, Phily cheesesteak and caprese salad (although it was hard to pick the top three because I loved everything!) The brussel sprouts had a lemon foam on top, the phily cheesesteak was an air bread with melted cheese in the middle and had a slice of meat on top, and the mozzarella in the caprese salad popped in your mouth into a liquid form. We were a little skeptical, but it was amazing. For dessert, you move to another table. The dessert bar was beautiful! I wish I would have brought my phone in to take pictures. We had a great time hanging out with my family and in LA but it's nice to be back!

I'm so excited to go back for Chad's graduation at the end of the month!