Our Family Vacation(s)

We returned home late yesterday afternoon from our family vacation. It was just a weekend trip to Las Vegas, but it was great fun and fairly relaxing. I say fairly relaxing because we did a lot of walking. However, I was able to take a nap each day over the weekend, and that I find relaxing.

We spent the last two days with our friends Frank and Elaine, and their daughter Frankie. Frankie and our daughter Nina are very good friends, and love to spend time together. They've been on the same softball team and cheerleading squad for two years now. Frank was the softball coach this past season; Elaine and my wife Laura were his team moms. On the cheerleading side of the equation, Laura was the cheer coach, and Elaine was her assistant.

Anyway, the two families had planned this trip to Las Vegas a while back. However, Frank and Elaine's son Jared decided not to go at the last minute. We were counting on Jared and our son Brady to watch their little sisters on Saturday night when us parents were planning to go to a club. So Brady invited his friend Joey. We are also good friends with Joey's parents, and know them from our off road club (the D.O.M.). So Joey joined us and helped out Brady by watching Nina and Frankie. Us old folks made it to our club and enjoyed great Latin music and refreshing drinks.

We stayed at the Circus Circus where it's kid-friendly. They also have this huge fun zone covered by a dome. It's called the Adventure Dome, and there are several rides and a lot of games for children of all ages. We bought one-day passes for all the kids. The boys really got their (our) money's worth: they rode the roller coaster over 20 times. Nina hardly went on any rides, as she is still scared from the incident nearly two years ago at Sea World. Frankie went on a few rides by herself after Nina backed out. All-in-all it was well worth it, and everyone - especially the kids - had a great time.

Between the arcade games in the casino and the ones at the Adventure Dome, the kids also brought back several stuffed animals. Playing these games was really the highlight for Nina, as she just doesn't enjoy the rides. The swimming pool was also a treat for the kids. I forgot to mention that we stopped at State Line on the way to Las Vegas, and again on the way home. The boys got to ride Desperado - a really tall roller coaster at Buffalo Bills. The girls got to play more arcade games. And finally on the trip home, we stopped at the outlet mall in Barstow. Laura got a Coach purse, and was very happy.

This was actually the 2nd of two weekend trips that Laura and I took. Last weekend, she and I went on a cruise together. No kids, no friends, just us. We had a great time! That trip was really relaxing, because we didn't have to break up any fights between Brady and Nina, and we didn't have to cater to any of their needs. We took in a lot of sun, and got a lot of sleep.

Next weekend is the fourth of July, and our third consecutive long weekend. Good times.