Vegas Vacation - Part 2

Here is a taste of Lily's mild tantrum in Vegas for you.


And a little more entertaining is Charlie swimming in the pool. We threw Bubba in a couple of times, but he panicked every time. Charlie just had a blast! He loved fetching the ball.

Vacation

We took our first family vacation last week. We have traveled, and done the getaway thing, but we had never done just the three of us. So we headed to Las Vegas to stay in my father-in-laws house. And it was truly a relaxing getaway. We played in the pool, BBQ'd and had dinner outside, watched a ton of movies, slept in . . . just wonderful. We believe in the true value of relaxation and unwinding.

One morning we headed to The Strip and walked around the Bellagio and Ceasars Palace. We saw the flowers and fountains and aquariums and enjoyed the sights.But most of the time we just hung out at the house.

She loved the porch swing.

Mommy and Bug.But when Mommy and Daddy took a picture together, she came running from the gazebo (in the background) . . . . . . screaming! She hates it when either of us give anyone else physical attention. . . including the dogs.So we had to take a couple family pictures since Bug wasn't about to be left out. Kevin let me sleep in and got up with Lily. I took long relaxing baths. We took naps. Read magazines and watched a lot of movies. It was wonderfully relaxing. We really can't wait to do it again.

Lemon Festival

I am always on the look out for free (or super cheap) family outings. They are becoming fewer, and sometimes free almost doesn't seem worth it. But a couple of weekends ago we headed out to the Upland Lemon Festival. I've never really been one for the midway, but I love the cheesy local events on the entertainment stage. I like pie eating contests and Clydesdales carved out of butter. I like bull riding and baby lambs. It must be the Bakersfield roots that my family holds. And while the Lemon Festival wasn't huge, and didn't have a ton of "lemon-y" events, the atmosphere was pleasant and the weather was nice. The outing was last minute, so we packed up the dinner I was already planning and headed out. We bought fresh squeezed lemonade (with the money we found on the ground,) unpacked our dinner at a shaded table, and watched the entertainment; a local belly dancing studio of mostly women that probably should have stopped showing their midriff 20 years earlier. But the music was catching and I found myself smiling as the women thoroughly enjoyed dancing for an audience. We walked around a little, looked at the petting zoo and watched the elephant walk in circles at the elephant ride. Then finished at the stage again watching local school age girls do traditional Irish dancing. Lily loved the Celtic music, laughing, dancing, and clapping along. It was great family time.