Las Vegas Adventure

Our trip to Las Vegas was a vacation for Levi and me, but work for Gabe. So, unfortunately Gabe missed out on lots of the fun we had. Becky got to take off the first 3 days we were there and join us for some fun adventures. We spent the first afternoon (Saturday) showing Levi around Hoover Dam. He has now been to 3 states. Arizona counts since that's the side of the river we parked on right?Gabe had Sunday free so we had a big breakfast at Becky's house and spent the rest of the day exploring Red Rock Canyon. There's a nice scenic loop you can drive and lots of trails to hike. Gabe and I didn't think to wear our hiking shoes so we only did one short "hike" in our flip flops. Next time we'll make sure we're prepared. It was really windy and Levi wasn't really sure what to make of the whole thing.The rest of the trip Gabe was busy at the conference/trade show. Monday us girls (and Levi) went down to Bellagio. The garden was all decorated for fall. And we enjoyed some gelato while we waited for the fountain show to start.

Monday evening my mom stayed with Levi so that Becky, Gabe and I could go out for dinner. Gabe really wanted to try the Burger Bar. It's the only Hubert Keller restaurant really in our price range. His french restaurant in Mandalay Bay is really spendy. I still didn't feel great about spending $20 on a hamburger. It was a good burger but not that good! They do have a $60 hamburger on the menu. Insane! That's food on the strip for you.
On Tuesday Levi, mom and I went out for lunch and then toured the Shark Reef Aquarium. Levi was awake to see the golden crocodile, komodo dragon, and the reef sharks. I think he fell asleep half way through. He woke up at the end and was ready to eat so we had to make a pretty quick exit. We did pick him up a stuffed shark in the gift shop to help him remember his trip.
Wednesday, our last day, we went to the pool. Mandalay Bay has a really cool pool. I'd go back there again, when Levi's a little older, just for the pool. The wave pool looked really fun but Levi wasn't quite big enough yet to enjoy it. Plus the real sand is a pretty neat touch. Levi did enjoy putting his toes in one of the other 3 pools. And here he is smiling while we relaxed and danced to the music.

It was a fun trip. We all came back pretty tired. Levi has been sleeping in really late and taking long afternoon naps. I know the trip wore me out and I think it wore him out too. We loved seeing aunt Becky but I think everyone is happy to be home. It was great to have my mom with us. She watched Levi several evenings so that Gabe and I could have some time to go to dinner without him. Although the one dinner we did take him to he totally slept through.
My goal for this week is to see if we can get Levi on a schedule of some kind. He pretty much eats and sleeps whenever he wants, but it would be nice to have some routine and a consistent bed time. Seems like he might be getting ready for that now.