more vegas pics and where we ate

(in front of the forum shops) 

(the view from our loungers by the pool) 

(elevator shot, of course) 

(keeping it classy) 

(me and my bump sunning by the pool) 

(shopping for bump clothing) 

(sister style)

this trip was so different from past vegas trips, partly because i wasn't drinking! and also because i now require nine or ten hours of sleep every night. we did a lot of walking around, people-watching, shopping. i loved buying bump-wear, because it is not something we have much of here in gander. we also ate lots of food. there is a lot of really fancy food in vegas, and a lot of fast food. sometimes it's hard to find something to eat that is good but not too expensive. some places we ate:

mon ami gabi- we ate lunch on this patio attached to the paris hotel. it was soo good, and reasonably priced. i was wishing i could have the sangria. looked so good
california pizza kitchen- we had a light supper here. i was not a huge fan, but krys loved the pizza
blt burger- good burgers and salads, reasonable prices
pf changs- the lettuce wraps are so good! and the wonton soup. some of the food tastes insanely salty though
cheesecake factory- i love places that give you warm bread and butter. the portions are huge and the prices are low. i had a burger with avocado and salad, and loved it. and they obviously have a huge dessert menu.

i also demanded we eat at mcdonalds at least three times. i am still loving their burgers so much (i think it has to do with the growing baby in my belly), and it is insanely cheap.

hotel review: mirage, las vegas strip, nevada

reviewing a hotel on the strip is completely different from reviewing a hotel here on the rock. obviously, not comparable. i have only stayed in four of the many, many hotels on the strip, but i do have some opinions after staying for 5 nights at the mirage...

price: seriously hard to nail down, because the rooms are sometimes complimentary depending on how much you gamble. though you usually do have to pay a resort fee of $40 or so per night to use the pool, gym, etc.
bathroom: so nice. huge jacuzzi tub that i took long 5 am baths in (jetlag), and lovely stand up shower. and lots of little toiletries including toothbrush, body butter, bath salts, loofahs
pool: really nice. there were lots of comfy loungers, plenty of sun, lots of waitresses walking around so you could order drinks. the water itself was super cold, so we never actually swam.
breakfast: not included, but there is a starbucks in the hotel, and lots of other breakfast options in many price ranges. we usually started our day with starbucks.
tv: yes, we watched so much teen mom. addictive
location: perfect. i think this was the best part of this hotel compared to other ones we have stayed at. all the hotels look really close on the strip, but actually you end up having to walk a lot between each one. mirage was perfectly situated across from a mcdonalds (my new fav), beside caesars' palace, and a short walk to the fashion show mall. it just felt like we were right in the middle of everything, which is where you want to be when you are pregnant on the strip.
parking: i think it would be crazy to bring a car here. taxis all the way

notes:
- our room was actually a suite because we were upgraded when we got there. i am not sure about the other rooms, but this one was really nice.
- there is a huge aquarium in the lobby. pretty cool.
- once you have stayed at aria, it is tough not to compare. aria just feels so new and high end. i think the main difference is attention to detail. at aria, when you walk into the pool area, you are handed a few huge fluffy towels. at mirage, you have to walk fifteen feet to the towel counter to pick them up. at aria, someone hands you bottled water as soon as you walk in to the lobby with your luggage. at mirage, you have to request the water at the front desk. but. aria is a five to ten minute walk from anything. it is right beside cosmopolitan, but you have to walk through this huge mall area to get to the main strip. so mirage wins in location, big time. for me and my big belly, i was so glad to be staying somewhere close to everything.
- i would definitely stay at mirage again, no question

a few highlights from vegas

(banana soy ice cream with peanut butter. omg) 

(mimosas in bed at 6 am. major jetlag) 

(texting by the pool) 

(shopping times) 

(a splurge) 

(that belly is taking over)

such a good time. i made an effort to have ice cream every single day. sometimes twice. the icepan ice cream was one of my favourites. i also had ben and jerry's phish food (the best), and i had frozen yogurt from our hotel most mornings as my "breakfast dessert". i think baby likes ice cream. 

vegas pics and news!

 (my sister krys chilling at the toronto airport after our reunion)

(birthday mimosas. usually there are three, but not this time :) )

(when we first arrived in vegas) 

(a little birthday gift from the hotel)

you can see in the pic above that i am looking quite large in the belly. it's because we are expecting a baby! we are so excited to meet our little bubba in early August. i will definitely write a lot more about this whole experience in the near future. such and exciting time for j and i. 

a little trip

i am finally leaving tomorrow to meet these ladies in vegas. sometimes the week leading up to a trip seems so long!

thoughts on this trip:
i will seriously miss my man, but there's nothing like coming home to him after a little trip.
i am hoping for awesome weather. the forecast is telling me it will be very hot, which is very good.
we are staying at the mirage this year, which is a new hotel to me. the pool looks amazing.
last year we were on a major mission to find my wedding dress. this year we have no agenda, which will be nice, i think.

weddings, sisters, mothers

 (george street wedding planning)

(las vegas wedding dress shopping)

there is a truth about wedding planning that i wasn't expecting. it has brought me even closer to my mother and my sister. we have always been a close trio, but for the past year we text and talk every. single. day. i love it. when i could not look at one more pair of cream/white slightly wedged sandals that would suit all my bridesmaids, my sister was able to find something perfect. when i made the decision to keep the wedding really small, inviting only my most supportive and positive friends and family, mom was all about that. when j and i wanted to go paperless, they were on board. feeling pretty grateful for them, and looking so forward to marrying j.

side note: j played our "wedding song" last night, and we cried. well, i cried, and he looked more emotional than usual. love him so much.

vegas part 5 (return home)

(latte at wired monk in halifax) 

(my airport scene)

it was the best trip. i am never going to be able to thank my mom and sister enough for organizing it, and our friends for coming. and then j and i spent the next 3.5 days in the airport. i think we logged 30+ hours of standby time in the halifax airport. it was insane. we drank way too much booster juice and starbucks. fyi, the fresh squeezed juice at booster juice is actually squeezed right in front of you. the beet/apple juice is amazing. i also had intense jealousy for everyone at the airport who had an ipad. and for a not-so-sweet mocha at starbucks, get it with soy milk instead. very good. 

vegas part 4 (in which we found bridesmaid dresses)

(bellagio fountains) 

(slots and chocolate martinis) 

(aria casino) 

(more pool time)

what a perfect bachelorette...for anyone planning a bachelorette party, you can't go wrong with a surprise party in vegas. my mom and sister did so much planning for this trip. the trip made me feel even more excited for my wedding weekend. and we actually found bridesmaid dresses that all the girls were happy with, which is pretty amazing, i'd say. success.

vegas part 3 (when my girls showed up)

(pics by the pool with our drink-fairy-godfather) 

(pool time)

(slots time)

so then my girls showed up. i don't even know how to explain how insane this was. the night before mom and krys were acting kinda weird, so when there was a knock at the door in the morning i was thinking, maybe special room service breakfast? but instead i opened the door to 5 of my favourite people in the world! i was speechless. it is a really long, expensive trip to make for a friend who is getting married, and i feel so lucky. the following days were such a blur. we had an amazing time. we: hung by the pool a lot, had drinks all over the place, gambled a bit, went to an awesome show, went to a special class, ate at cheesecake factory a few times, shopped, visited the top of the faux eiffel tower, got bridesmaids dresses, suntanned, went to a club. we didn't sleep much. more pics to follow

vegas part 2 (searching for a wedding dress)

(sister loving her giant aria pool drink) 

(the best drinks were at the pool bar) 

 (dipping in to the minibar)

(candid/mirror pic)

the first day or two of our trip, i was still thinking this was a normal birthday trip, though we were looking for my wedding dress. we shopped hard, and i ended up with a dress that i had seen online and loved. i tried on a handful of dresses while sipping champagne, but kept coming back to the first dress. we stayed at aria for the second time. we love that hotel. and the pool. 

vegas trip part 1 (aka just another birthday trip with m and k)

(first of 8 flights in one week) 

(feeling happy on a flight) 

(plane presents) 

(birthday AM screwdrivers)

vegas is pretty far away. so you really need to treat the travel time as if it is part of the vacation. so we always get drinks on the plane (no matter how early the flight is) and mom always gives is some gifts en route. we bring lots of fun magazines, order food (like pretzel dogs) and just have a really good time. actually, the airport time is one of my favourite parts of the trip. 

fourth annual

as i may have mentioned a million times, i am leaving right after work saturday to meet up with my mom and sister for our fourth annual vegas trip. we all have birthdays in may, so this is a present that my dad can give us and know for sure we will be thrilled. i have to say that vegas gets better every year. we get to know the hotels better, which pools are good, which casinos have the best drinks, etc. this year is a little different because we have a task. we have to find my wedding dress! wish me luck