Life and that one time we went to Vegas

Life lately has been a blur! Time is flying and I feel like there aren't enough hours in the day. I have been a busy bee at work and Brendon is in the midst of a week of tests every single day. All this week (and it will continue until Friday) we have seen each other for about two hours before bed and that's it. Enough time for a quick recap of our days and a thrown together late dinner. Then usually I pass out and Brendon studies. Last night, because I was being a grumpy goose, Brendon asked if "I hated my life". Not a serious question, but I know he was only half kidding. Obviously this situation is way less than ideal.

And although this past week has been rough on us both and we rarely see each other, I love love love my life (which I always tell him). I am tired and I miss my husband, but I am happy. I love my job. I love that Brendon is in pharmacy school (figuratively). I love the life we have here. We are where we had always wanted to be, and things are good. Pharmacy school sucks the big one, there's no getting around that. But we are already over halfway through the semester, almost done with the first year! And then it will be summer time and we will have 3 months to relax and play husband and wife again. And even though the school year is rough (poor Brendon, I am so proud of you for being such a hardworking badass) we squeeze in some pretty good times. It's just weeks like this that are hard (and this semester is extra stupid because instead of spreading the tests out over the semester, they have tests in all their classes at the same time every couple weeks, DUMB). They're just tiny speed bumps on our little adventure.

So I apologize to Brendon and anyone else that may think that I "hate my life", because I certainly do not. I am a happy little camper who just gets grumpy every now and then.

And on that note, let's take a look at a happy and carefree time in our lives. The summer of 2009 after we both turned 21 we went to Vegas and we loved it. Not only is the weather aaamazing for your hair (but bad for your lips, mine were chapped for a week afterwards), Vegas is a wonderfully weird place. It is luxurious and fancy, but at the same time cheap and over the top tacky. We spent the majority of our time walking around and just looking. Looking at the hotels, the casinos, and of course, they lovely endless supply of interesting people. Prime area for people watching.

We stayed at the Paris Las Vegas, and it was awesome. Eiffel Tower in your hotel? Yes please!

 

The view from the top! They were in the midst of building another complex of hotels next to the Bellagio, I think it's like the Cosmopolitan and stuff? It was crazy big, I'd like to see it now that it's finished. The craziest part about Vegas is how insane these hotels are. Each one is like a maze of casinos, restaurants, shops, and clubs. And a lot of them connect to one another, sometimes underground! It's easy to get lost, which I guess is their plan. Get lost and spend money! And you really do lose track of time there. We would go to eat dinner and it would be midnight. And even though we pretty much always had a drink in our hand, I never felt drunk (this may be because our idea of drinking was far different than most newly-21-year-old's). Or hungover. Or tired. Something in the air there makes you feel just A-okay.

I love all the crazy hotels! All the lights and attractions! They are all ridiculous. We tried to explore each one, but I'd say we hit up a little more than half of them. Obviously we need to go back! We did get to ride the roller coaster at New York, New York though! I thought I was going to die. But it was a fun, although terrifying, quick, blurry, and often upside down view of Vegas at night.

Look at these youngins! How touristy can you get huh?

Zoos in hotels? Totally normal.

We have to take a moment now and talk about that drink in sweet Brendon's hands. The "skull cup" as we named it. It was a $15 drink from Treasure Island that came in a plastic mug shaped like a skull. Brendon wanted it just for the cup, so I got it for him. If I remember correctly the drink was pretty gross. I think you could get whatever you wanted in it, and I think that's a daiquiri? So after Brendon got his beloved cup, we stopped at some casino and threw money at the slots (we, or at least I, have no luck in gambling at all). And Brendon set his cup down next to his machine. And left it there. A few hotels down the strip he realizes he lost his cup. We go back, but of course it was gone. Enter pouty sad face Brendon. So that night we go back down to Treasure Island (which is waaay down the strip from our hotel) and I buy him another $15 mug full of gross drink.

 

Round two with a margarita and a happy Brendon.

We still have the skull cup and I have to say it was worth the $30. It's a bad ass cup to drink anything out of (usually water) and we still use it all the time. Plus we have the lovely memories of Brendon losing the cup and being a big ol' baby in Vegas. Love that man-child.

We look 17. No wonder we got carded 8,000 times.

I loved the fountains in front of the Bellagio. Our hotel was right across the street so we got to see them quite a few times (sorry Brendon) and it never got old, for me anyway. My favorite was when they... sprayed? went off? whatever-ed to "Your Song" by Elton John. I love that song. I think we played it at our wedding.

I can't wait to go back to Vegas. It really is an escape from reality into a ridiculous land of money and cheap thrills. Brendon was talking about it last night (giving me the inspiration for this post) and said we should go after he graduates pharmacy school. I say, deal. We'll see you in 2015 Vegas! Please keep your souvenir cups out of sight.