New York, New York, Las Vegas

I remember years ago, my friend Lori went with her family to Las Vegas. I never knew that families could stay in Las Vegas! I always thought of Las Vegas and the Rat Pack (from old movies).

Lori and her family stayed at Circus Circus, and she sent me a postcard. From that time, I've always thought of Las Vegas as a fun place to go, but I had never been there, until Ray took me in February to propose.

Once Ray proposed, I thought it would be fun to go back to Las Vegas, take Chloe with us, and get married by Elvis. I always thought that if I ever got married again, I would love to have an Elvis wedding. Luckily, Ray was on board with the idea, and that's what we did.

We stayed at the New York, New York Hotel and Casino this time around. It was not as pretty as the Bellagio (which we stayed at in February), but there was so much more to do! We didn't even discover parts of the hotel until it was about time to leave. Ray's already talking about going next year for our anniversary.

Below are some of the pics I took of the New York, New York hotel. From the street, it looks like a New York skyline, with a rollercoaster!


There's a mini Statue of Liberty:


and a Brooklyn Bridge:


Inside the hotel, there is a section that is decorated like New York streets. Several streets with seating, and little shops. There's also a couple of restaurants, and bars.


I thought this one (below) was funny with the flamingos on the fire escape!

And one of the last places we discovered: the Pour 24 bar, with 24 beers on tap, open 24 hours.


ps - both times that I've been to Las Vegas, I saw the Circus Circus hotel, and thought of Lori and her family. :)

Wedding!

I'll post more later, but wanted to check in after our weekend in Las Vegas.

Ray and I got married on Sunday, May 17, by Elvis at the Graceland Chapel. I always thought that if I ever got married again, that is what I would want, and it was perfect! The Elvis we had was amazing, and very funny. It's great to be married to Ray, and I'm so glad that my daughter and my good friend Carrie and her daughter were able to make it, too.

Above is a picture that Carrie took after the wedding. We were goofing around in the gazebo, and started doing a conga line. Chloe was not sure at first about that, but soon joined in. Carrie captured a pretty funny moment, and one that reflected the mood of the day.

Bridal Luncheon

Yesterday, a few of my girlfriends at work took me out to lunch to celebrate my wedding. They took me to my favorite place, McCormick's. I had a great time!

Above, are the slippers I received, in case I get cold feet. :)

Below, is my friend Jessica, one of my girlfriends that took me out for lunch. We had a really cute picture of her posing, but it didn't turn out. Ah well...she's still cute as a button.

Below is the dessert that McCormick's brought out to me. They also had a personalized menu that said "Congratulations, Janette". Really sweet!

Hello!

Sometimes...kitties just need a little attention! LOL, BL likes to sit on my legs while I do updates on my blog...

In other news...4 days to go!! I got a few things crossed off my to-do list, in preparation for the wedding & trip. I'm taking Friday off, so I can do get some more done.

Work has been so busy, with trying to get things updated before I leave on my short vacation. I've had a difficult time focusing lately, too, so it's been a challenge! Looking forward to a day off to get all of the little items taken care of.

Wednesday...

Above is a picture of a little notebook that I am making. I wanted to do something creative, and with the flower pictures that I've taken with my new camera.

I made the covers from pieces cut from boxes in our recycle bin, then covered them with patterned paper. I then cut inside pages from patterned paper, glued the pages together, and bound everything with a little binder that I have. Now I'm on the decorating the pages part, and adding the pictures.

On the wedding front...4 more days until the big day! Lots to do, but I'm so excited! I've been watching the Las Vegas weather...it will be 101 on Sunday, and probably at least 77 at the time we're heading off to the chapel. As here, it is rainy and in the 50's and 60's, it will be a nice change (although still a little hotter than I would like!)

Chloe is a Big Sister!

On Sunday, my ex-husband and his wife came over to visit before a family gathering. They brought their new baby, who is Chloe's little sister. She's so tiny! I got to hold her and give her a bottle. It's neat to see the resemblances to Chloe - she hiccups a lot, has dimples, and it looks like she has the same chin.

Chloe has not been so excited to have a little sister, but I definitely think she's warming up to the idea. She finally admitted that she thinks the baby is cute! I love the below picture, it looks like Chloe is really enjoying holding her (but, perhaps...is wondering why I need to take so many pictures...!)

Pike Place Market

Last week, my friend and I went to the Pike Place Market at lunch to get flowers and take some pictures. Above are some double tulips that I ended up purchasing, and below is the "Hammering Man" art installation at the Seattle Art Museum.