Vegas Baby!

Glen had a MDA conference in Las Vegas, so we decided to make a vacation out of it. Neely & Emilio joined us for a fun-filled long weekend. Claudia got to stay with Grandpa & Grandma. We booked our rooms at the Hard Rock Hotel, but we didn't realize it was the start of March Madness, so our hotel was a bit overrun by male sports fans, but thankfully our team (UW) made it in the tournament so we could participate in some of the excitement and watch a little basketball. Our first day (Glen's 5th), we took a helicopter trip to the bottom of the Grand Canyon, which was amazing. We spent the next couple of days doing some light gambling, drinking, heavy eating, and just wandering around seeing all the neat hotels. We topped off the trip by seeing Cirque du Soleil "O" at the Bellagio. I was fighting a bit of a cold during the trip, so I wasn't as wild & crazy as I wanted to be, but maybe that's just my excuse for being old. :-)

Claudia's talking has really taken off these past couple of weeks. I think several days with her talkative grandparents helped. I called a few times during our trip and it was so cute to hear her little munchkin voice say "hi mommy." She is doing really well at stringing two or three words together and she is getting more brave about trying new sounds and repeating back most things we say to her. She has learned the word "mine" and really enjoys "no" so she can be challenging at times, but we've tried the technique of giving her two options and that seems to work. For example, if I just tell her "time to brush your teeth" she will quickly say no, but if I say "do you want mommy or daddy to brush your teeth?" she will pick one. It's a good trick. She is also really particular about her accessories these days. She has a list of things she wants to take with her to bed and a list of things she needs in order to leave the house. She hasn't latched onto one specific item like many kids do, but she definitely needs a binkie, blanket, sunglasses, hat, baby doll, etc. for different occasions.

Now that it's spring, we're finally having some sunny days, so here we are at the park.


Notice, she's holding her baby doll while on the swing.


Claudia gets shy when you put her on the spot, but here is my attempt at getting her to talk on camera.


Emilio jogged out to the Las Vegas sign one morning while the rest of us were still sleeping.


In the helicopter.


Flying over Hover Dam.


Inside the Grand Canyon.