We took the opportunity of James having to attend MinExpo and the kids having a random Monday off of school and headed to warmer weather for one last hot summer weekend of fun. This is our 4th trip to Vegas, three with the kids. It's always been Keely's favorite town, and after this trip both kids asked if we could move there! I'm not with them, but I like to visit once every couple of years. Vegas is fun, but ends up busy and tiring and not like much of a relaxing vacation. We had never visited with my parents before, and that added an extra element of fun for all of us. We tried all new things, and learned more of what Vegas has to offer for families. First up was Circus Circus which has a pretty cool place called the Adventuredome. The kids got wristbands and rode probably 6-7 rides each. James and I also joined in on the fun and rode the Buccaneer ship. If you look really closely, you can see all of us on it sitting in the back of the boat. Boy, I am not as young as I used to be -- my stomach was doing flips!
That ship was Quinn's favorite ride, and the rest for him were a letdown. He's big enough to ride the coasters now, but he was afraid to go upside down. Here they are on a spinning ride that went forward and backward...
After the AdventureDome, we headed back to the hotel and swam in the pool while watching and following the Hokie game and partaking in some adult beverages :) Then we headed out again, to do some more sightseeing. Here we are in front of the fountain at Paris, with the Eiffel Tower in the background.
For dinner to celebrate both kids' birthdays, we went to Rainforest Cafe in MGM Grand. We've seen this restaurant before but never eaten there. Since we had made a reservation, we got a cool booth up on the second level with a gorilla giving us funny looks and a baby monkey swinging around next to us. Every 20 minutes or so, it "rains" and the animals go crazy. Perfect place for kids :) Quinn's looking up at the monkey, he seemed so real!
I just love this look that Keely has on her face, her "angry look" as she calls it :)
Quinn took this picture of us in the booth, and in the background you can see the monkey that was making faces at us through dinner.
To complete the meal and celebrate their birthdays (a month early in Keely's case) we got the Volcano for dessert, a 2.5 lb. brownie sundae with sparklers on top!
After dinner, we headed out for more sightseeing. Here are the kids in front of the river in the Venetian.
Then as we were walking through the Venetian, we caught the eye of this man dressed as the statue. We let the kids give him a dollar each, and then he motioned for them to pose with him. It was pretty neat, I've never seen these guys engage anyone. But I guess for money, you get a little extra :)
The next morning, we went to The Mirage with the intent of seeing the tigers on display but ended up heading into the Secret Garden Dolphin and Tiger Habitat. This was well worth the money (thanks for paying, Mom and Dad) and we spent quite a while. The trainers got into the water and fed and played with the dolphins. There was a 15 day old baby dolphin, along with 3 others and it was fun to watch them interact with the trainers. I just had to post this picture of the baby and its mom.
In the tiger habitat, there were 5 baby tigers only 5 months old. Keely and Quinn both posed on this stone tiger, and Keely even called it her pet while we were hanging out there.
Then it was back to the pool, for some fun in the sun. For dinner that night, we went to Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville. I've also never been to one, but this turned out to be a really fun place and a good kid friendly restaurant. The kids got balloons animals from the guys on stilts walking around.
The margaritas were yummy too, and after dinner we tried to see the TI pirate show but it was cancelled due to wind so we went to Ghirardelli for ice cream :) Thanks for taking all the pictures, Mom. We had a fun trip, and I've had my fill of Vegas for another couple of years. My kids though might have something else to say about that...
That ship was Quinn's favorite ride, and the rest for him were a letdown. He's big enough to ride the coasters now, but he was afraid to go upside down. Here they are on a spinning ride that went forward and backward...
After the AdventureDome, we headed back to the hotel and swam in the pool while watching and following the Hokie game and partaking in some adult beverages :) Then we headed out again, to do some more sightseeing. Here we are in front of the fountain at Paris, with the Eiffel Tower in the background.
For dinner to celebrate both kids' birthdays, we went to Rainforest Cafe in MGM Grand. We've seen this restaurant before but never eaten there. Since we had made a reservation, we got a cool booth up on the second level with a gorilla giving us funny looks and a baby monkey swinging around next to us. Every 20 minutes or so, it "rains" and the animals go crazy. Perfect place for kids :) Quinn's looking up at the monkey, he seemed so real!
I just love this look that Keely has on her face, her "angry look" as she calls it :)
Quinn took this picture of us in the booth, and in the background you can see the monkey that was making faces at us through dinner.
To complete the meal and celebrate their birthdays (a month early in Keely's case) we got the Volcano for dessert, a 2.5 lb. brownie sundae with sparklers on top!
After dinner, we headed out for more sightseeing. Here are the kids in front of the river in the Venetian.
Then as we were walking through the Venetian, we caught the eye of this man dressed as the statue. We let the kids give him a dollar each, and then he motioned for them to pose with him. It was pretty neat, I've never seen these guys engage anyone. But I guess for money, you get a little extra :)
The next morning, we went to The Mirage with the intent of seeing the tigers on display but ended up heading into the Secret Garden Dolphin and Tiger Habitat. This was well worth the money (thanks for paying, Mom and Dad) and we spent quite a while. The trainers got into the water and fed and played with the dolphins. There was a 15 day old baby dolphin, along with 3 others and it was fun to watch them interact with the trainers. I just had to post this picture of the baby and its mom.
In the tiger habitat, there were 5 baby tigers only 5 months old. Keely and Quinn both posed on this stone tiger, and Keely even called it her pet while we were hanging out there.
Then it was back to the pool, for some fun in the sun. For dinner that night, we went to Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville. I've also never been to one, but this turned out to be a really fun place and a good kid friendly restaurant. The kids got balloons animals from the guys on stilts walking around.
The margaritas were yummy too, and after dinner we tried to see the TI pirate show but it was cancelled due to wind so we went to Ghirardelli for ice cream :) Thanks for taking all the pictures, Mom. We had a fun trip, and I've had my fill of Vegas for another couple of years. My kids though might have something else to say about that...
1 comment:
Oh Vegas looks like such fun....it has been awhile since we have gone. Need to do it again. Thanks for the posting....looks like everyone had a fabulous time!
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