Great trip...

The fruits of our ten mile hike....painful by the end, but oh so worth it!!

He just stood there, posing for us. I'm disappointed it didn't come out clearer, but I was rushing to get the shot before he ran off. No more than 5 feet from us!!

Our cute little lodge room, equipped with a full kitchen. Loved it!

Of course we had to stop....at least 10,000 square feet of heaven WITH a clearance store right next door. By far the biggest scrapbook store I've ever been in.

Life doesn't get any better than this!!

Sensory Overload...

That is the only way I can think of to describe Las Vegas, NV. This was my first trip there, and I must say, I don't think I will be going back any time soon. Maybe it was just because I was there for so long (arrived on Monday, left on Saturday), or maybe it was just that I was completely out of my element...not sure. The conference I went for - the APA Congress - was pretty good and I did have a good time while I was there, but I was definitely ready to come home by the end of the week (really before then...)

Here are a few pictures of my trip...I stayed at the Planet Hollywood...

while my good friend, Chris, from OH, who I got to meet up with there...

stayed at the Paris, where most of the conference was held...

Her manager was not able to go at the last minute with her, so I got to tag along with her to her vendor party with ADP. They bought tickets for all their clients to go see The Producers - and yes, I got to tag along to that, too! It was a very good show - very funy! Thanks, Chris, for letting me tag along!!

We had several opportunities to do quite a bit of shopping...I brought home A LOT more than I went with. I'm still amazed that I was able to fit it all in my suitcase.

One of the best events of the week was Chris and I decided to treat ourselves to tickets to go see Celine Dion's A New Day show on the last night we were there. This is Celine's last year of performing at the Colosseum in Caesar's Palace. It was a REALLY good show. I'm so glad we splurged and did that.

All in all it was a good trip...and what made it especially good was being able to spend the whole week with Chris!

Here is one last picture of the fountains in front of the Bellagio, with the Paris in the background. The fountains spray to music - very cool!

P.S.

We did attend the conference most of the time - just didn't want to bore you with the details about the payroll classes that were actually pretty good! :o)

Can you believe, though, I didn't gamble once - not even the slots!! What kind of nerd am I??

Home..safe and sound...

There is a lot to do in Seattle - more than a weekend will allow. And surprisingly enough - it didn't rain!!

Here are a few pictures from our trip.

We got in a little late Wednesday, so we just went to dinner and explored the Grand Hyatt.

Del was tied up all day Thursday with his conference, so I was on my own. I did some shopping and then I took a tour of Seattle. It really has a lot to offer. It reminded me in some ways of Chicago, with a lot of charm. The pictures above include the famous market place sign - what a hoppin' place that is with all local vendors from fresh seafood, to a bazillion fresh cut flowers to bouquets of chili peppers and home of the very first Starbucks Coffee. The tour took us by the floating houses - the one Tom Hanks was on in Sleepless in Seattle is across the lake (barely visible in the picture). There were several fishing boats in the harbor just like the ones you see on Discovery Channel's The Deadliest Catch. The Gothic style building is on the campus of University of Washington - it was such a beautiful building and a beautiful campus. There is a little town just north of Seattle that has this huge statue of a troll under a viaduct - that was fun. The tall white building is the Smith Tower. The lobby of this building is amazing - marble walls, brass mailboxes, but the most quaint detail is the hand operated elevators.

Del still had a 1/2 day at his conference on Friday, so I spent the morning at the spa getting a massage and a facial. We then spent the entire afternoon walking around Seattle - all around Seattle.

Del and I didn't leave the state of Washington without getting at least one hike in. Saturday we hiked the Rattlesnake Ledge Trail, which did not disappoint in the way of views. On the way back to the hotel, we happened by a couple scrapbook stores - the Paper Zone and Bee's Knee's - (hmm...wonder how that happened??)

Although our bodies are a little messed up from the time zone differences, it was a very good trip all in all.