Extended Vacation

Week 26

We've been on a bit of a hiatus the last couple of weeks!! We went on our trip to LA, which was WONDERFUL, but thanks to a nasty snow storm that hit about 90% of the country, we were unable to get home as planned. The vacation was supposed to be Thursday January 27th to Monday January 31st. As sad as we were to leave the gorgeous LA weather, we knew we had to get back home. Apparently, Mother Nature had other plans for us. Our flight was scheduled and 'On Time', however about an hour away from landing in KC, they stopped us in Denver and told us the Kansas City Airport was shut down and we'd need to either stay in Denver or go back west and try and fly out the next day. After some pregnancy hormone fueled tears and about half an hour to figure out our next move, we decided to head to where else.....LAS VEGAS! As much as it sounds like the 'fun' way out, it actually also made the most sense. They had the cheapest rooms and the most flights out of there to Kansas City.

We got to Vegas last Monday night, with a flight booked for the next day - the day the storm was supposed to hit. We were about 15% confident that we'd get out as planned on Tuesday and that was mostly based on the hope that, as usual, the weathermen would be wrong. Of course, this would be the ONE TIME they got it right on the nose. KCI airport was shut down all day Tuesday so our flight that night was cancelled and the next available flight wasn't until Thursday morning. Once we knew we'd be stuck for a few days, we decided to just make the best of it. We knew we probably wouldn't be going on a vacation for awhile once little man is here and this was just forcing us to really enjoy it.

I was so glad it happened because we really got time just the 2 of us and got to really enjoy each other. While we were in LA, I kept thinking about all the exciting and even stressful things we had at home. I kept trying to tell myself to just take this time and be in the moment. Enjoy it because it's going to fly, but it was so hard!! Having that little extension at the end really allowed me to relax and enjoy it.

A few of the highlights of our vacation:
- Lakers game in LA - we saw lots of celebrities: Khloe and Rob Kardashian, Chris Harrison (host of The Bachelor), Kenda Wilkinson and Hank Baskett, Jack Nicholson and a few other randoms. This is a good tidbit to show what society is like right now - most of the 'celebrities' we saw, were reality TV personalities!

- KU game watch party in Huntington Beach at Sharkeez. A girl from KU, recently graduated and relocated out in Cali, works at a bar Sharkeez. For every big KU game, she organizes a watch party for the local alumni/fans. It was a blast. We met some really fun people and everyone was so welcoming and nice! The little beach town was awesome too!

- Beach day - we drove up to Malibu, down to Venice Beach, basically up and down the coast just watching surfers, the beach, the waves, it was a fun day!

- The Grove - we went to the outdoor shopping mall The Grove and did a little shopping. BUT, we also got to see Matthew Morrison (aka Mr. Schuester from Glee - my fave show right now) perform his first solo concert. He was great and it was cool to see him up close!

- The Citadel Outlet Malls - this was Nick's idea but it was so cool! They had a Carter's Outlet, Old Navy outlet and even stores we don't have here at home! We got Baby B TONS of super cute clothes. We even went to a fancy 'LA boutique' Bel Bambini and bought an expensive, but super soft, onesie. I got some FABULOUS 'LA' shoes. Since clothes aren't fitting quite like they used to, shoes and accessories are my new obsession. Ok, so shoes aren't really a 'new' obsession, just taken to a whole new level!

- Ketchup with Matty - our dear friend Matt Hugunin flew out to LA for a work conference and was staying downtown near the Staples Center. Well, the hotel he was staying in just happened to be the same hotel my friend Pete from Meadowbrook now worked. So we got a drink there first so I could say hit to Petey and then hit LA for dinner. We went to Ketchup (a place I've seen on TV as a big celeb spot) so I was pretty excited! The food was great and we had even better company!!

- Criss Angel show in Vegas - neither of us had ever been to a Vegas show and since we had taken on the 'make the best of it' attitude, we decided to go all out. We got the tickets for half price and got 2nd row seats!! I'm not a believer in 'magic' but it was pretty cool to see it upclose. The show was entertaining.

- Walking the strip - we went out and walked the strip the night before we left for Vegas. It was pretty chilly in Vegas, but we wanted to get out and see some of the new hotels before we left. We stopped by the shops at Planet Hollywood and they had a Gap store in there. After stopping in a few different Gap stores in LA, all without maternity sections, I was so excited to find not only that they had a maternity section, but that it was HUGE! They had some great sales on shirts so I got a few. We went in to the new Cosmopolitan hotel and it was gorgeous!!

Overall, the trip was so much fun! We were definitely ready to be home and missed our house and our little Oscar!! We came back to quite a bit of snow on the ground. I think overall the KC area got about 12-14". Nick had to spend some time shoveling the driveway and a path for Osci in the backyard, but we pretty quickly got caught up on house stuff and are back in the groove!