Viva Las Vegas!

The first weekend in February, Paul and I were invited to go to Vegas with a few people from the firm he works at. We'd found out about it a couple months prior and we were stoked. Jared and Abby were left behind (one of the hardest things I've ever done) Jared ( was 3 months old) stayed with my SIL, Sandee and Abby stayed with my sister, Chelsea! We left them in great hands! 

So, we get to the airport and I immediately got a soda. No nursing=eating and drinking whatever I want!! (Plus, I felt I deserved it after making sure Jared had 2 GALLONS of pumped milk. Never felt more like a cow) And you better believe I got another soda on the plane. :)

 The BEAUTIFUL Aria. We, got the highest room out of everyone that went, so we had a fabulous view. This hotel was awesome! A remote that controlled everything, huge bed, tons of room, a shower and a big ol bathtub, even a phone in the bathroom in case you got board while doing your business.

 After we got situated in the room, we met the rest of the clan for lunch at the buffet in the hotel. Amazing food!

 Then it was time for the fellas of the firm to have a meeting, so I went with a few of the ladies for a walk down the strip!

 M&M's anyone? Too bad a 1 lb bag was about $15!

 The largest chocolate fountain ever. Seriously. Amazing (And I wanted to break in and have my mouth be part of the fountain.

 While we were there, (I forgot what hotel this is..) but they were celebrating the Chinese New Year. So many cool statues made completely out of flowers.

The Billagio! I'd heard so many things about this hotel. We were so excited to see the water/lights show and it did not disappoint! 

Just walking down the strip some more..

 Paul and I decided to get last minute tickets to the Jabbawockeez. So fun! They were so entertaining! What can beat comedy and dancing?

 The Chandelier restaurant in the Cosmopolitan. Gorgeous.

 The 2nd afternoon we went to the buffet in the Paris hotel. So tasty (PJco likes buffets. Cheap(er) for a mass of people) There was a station to make your own custom crepe. I think mine was an apple, nutella something or other. And it was the bomb.

 Canoe statue!

 Vegas wouldn't be Vegas without a few wedding chapels.

 The last night we were there, PJco gave us the most awesome experience ever! We got to go see Le Reve at the Wynn hotel! A nice long walk down there from our hotel, but we were able to see lots of cool things on the way. The show was phenomenal. Water, fire, acrobatics. Seriously people jumping from above the ceiling! There was one part where a couple dozen women were doing a routine with their heads underwater for about 5ish minutes. They had scuba divers under the water giving them oxygen(that we couldn't see) the whole time. There was a stage that kept going under water, at water level and higher depending on what the act was doing. Such crazy, keep you on the edge of your seat fun.

 After the show we went to the Eiffel Tower Restaurant in the Paris hotel. Beautiful restaurant. It was such a treat.

 This is one of the walls on a walkway outside the Aria.

We were so spoiled in Vegas, and it was much needed. Although it was hard being away from the kids, we knew they were in good hands. I've wanted to go to Vegas since I was little, so this was a dream come true. Paul grew up in Vegas and his dad used to work at a couple of the resorts so it was fun for him to see how much its grown, what he remembered about it from when it was little, and also to experience it as an adult. 

I cannot wait to go back! It is indeed Sin City, but there is so much good, wholesome fun there! 

Thanks again to Sandee and Chelsea for watching the kids!! You really put our minds at ease so we were able to relax and have a good time. 

Six Flags with PJco!

At the beginning of the month we had the great opportunity of braving the hot weather to have some fun at Six Flags over Texas! I have to admit, we were very, very skeptical about going because of how hot it was supposed to be, but we are SO glad we went because it really wasn't bad at all! We thought we'd only stay for about 2 hours... but we ended up staying 7/8!

This is the only ride I rode. I LOVE Six Flags so much, but with my "condition" (as Six Flags calls it) I wasn't able to ride any big kids rides. But really, after one ride on this thing that only went in circles, I wanted to puke.
Abby loved seeing all the cartoon characters around the park. She had such a great time walking around and running wild.
Right before we left, she clonked out while we were enjoying a funnel cake. I can say proudly that I've never been to Six Flags without enjoying a funnel cake! Although, for some reason this time it really wasn't all that great.
There have been some wonderful parties put on by PJco, and this one did not disappoint. Such a great company to work for! Can't wait to see what they have up their sleeves next :)

Christmas Pops

One of the many perks from Paul working at Peisner Johnson and Co is always getting to have an awesome Christmas activity. This past Christmas we were able to go to the Dallas Symphony and see "Christmas Pops" with Marvin Hamlisch. The show was awesome. I really love going to see things like this, but it's never something that we think of doing, so I was extra excited to go see what it was all about. Marvin Hamlisch directed and man was he awesome. He's such a great M.C. and really kept the crowd going with his quick whitted comments and interaction with the crowd. There were some excellent performers, too. Two teenagers from a nearby high school came and did their own rendition of Greensleeves with a vibraphone and a violin. It was amazing! I really could sit and listen to talented people play their insturments all day long. I guess thats the band nerd in me. There was also a little girl, she was 10 I believe (Mikaela Schneider) who sang Ave Maria. It was the most beautiful thing. I've never heard that song sung so beautifully. (Again, I could sit and listen to choirs or soloists all day.. that would be the choir nerd in me!) Also the orchestra and choir were beautiful and flawless. Mr. Hamlisch introduced the choir as the Motab. ha.

We are so glad we were able to go to this wonderful performance with PJco. It was such a treat!

Oh my! I almost forgot to tell you about the dinner we were treated to before hand! (holy mother of brag time) We were able to eat (with PJco) at the Opus Restaurant just inside the Dallas Symphony building. It was a buffet with the yummiest food I've had in a very long time! If the food had be sitting out for more than about 20 minutes, they would replace it with a fresh dish of it! So awesome. Yeah, we were super spoiled that night. :)

Peisner Johnson Fun Fest!

This past weekend Paul had a work party at the ranch. Peisner, Johnson and Co. really knows how to throw a party! It was at Andy's ranch (Paul's boss and uncle) in Milford, Tx (where Paul used to live and his parents still are). It's about an hour south on 35, North of Waco. It's always a good time when we go to the ranch. We've made some wonderful memories there, and this past one is right on up there with my favorite times at the ranch!

Usually there is a "Spring Fling" where we go down south and have a party, but I guess time got away from the firm and they decided to have this Fall Fest. Instead of the Spring Fling t-shirts, we all got Fall Fest Hoodies. It was carnival themed with lots of games, food, and fun!

These are the hoodies we got with the PJCO logo on them. They even found one for Abby. Its a little big on her, but she was sportin that hoodie none the less.

Since it was Carnival themed, we had lots of games to go play. If you did well, you got a few "PJCo Bucks" and if you didn't do well, then you got one for participating. The more bucks you got the better because at the end of the games...
You got to use your bucks to buy all these sweet items or you could participate in the auction at the end that had some awesome items (movie tickets, gift cards, etc)

Some of the games were:Ring toss, field goal kick, football toss, knock the Gatorade drinks down with the baseball, and a few more.
They had a pop corn machine.
And it wouldn't be a ranch party without the famous hay ride!
There was a bounce house that Abby wasn't too sure about.
Cotton Candy- I'm not sure why, but cotton candy is one of the coolest things ever. I just love it!
These you were able to buy with the PJco bucks. And guess what? I made them all! It was super fun to make them, too. There were pumpkins and scarecrows and a few that I made last minute with grass and candy pumpkins. I loved making them!
Abby was such a sport there. Towards the end she passed out on Paul's chest, but for most of the party, she was awake and so excited to see everything!

We had so much fun! It was a little bit of a drive down there, especially since we went back on Sunday to Paul's parents house who live right down the road from the house for a family dinner, but it was SO worth it.

We are SO grateful that Paul works at the PJCO Firm. Not only is it sustaining our family, it's giving him great work experience for when he graduates from UTA. He's learning things there that will help him for the rest of his career. The people that work there are so great and friendly- a lot of them are people that we've known since we were pre-teen. They are all great examples. And a major plus side- They throw some awesome parties and treat their employees great!

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P.S. You see that super cute hat Abby's wearing? That's from her aunt Liz for Christmas. Liz had to give it to her early because Abby's head is getting too big :) And I'm so glad because it was perfect for the chilly day! Thanks so much, Liz!