We started this year in the fabulous city of Las Vegas with the fabulous Ashman family! It was a wonderful change from gloomy southern Oregon (it actually snowed Christmas eve) to sunny Vegas. The trip wouldn't have been possible if Don hadn't made a mistake (blame it on Van Halen, if you will) - - this is one mistake that will always be remembered -- in the most loving way : )
Beside the delightful weather in Vegas, we also enjoyed the Ashman's hospitality. Thank you, Suzanne, Doug, Vance, Bill, Hillary and Miriam for sharing, laughing and, of course, eating with us. Ethan asked me on our second day of stay, "Do I really exist?" (What a hefty question, I thought) "Of course you do! Why do you ask?" "I can't believe I'm in Las Vegas!" his reply mustered all the dramatic effect a soon-to-be six-year-old can produce. His big cousins certainly humored and treated him well. He played Wii with Bill; pillow fighting with Hillary; played with Miriam's dog roughly and pointed out (counted, actually) some anatomy specifically belonged to female dogs. (Xan had a video clip which, perhaps, we will share it later.) He spent an evening with Uncle Doug watching tv while rest of us went to "Phantom of Opera." His biggest complaint, or should I say a favorite guilt trip to lay on his dad was that he didn't get to go to Van Halen concert. Dad made it up to him well - - we took him to the M&M store on the strip and, several pounds of sugar and chocolate later, "Van Halen what?"
If the nightly giggles and laughter from the room the girls shared (Hillary, Xan and Miriam) can be an indication of how much fun Xan had, you will have to ask Grandma Dorothy whose bedroom is on the total opposite side of the hall way. Grandma will tell you that she can hear the girls laughing and giggling all night long. Well, her exact words were " It just made me smile to hear the girls laughing and giggling all night." She is a grandmother; therefore, we will excuse her kindness. The girls heard, during the night, the poundings from the room next door shared by Don, Debbie and Ethan. They thought it was uncle Don until Debbie confessed that she was the one who "knocked". Knocked, indeed, I don't think I'll have any energy left to pound anything at 3:00 a.m! On Xan's to-do-list for Vegas, shopping was probably the first thing or maybe second, next to Van Halen. I think she also enjoyed the time spending with Hillary and Miriam doing just girly stuff: shopping, make-up, hair, talking all night about nothing and everything. She has lamented many times that she wish she has sisters. With Hillary and Miriam, she got some substantial "sister" time.
Grandma Dorothy accompanied us on this trip. It was wonderful to have her with us for Christmas and the Vegas vacation. It was actually pretty cool to travel with her, for instance, on our returning trip, we were able to go through the security check points with hardly any lines and much quicker because Grandma was in a wheelchair "operated" by an airport employee. She could've walked to the terminal by herself (her heart is strong now), though she didn't want to take too much time. So the gang just followed her and went through the check points quick and easy. To quote Lloyd Christmas from Dumb and Dumber "Although slow and dangerous behind the wheels, Senior citizens still serve their purposes." (No disrespect here, grandma : )
I would very much like to take another trip to Vegas, especailly when the craving for Osaka is urgent and strong. Thanks to Vance, Osaka is now my most favorite Japanese resturant!
No comments:
Post a Comment