VEGAS BABY!

VEGAS BABY! This past weekend we planned a little getaway with Tristen and Nelson to go down to vegas to get a way for a while. As you will be able to tell from the pictures we had a blast.

This is us driving down to vegas in our car

We must have been driving too fast because all of a sudden I looked our my rear view mirror and the wing on the back of our car went flying behind us down the road. Thankfully we noticed it fly off because we were able to reverse down the shoulder of the highway to pick it up and put it in the back of the car to fix when we got home!

The first thing we did when we got to Vegas is we went to the Silverton Hotel and Casino to sign up for the players card there because they give you a free buffet and $5 to play with. They have this awesome fish tank with every kind of fish you could possibly think of. I was the only one that had ever seen it before so it was cool to take everyone there and have them enjoy it. We were not able to see the show this time but in this tank they have mermaids swim all around in it and put on shows. Next time we go down we will have to make sure we catch the show.

Shaileen was excited because there was a casino named "Shea's Casino" ...here she is pointing it out...funny thing is we never even went inside there. :)

We stopped by the Flamingo hotel and stopped and saw the flamingos and huge cat fish they had in the rivers. There was this cool waterfall so we couldn't pass up the opportunity for a fun little photo!

As we were walking around in the Forum Shops inside of Caesars Palace we saw Mike Tyson. We didnt have enough time to stop and take pictures but it was cool to see someone famous there!

We were able to go see Nathan Burton! He put on an excellent show, he does comedy magic. The things he was able to do with making things disappear and reappear were incredible. The best thing were the tickets were free (we did decide to upgrade to better seats though which was totally worth it)

This is the stip taken from the 3rd floor of the M&M factory!

We went down to Fremont Street (old strip) and Tristen was soooo excited that Michael Jackson was there. She had to take a picture with him. As you can see Mr. T, Stevie Wonder & Tupac were there too...we had a great time down there. One of my favorite things to do down there is watch the spray paint artists do their thing down there. It is hard to explain and I don't want to ruin it for you so if you are ever there make sure you stop and watch!

This is my favorite photo of us from the trip I think, we were just waiting for the bus!

Shaileen was in her element because of all of the walking around and shopping that we did!

Ok...nevermind I think this one is my favorite!

Before we left for Vegas we booked the Legends show tickets on Expedia and it came with a free buffet at Harrahs. It was sure worth it because the show was great. It was a show of impersonators of singers. It was a blast. The impersonators really looked just like who they were going for as well. I though the Steven Tyler look alike was the closest.

Steven Tyler making the move on Shaileen

Lady Gaga and her monsters

I think this was Stevie Wonder but was not sure because I could not see him

And you cant go without Elvis in Vegas

We went inside the new Cosmopolitan Hotel and this is a photograph I took of the Chandelier that is 3 stories tall. It is absolutely incredible. If you ever get the chance to go there you have to take the chance and do it. It is easily my favorite hotel there because of how contemporary it is. Make sure you watch the Video to check out what the full thing looks like...

This gives you a glimpse

These were two huge random shoes that were in the middle of the Cosmopolitan Hotel.

These last several pictures were taken atop the Stratosphere. We did not realize that we could go to the top for free since we stayed in this hotel. It sure is a pretty sight from up there.

The night before we left we went into the Gold & Silver Pawn shop. This is where they film the TV show "Pawn Stars". It was really cool to see what it looks like in real life. We just missed Old Man which we were kind of bummed about but it is ok.

I thought this was really cool to be able to see a bunch of championship rings whether it be college, Superbowl etc.

We had a great time on this vacation and were happy to be able to get away for just a bit.

So we went on the best vacation ever from 4/16/11 - 4/24/11. It was the Cline Family Mexican Riviera Carnival Cruise!!!!!! Everyone in my family went (a total of 15 people). We woke up on 4/16/11 really early which was Shaileen's and my 2nd anniversary and we drove to California. It actually was not a bad drive because the whole way we listened to the Larry H Miller Autobiography on CD which was a really good book. The second day which was sunday we woke up and went and visited with my Aunt Erolene and Uncle Chuck which live in Corona California before the cruise. It was very nice to see them since we do not get them to see them often enough. then we got to the port where the cruiseship in the early afternoon and waited through long lines for about 2 hours or so to be able to get on the cruise ship. Shaileen was freaking out because she was so excited. When we got on the cruiseship the first thing they tell you to do is go up to the lido deck and eat lunch and it never stops from there.....both the fun and the eating part :) .We had 2 days at sea which were a blast. The first day at sea was fairly chilly because we were still close to california but when we got to our first stop in Cabo San Lucas weather was absolutely perfect. It was about 90 degrees with no sun in the sky. We decided to go scuba diving and I had a really good time. Shaileen tried to do it but hyperventilated and just stayed up and snorkeled. We went to depths of 40 ft deep and saw some really cool stuff. I saw an eel, star fish, and other fish i dont remember what their names are though. It was a blast. I could stay under the water all day long if they would allow. After scuba diving we went and met up with my family on Madonno Beach and messed around for a little bit and then got back on the ship. The second day we were in Cabo San Lucas we got off of the ship and we went to one of the mexican workers that try to sell you excursions off of the ship and my family decided to go parasailing. Shaileen and I decided to go on the boat but did not go up in the air. It was a really fun time. We even got pulled over by the mexican Military because the boat was too far out in the ocean parasailing. when we were done with that we went shopping at some of the small shops that were around and then we decided to go rent a vespa scooter. It was just Shaileen and I. It was really fun but pretty scary too because we have no idea what the road signs in Mexico mean and the drivers are definately more aggressive there. That was the last thing that we did in Cabo and then we got back on the ship. The last stop was in Puerto Vallarta which was more beautiful overall then Cabo but the snorkeling was no good. The water was extremely murky so you could barely see your own hand a couple of feet in front of your face. Our family rented a catamaran for ourselves so it was 15 of us on this boat and we sailed to a couple of different spots for a total of 6 hours and stopped a a couple of different locations. It was really fun to be able to spend time there with the family. after that we got a taxi cab and went to downtown Puerto Vallarta. It was passover for them so the city was absolutely crazy busy. We went and did a little shopping and then went back to the ship. That was our last stop in Mexico but we still had 2 more sailing days on the ship. We had a lot of fun on the ship itself and would have to say that the most fun was the piano bar on the 5th floor. Almost every night they would have a sing-a-long party with an amazing piano player. With peole that were completely wasted around you it makes the party just that much more fun. I would have to say that a cruise is for sure the way to travel because you unpack once and you dont have a worry in the world. The service the workers provide you on the ship in incredible. The workers work literally all day long and they get up again and do it the next day and are happy to help you out. I am so thankful for my parents for helping us out to go on the cruise and will never forget this trip that we had with them and the rest of the family.