First Big Snow of the Season

I've been very happy with the mild winter we've been having but our boys have been wanting a big snow so they could play in it. Well, we finally got it last night and today. It started out as rain and sleet then turned over to heavy wet snow. We got around 10 inches of the pretty white stuff. I only say that since I know it won't be around long!

Our poor little tree. The boys helped it out and cleaned off it's branches.

The boys had a great time out playing in it. They went out 2 or 3 times during the day. At least it was warm so they could enjoy it. The temps are to warm up even more in the next few days so it won't last long.

Photos are from hubby and one of the boys. I'm still sick so wasn't able to go out and roll around out there. :o)



Scarlet Fever

Tis the season for sickness. I woke up Saturday morning with what I thought was just an awful nasty cold. I spent most of the day in bed other than cooking and cleaning up after meals. Sunday morning it was after 11am before I could drag myself out of bed and into the shower. Which that was when I noticed the rash on my neck and chest. I had my mom pick me up and drive me over to Coborn's Minute Clinic so hubby could stay home with the boys. My head was hurting way too much to drive. After about an hour wait finally my turn and sure enough strep test was positive which the doctor assumed it was after seeing my rash .

Some of my rash.

So I'm still feeling pretty miserable but hoping once I get a few doses of my meds in me I'll be on the mend. So odd though I don't even have a sore throat. It's a little dry but that's it. The worst is the headache, body ache, ears hurting, fever/chills, stuffiness, stomach ache, and burning in my chest.

I had scarlet fever/strep throat last year about this time too. This is only the 3rd time I've gotten strep. I was 32 the very first time but that time I had horrible sore throat. Last year when I went in to urget care the doctor was just beside himself seeing my rash. He had the intern come in and look at me so he could see what scarlet fever looked like in "real life". I felt very much on display.

Anyways, I just wanted to do a quick update since it's been awhile since I've posted. Hope you are all feeling well! I'm off to snuggle under my blankets. I apologize for any grammar errors. My head is not fully functioning. :o)

Las Vegas

Last fall I won a contest from a local radio station. It was a promotion for the show Up All Night. You had to write in a story about how you had been up all night. I wrote in about an awful night last May when our boys were so sick. Looking back it was funny but at the time not so much. Anyways, that night won me a trip for 2 to Las Vegas. They covered our airfare, 2 nights at 5 star hotel, shuttle to/from hotel and some spending money.

My husband and I went Feb. 3-5th. I hadn't realized when we picked the dates that it was Superbowl weekend and I guess if you're not at the Superbowl then Vegas is the place to be. It was a little busy but not bad.

We stayed at the Venetian.

All the hotels are just huge and so unique. We enjoyed walking the strip and touring the lobbies. They go all out in Vegas. 

This is the lobby at the Venetian.

The conservatory at Bellagio.

A few of the hotels were still decorated from Chinese New Year celebration. They had just beautiful decorations. A lot of smoke breathing dragons.

We don't gamble so we mostly walked the strip and toured the hotels and some of the shops. We got many miles in that weekend. The first night when I went to take my shoes off, my socks had holes from rubbing up against my shoes so much! 

Of course, we did a lot of eating too. Our first meal was Friday afternoon when we arrived. We went to the food court in the Venetian/Palazzo area. We ate the best hamburgers at Johnny Rockets. We don't have those here. It was 50's style and we sat up at the counter.

My hamburger had swiss cheese and grilled onions. So yummy!!

Friday night we ate at a restaurant also in the Venetian. I believe it was called Grand Lux Cafe. We were so tired and just wanted something close. We were very pleased. My husband had excellent grilled trout with grilled green beans, and some very tasty mashed potaotes. I had shrimp scampi pasta. It was seasoned with garlic, lemon, and a few other things. A little overpowering but still good.

Huge shrimp!

Saturday morning we ventured over to Margaritaville for breakfast. We got there just in time because they only let 1 more table in after us for breakfast. It had a really nice atmosphere. My breakfast was absolutely delicious!

My omelette had swiss cheese, avocado, & smoked bacon.

Saturday afternoon/evening we decided to try a buffet and went to Harrah's since hubby wanted some prime rib and it was close to where we were at the time! He had seen an ad somewhere along our walk of the strip. We hit just at the right time without even knowing it. It was 2:50pm and they were just getting ready to switch over to dinner so we still got the brunch price but got a little taste of brunch foods then the switch to dinner. Wow! So many things to choose from. I enjoyed little bits of all kinds of things! My husband enjoyed his prime rib and the crab legs. It was also pretty quiet in there since it was mid afternoon. When we walked by later on in the evening there was a line to get in. We didn't eat anything else later that night.

Sunday morning we went over to Denny's since it was right near our hotel. I was not impressed at all and would not recommend it. We had poor service and the food was not good. Afterwards we wandered over to Starbucks for some coffee to warm us up. It was a little chilly and then we walked part of the strip. Sunday morning about 9am there was not many people out so it was a nice quiet walk.

We met some lovely people over the weekend. I've apparently inherited the chatty gene from my mother and tend to strike up conversations with people. We met a lovely couple on the shuttle from the airport, they were from Prince Edward Island, Canada in town for the George Strait concert. They gave us the good advice to ignore the annoying people passing out cards along the strip. We met a very nice gentleman while waiting for the Bellagio Fountains Friday afternoon. His wife was in Afghanistan for work and had sent him there for his birthday. I forgot to ask where he was from but he had a very thick southern accent. On our walk back from Mandalay Bay we found the tram and took it to Excalibur since our feet were so tired. We visited with a couple from Southern California who visit Vegas every few months and were just so excited for us for our first trip out there and that I had won our vacation. We encountered a very nice lady from Nashville Saturday night while we were people watching at our hotel. She was so fun to visit with. She was there with a friend and both their daughters. This lady we were visiting with had just finished law school and her daughter had brought her to Vegas to celebrate. So many friendly people but of course there are some strange ones as well but I try to avoid those that look a little questionable. :o)

I do have to say I met one of my good friends on a trip to Miami a few years back. We struck up a conversation at the hotel or bus tour we were on. She, of course, turned out to be a normal person and I am so happy to have met her. Anyways, sorry to get sidetracked. Just don't be afraid to conversate with those around you! You never know who you might meet! Back to Vegas now.

While we were at the airport waiting for our flight back to Minneapolis there was a little odd moment. The gate next to us was boarding and the gate our plane was at, was deplaning. All the sudden there was 3 loud beeps over the intercom and some code word and all the gate doors were shut. The whole area went quiet. We waited for about 20 mins then another announcement came on and the doors were opened again. We never did find out what happened but it was a little strange. Luckily our flight boarded in next 20 mins and we were on our way home!

We really enjoyed our weekend away. The weather was nice, sunny and about 60. Seeing the Bellagio Fountains, the volcano at the Mirage, and just walking the strip were definitely the highlights of our trip. People watching was also very entertaining! It was so nice to have time just to hang out together and not be on a schedule. We were so very happy though to get home and see our boys! It's always nice to go on vacation but always so very good to be back home!







Happy Valentine's Day!

We were in much need of some groceries so the boys and I ran to Costco and Target today. I didn't have time to make anything for dessert on this special day so I was very excited when I saw Costco had a yummy looking red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting for only $8. You know it went right in my cart without any hesitation! They have such good bakery products there.



It looks a little small in the photo but it's a 10 inch cake and weighs about 3 1/2 lbs! It has the red crumbs all around the sides of the cake. So I have to confess I had 2 slivers of it before supper! It was just calling my name and I couldn't resist. One of the boys also had a piece so I wouldn't eat alone. LOL  It is beyond good. So very moist and just the right amount of frosting. Yummy! I highly recommend if you are near a Costco to pick one up.

After we got home and unloaded groceries I ran across town to Sonic for Happy Hour. They have slushies for 1/2 price from 2-4pm each day. So the boys got slushies for their Valentine's treat from me. They are so easy to please!

I hope you have a lovely Valentine's Day. I will enjoy mine with my 5 favorite sweeties.  :o)

Our Trip After Our Trip

I was planning on my next post to be about our vacation we just got back from in Las Vegas. However, we had an unexpected trip upon returning home. We returned home late Sunday night and within 3 hours were on our way to the ER. My husband had chest pains and trouble breathing. He is a very healthy person normally so this was a bit of a scare.

After several hours and tests in the ER he was admitted to the Cardio Unit and very shortly after getting into his room and 2 more tests they found out he had pericarditis which is when the sac around the heart is inflammed. He was in extreme pain and just couldn't get comfortable. After several doses of some good meds and monitoring he was discharged late afternoon to come home. After getting home he developed a fever and was feeling worse than when he left the hospital. It was a long night but after getting a dose of some generic tylenol and his fever breaking around 2:30 am he was finally able to get some rest. We camped out in the living room last night since he needed to be upright in the recliner in order to make pain little more tolerable.

Today he's comfortable as long as he's not moving around. He can get short breaths without too much pain but not able to get a good deep one yet. I think those few hours of sleep really helped and he was also able to eat breakfast this morning. Hoping he just continues improving each day!

So, needless to say I've been little extra busy and tad out of my head without sleep and then just getting back from vacation things are little crazy here. I hope to be able to post some photos and share about our trip in next few days. Just need to take extra care of my man! Luckily our boys are good helpers and making sure Dad is not in need of anything!