Looking Back and Enjoying Home, for a Change

Let me explain! Yes, even I think I have had too much vacation already this year. Almost two full weeks in three and a half months since the beginning of the year is outrageous for this overworked, used to short vacation stints, almost American. With job switching somewhere in between, I feel like a slacker, really … I need to get back to work, folks!

I know – be careful what I wish for – but really I feel like it’s time to give back to where I have taken from, namely my paycheck. We have been really fortunate to be able to get out of town and state more than most people and for that I am forever grateful – especially today, on this day of celebration.

We have been to Hawaii for a week, a life long dream for me, and back to Vegas with my sister, on her first trip there. I know some of my friends find it almost comical that we go to Vegas so often – but it’s really the closest big city (at a 5 and a half hour drive) to where we live now. Where else to go? Especially in the cold seasons? And Vegas is different and always new (minus the crowds and the dirt) every time we go. Every time we go, we try to do something we have not done before, or at least eat in a  new place or walk on a street we have not been on before. This keeps it fresh for us. And there will be forever shows and museums we have not seen yet.

I believe that place is always more fun seen through the eyes of people who see it for the first time. When we go somewhere with someone who’s never been there before, we re-discover the place we thought we knew so well in a completely new light. There are various angles to look at travel from, and these are some perspectives I trust to be true for us. 

 Other than the sheer joy of having my sister along for the trip, here are some things we have seen/ done for the first time in our last Vegas trip: visited The M&M World museum, eat Chicago Dogs at Holsteins - the best hotdog sliders (and cutest) I have ever seen in my life -, took a cruise on Lake Mead, and seen the blown glass ceiling inside The Bellagio.
I don't have a picture of it, but The Bacchanal Buffet at Caesar's Palace was definitely the highlight of the trip!

Although I am looking forward to a full year of more travel, close and far, right now, I am enjoying this beautiful weather we’re having and my yard, exploding with color. I cannot believe how blessed I am: I look out my window and all I see is snow capped mountains and beautiful blooms, with fresh leaves everywhere. I have always wanted to call this home – and now I do.

 

Taking in home from my front yard. So good to be here and be settled for a bit!