Day 18

Well, I have to say Vegas is definitely more for adults....just as I remembered.  But, we did have so much fun in the Adventure Dome.  We actually spent 7 hours there!  There were so many rides and games and circus acts to keep us going all day.  It was really fun and the kids are now laying on their sleeper sofa in the family room watching cartoons.  Bode had a complete meltdown at the restaurant for lunch.  He started crying and put his head down on the table.  I thought he was going to fall asleep.  But he rallied for the rest of the afternoon after some lunch and cotton candy.  Norm and I are now relaxing in the bedroom checking out the itinerary for the rest of the trip while our Amy's pizza is in the half-time oven.  (yum)  We weren't actually originally supposed to come to Vegas but wanted to see Beth since we were in the West.  So, Norm spent about 30 minutes canceling all our RV reservations for the trip back East.  We are flying by the seat of our pants from here on out....yikes!  We are going to just relax the rest of the evening in the RV since there are many scantily clad women on the Strip and I don't think my boys (or Norm) need to see any more of those "adult sites" while we are here.  Ha!  I love that my cousin Beth is here offering a positive message to those willing to hear it.  Makes me so proud.  She is the music minister in a big church here and is working on a Christian album.  We are heading out tomorrow for Zion.  Very excited about seeing more of God's wonderful creation.  I am glad we might be able to cut a few days off the trip back East.  I do miss my friends, house, yard.....I think Norm could live in this RV!!!  He is in hog heaven and appears right at home on the road.  I guess I am a nester.  The boys seem to really have adjusted to the road even though we have a small meltdown once in a while.  They truly are best friends to each other and are closer than ever.  It is also pretty eye-opening how one can live a much simpler life than what we have become accustomed to.  We certainly don't need all the amenities we have at home to be a healthy, joyful family.  Although the boys seem to have forgotten their manners and leave the toilet seat up more often than they do at home.....hmmmm, not good for me at all!  Excited for what tomorrow brings....until then!

Day 17

We woke up and drove a few miles to Calico Ghost Town, which is California's largest silver mining camp.  It was completely abandoned in 1981 but they have refurbished the buildings, put in some restaurants, and you can tour the mine itself.  It was pretty cool (NOT temperature-wise!) and we stayed a couple of hours and toured the sites.  Then we hit the road and traveled 150 miles and ended up in the KOA Campground at Circus Circus in Las Vegas, Nevada.  To say it's hot is an understatement.....109 degrees is HOT!!!  Unfortunately, the campground is really a huge asphalt parking lot with no trees so we struggled to get the RV to a comfortable cool temperature inside.  The boys went straight to the pool and I went to the laundry room.  We all took cold showers and my sweet cousin Beth picked us up for dinner.  She took us to the Rainforest Cafe in MGM.  The boys had never seen the Vegas strip nor casinos like this so they were wide-eyed!  We had a wonderful visit with Beth and were back in our RV by 10 pm, full and exhausted from our day.  We plan on taking the kids to the Adventure Dome where they have circus performers and amusement park rides inside....should be fun! (and much cooler inside!)  Until then.....