Laughlin Vacation

March 28-31 found us in Laughlin, Nevada. My mom and grandpa came down to see my mom's cousin Shirley, and so we drove over so we could visit as well. We had a great time, and as always, were so excited to see our Nana. Gabby was happy to go to "Nana's Hotel" and swim in the swimming pool. However, the pool wasn't heated and we ended up "swimming" in the hot tub instead. Whatever works. We also went to a town in Arizona called Oatman, which is about 13 miles east of Laughlin. There are donkeys wandering the streets and you can feed them carrots from your hand. Gabby loved seeing them. She was not shy to go right up to them and pet them or feed them. It really suprized Jay and me. Historically, she has been shy and skiddish around all animals, so to see her go right up to the donkeys was a pleasant surprize. Here are a few pics from the trip:

Gabby and the donkeys.

Nana and Sasha with a donkey. Sasha seems so uninterested. I think she was just trying to not get licked.

Oatman used to be a big vacation spot, I guess. This hotel is not an operating hotel but it used to be. I guess Clark Gable came here on his honeymoon. Or his wedding night. I can't remember which.

Gabby feeding the donkeys. They love carrots!

An Old West cowboy show. They were shooting their guns at each other. It was quite loud. Sasha didn't like it much. They didn't have mics on though, and it was hard to hear them at times. Gabby could not make out what they were saying. She was sitting on my grandpa's lap during the show. She turned to him and said, "What are they talking about?" "Oh, just cowboy stuff" was his reply. He thought that was funny.

Another funny note on this show...the premise of the show is that these outlaw cowboys are fighting over some stolen money. It starts with these to men and an outlaw woman. The men were trying to get the woman to give them the money. She wouldn't, so they shot at her. Then she dropped the bag of money and ran off. Once she was off stage, a little boy from the audience ran to where the woman had dropped the bag of money, picked it up, and ran back to his mom. The actors were totally taken off guard by this and started laughing. Obviously not part of the act. You could tell the mom was kind of embarrassed. I thought it was funny, and brave of the boy. Either trying to help the woman or just wanted the money. ha ha :) It was fun.

By the Colorado river, which runs past the casino/hotel where we stayed.

Sasha's Birthday Cake

So here is a photo diary of the consumption of Sasha's 1st birthday cake. It starts out as such a beautiful, clean situation. A nice, free (from Albertson's) cake, just waiting to be eaten. And then Sasha comes on the scene...

Big Sister blowing out the candles. What a great helper! :)

The first bite.

Yum! I think she likes it!

Yes! She does like it!

Ahhhh! That was a great birthday cake! Thanks Mommy and Daddy! Let's have some more!

AI recap, a la Kelly

I just watched last week's American Idol and tonight's episode back-to-back, and I have to say that Kris is rapidly becoming one of my favorites. I love "Ain't No Sunshine" anyway and I think that Bill Withers is an amazing artist, so any of his songs would be awesome to hear. But this was AWESOME! I watched it twice! (Thank you DVR.) The kid knows what works for him and doesn't back down. I think if he keeps this up he could be in the top 4. I was a big Danny fan coming into this season, but he is falling down on my scale. My sister is right, he kind of sounds the same week to week. His performance this week was good....I'm just liking some others better. So here's my breakdown on my top three:

1. Adam. Motown week: WOW. Amazing. His range....huge! This week was back to his rock edge, which I love too. He is my favorite and I am hoping for him to win, so I guess I'll play favorites here. He knows what he wants to do with each song and he doesn't back down. He knows who he is as an artist and what kind of song he needs to choose to keep in that area, unlike several other contestants who are struggling to find this balance.

2. Kris. His Motown week performance was great, I loved the way he changed the song. It didn't sound anything like other versions, which I loved. And this week...well, we already discussed that. He is in his own zone, like Adam, so I think as long as he keeps it up he will be sailing to the end. And I think he will.

3. Allison. She is the best female contestant, in my opinion. She could definately be in the top 3, if not the finals. Her voice is amazing, hard to believe she is only 16. I definately liked her Motown performance better, but I love No Doubt, so this week was cool for me too. I liked her outfit too. Maybe in person it was too over-the-top, but it didn't come across that way to me. Plus she's 16. Give her a break. She looked 16 tonight. Aren't they always criticizing the younger contestants about not looking/sounding their age? This show drives me insane sometimes!

It's fun to watch the shows together because it's easier to see who is standing out and who is falling behind. It will be interesting to see what happens. I hope Megan stays around. I love her voice, if she can figure it out in time I think she could be a contender. She is still struggling a bit though. And I like Matt too. But he is a bit inconsistent. Which is a shame because when he is on, he is ON. This year makes me tempted to vote, but I don't want to fall into the depths of AI obsession, or whatever it was that Holly calls voting. I can't remember. :) I did try to vote one week but I couldn't get through. So there's another reason to not try. ha ha

Sasha's 1 Year Old Today!

My baby is one year old today. My how time flies! I cannot believe that it has been a year already. And what a joyous one at that. Sasha has brought so much joy, happiness, laughter, and love into our home. She has such a sweet spirit and is so loving to everyone around her. She thinks the world of her big sister and thinks that Gabby can do no wrong. Her smile and fun-loving personality have brought me and Jay so much joy and we are so happy to have her in our family. Happy Birthday lovely daughter of mine. I love you so much! :)

Sasha and her classic finger-pointing. This is her favorite thing to do as of late. That and making a fishy face.

Cheese!

Tired baby. Taking a rest on the couch from a busy play day. I love this pose.

Pay It Forward

PAY IT FORWARD.

It may look like a 4th grader, but I'm in. Read on for more....

PAY IT FORWARD

The first 5 people to respond to this post will get something made by me! My choice--for you! This offer does have some restrictions and limitations:

1. I make no guarantees that you will like what I make!
2. What I create will be just for you.
3. It WILL be done this year.
4. You have no clue what it’s going to be … it may be cards, a bookmark, something delicious or a complete surprise to you (and me!) … who knows?
5. Most importantly, you must offer the same deal on your blog - the first 5 people to comment on your blog get something made by YOU!

And the AI losers are....

What! What!! Jorge!! I CANNOT believe that Anoop is saved from elimination tonight! I was convinced that he was leaving and I wasn't sure who the other person would be. I didn't suspect Jorge though. I liked him, thought his voice was great. I even thought his performance was good, definately better than Anoop. Don't get me wrong, I am an Anoop fan. He has a lot of energy, pizazz if you will, on stage and he is fun to watch. But WOW!!! That one caught me with my mouth wide open. Jasmine, not so much. I was surprized that the judges put her through actually. I would have chosen that Alicia Keys sing-alike (Felicity? I can't remember her name) over Jasmine.

Since I'm here...My favorite this season is Adam. I think he's awesome and I think he will probably win. His voice is amazing! However, there are several strong voices here and I think there are about 4 top contenders that this whole deal could go to: Adam, Lil, Danny, or Allison. I think that the girl with the pink hair (what's her name again?) is running right behing them, the third strongest girl. Any thoughts? I have to seek out Idol fans since my husband could care less.

Sasha's new toy

At least someone is using it! Ha ha! I can't keep her off of it. I guess she sees Gabby doing her "exercises" and has to try it out for herself.