Day 16: Goodbye Las Vegas

We awoke lazily (again!) this morning, in our very comfortable beds of Monte Carlo. This was the morning where the husband took some time-out for himself at the tables, and despite wanting to hit the gym, I resorted to a tiny attempt to yoga. After dressing up, we headed off to check out - I know, already?! - and before bidding goodbye to Neveda, we hit the Shake Shack for the legendary burger. Not before we lugged all our luggage from room to vehicle after checking out - we were getting a hang of moving homes.

Sunny day

Shake Shack

Our experience at Shake Shack was pleasant, but perhaps it was the hype and build-up of what it was all about; perhaps it was that I couldn't really stomach a burger this morning after having eaten a cow not too long ago, but I thought the burger was salty and though I could appreciate the fresh mushrooms, it wasn't as kickass an experience as I had imagined. The chocolate shake that I indulged in was pretty sinful and worth the while, though. Perhaps, I just need to go to NYC to taste the real deal?

After filling our tummies, we headed back to our vehicle and once again, fit into the routine of settling into the car and hitting the road. The plan for this day was to drive from Neveda and head back to Las Angeles where we first landed on the grounds of US of A. The drive took us several hours - like, 5? - and it felt so familiar being cooped up in the seat, watching the grand mountains as a backdrop pass us by. I cannot recall what we did for lunch, but perhaps it was - again! - a quick fast-food stopover of Maccas. 

Our resident sleepers

Upon arriving at LA, we headed to Citadel malls. It was our last chance to get last-minute shopping done. After a short while there, the husband yelped and located a place where we could have lobster. It was also somewhere enroute to our hotel for the night; our last night in USA.

Red Lobster

Birthday boy (February!) gets a birthday song and cake!

After a very salty and filling dinner, with the dessert of a rich chocolate cake; we headed to our hotel. I didn't take pics of our room, but it was full of things on the ground as the husband and I emptied our car of everything to pack to get ready for our flight home the next day. We spent the night packing and packing and packing... and packing. 

Last chance for tub play

I recall that after the kids had fallen asleep, the husband and I were up, talking about the holiday, our upcoming flight and discussing what time it would be when we arrived in Singapore. Prompted by a message from the sister, who jolted us to realise that - oop, we were going to arrive a day later than expected because we'd not taken into account the time zone difference. So the husband realised that he'd be touching down and having to go to work within 5 hours, or something like that. Ah well, at least we'd already had 16 days of holiday?

That night, I slept - all 4 of us squeezed on one bed, in foreign land. It was our last night, in LA.

Read about our previous day, here. 

Day 15: Our last full day in Las Vegas

This day rolled about with one kid up and the other kid down. While the husband snuck out for some of his alone time with the tables, I packed (yup, non-stop packing), and fed the little boy who was awake. The elder child was still in slumberland, and just as well since I attempted to do some yoga. 

One asleep, one having breakfast

When everyone finally awoke, we got dressed and prepared to head out to fill our tummies properly. 

One in the huge lobby's mirror

1-2-3-4-5; 2 of them are not like the others

We headed to have our lunch at the Wynn. Ten years ago when the husband and I hit Las Vegas, we were mighty impressed with the spread here and wanted to relive the experience. Some parts were exactly like how we remembered; specifically the 'dessert house' which was a central walk-through area that served desserts. While it was still a large spread, it didn't feel as decadent as our previous buffet.  The husband had done some research and it seems that while years ago, the Wynn was the newest hotel on the strip, it's now no longer; and perhaps that's why it wasn't as spanking new. Truth is, when we were doing our walk down practically the whole strip, we plodded through a huge hoarding that spanned forever and it was yet another new hotel. And from our room window at Monte Carlo, there was also another hotel being built right next to it. As they say, Vegas never sleeps and that's probably true and things just need to keep evolving to keep up.

Nom nom nom - spot the sleepyhead

Post-meal - one of a rare couple shot of us

After eating, we had to walk away our meal. We headed back towards our hotel to park our vehicle and opted to go across the road to the M&M's store. The husband and I had visited it years ago and I recalled that it was such a cute and fun store that the kids will surely enjoy it.

Hello Blue and Green!

There was a 3D screening of a show and of course, we had to watch it.

Waiting for the show to begin

The plot was simple - Red and Yellow - the naughty M&Ms had ventured out from their usual boundaries and needed our (the audience's) help to bring them back. In the course of the search, we see how Red and Yellow get into mishaps and close shaves with danger... but it's all happy ending when we manage to have them reunited with the family, so hooray! The kids enjoyed the show - and so did I - and it thrilled me to know that they understood the show when they interacted with the 3D elements that "flew out" of the screen - fun times.

After visiting M&Ms, we headed to the MGM. Its mascot is a lion and years ago, again on our last visit, the husband and I recalled walking through a viewing gallery that showed us real lions. Wanting to share this experience with the children, we trooped to the MGM - only to realise, to our dismay, that there was no longer any live lions. Oops. So we made our way back across the bridge to New York New York.

Statue of Liberty, because NY NY!

And of course, Sesame Street

At this point, after all the festive feasting and walking about, everyone was low on energy. We had plans to catch some shows that evening so we had to take an early dinner. We strolled back to our hotel, because the plan was to catch a nap before the show so that no one will collapse from fatigue. We had a simple dinner at the noodle restaurant of our hotel, during which J nearly fell asleep whilst eating; and the husband ended up carrying him up to the room because he did concuss mid-meal. The little girl and I stayed on to finish our dinner, and even put the leftovers in a tapau bag and brought it up to the room. We all probably managed to rest for about half hour, before we needed to get up and head off. 

The husband wanted to watch La Reve, a show that involved water and acrobatics but because that show was not suitable for children, I offered to take the kids to catch a child-friendly show and let him go for what he wanted on his own. We opted for a some-sort of live variety show that had ping pong balls and juggling hats, dance, jokes and some acrobatic acts along with magic - it's really a mish mash of sorts; and it probably suited the children ok. 

So here came the juggling act of our own. After discussions, we decided that (1) the husband will send us to our show that started at 800pm. (2) He will go for his show that'd start an hour later. Our show will end about 1 hour+ before his did, so I initially toyed with the idea of carting both kids back to the hotel on my own. I'm glad I didn't go with that option because juggling 2 kids with only 1 pram and a big bag on my back was not easy. So, (3) once the husband finished his show, he'd come to fetch us (challenge, we had no phone and only a rough sense of time to meet back at the pick-up point).

(1) Drop off - the good news is that we made it on time, the bad was that I was in such a frenzy trying to rush to make the show. I think from where we were dropped off (the lobby of a neighbouring block), we had 5 minutes to make it to the show. Thankfully, the show wasn't too punctual (thank goodness for allowance time) and also K was behaving like such a star trooper that she brisk-walked alongside me, understanding the urgent need to co-operate so that we'd be able to watch our show. J was thankfully also sitting comfortably in the pram and together, we three made it. Hooray!

The show itself was ok, the kids were probably suitably entertained but it wasn't a big deal for me. But the point wasn't for me, but for them so it was fine. After the show ended, we had an hour to pass and we spent the time browsing the shops, buying a toy for each child and trying to secure a snack. 

So, here is what I call the 'Kind Act that popped up'. So, while tossing around options in the mall for the kids to have, we decided on Garrett's popcorn. It was affordable, easy to eat and the kids could pick their own flavours if they disagreed on one. So there I was, in the Q, talking through the kids the flavours that were available through the counters; and the attendant - this lanky, young African-American lad, beckoned to me. He had a bag of popcorn in his hand and pointed to J to come forward. J did and took the bag from him. The guy then proceeded to fill another similar bag, this time passing it to K. I smiled, seeing how happy the kids were and asked how much I had to pay (I couldn't see an option of a 'small bag' on the wall menu). He smiled at me and shook his head, then clutched his fist and pumped it to his heart then pointed to J and said "this is between me and the little man". We thanked him profusely for his kindness and headed to a nearby bench to eat. I was truly surprised by this kind gesture - perhaps they gave out free samplers this way, but still, it made me happy. 

One happy boy - with the cup of jelly beans in the
foreground (yet to be presented)

One happy girl with her free bag of popcorn

So, in my heavy backpack, I had diapers, waterbottles, jackets... and I also had candy. The candy of the night was a bag of jellybeans that I'd feed to the kids sparingly to distract/bribe/entertain them. I decided that the kids had to return the guy's kindness and so, I poured a bunch of jellybeans into a little Garrett's plastic taster cup and asked the kids to pass it to the guy. It took a bit of persuasion, but both of them headed to the shop on their own, with each other to pass the guy the candy. What struck me was how wide the guy smiled to get the candy, and he didn't even take the candy over the counter. Perhaps it was because the kids were too short, but he actually stepped out from the counter, to the front and took the candy from the kids. 

This exchange may be simple and not superbly significant, but even till today, I'd say 'remember the kind popcorn uncle?' and they do remember. I hope that this teaches them to be kind and to always pass it on, because it's these little things that mean the real deal. 

After snacking, I managed to do a spot of shopping then we headed to the pick up point to meet the husband. And by then, it was pretty late so it took us little time to settle the kids. Oh, but not before we devoured the leftover noodles from our very-early dinner.

Good night.

Read about our previous day here.

Day 14 - Shopping, switching hotels and oh, eating a cow

We awoke lazily. The children attacked the pantry and savoured tv with what they found. We had to pack and check out today, because as part of the plan, the husband and booked a more posh hotel for us to move in to - you know, just all part of this holiday experience. When in Vegas, ooh yeah!

By the time we were done snacking (the kids), packing (the adults) and changing (everyone), it felt like a lifetime has passed. I think after two weeks of being on the road, it does take a toll on you. We loaded ourselves into the car and with time to spare and nowhere to live, we headed for the next best thing - the shops!

Today, we headed to the other Premium Outlet at Vegas, where by now, we knew where to get our ride (hello trolley vehicle) to satisfy the kids and we settled for a brunch of Panda Express, pizza, coffee and juice. I think this was also the point where because the kids asked for pizza, the husband got a giant slice for them to share (not that it was a gigantic offer, but a slice of pizza in USA size was naturally pretty fit for a giant); they attacked our chinese food with gusto, forgoing their pizza. I think this is a sign that as much as we all enjoyed our occasional junk food of fries, fried chicken and pizza; nothing beats some stir-fry and carbs like noodles or rice. Chinese, we are. 

So, the shopping began. I tackled the sports outlets like Adidas and Nike to fulfill my own needs, the kids got pairs of shoes, the husband did great spots of buys like belt and a lovely pair of Cole Haan shoes... but it was also here that we got into a little spat and I cried. Not like a baby, but sniffed enough to unsettle some tension that perhaps, unknowingly had accumulated through the holiday. 

Truth is, I think being on holiday and constantly needing to plan and be safe and watch out for not just myself, but the roads (on the husband's behalf though I know I did not have to do it) and most importantly, the children, really can be rather trying. And when the husband and I have not spent much time together in the past as while we stay under the same roof, we never really spent 24/7 with each other this much - I'll say it warrants some grumps. So anyhow, it was all good within a few moments and I think that is what made us survive - not just the trip - but our marriage so far. Everyone needs some moments to themselves, everyone needs time to give and take; we identify that we have our moments and acknowledge if we had been an ass. 

So, shopping. 

Because I wanted to snap a pic of K in - gasp - not a dress and her cute boots!

So, about two hours into shopping not only did the husband and I got grumpy at each other, the little boy got grumpy too because he was tired. And so, between the husband and I, we made him a tent - specifically, a tent for his head.

TADA!

Cheeky active sister, with unsuspecting sleephead

It was also at this point that after exhausting ourselves and wallets, we headed back to the food court to have a snack of beef sandwich with fries, and everyone awoke. We then decided to leave shopping and check in our new hotel for the next two nights, the Monte Carlo. 

Hello, room

The Monte Carlo was about 3/4 through the strip and that far away from our original stay at Circus Circus, so we had a chance to explore this other side. That night, after dumping our luggage, we decided to take a stroll in search of dinner.

First sighting of Shake Shack! So exciting!

And of course, Shake Shack was in NYC!

We approached New York, New York and because it was already pretty late, both kids were cranky. The husband had wanted to try this restaurant even though the waiting time was long. We did a pizza stopover to fill our tummies slightly, and at this point, I was not on my best behaviour. Perhaps it was this, or that, but I was just so tired of being a naggy mom. The kids were misbehaving and I felt... grumpy. And snappy. And highly irritable. 

Cue the husband who knows me well, who graciously suggested that I go take the roller-coaster ride and "let off some steam". I thought about it - but just a while - and took the offer and took off. We agreed to meet up again in an hour, back at the restaurant entrance. 

And so I stomped off to the roller coaster, with much annoyance. Everything just felt wrong, and tired, and ... you get the drift. I felt strangely liberated, and a sense of freedom as I waved goodbye to the kids and husband and took off. It felt pretty awesome. 

First stop. Tickets for one at the roller-coaster.

Sneaking a selfie with the roller-coaster. WHEE!

The ride itself was fine, wasn't as scary as I imagined, but boy, did I scream on the ride! I screamed to release my internal frustrations, I screamed because I should and I could, I screamed, just because.

After the ride, I was shaking slightly as I redeemed my belongings from the locker. And saw the family. 

Bang bang

Bang bang

I still had 40 minutes to myself, so after giving a round of hugs and kisses, I ventured off. I hit the gamblings tables for a spot of fun (uh, more like a donation to the casino) and ventured around aimlessly. I walked into the Hersheys store and marvelled at the beautiful rainbow wall of chocolates.

Hershey's - lots of them in different flavours and colours

This spot of time to myself was much-needed, and when I headed to dinner, I was more relaxed.

Gallagher's Steak Hours, est. 1927

Now she decides to be a good girl - perhaps the separation (albeit short) worked well both ways

Anyhow, dinner was this place that the husband read of and wanted to try. And I must say that while I'm a carnivore, I was totally unprepared for what I devoured that night.

My steak

Cheeky with his onion ring

Not a great pic, even gross if you may, but OMG it is THE BEST EVERRRR

After a wine, a ton of food, and such good meat, I was in a way better mood at the end of dinner. And the dinner - did I say that the meat was excellent? I totally ate a whole cow, way more than the husband and I felt like my tummy was a bottomless pit that simply needed to finish the whole cow. It. Was. So. Good.

A more relaxed Mommy with her (now-she-can-call-them) lovely children

The husband with his new hairband - giggles

While the day was somewhat snappy, I think it ended on a splendid note. The short break I had in silence with no nagging to do, nothing to watch out for except for what I wanted, it was great. And the dinner, to be able to eat all that meat with no abandon... super, duper awesome. And the wine, that glass that I just needed to take the edge off the day - perfect. And so we ended this day with yet another silly shot.

Stupidotic

It's a shop (we didn't go in) but it's a good reminder to me that while on holiday, just chillax and have fun. So don't let anything from being stupidiotic (in a good way)!

Our previous day, here.

Day 13: A full day at Las Vegas

So, after walking practically one whole strip of LV the night before, we awoke with two key things on our agenda. 

First, to go indoor skydiving - on our long walk the night before, we had seen the facility; and second, to conquer the best buffet in town - which honestly, the husband and I had been fantasising about since months ago. 

After an informal breakfast 'room service' style - uh, not that we actually ordered any food; more like, we continued eating out from our vehicle-pantry (that we carried right into our room). Hah!

Everyone was pretty excited when we arrived at our destination - Vegas Indoor Skydiving. We drove there as it was some distance from our hotel; but more because after we unwittingly walked the entire strip last night,  the husband figured out that driving up and down the strip would be a lot more comfortable; and so we did. 

I think what really worked for us at this sky-diving joint was the fact that there was no age limit to being allowed to try this so it was great for us who wanted to do this together, as a family. We did the necessary administration and after dropping our things in a locker, were led to a briefing room.

Watching a safety video 

We were told of several positions and key actions to keep in mind, the critical ones. Then, came the fun bit - dressing up!

The littlest suit to fit the littlest man

Hoisting herself in

My adorable munchkins

My goofy boy

My little girl - who, at first glance, looks like her brother in this pic

My first attempt - excited much

Flying family fun

We had 15minutes of tunnel time between four of us, and honestly, it was way more difficult than I imagined. I think I have disjointed shoulders and awkward elbows that made my balance off - that's what I tell myself anyway. The best flyer - discounting the husband who is semi-professional - was actually K! She was such an adventurous being who was game to fly and fly again; and did a good job at that! Little J tried it one time and that met his quota. He much preferred to huddle at the side to watch the flight. All in all, quite an exciting activity attempt for us all; and hopefully the husband - who really itched to fly, scratched that need. My personal favourite take-out from this was how we all had a common experience to share and talk of.

So, after this first, we made a bee's line to fill our growling tummies. Research was done and decision to lunch here was made ages ago - the Bacchanal Buffet at Caesers Palace. It was said to be the best buffet line in town and we were excited to take it on.

Food heaven

We arrived and had to wait for a while, and then we entered into food heaven. The spread was amazing, and more than our eyes could take in at one go. I finished seeing every item only the second time round. We spent a good 2+ hours there, eating everything imaginable; with only a tiny grouse of slipshod service. Otherwise, it was pretty awesome. I ate until I could eat no more. My personal favourites were the oyster shots, the roast, the salad/fruit spread and dessert. Burps.

Meal-time entertainment

Sugar high

After devouring all those calories, we took a stroll in Caesars Palace to help with digestion. As it was nearly Chinese New Year, we chanced upon this elaborate display of a dragon. 

Rawrr

We had no plans for the day, and loosely came to the decision to watch a show. We headed to secure our tickets, and with a couple of hours to spare, we hit the shops! Hello you beautiful outlet mall! As we know, having children around when you try to shop is not the easiest and thankfully, the mall offered this lovely solution of a trolley in the form of a vehicle; even better that it's a two-seater - hooray!

Everyone's happy!

The husband and I checked out several shops and made some good buys; and before we knew it, it was time to head back to the hotel to catch our show. Tonight, we had gone for Mystere at Treasure Island. The show was suitable for all ages, and recommended for children - a perfect choice for us.

Pre-show snacks

The show was a cirque du soleil and as expected, had exciting acrobatic acts of all sorts with nimble bodies that melded like liquid metal. The child and fun element came in the form of an eccentric old scientist who teased the crew and played pranks among the audience, eliciting giggles from children and adults alike; plus two 'babies' played by acrobats that crawled about and did silly baby acts that made the audience laugh too. 

Both the kids enjoyed the show and as expected, loved the baby antics "the baby so funny, right" but I also explained to the kids that everything that we saw was a played out dream of the babies; as they see things innocently through their creative eyes with no boundaries. The tickets were really not cheap (!) but hey, it's buying an experience that we cannot simply enjoy in our hometown. Jake's favourite act was the drums; and mine was the flying trapeze act that was so beautifully synchronised that it was truly an art. The side acts of white (literally face painted white) men with white hair and white costumes were so magnificently mysterious and added to the fantasy of the show too. I wonder how much of the show the children really got but it didn't matter I guess, as long as they had a good time. 

Mystere

Note: K was not in this picture because she was throwing a tantrum. She had wanted to buy a hat from the gift shop but I flatly refused because it was so impractical plus I knew the hat will have a very short life-span not worthy of the price that I would be over-charged on. Just so we all remember this silly little nugget of information!

It was late by then, and time to fill our tummies (ah, the joys of being flexible with timings when on holiday. As long as we kept to the concept of routine - breakfast, lunch and dinner needs to be accomplished but the actual timings we had them…). The husband opted for this Italian we spotted while walking across The Venetian the night before and off we went. It was an authentic Italian called Canalliso (which literally means the canal) and the whole place was designed to be as if we were in the Italian square by the canal. The high ceilings echoed and the painted-on skies made it feel as if we were transported to little Italy. The meal was pretty good, and my surprise of the meal was the oysters - yummy!

Dinner conversation 

Hungry bunny

Glee!

Love

After a fulfilling diner, we strolled across the road back to where we parked the car at Treasure Island. We picked up the car from valet, and drove back to Circus Circus where everyone crashed for the night. And for the second night in the row, I laid in the hot tub I prepared for myself and soaked my body to relax the muscles; and enjoy the quiet, before going to bed.

Read about our previous day here.