“Carry That Weight”

On Thursday morning, we were starting to feel a little more normal. We had a decent bedtime and a good night’s sleep. Our cross-country trip quickly turned international…as we left Germany for dinner the night before and headed to Paris for breakfast.

There is a delightful and impressive buffet in the Paris hotel. Every food you can imagine and more! We made several trips to the made-to-order crepe station…yum! My mouth is watering, just thinking about it! But don’t be fooled…there was lots of bacon and eggs to go around at the table. Also, Aiden tried another new food: scrambled eggs with lox and asparagus! (He gave it a thumbs up!)

Hmmm…did Brady have a good time at the buffet? Check out that shirt! 😉 ❤

The rest of the Paris hotel was gorgeous! One thing we are loving about Vegas is the architecture and the creativity in these buildings! It is a feast for the eyes!

Speaking of which, it was good that we had a magnificent feast in our bellies, because our next stop was the Hoover Dam! Joe, Grumpa, and the boys had been watching a documentary about it, leading up to the trip. But nothing compared to seeing it in person!!

I’ll admit, I was totally emotional about it. Being there and listening to the stories of fortitude…to envision such a project – to begin with – let alone the creativity involved in bringing it to fruition! The way the workers sacrificed so much to get it done on time (actually ahead of schedule!) and how the systems for the project had to continually evolve for the heat and other variables was so inspiring! They showed a shorter documentary on the tour, about 20 minutes or so, and I was in tears by the end!! 😉

After the movie, they took us down – below the dam – 53 floors to see the underground pipes that were constructed to carry the water. The Griswold theme is becoming all too real…

Then, the tour group piled in the elevator to go one floor up to see the power plant. The scale of these things in unbelievable!! And there is about 4/5 still BELOW the ground!

At the end of the tour, they drop you off in an exhibit area that is so well done and very fascinating. But they save the best for last: the scenic overlook. It took my breath away!

By now, we were hungry again. It was time…

And it delivered!! All three Raab boys agreed: two thumbs up!!!!

From there, we went back to the hotel to rest and refresh. It had been such a big day already. The Hoover Dam was so beautiful…but it was HOT!! Have you ever heard someone say, “Yeah, but it’s a dry heat.” I agree, there IS a difference without all the humidity, like at home. But there is also a difference of about 20 degrees!!

We rested and changed and set out to see our very first Las Vegas show! It was a family-friendly variety show that my parents had already seen…so we knew it was safe. They don’t allow you to take pictures during the performances so I don’t have much to post here. But can I say that I actually appreciated it?? The acts were SO funny, talented, and creative and it would have made for some GREAT pictures. But it was really nice to just sit and take it all in without seeing a room full of people holding up phones – or worse – being blocked by someone doing it. Brady was very hesitant before going in because of some other things that were advertised at the theatre. (Ugh.) We did our best to reassure him…but by the first two minutes of the first act, he was laughing hysterically! Both boys were so into it: jumping up and down in their seats, smiling, clapping, and even jaw dropped at a few of the acts. I loved seeing their pure joy…just like in the pool, the day before. It made this mama’s heart happy.

Thankfully, the show was over around 8:30. We were able to get back to our hotel relatively easily for a normal bedtime. Yay, Uber! It was a busy day…but it was all so heartwarming. We needed that.

p.s. Can I just say how thankful I am that we got the whole Uber thing situated back in Nashville? Only God knew then how much we would need/use it in the coming weeks. Uber is EVERYTHING in Vegas. With so many people and so much going on…I can’t imagine having to learn a whole new app and system on top of everything else. After a week here, we are pros now! 😉

p.p.s. I forgot to include this on our last post, but HAD to make sure to give it a mention. When we woke up on Wednesday morning, look what we saw right outside our room!! Meant to be?? ❤

|Please hold all of your dam questions until the end of the dam tour.” |

– Vegas Vacation – Joe Raab