Wedding/Anniversary Adventures

Last week, Mike and I traveled to Arizona to celebrate my cousin Camille's wedding, and then we stopped by Las Vegas on the way back to celebrate our 5-year wedding anniversary.

It was so fun to see my family in Mesa.  We had a blast hanging out with the Gustafsons, playing Resistance, and practically melting in the heat.  Seriously, even at 9:00 pm stepping outside is like walking into a sauna!

Here's the happy couple making their getaway!

 As mentioned above, on the way back we decided to stop in Las Vegas to celebrate our 5th anniversay (August 11, 2007 - August 11, 2012).  Coming down, we weren't able to leave until Thursday night after work, so we stopped in Vegas due to the super cheap hotel prices ($29/night).  We only stayed there 5 hours, but on the way back we decided to upgrade our accommodations a bit and spend some more time.

I haven't been a huge fan of Vegas in the past--too much trashiness--but this was kind of the first time I really visited any of the "attractions" and walked down the strip (we've usually just drove by or stayed in a hotel without going out much).  Anyway, I have to say it was pretty fun.  There is definitely a lot of craziness going on, but I guess that just makes the experience complete.

We decided to stay at The Venetian--part of what I would call the "pretend Europe" segment of Vegas--and it was lovely.  Mike decided to take some pictures to document.

"Pretend Europe" decor.  :)

 

Inside our hotel room.

 

While we were walking through the casino, Mike saw Senator John McCain and very un-stealthily snapped a photo.

We went to the Bellagio buffet for lunch.  Here are some desserts we enjoyed.

This is to document the "Carnevale" theme going on at the hotel while we were there.

We didn't really do a lot there because it was such a last-minute trip, but there were a few highlights.  I had never seen the Bellagio fountain show in person before, and it really exceeded my expectations.

Here is a youtube video of the song that we saw.  It was awesome!

We also had fun visiting Madame Tussauds Las Vegas.  We got to meet tons of fabulous celebrities, as you will see below.

Mike causing some problems for the Blue Man Group

Peace out Jamie Foxx

Leonardo DiCaprio, even dreamier in person

Will Smith and Mikey

Freakishly-real Larry King

Sarah Michelle Gellar a.k.a. Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Lindsay Lohan (Mike didn't really want to take a picture with her, but just look at that smile, haha)

Johnny Depp....

Chillin' with Ben Affleck

Brangelina + me

Brad Pitt - Angelina

Justin Timberlake

James Bond through the years

Arnold Schwarzenegger Jr.

George Clooney

Mike checking in on Tiger Woods

Mike "Shooting on Shaq"

Michael Jordan, Michael Canar, the all-time greats :)

Don King boxing person

Evel Knievel next generation

Singing with Stevie Wonder

Mikey pals with Gwen Stefani

We ain't no hollaback girls

Beyonce

Katy Perry, haha

Contemplating a performance with Simon Cowell

Fergie is a little freaky

Bono, one of Mike's heroes

Jamming with Jimi Hendrix

Lady Gaga

Prince

Michael Jackson

Some dude and a showgirl and me :)

Wayne Brady from whose line is it anyway

Frank Sinatra and the Rat Pack

Celine Dion, "My Heart Will Go On"

Viva Elvis

Siegfried and Roy

George Washington, what a guy!

Benjamin Franklin

Gotta love Abraham Lincoln

Mike agrees

Marilyn Monroe, the seductress, haha

Trying to look tough with John Wayne

Muhammad Ali

JFK and Jackie

Moon landing

Martin Luther King Jr.

George W. Bush

Yes, we like Obama.  Deal with it!  :)

Well, folks, that concludes our report.  In summary, we decided that we would definitely like to visit L.V. again (got to take advantage of our relative closeness), next time with more planning so we can catch some shows like Cirque du Soleil (did you know they have like 7 shows going on at the same time?  crazy!).  Good times.