Las Vegas

It was our first night away from Atlas and his first sleepover at Grandma Gardner's house. (Do I say enough how blessed we are to live so close to Weston's family?!) My friend Kim invited us to her wedding in Las Vegas. Her and Joe have been together for 10 years and decided to celebrate by finally tying the knot. I couldn't have been more happy for her! Atlas must have been excited for his weekend away from us because he was wide awake at 4:00 am, so we got ready and took him to Weston's parent's house around 5:00 and embarked on our road trip. Our favorite thing to do on road trips is listen to a book on tape. This time we listened to Allegiant, the third in a series we've read. It keeps us entertained and I'm glad we both enjoy the same books.  

We got to Vegas a little earlier than we expected and stopped at Smash Burger for lunch at 10:30. I felt justified eating a burger that early because my breakfast was at 4:00 am. 

Luckily there happened to be outlets right there so we had to stop. We hadn't planned on doing any shopping but Weston found a great deal on some fitted dress shirts and I found a couple pairs of sunglasses that I love, which is rare for me. A success for both of us! 

The wedding was going to take place at The Venetian and I planned to be there around 1:00 to hang out with Kim beforehand, since I was a bridesmaid. Since we weren't going to check into our hotel until after the wedding, Weston got ready in the parking garage and I threw my dress on in the hotel. Tell me my man doesn't look good. Mmmm. 

Kim and I have been friends since before I can remember. Our families lived in the same apartment complex near USU when we were babies and then both happened to move right around the corner from each other on the island in Logan after that. They moved to AZ when we were in 4th grade but we kept writing letters and calling each other long distance (yep, I'm old) and visited each other every summer. It seems crazy to think we kept in touch since we were that little and it wasn't so easy to keep in touch back then before the internet and cell phones. It was fun to see her family again and meet the friends that she made after moving away. 

As it always goes with a wedding day, everyone was rushing to get ready and to the ceremony on time. Kim practically ran out of the hotel room with all of us bridesmaids chasing after her. But she pulled it all together in time and looked stunning. 

They planned a gondola ceremony in The Venetian and a dinner following at a delicious Mexican restaurant nearby.

Dinner was a-mazing. We had chips and salsa, then they brought out pork empanadas, then a taco sampler plate, then the salad, then the main dish, and then the dessert! Now that is a meal! 

Doesn't she look beautiful?! And check out that gorgeous dress! I love her so much and I'm glad we've kept in touch all this time. There's no going back now, we're gonna be friends for life! 

Yep, he looks good. 

We don't do it very often, but I love a chance to dress up with my love. 

The only thing I really love about Vegas is the fountains at the Bellagio. I've always told Weston how much I love them and was so excited to finally show him. Even though we were exhausted from the long drive and he'd been up since 4, he still went out on the town with me. Now that's love. 

We also stopped by the M&M's world. No, we're not scared of m&ms, we're just scared of decision making. How were we supposed to pick?!

Of course he looks good and I look ridiculous. But at least we have fun together. 

Seriously, just look at this room. It's definitely the nicest place I've stayed. We had a friend hook us up with a deal on this room at the Paris hotel and absolutely loved it. Especially when you compare this to the last hotel we stayed at (I'm ashamed to say it was Whiskey Pete's. Yuck!).  Apart from the sweet decor, the best part was the fact that I didn't have to wake up five times a night to a crying baby.  We went to bed at 11:00 pm and I didn't move a muscle until 7:00 am. It was glorious.

Goodbye Paris... I mean, Vegas. 

Atlas: 7 months old

Atlas has grown up SO much in the last three months! He still looks so much like a little baby but he's acting like such a big kid. He is definitely a boy on the move. This kid does not like to cuddle or be held tight. He wants to be lifted up to see the world and then get down and explore it. If I'm sitting on the ground while he's playing, he will crawl over to me and climb up me until he's as high as he can get and then I usually lift him up even higher. He loves it! With dad he loves to be turned upside down. He also giggles when dad scratches his feet with his face when he hasn't shaved in a few days.



At his 6 month checkup he was in the 15th percentile for height and weight, but I think his size is just perfect. We had to get a few more shots and he handled them like a champ. 

It seemed like six months was the magic number when Atlas decided he was done being a baby. Within a week he was full on crawling, his two bottom teeth came in, and then soon after that he started climbing on things and trying to pull himself up to stand.









Now when he doesn't want to take a nap he will grab onto the crib bars and kneel there and cry. He hasn't quite figured out how to stand up all the way and he hasn't figured out how to get down either. It makes nap time an adventure.

We started feeding him solid (aka pureed) foods at six months. He ate really well and really fast. He enjoyed the sweet potatoes and carrots, wasn't too sure about avocado at first, and not a fan of green beans. I cooked and pureed all his foods so he would get the best nutrition. It's easy to do a big batch and freeze into ice cube trays. When I'm in a rush and don't have anything out of the freezer, I'll use rice cereal as a backup and he likes that too. A couple weeks after he started eating though, he got a fever for a couple days and stopped eating solids for a while. But he's getting better at eating again. At least he's never denied the milk.
I should probably document what a typical week looks like for Atlas. Sunday mornings are pretty chill since we have church at 11:00. It gives us plenty of time for him to play and take a nap before getting ready for church. However, church is not always our favorite since he doesn't sleep again until we get home at 2:30. He's usually great during sacrament meeting and then I feed him when that ends and he's good for the second class, but by the third hour he's just done and ready to go home and sleep (aren't we all). After church we all go home, eat lunch, and take naps. We love our family nap time. :) Once or twice a month we'll go over to Weston's family's house for dinner so they can love on Atlas. Mondays I work from home so I try to keep Atlas entertained while I get enough work done to feel productive. Tuesday through Friday, Atlas is typically being watched by Grandma Gardner 2-3 times, depending on Weston's work schedule. He'll drop him off in the morning between 8:30-9:30 and I'll pick him up around 3:30 when I get home. I'm so glad that he's either with mom, dad, or grandma. It is the best possible outcome while I have to be working. Saturdays are the best because I get to spend all day with my boy. Weston usually works some portion of the day and I count down the hours until our family is all together. I love my little family!