We survived the Desperado!

So Pret and I joined Shannon and Michael and their children on a trip to visit Melanie and Alan (Shannon and Melanie are Megan's sisters, for those who don't know...) in Las Vegas for the Memorial Day weekend. It was a great break and escape from our worries and busy lives at home. We started off the adventure Saturday morning by going to Primm, Nevada, right on the boarder between California and Nevada. What would bring us 45 minutes into the desert? THE DESPERADO!

The Desperado is a "hypercoaster" built into the Buffalo Bill Casino. It was quite the experience! I rode with my niece, Susan, and about halfway up the initial climb, she turned to me and said that she didn't want to do it anymore! I said, "Just close your eyes and hold on tight." The next thing I knew, I was screaming non-stop for about 2 1/2 minutes. It was pretty intense! At the end I reached over to ask Susan how it was and she was holding on to the bar so tightly that I could only feel the muscle in her arm. Pret sat at the back the first time and when he was done his hair was straight up on his head (think Kramer from Seinfeld but everywhere). The second time (yes, he dared to do it again!) he sat in the very front and we were told by others on the ride that he let out a few choice words and the first descent began and all he could see was a small hole in the ground into which he knew he would soon travel...

I have included one picture below, but I have also included the link to go and look at some other pictures of it. Below are also some general facts about the coaster to either scare you or make you want to go on it the next time you travel through innocent Primm.

Ride facts
Length: 5,843 feet
Max Height: 210 feet
Biggest Drop: 225 feet
Max Speed: 80 mph
Ride Duration: 2 minutes, 45 seconds
Capacity: 1,700 people per hour on three trains
Designer: Arrow Dynamics, Clearfield, Utah
Special Features: A high-speed dive down a 55-degree hill into a tunnel kicks off the ride followed by a 155-foot second hill. That's higher than most other coasters' first drop.


This is the first drop down into the tunnel and where you exit to go up the next "hill."

Click here for some more pictures.


Saturday night we went to the Ballagio for dinner at their buffet where we stuffed ourselves full of King crab, Beef and great desserts. It was nice to leave the kids (more for the parents of the children) and have some time with just the adults.

Sunday we went to church, ate turkey dinner, and then took great big naps. It was a wonderful day with family and relaxing.

Monday we went four-wheeling! People who have known Pret for many years know how much he likes to get out and ride! One of our first dates (we had a few "first dates") was going four-wheeling and I have been obsessed with it since then (even though I haven't gone again). Last summer Pret sold his last one (he had already bought and sold a 3-wheeler and his big Grizzly) to buy his Miata and I was really sad! :-( Now, after going again, I am putting the pressure on to buy another one. Unfortunately we don't have the money now and won't for a while, but a new savings account will be established especially for the purchase of a four-wheeler or two.

When we got back, Pret and the kids spent hours in the swimming pool wrestling and repeating "Marco Polo" hundreds of times. I think Pret was in vacation heaven!

All-in-all, it was a wonderful weekend. We fortunately called it a "vacation" although it was more of a "trip" for everyone else. We made some great memories and shared in some wonderful adventures. We hope everyone had as good a weekend as we did. I will try to add some more pictures when I get them from my sister.

Pret's Big Fish

Last Saturday, Pret spent his last worry-free Saturday fishing with his dad. It was my first Saturday in a long time to sleep in, so I didn't mind too much that he was gone. :-)

He had quite the day! He caught about a 23" lake trout! As you can see from the picture, it was pretty good-sized. It was the only fish they caught that they could keep (I think the only other one was spawning, so they had to put it back...).



His mom cooked it up for dinner on Monday. It was great! They got enough meat off it to feed all four of us a nice sized fish steak.

I am jealous of the opportunity to go fishing. I am already looking forward to the next chance we have to go out on the boat. It is so relaxing.

Mother's Day Weekend

This weekend was a weekend of accomplishments for me. I was finally able to give my mom her birthday/Christmas/Mother's Day present (for many years running.) As many of you may know, my mom collects nativity scenes. In my guestimation, I would say she has over 400 of them. When I was back in high school, I found a pattern for a Nativity scene cross stitch and vowed that I would do it for my mom some time. Four years ago, I lived with a roommate who was into cross-stitching and she convinced me to do it. 3 1/2 years (and many movies, road trips, and football games on t.v. later) I finished it... That is the one thing that Pret and I have 100% claim on from my parents house when they both die! This isn't the best picture of it, so maybe I will have my dad take a more "professional" picture of it that I can post. Thank you to Robert and Cynthia Brown who took it up to Sheridan for me, thus saving me on shipping costs and protection!



This past weekend, our stake did a Broadway Musical Review that I participated in. I was just a member of the overall cast, but it was a lot of fun to do. I loved being part of a production once again. It was also nice to get to know some of the other people in the stake. I hope that if we aren't in the stake next year, they will adopt me in and let me be a part of it anyway.

This is John and Charla Jordan. They were a really cute, fun couple to hang out with. They have been married for over 10 years and still act like newlyweds-it is cute.


This was Cherokee (like the Native American tribe). She was one of the leads and just a fun girl to hang out with. I changed before I got a picture with "Belle," who was played by a girl in our ward (Nikki), but we had some fun times together, too.



And this was the whole cast. I know it is hard to see, but note the set in the background. It was an amazing mountain scene painted by Nikki's mom and one of my friends.



Overall it was a fun weekend and good to finally be done with some things I have been working on for a while.

Finished!

Pret just took his final for his Pathophysiology class. He got a 95.95% on the test, thus securing an A in the class. We are so happy! Now he has 10 days to relax before starting his crazy summer schedule. Anyone looking for something to do on a Friday, let me know, because Pret will be working every one of them!

Way to go, Pret!