Yes it's true! Mark and I took a real vacation! We (okay maybe more "I" than "we") decided to stick close to home (read: shorter plane ride, less ankle swelling and low back discomfort) that we could get away for 4 nights. So we visited "Fabulous Las Vegas". We stayed at a non-gaming spa hotel to avoid smoke and noise....but we were attached to the Bellagio in case we needed our smoke and noise fix for the day. We had a few fabulous meals overlooking the fountains, lights and city chatter, and we saw two Cirque De Soleil shows which were feats of acrobatic and engineering ingenuity.

Since I am my father's daughter, it could not be a purposeful vacation without a little history thrown in, hence Mark and I drove to Hoover Dam. We took the tour into the tunnels and power generator center and admired the feats of men who worked 24/7 for about 5 years to complete the structure. It was truly amazing.

For Mark and me, it is not a real vacation if you are not outside doing some hiking of some sort. So we drove to Zion National Park, and despite our unpreparedness, in other words we stopped at WalMart to buy clearance clothing for the wet-cold weather, we had a great time seeing the natural wonders of this corner of Utah. We definitely want to bring little BUD back in the spring time when your socks aren't iced over after a hike.

I am now 30 weeks pregnant, and this little active guy has not appeared to run out of room yet. He still flops around like a fish trying to jump out of water...or a kid trying to come out of my belly button. We are having our house painted this week, including the baby's room, so hopefully I'll have some domestic pictures for you all next week. Praise God for a healthy little guy, a healthy mom, and a wonderful and patient dad! I love my sweet husband and am so grateful for the time we had together to rest and rejuvenate for the final quarter! We are now really looking forward to our trip to Houston in one month. I fear I may be in a full waddling state by then, but none-the-less we're coming!