HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!!!!!

The 'SUPER FUN so HAPPY TO BE 48 Years old BIRTHDAY TRIP' began early Wednesday morning as the four of us headed to St. George for the home show. (yes, I just BARELY got back from there for Sam's tournament). It was alot of BROWN and RED houses like this one above...I just don't like the look. Give me a front porch. AND SOME GREEN SOMEWHERE!!! I am not one to go for the whole look of Star Trek's version of hell scenery. The house I liked the best on the inside was placed in the middle of a bed of BLACK LAVA rock. The windows were incredible to the outside and they did such a miracle with where it was located...but WHO would spend millions building a home in the middle of a black lava rock patch where NO ONE wants to go outside and BE in the yard? That family did I guess. Oddly it was decorated in purple and lime green and was BEAUTIFUL!!!! They definitely know how to do the window thing down there. We ate brunch at the Bear Paw and I was surprised to see my Dad's girlfriend Kris with her friend.
We headed to Vegas where we were joined later by 2 other friends who had to leave later that day due to work. We stayed at the Summer Bay Resort. A bit nippy for swimming, but they had heated the pool to 85! The hot tub and work out room was as gorgeous as the room. We had one last and favorite friend fly in and join us the next morning, so we happily squeezed 7 of us into our 6 sleeping suite.
Thursday night we went to the O SHOW...there are NO WORDS... forget the Olympics....give those athletes the honors. I felt like I had been hit by a truck by the time it ended. I kept trying to relax, telling myself they do this EVERY NIGHT and no one dies....but my heart kept screaming "WHERE ARE YOUR MOTHER's???? DO THEY KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING???" They call it the O show because you say "O" outloud about a thousand times before you get through the whole hour and a half! And then they would have SO MUCH going on at the same time you hardly knew where to look. I wonder how many times you would have to go to feel like you had seen it all. At one point they leave this guy ON FIRE for what seems like an eternity and I just wanted to scream ENOUGH ALREADY...I GET IT...NOW PUT HIM OUT!!!! And the contortionists just made your body hurt and your eyes feel like they were wrong. So I have this love /hate relationship with it. I so want the kids to see it. WHERE did they find so many out of this world athlete's to bring together in one place....and like...how does one train for that craziness...and what ever possessed them to try??????


Friday night we went to Phantom....and even though I've seen it a number of times, I'd never seen it in Vegas...I LOVE it.
The Masquerade scene costumes where SPECTACULAR!!!!!!! I wanted them to just STOP and let each person walk out and slowly twirl around so I could see all the detail.
Our seats were lousy so we asked if they could change them and they did!!!!-- putting us in the FRONT MIDDLE section...and the chandelier came crashing down just above my head and scared the hajeezbus out of me!!! Sara laughed her head off! I can't quit humming the music from it.
The BEST part of the whole trip was the laughing. Okay...maybe the sharing. I can't remember the last time I spent DAYS laughing. And it was so GREAT to share REAL feelings and realize I am not all that much stranger than the average woman. I feel like I was starting to get these empty sad like holes in my soul that I didn't even know were there...but then being loved on like that by my friends and all the laughing ---just seeped in and filled them up. I LOVE being loved. I LOVE being LIKED. Oh how I LOVE THEM!!! THANK YOU FRIENDS!!!!!!!!
I could write a whole entry just on the food we ate--twice at Cheescake Factory :) I had my first pretzel wrapped hot dog and it was LOVE at first bite! We had pie ---sweet and chicken pot pie at Croshaw's in St. George (new must have often). Now instead of 30 lbs to get off before my July reunion I'll have 50!!!!
I am SO SAD that we didn't get pictures....so sad so sad so sad....but what can you say when you are so enthralled with ALL that you are doing you don't even THINK to take one?? THAT IS A GOOD TIME!!!
In the days we shopped the outlets, went to the movies, ran, slept in, hot tubbed, ....perfectly perfect. Happy Birthday to me. SO GRATEFUL for 48 years with 48 years of people to LOVE.