Vegas Highlights 1: bumped and the vault

Matt and I were in Las Vegas last weekend, he for a conference and I for reading and lounging by the pool. Our flight was overbooked on the way there, so we volunteered to be bumped. We were up several hundred dollars before we even left for Vegas (the money came in the form of Southwest Airlines travel credits instead of chips, but still).

But the trip's highlight was being able to spend time with one of Matt's mom's best friends. Georganne took us to Red Square, a Russian-themed restaurant in Mandalay Bay. We spent some time before dinner in the private "vodka vault" where we drank some delicious Russian vodka while wearing (fake) fur coats. Matt and I tasted caviar for the first time and learned how to eat it properly. After thawing out and sampling the caviar, our table (okay, Matt and I) polished off much of the bottle of vodka that we sampled in the vault. I'll post more later on the inevitable ridiculous walk home that followed.

More than anything, Matt and I were grateful to be able to spend time with such good friends nearly 2,500 miles from home. Thank you for a wonderful evening, Georganne!

The samples in the icy vault:

"Just chillin'" in the vodka vault:

It was 20 degrees in there (note the ice on the floor). These shoes worked with my outfit, but they were not vault appropriate:

Matt, on the other hand, felt quite at home in Stalin's lair:

Summer of Visitors

Our house has been less like a single-family home this summer and more like a bed and breakfast. It's been wonderful to entertain friends and family from across the country. Rather than compose a lengthy post for each visit, I thought I'd try to sum up each with just a couple photos. This was not an easy task.

When my college friend Andrea visited, I took her to her first Orioles baseball game (which necessitates trips to my favorite neighborhood bars):
...and she took me by the White House. After nearly four years here, I can't believe I've never walked by 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue:

When my parents and sister visited, we went to Gettysburg (no shocker there):
...and we spent a day at the beach. Okay, so we were near the beach.

When former coworkers/bestie friends Rebecca and Anna visited, we spent an evening peering into the lawn of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue from the rooftop bar of the W Hotel (can you see the sniper on that big white house behind us?):
...and we spent far too much time (though not nearly enough money) trying on nearly every shoe in my favorite store, Ma Petite Shoe:

I love how unique the experiences of each of our visitors were. I also love how living here gives us the chance to see the amazing places that surround us with a unique perspective every time someone new comes to town. The doors to our bed and breakfast are always open. Please come back soon.