More From Vegas

Maybe you have memories of visiting Las Vegas and going to Tressure Island and seeing the free Pirate Show. Well, Treasure Island is noe "t.i." and the Pirate Show is now the "Sirens of t.i." show. They still have explosions, fire, and a sinking ship, but the story is about some sea sirens trying to seduce the pirates. If you stay toward the north end of the show, you can't really see the lingerie dancers, and are closer to the ship that explodes and sinks. Morgan seemed to like it.

This is at the pool at the Venetian. During the day, it was a pretty friendly crowd. A life guard had to tell some kids to quite splashing. Kinley and morgan seemed to like it.

Ali's mom reserved some pool-side seats, which was nice. Our pool was in the shade, which was all right by me.

This is at the Flamingo. They have a garden with waterfalls and fish, turtles, birds, and, of course, flamingos. We ate breakfast there with a high-roller that was visiting. He had a V.I.P. card, so we didn't have to wait in line for the breakfast buffet like all of the non-high-rollers did. That was nice. And our seats were by a window looking into the fish pond, so Morgan was happy.

All-in-all, I would say to people visiting Vegas that the Strip is an OK place during the day for a family if you know where you are going and what you want to do. At night, I just don't like the crowds. I don't know what you have read in the news, but whatever struggles Vegas has, they still pack the sidewalks full of people on weekends. To me, it is just kind of stressful to be there without something specific to do. We decided we wanted ice cream or a soda, but getting to somewhere to sit down and order those things proved difficult. I was willing to pay, but I didn't want to wait in line forever. The Strip is a crazy place, so be sure crazy is your thing before heading there.

We also went out to Hoover dam last week. Not as crazy, but it was hot. And the dam is just a big wall. They are building a large bridge above the dam over a gorge that is kind of cool to see, though.

Schedule for next weekend

I don't know what everyones plans are for next weekend and the baby shower. I know some are going to the football game on Friday night and the shower is Saturday evening. Our kids are out of school the Thurs. and Fri. before that for UEA and my sister and dad are coming down here and we are using our SLC connect passes to do a bunch of stuff on Thurs. and Fri. After that me and the kids will be around. It is conference weekend and Pat mentioned they would probably drive home Saturday after the shower, but anyone is welcome to stay here and hang out on Sunday for conference.

Confirmation

I had my first Dr. appt. today and I really am pregnant! The baby looks good and has a strong heart beat. I am almost 13 weeks and the baby is measuring about a week bigger - which is typical with our babies. So Madsen baby #4 is set to arrive any time the end part of March. My appt. next month I'll be 17 weeks and my Dr. here does an ultra sound every time, so maybe we'll be able to see what it is?! But with Ty at 16 weeks they told me they were 75% sure it was a girl and a month later were definetely wrong. So we really won't know for sure until the middle of Nov.

stuff

Homecoming date, Taylor Stositch and 1970 GTO

Homecoming dress

Coranation assembly, no she did not win

first day of school, always fun

stuff

We took both Grandmas to Yellowstone on Freda's BD Sept 11th.

We really had a good time and saw bison, elk, deer and old faithful!

Thank You

Thank you for the flowers you sent up to my family at my mom's funeral. This is the arrangement from you guys. There are 2 plants and a mum. Hopefully I won't kill the plants - I don't have a good record. Also, thank you to Pat, Dale, Val and Todd for coming up to the viewing and funeral. It was so nice not to have to worry about the boys - especially since Kade was sick.

We are all doing OK, considering. As sad as we all are it is more heartbreaking to watch my dad. He is trying so hard to deal with this, but he just wanders around with a lost look in his eyes that is so hard to see. I know time will help us all heal. Getting back to reality has been a hard adjustment, but we really don't have any other choice. Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers.

Proud Gardeners

Most of our garden has been fruitful this year and I had to post a picture of all the tomatoes Riley and I picked this evening. I didn't realize we had so many, but we just kept finding more and more. Riley is also very proud of her pumpkins. The big one she's sitting by is the largest we've ever grown! Our corn has also come on in the past week and has been a delicious addition to our meals.

Some Shots from Vegas.

This is just in our backyard. That is almost all of it, there is a little concrete patio just off the house.

It is a break away! I think she was offsides earlier, though.

Back of the house with the patio and my little grill. We might need a plastic chair or two to put back here. A non-Palm tree (bush?), too! The landlord pays for all the lawn care, but we pay the water bill. The lawn-care people come on Thursdays. Early. And they are loud. At least, it seemed that way as we tried to sleep in this week.

Ali found these couches and the tables at RC Willey for what seemed like a good deal after looking at Sam's club. They really fill up our little living/dinning area. They look pillow-back, but the backs don't come off. They are really firm, which is allright with us. It has been a real adjustment having furniture that we want to keep. No more eating on the couches. Or jumping on the couches. Or using the couches as a saw bench. The bookshelf in the back came with us from Provo. I'm not a big fan of the vertical blinds so far; they seem to bind and cause issues whenever we touch them. Ali also has a big area rug comming from RC Willey that will go between the couches. It was being shipped from a different location and is taking longer. With the couches and stuff it doesn't feel like we are living in a cave anymore, but the all-tile flooring is still a little odd. Sure, you can get it clean but it takes as much time and work as a carpet. The difference is that the carpet might look clean but really never is. We also bought a new (to us, at least) matress from Ali's sister. Our old matress was sooooooo lumpy and squeaky. You can come visit and try it out. . .

We went to Church today for the first time. Our Ward is full of Mormons. . .

I'll have to take some pictures or video of the tree lined roads and sidewalks.

G-ma 90th

This is your notification and invite!! The luncheon is for family so RSVP if you can come to that.
It is also Skyline's homecoming dance that night , Morgan has been nominated for royalty, we'll
let you know how that turns out. The powder puff game is next Tuesday, a big event
for us. If you would rather call me with you RSVP I can pass it along!
Love you all,
Mom