How I Won $300 and Survived 110 Degree Weather

Justin's parents have planned a Vegas trip to celebrate their 50th birthdays for a long time now.

I was really excited to go, but knew it would be a challenge to survive Vegas while 8 months pregnant. 

Walking too much = cramping back and feet. 

Eating out too much = swelling up like the blue girl on Willie Wonka due to all the sodium 

Not drinking = being completely sober in the city that never sleeps. And yes, signs all over the place reminded you of the dangers of drinking while pregnant...in case anyone was unsure: 

Flying = sitting still for a long time in a small seat with minimal leg room 

But I knew focusing on the negative would make the trip awful, so I focused on the positive! I was bound and determined to have a great trip ...even if the odds (and outrageous heat) were against me. So I declared this a birthday celebration and a babymoon! 

I picked up my "grown up" magazines and a bagel sandwich at the airport. 

Then we were off to Vegas! 

Thankfully, a little boy (about 11 months) named Cruise was in front of us. He made me smile and laugh the entire time. He was such an amazing baby. 

He did, however, have a massive blowout that made me want to puke! I better get used to that...

We arrived around 8 am Vegas time. We took a limo to the hotel, which always makes me happy! If only they had the chicken limo...

Obviously, I was ready for lunch right away. We headed over New York, New York for pizza, but we had to wait about 45 minutes until the pizza place opened up. 

I was walking around the casino when a burst of negative hit me. 

I am not into gambling - how will I survive this trip!? 

What will I even do!? 

Who will hang out with me? 

But I quickly gave myself a pep talk and walked toward the bar for a virgin piña colada! 

This trip will be what I make it, I reminded myself with that first sip. 

With time to spare, I headed over to a slot machine that had an owl theme. It reminded me of Cooper, which is the main reason I went for that machine. 

I put in $15 and won $8 on my first spin! 

I better cash out now, I thought! 

But for some reason I kept going ...once I got down to about $10 I went to another machine. I got down to about $3 and then gained back $5. 

Goodness, I need a new machine or better luck...I told myself. 

I walked toward a Paris themed penny slot, but it looked boring. I turned around and saw another machine called "Hot flashes." 

Well, that's exactly how I feel! So I sat down, put in my $8 bucks, and hit "max bet" - suddenly the game started going crazy. Apparently I went into a bonus road. My machine kept ringing and dinging - the points were added up by the thousands! 

Justin and his dad came over and I said, "I have no clue what's going on, but it looks good!" 

Rodger leaned over to Justin and said, "30,000 credits...that's $300!" 

The dinging stopped and Justin said, "Holy cow! Cash out now." 

I won $300 bucks! 

I was in complete shock! Not only do I have the worst luck, but I never ever win anything. 

Being a good wife, I shared $100 with Justin. I used the rest to play a few more games. And yes, I lost about $50 before I realized my mojo was gone).

How else did I spend my winnings?

Well, I obviously bought delicious food!

Mini cupcake bites!

Serendipity frozen hot chocolate!

And bought a funny bib / onsie for Cooper: 

I planned on spending the rest on a pregnancy massage the next day, but they told me I was too far along (no wonder the robe didn't fit)! 

Hey - at least you can see a few toes down there still!

And how could I forget our favorite waiter?

His name was Steve and he reminded me of Cam from "Modern Family."

He told me I looked fabulous pregnant (which is all he really needed to do because I felt like a swollen blob when we walked around too much).

Not to mention, the food was incredible! 

A-ma-zing!

And so I left him a generous tip. 

So how did I survive the heat? 

Well- believe it or not, it was simple! 

I drank lots and lots of water! T the hotel had fresh fruit water, which made my heart sing.

Water in the spa!

I hung out by the pool (often in the shade) + kept the water flowing! 

Swimsuit #1

And swimsuit #2

Virgin strawberry margarita aka a strawberry slushy!

And Justin drank for all 3 of us!! 

When we went exploring Red Rock Canyan, I took a liter of water with me and lathered up on sunscreen! To be completely honest, I was really dreading this part of the trip. To my surprise, it was actually my favorite part of our vacation!

The view was so incredibly beautiful and peaceful. I also enjoyed that we drove the 13 mile driving view and only stopped at the trail heads for photos and closer views. 

My little friend!

The whole crew!

Family photo!

And despite my fears of getting attacked by a rattlesnack or giant spider, we didn't see any wild animals...except for my little lizard friend (pictured above).

I honestly can't get over the beauty of nature.

And obviously the boys had to climb up a mountain.

How else did I survive Vegas while 30 weeks pregnant? 

I wore comfy clothes when going on long walks and explorations. 

Hey girl heyyy!

And I always propped up my feet when I found comfortable chairs! 

No shame.

Overall, we had a wonderful time. I loved spending time with family, eating great food, lounging by the pool, and making new memories and friends! 

If I go back to Vegas, I'll make sure we have a babysitter come for Cooper. And we will bring Bandit.

Even though Bandit was having the time of his life with our wonderful grandparents, I really missed his little face and kisses. Hey, I saw some dogs out there! I think Bandit would have a blast and really love the lazy river at our hotel!

How can I unpack when I just want to snuggle with my little alien dog!?

But right now, I am so happy to be home. 

When I am away, I remember how much I love Indiana. 

I love Indy. 

I love our little neighborhood.

I love the cornfield views. 

I love that asking for ranch dressing for my fries is a normal request. 

I love the friendly people in the Midwest. 

I just love home. 

And I am so happy to be here....

Much love, 

Ashley 

Cute Husband Shout Out

"Do you think I should change before we go to dinner?" I asked Justin. 

Before he could answer, I asked another question, "Or will you be embarrassed to be seen with me dressed like this?" 

Dressed like this = comfy workout pants and my Jada Beauty t-shirt aka my good luck outfit!!! 

(More details about Vegas day 1 coming soon). 

He laughed and said, "No baby- not at all!" 

"Okay well there will be hot girls out here," I said back feeling frumpy. 

"There always will be hot girls," Justin said. "But you'll be the most beautiful pregnant woman everywhere we go!" 

He is both honest and precious. 

Also, I ended up changing for dinner (in case you were wondering). 

Much love, 

Ashley 

Favorite Outfit Friday: June 28

Happy Friday!!

You guys have seen this dress and purple necklace about 10 times now.

FRIDAY!

But it's not the same as last week - despite the quick glance.  So how about we focus on my new hair and happy eyes! 

Tomorrow is my first baby shower for Mr. Cooper! I can't tell you how excited I am to everyone who can make it + hopefully eat some Decatur Pizza Hut salad bar. 

I'm getting pretty serious about asking for a gallon of their famous ranch dressing to take back with me to Indy. 

I also keep taking pictures of Bandit - because I am a creep and will miss his face so much! 

Seriously, mom. That's enough.
Can't I just get some sleep around here?

Eight days without his kisses, hilarious photobombs, walks together, and snuggles seems impossible! 

How am I ever going to leave my kid if I feel this way about leaving my fur kid?! 

Much love, 

Ashley  

Vegas Prep: A Checklist with Pictures

Maternity swimsuit.

Check. 

Babysitter for B. 

Check. 

(Still need to find something for separate anxiety). 

Body Glide (all day, every day!). 

Fabulous "good luck" dress.

Double check. 

Hilarious t-shirt. 

Check. 

Comfy walking shoes + gym shoes (I will need to work off all that amazing food)! 

Major check - must not leave home without these! 

Another hilarious t-shirt. 

Check. 

Oh wait- one more: 

The sad face is because they originally mailed me THIS t-shirt instead of the baby bump t-shirt.
It will still be hilarious to wear in Vegas!

Check again. 

Not pictured: 

- Maternity swimsuit #2 

- Adorable maxi dresses 

- My iPhone charger (for survival) 

- My big, fake wedding ring 

- The list of recommend places to eat, visit, and explore 

- Small tote full of hair, skin care, and beauty products 

- As many leggings and yoga pants as possible 

- My doctor's phone number 

- My kindle fire to read hilarious books such as, "Sippy Cups aren't for Chardonnay" and Jenny McCarthy's book about the first year of being a parent (I am spacing on the title and my kindle is dead) 

- On that note, my kindle charger

- Bandit (I know bags fly free on southwest, but what about dogs...really will miss that little guy). 

Much love, 

Ashley 

A Year of Random Acts of Kindness: Weeks 6-7

I know what you are thinking...

Don't you love how I always try to guess what you're thinking?

"Ashley, have you stopped being kind?! You haven't posted in a few weeks!"

Life and vacation kept me busy over the holidays, so it was difficult to find time to blog.

But, I promise you that I was kind.

I opened the doors for strangers.

I picked up an old lady's cookie after she dropped on the ground. She refused to eat it, but I encouraged her to remember the five second rule. And noted that it rained earlier so the ground was probably clean. She still didn't eat the cookie. And yes, I thought about eating the cookie.

I bought healthy snacks for our family on vacation. Don't worry- I also won everyone over by purchasing chocolate covered bacon for us to share.

The verdict?
More bacon. Always.

But my favorite random act of kindness happened on New Year's Eve.

Justin and I were having lunch at The Friendly Fishermen.

The breeze was perfect.

The view was beautiful.

Nothing beats a beer with an ocean view.

The sun was shining.

And ninja birds were stalking us.

Look closely. He is standing like a ninja.

But don't worry, we did not feed the birds.

Angry Birds.

But we probably wouldn't have shared our food anyway. Our spread was de-lic-ious. We had raw oysters, a smoked fish spread, mahi mahi nuggets, and a stuffed carb.

And the cherry on the sundae was our amazing server.

She reminded me of my Grandma Kaye because she made us laugh and smile so much. She kept our beers coming, and checked up on us without stalking us like the ninja birds.

She was simply a rockstar.

And I knew I wanted to surprise her with a generous tip.

"I just love her," I told Justin. "She is great!"

"You want to leave her a large tip, don't you?" Justin asked as if he was reading my mind.

I smiled.

Of course, I did! And I was positive he felt the same way.

So I used some of my Christmas money and left her a $20 dollar tip (about 50% of our bill).

Public Service Announcement: Your server probably only makes $2.13 / hour so tip at LEAST 20%!!

Back to your regularly scheduled blog...

I also wrote her a note to make her smile:

I snapped this picture before the note and cash nearly blew off the pier.
Because I'm full of luck...

Share your heart with everyone you meet.

And tip a few extra dollars when you receive exceptional service.

You'll both be happy you did....

Much love,
Ashley

The Happiest Place on Earth

Morning Rush

I have a confession.

I was apprehensive about Disney World.

Now don't get me wrong- I was extremely thankful for the opportunity to go to the "happiest place on Earth!"

But...I have the patience and attention span of a hyperactive four-year-old.

Not to mention, the overload of people in this city for the holiday made me want to scream. We had dinner at Taco Bell our first evening- and the line was long enough to assume a roller coaster would be at the end! And we waited 20 minutes for our food. TB was simply a mad house...

Taco Bell Hell.

Anyway, I digress.

I knew I would be stressed out by the long lines, screaming children, over-priced (unhealthy) food, and general problems associated with trying to make a "game plan" for 13 people.

Instead of going into the trip with a negative attitude, I tried to go in with an open mind.

Justin saw me getting ready in the morning and he walked into the bathroom.

He could tell by the look on my face and silence that I was stressed out. 

He wrapped his arms around me and said, "This is the one day I am telling myself that I'm not in control. You need to do the same."

He was right. I'm not in control.

And that's an interesting concept.

We didn't have a timeline.

Or game plan.

No stress? (Unlikely-but again, I was going into the day with an open mind).

We left a half hour late. I didn't freak out, I promise. Remember my mantra for the morning was: You are not in control.

I was dreading the drive into the park. I imagined we'd be stuck in traffic for an hour- just waiting for a parking spot.

But thankfully I was completely wrong! The drive was smooth and quick. We parked SO close to the ticket gate - we could just walk, which was a blessing in disguise because later it ended up POURING rain.

Justin pretending he is Magic Mike on the monorail. I'm not mad about it.

Within minutes of walking around the park, I quickly realized I was the only person wearing a fanny pack. And I didn't have one fanny pack to choose from, I had two!! (Thanks Grandma Sieb)!

The winner.

The runner-up (by default).

Spoiler alert: We visited all four parks and I only saw one other fanny pack. I tried to act hipster and not care, but I secretly did. 

Magic Kingdom: Becoming a Child Again

Our first park was Magic Kingdom. Immediately, I feel in love with the characters and "cast members" at the park.

I took a minute to absorb the moment.

The music.

The smiling faces of children around me.

The adults, who walked into a new World that made them feel like children again too!

Everyone was so happy and friendly!

Hap-pay, Hap-pay, Hap-pay!

Our first ride was the Pirates of the Caribbean. I was amazed at the detail and creativity that went into designing the ride. The pirate "robots" looked SO human...everything from blinking eyes to leg hair to the dirt found on their feet. I was truly amazed.

Next (and thankfully) I grabbed a cup of coffee, which ended up being cheaper than Starbucks coffee. At that moment, I realized I just MIGHT have a bad addiction to Starbucks.

With my cup o' Joe in hand, we went on the following rides:

• Magic Carpet Rides - A total kid ride, but I had a blast! 
• Haunted Mansion- I absolutely loved the story behind this ride + the animation was outstanding. My nephew Braxen said this was his favorite ride of the day.
• It's a Small World After All- The creepiest ride / experience of my life. Seriously, those small dolls gave me nightmares last night. And that song will probably never escape my mind.
• Lilo and Stitch- An "interactive, alien experience" - need I say more? (Yes, I screamed and grabbed Justin's hand the entire time). 

After we finished the above rides, the park was packed. I had false hopes that the park would be slow, especially because it took so long to fill up! Waiting times for rides exceeded an hour and one ride was 2.5 hour wait. With my patience was starting to run out, I was getting very hangry (hungry + angry). A deadly combination....

We all wanted to end the night at Magic Kingdom, so we decided to eat lunch stay for the holiday character parade then head to Animal Kingdom.

In case you're wondering I ate a grilled chicken sandwich (tried to be as healthy as possible). 

Animal Kingdom: Climbing Mt. Everest

We had to take a bus to Animal Kingdom, which wasn't as awful as I expected. Most of the "big kids" had the mission of riding one of the newest rides, Expedition Everest.

This was also the first time I had a beer all day.

And that, my friends, was magical.

Cheers!

The group split up and the big kids went to the new roller coaster while the kiddos went to Dinoland.

The wait was long, but not awful (about an hour and a half). It was interesting to learn about the history of Mt. Everest and the mythical creature, The Yati.

Once we got up to the line, everyone paired up - so I was riding solo or with a stranger (neither of which bothered me).

I ended up riding with an adorable little boy.

"Will you be annoyed if I scream?" I asked trying to make conversation.

"It's okay," he said. "I have two sisters, so I'm used to it."

I could tell he was nervous about going up the roller coaster (that part always freaked me out as a kid too). So we made small talk and I tried to make him laugh. 

Finally, we went down the "hill" but it wasn't a straight shot. We dipped over to the right and saw this:

Broken track!!

You stay in this position for a few seconds, wondering what the heck you'll do next...and then, you take off backwards!!!!

The kid and I were both screaming and laughing.

"I can't breathe, but this is so much fun," the kid said.

He was the cutest and made me excited to share moments like that with our kiddos one day!

After the ride, we turned the corner toward the safari ride and I nearly had a panic attack.

The walkways of Animal Kingdom looked like crowded China.

China aka Animal Kingdom on Friday, December 28.

I think the park exceeded it's maximum capacity. By a thousand or three thousand. 

People were barely moving.

Eager moms and dads were running into people with their strollers.

And clumsy people like me were tripping over small children and strollers.

I was (obviously) walking too fast for everyone, so we kept getting separated. 

"Okkkkk," I said. "It's time to get out of here. I'm losing my mind."

"I'll be right back," Justin said.

"Only come back if you have food and a bottle of wine," I shouted.

Justin, my lovely husband, showed back up with another beer and a bag of chips.

A few minutes later, we made plans to split up again. Big Justin aka my husband aka Uncle J-Dog, Devin, Cierra, Justin Jr. and myself all decided we wanted to ride the Hollywood Tower of Terror in Holllywood Studios + grab a drink in Epcot. Everyone else decided to head back to Magic Kingdom.

On to another bus ride...

Hollywood Studios: The Best Elevator Ride Ever

Once we arrived at Hollywood Studios, I grabbed a cup of coffee to wake myself up. We walked back to the Rock N' Roll ride + Tower of Terror (they are right next to each other). 

The Rock N' Roll (Aerosmith ride) was a three hour wait!

Never.

Will I ever.

Wait 3 hours for a ride....

Well, unless they serve free drinks and healthy snacks while I'm waiting.

The Hollywood Tower of Terror was only a 90 minute wait, so we hopped in line.

The wait was worth it! The Hollywood Tower of Terror was my favorite ride of the day!

I was terrified the majority of the time...and little children in Magic Kingdom could probably hear me screaming from the top of the tower, but I loved every second of the ride. 

Epcot: Drinking in the Rain

As we waited for the bus to Epcot, our fourth and final park of the day, I had a margarita on my mind.

Unfortunately, it started raining and the air was cold.

I was freeeezzzinnngggg. Not to mention, I looked like a wet muskrat.

As we ran toward the park (with the majority of people looking at us like we were crazy as they were leaving the park), I came across a janitor.

I asked him him I could have a trash bag.

"Can I see your ID?" he asked.

I was confused, so I just laughed and said, "Oh no ID! I just want to use a trash bag!"

He looked confused and just ripped one off for me.

I put the bag over my head and tore out of hole the size of my face near the top. I made my very own poncho!

Brilliant, Ashley.

Just brilliant.

We rushed over to Mexico so I could get a Mango margarita.

Class act.

A stranger who was leaving the park gave us three fast track tickets to do an interactive spaceship ride.

Big Justin and Cierra went to Germany and I took the other boys to the spaceship ride. I chugged my margarita on the way over, which was a bad life choice.

The spaceship ride was a stimulator. And I kept reading signs that said you shouldn't on the ride if you are prone to motion sickness or don't like tight spaces.

They really should add another sign that says: If you just chugged a margarita, do not board this ride.

But I suppose that's common sense. 

The ride began with a video, explaining your role in helping the space ship land on Mars. Every person on the ride had a role. I remember feeling so much pressure...like I would actually die on Mars if I didn't press my buttons at the right now.

Thankfully, we survived the ride and I pressed my buttons at the right time. Maybe I missed my secret calling as an astronaut? Get real, you know I'd never do that...I'm too afraid of aliens, darkness, the unknown, and well dying in space in general.

I left the group to eat a Caesar salad while the others went on another ride. Once I was done shoveling the salad in my face (at least I tried to eat healthy!!), everyone was soaking wet and tired.... so we made plans to leave the park.

It was about 10:45 pm, so I would say we had a successful day at the park!

The Final Countdown: Heading Home

The rain continued as we walked to the van. We were getting ready to cross the street when a Disney safety guard said, "It'll probably be safer if you walk around the other way."

We all looked the other direction.

The sidewalk was probably only another 500 feet away, but at that point...everything hurt, we were tired, and just wanted to go home.

Big Justin looked at her and said, "Safer or required?"

She smiled, but didn't respond.

And that was all we needed...we glanced at each other and all took off running the "unsafe" way.

Just as we reached the other side of the road, Justin Jr. hit a part of the sidewalk that was painted and he lost his balance on the wet and slick ground. His feet slipped up over him and he landed on his butt.

We all lost it and everyone was holding onto the wall crossing their legs, trying not to pee themselves.

The cross guard was probably smiling and thinking karma...it'll get ya!

As we walked to the car, still laughing at Little Justin's fall...I told everyone we needed a theme song to end the day.

Big Justin wasted no time and started singing, "The Final Countdown."

So I joined in.

And they all rode in the 15-passenger van home and lived happily ever after.

Much love,
Ashley