Weekend update

This weekend I spent more time with the family, sure it was chaotic at times, but overall it was fun-filled. I spent lots of time with Nicky on Friday and Saturday. I babysat him Friday night so my brother and sister could hit the strip.

My most interesting encounter occurred when I gave Nicky a tubby; a bath is his favorite activity. He’s super cute about it, he gets very excited, laughs and yells tub-tub-TUBBY!! It turned out to be a very interesting experience. First he peed on my carpet after removing his diaper. Then, he peed in the tub. I drained the water and refilled it with fresh water. Then we’re playing and I notice something dirty. I couldn’t figure out where it came from, until a turd floated by. I couldn’t believe it. I fished it out, drained the tub, rinsed it and refilled it for the second time. Nicky was having a blast splashing and dumping water over himself, and then he stood up and walked over to me and peed for the second time. I drained the tub and refilled it one last time. We finished up bath time without any further incidents. We played the rest of the night. Frank joined in when he got home. Frank taught Nicky the hand motions to “Wheels on the bus” now that’s his most favorite song. His belly laughs and loves (kisses & hugs), sure make the challenging times worthwhile. Eventually, he got sleepy so I put him to bed. Amy has trouble fairly regularly so I was pretty proud that I got him down as easily as I did.

Saturday we shopped at the Las Vegas Outlets and Fashion Show Mall. Then we headed out to my mom’s house for the night. We played outside and Nicky got to try his new ride, a Power Wheels Viper. I think his momma enjoyed it a bit more than he did, but he’ll have a ball with it later on.


Sunday, Amy and Nicky returned back to Chicago. My mom flew back with them. My grandma has throat cancer and recently had a second surgery to remove as much as they could. Recovery has been troublesome, so my mom is tending to her until the 13th. Hopefully, she’ll make great strides and feel better soon.

Mike's flight leaves tonight. It was nice to have one on one time with him Sunday night. He’ll be 21 in July, so being here this close to his birthday has been a bit torturous.

We’ve eaten at a few of our regular places: Amore, Buffalo Wild Wings, BJ’s, Straight from Philly Steak Out, and In-N-Out. Sunday, Frank and I returned to The Maple Tree for breakfast.

We’ve been once before, shortly after they first opened. We thought it was good on that visit but we were disappointed by their maple syrup. It wasn’t as tasty or as thick as varieties we’ve had from Wisconsin. Sunday, I tried the southwestern scramble: Three eggs scrambled with bacon, onions, tomatoes, jalapenos and cheddar. Frank went with the ham and cheese scramble. Both came with wheat toast and homestyle potatoes with sautéed onion. Their wheat bread was extraordinarily good. Everything else was pretty tasty, too. Frank also ordered a side of pancakes. They weren’t too notable and I still am weary that they use real maple syrup. Service was good and the bill was $26.