I am writing this post from our resort in Las Vegas, Nevada. I wanted to save at least one day in which I could share our vacation.

First Reader and I stumbled into a “vacation club” a whole lotta years ago. It’s come in handy on more than one trip across the west. We’ve spent time at resorts in Reno, NV, Sedona, AZ, and several places in Colorado. We finally took the plunge this week and drove out to Las Vegas.

The trek out wasn’t without its challenges. The weather gods graced us with a spring storm on this trip to start our adventure. While our first driving day was sunny and warm, it was windy as a weather front blasted its way east. The second day brought cold, clouds, and pseudo-winter, and the winds persisted. With our travel luck, we’ll catch the backside of the front on our drive home—and still have to plow into the bleeping wind. It would be nice if we got a push home for a change.

We like Las Vegas because we meet some of our West Coast family while we’re here. I also catch up with a friend of mine from high school. We spend most of our time in the casinos whenever we’re in Vegas. This year, we did things a little differently. I’m not much of a gambler, and neither is my friend. Instead of meeting at a casino and having a buffet meal, we spent a day intending to drive through Red Rock Canyon but got derailed when the park was packed. We went with Plan B: grab a bite, then look for some of the infamous Las Vegas pawn shops.

Yesterday, my friend and I spent a day hiking in Lee Canyon. At the same time, First Reader went casino hopping with her brothers and their spouses. They drove in from California to spend some time with us. It was a win-win for everyone.

Today is our last full day in Sin City. We’re spending the day checking out some of the new (to us) attractions on the Strip. We haven’t really been down there yet, and have comp tickets to ride the LINQ High Roller, one of those new (to us) attractions. We’ll have a bird’s-eye view of the Las Vegas Strip, which should be interesting.

Tomorrow we drive home. Here’s hoping the weather back will treat us better than the weather out.