We had the greatest time in Albuquerque last week. You have to get out of a small town once in awhile or you start going crazy. I need a mall once in awhile, maybe a new place to eat out, some interestingness in new faces. Albuquerque is a really neat place to visit and I’m so glad we got to get away.

The babies did really well sleeping in a new place, which I worried about. The first day we wore the kids out so much that Noah wouldn’t fall asleep– cried hysterically. I finally got him to sleep and he was conked for the night. The next 2 nights we all slept like babies. We stayed at a nice suite and it had two seperate areas, so Austin even had his own bedroom and tv. It was wonderful. The hotel cooked a beautiful breakfast for free, complete with anything the heart could desire. They also had a happy hour from 5-7 pm where we could get free drinks while a clown entertained the kiddos– painting faces, being silly, blowing balloon animals. The hotel also had an indoor pool and an arcade for Austin. Fun for all!

We ate at the most amazing buffetts (I gained 2 pounds. Yes, I weighed myself to see what vacation(s) had done to me), went to Old Navy where we stocked up on clothes for the kids, ate at this awesome place called “Itz” where the kids (and us old farts) all had a blast! (Click on photos for larger view)

 I kicked Austin’s butt in some horse racing…

I also managed to get my butt kicked by the tweenaged girls and Austin during a round of bumber cars…

Jeremy and Bella had a blast on the roller coaster. It moved surprisingly fast for a toddler coaster and Bella was such a sport! She loved it and made me ride it too. Between the bumper cars and the roller coaster, I was struggling to hold on to my over-indulged pizza buffet dinner.

We went to the Zoo on Saturday and made great memories there. You should totally check out my Flickr pics because I got some great pictures of some of the animals.

Nooskers loved the Aquarium…

 Jeremy was all romantic and picked me a rose for my hair.

But, OMGoodness, this is the best part:

This mommy monkey brought her baby right up to the window and showed us her baby. She held the baby up to show us! She nursed her baby just 2 feet in front of us. She watched Bella and showed her the baby. Finally I leaned into her (the momma monkey) while puckering my lips and… WHAP… She smacked me in the face! I guess she doesn’t like kisses from other women. She then left us, laughing, and with a great memory to last a lifetime! Bella tells EVERYONE how the “Momma monkey smacked mommy in the face!” So cute. But the momma monkey was just trying to let me know I was getting to close for comfort, protecting her baby. And you can see why she’s so protective. I mean, LOOK at this face!

Anyways, it was an amazing trip. I’m so happy that I got to have 2 wonderful vacations– one with my birth family, one with my created family. I’m in awe of how blessed I am. Life is beautiful.