Anniversary Vacay Part II

Remember that one time I started telling you about our anniversary vacation and never finished?

Let's finish, shall we?

Check out part I HERE

So after Carlsbad we drove a few hours to Las Cruces where the concert was. But before we went to the show Saturday night, we first visited the White Sands National Monument.

What is the White Sands National Monument you might ask?...

...I took that from their website so I didn't have to try and explain it.

When I told Nate about it at first he's like, "wait, what is it?"

and I was like,

"I dunno, white gypsies used to live there or something."

So you know, I'm really good at describing things.

Anyway, you can either drive through the park, walk through the park, or for those of us that are indecisive you can do a little bit of both and follow the signs that say "park your car here and walk around a little bit." ...or something like that. 

So we did.

Kinda looks like the beach right?!

It was pretty cool, and pretty vast. 

There were picnic tables where you could sit and eat lunch, and some families were even sliding down the dunes in those disc thingy's you usually see in the snow. 

BUT, since we had places to go and people to see (namely George Strait), 

we didn't make a day out of it.

Instead, we headed back to the hotel, freshened up a bit, had dinner, and headed out to New Mexico State University to see the king of country music!

Martina McBride opened up for George, which honestly, I was pretty indifferent about. I really liked her older stuff, but haven't really been into her for the past few years. 

BUT...I think I changed my mind.

She. Is. Amazeballs.

Her voice is amazing live...girlfriend's got some serious pipes.

When George Strait finally came on...it was even more amazeballs.

He walked out onto his stage with nothing but a spotlight. 

No fancy entrance, no pyrotechnics...just George.

And everybody went nuts!

I will say, it was different than any other concert I've been to. Being in the same place, and watching this person that has had so much success over such a long period of time - there's this respect in the air, if you will, that I've not sensed at any other show I've been to.
Everyone knows we're watching a legend.
And every time he came to your corner of the stage, you stood on your feet.
Kinda like in a courtroom, when the judge walks into the room and the bailiff  says, "all rise."
When George walks in...you rise.

He didn't play my favorite song, "Run," but I suppose I can't really blame him.
When you have 12308547303885763 hit songs and you've been playing for 30 years, I guess there comes a point when you can't fit them all into your shows anymore.
However, he did play Nate's favorite, "Amarillo by Morning"...

He definitely put on an awesome show and it was totally worth the drive out to New Mexico.
There were no crazy props, no costume changes, no smoke, no lasers, no distractions.
Just George and his guitar.
Just the way I like it. 

Anniversary Vacay Part I

In case you didn't catch the last post, the hubs and I just celebrated our 4 year wedding anniversary.

In fact, we were talking about how long we've been together and when we started dating (2000), and after he did the math in his head he goes,

"Congratulations. You've officially taken up half of my life. Thanks a lot."

And to that I affectionately said,

"You're welcome."

Anyway, to celebrate our anniversary we took a little trip out to New Mexico.

I know what you're thinking, 

"What the heck is in New Mexico worth vacationing there for?"

And to that I say George freakin' Strait.

That's what's there.

George Strait is my husband's faaaaav artist and has never had the chance to see him live. So last year when the King of country music announced this would be his farewell tour I figured concert tickets would make the perfect Christmas gift for Nate.

The only thing is he wasn't stopping in Phoenix. 

...I won't even go into how I feel about artists skipping over the 6th largest city in the country. But whatever.

So, ergo de facto...a road trip was in order.

And since Nate hates California I figured I'd rule California out.

And since I can't picture Nate in Las Vegas I ruled that one out too.

And since his stops in Texas were in January, it wouldn't give us enough time to save up the 

money for the trip.

So...ergo de facto...we went to New Mexico.

...That was a really long intro considering I'm not even gonna get to George Strait in this post.

Anyway, New Mexico actually wasn't a terrible choice, cause you know what else is in New Mexico?

The Carlsbad Caverns.

Which leads me to my next question:

What is one of the most amazing things you can do in your lifetime, while simultaneously being one of the worst things ever to blog about??

Answer:

The Carlsbad Caverns

Wanna know why?

Cause it's freakin' dark in there. 

And your pictures don't turn out. 

And if they do, they do these amazing caverns absolutely no justice.

So, just trust me when I say the Carlsbad Caverns are truly amazing, and incredible, and like nothing I've ever seen before. The pictures just don't even come close capturing the magnitude of it all.

Nate and I entered the caverns on foot via the "Natural Entrance" and descended over 800 feet under ground. There's an elevator you can ride down since the walk is long and steep, but if you do, you miss a bunch of stuff on the way down.

I tried to take pictures of most of the signage so that way I wouldn't have to try and explain it all and get all Bill-Nye-The-Science-Guy on you. ...cause really, I couldn't be all science-y even if I tried.

Phew.

That was a lot of pictures.

But, pretty freakin' neat right?!

If you ever have the chance to go to this place...go! I promise, it's way cooler in real life than in pictures.

I'll leave you with one last photo...and then I'll get to George in the next post...cause it's late, and I'm tired, and I wanna go to bed.

Happy Anniversary to us!

The Happiest Place on Earth

I know what you're thinking by the title of this post. 

And you're right.

It's Disneyland!

And instead of just day dreaming about it all day long, I actually got to go visit it! Nate and I and my parents made the trip over to the happiest place on earth a couple weekends ago, and I must say...it was pretty happy...with the exception of my feet, my feet weren't actually too happy with all the walking I made them do.

It had only been two years since I was last at Disneyland, but for some reason it definitely felt longer than two years. Probably because it's Disneyland, and Disneyland is the happiest place on earth, and your life just doesn't feel quite as happy without Disneyland in it; thus, making your time without it...seem really long. 

I feel bad for my parents who had to go like, 15 years without Disneyland in their life up until a couple weekends ago. 

True story.

They didn't even know about California Adventure Land.

Geez, and I thought my two years were rough. 

We made the trip out on a Friday and had to come back Monday, and our Disneyland pass was for three days...so if you do the math, that's a whole-lotta Disneyland crammed into a few days.

Which is just the way I like it.
Except for all the walking. I don't like all the walking.

We got to the Park early afternoon on Friday, and since my parents hadn't been to California Adventure we spent the rest of the day there.
I felt a little as if I was cheating on Disneyland, being within walking distance but spending my time at another park.
Forgive me Mickey.

The new Cars Land is totally amazeballs! It truly feels like your IN Radiator Springs! The only bummer is that we didn't get to ride the Cars ride. The first day it was closed and every other time we checked, it was always about a 2 hour wait...and I'm not waiting in a line for 2 hours just for one ride...no offense Mr. McQueen, Mr. Mater, but I got places to go and people to see (Namely Disneyland and Mickey Mouse). 

Saturday I was finally able to march my tush into the Happiest Place on Earth, and lemme tell ya...I was pretty happy.

Here's what we learned about Disneyland during our time there:
-There is a line for everything.
This includes, but is not limited to: rides, shows, the bathroom, shops, a measly popcorn cart, and
of course - the exit
-Mom gets nauseous on the following rides: Space Mountain, Thunder Mountain, and the Matterhorn; so in other words...all the fun ones. Muahahaha!! =)
-Dad hasn't been to Disneyland in 15 years and is surprised that everything looks different
Muahahaha!! =)
-Claiming your "spot"on the sidewalk for a parade is not for the weak. Prepare a wide stance, just say no to creepers, and if necessary, use them 'bows; you gotta commit if you want the optimal view of Mickey's Soundsational Parade.

-After walking 1290432434909.2 miles all day, the Nemo ride will put you to sleep after sitting in a dark submarine for 15 minutes.
-When it comes to Dole Whips, double fisting it is the only way to go: Dole Whip float in one hand and a pineapple spear in the other
...side note: don't you just love when your food matches your shirt?!

 

 

And the most important thing I learned of all is that it is physically possible to walk your feet off.
Really.
We walked so much over the course of three days that I literally walked right out of them. Left them smack dab in the middle of Main Street.
It wasn't as bloody as you might think.
And then I grew new feet on the way home.
Just like a lizard.
...wait, a lizard grows a tail?

Anyway, I was sad to leave Disneyland and CA Adventure to head back home. I was not sad, however, to finally have the Pirates theme song out of my head.
And It's a Small World.
And Zip-a-dee Doo Da.

You can thank me later for now having gotten those songs stuck in your head.

Until next time Disneyland!!!