family friendly hikes (Utah)

Friday, February 3, 2012

bellagio gardens- las vegas


We love visiting the Bellagio gardens in Las Vegas.
They are always changing with the seasons and since it was the Chinese New Year- it was all decked out in dragons and paper lanterns.
The kids love it too!
It must take a lot to maintain these gardens- I can't even imagine!








And did you know just a few steps away from the garden is a chocolate fountain with three different types of chocolate flowing? Pretty cool to see.
Colorful glass ceiling in the lobby by Dale Chihuly.
I could stare at it all day.
And let's not forget about the fountain show. 
Funny that visiting a hotel is like a little museum tour slash mini vacation.
Now if we could just afford to stay there overnight- ha!

Thursday, February 2, 2012

springs preserve- las vegas


Here is yet another Las Vegas post.
But it is pretty much in our backyard right? 
We have found some fun things to do there as a family- 
besides visiting family which is usually our main reason for going down.

Anyway- last week while we were in Vegas, we went to the Springs Preserve.
It has a pretty cool history- a spring in the middle of the vast desert.
People passing through- pioneers, missionaries, gold rushers- would all stop by for drink and rest. 
Now it is preserved to help teach about the desert landscape, it's foliage and animals.
The day we went was SUPER windy and cold, so we mostly stayed inside.
There was so much to keep us busy.
We'll have to go back and see more of the outside exhibits.

We LOVED seeing the little tiny fox. 
He's about the size of a big cat and his tail is so fluffy.

All the exhibits were really interactive with video and sounds.
They had a flash flood room that was completely dry until the storm came and instantly filled up the riverbed. The kids loved this and we watched it a few times throughout the day.
spinning the water stones
They usually do a bird show outside, but of course the birds wouldn't fare well in the blustery winds.
So we went to the auditorium inside and sat right in the middle so the birds would fly right over us.
(Thanks to the advice from the nice grandpa usher.)
They told us that even if we ducked when the birds flew by, they would just go lower to use our heads as wind resistance. They flapped our hair with their wings every time and the kids loved it!
Lincoln was laughing so hard!
They even housed the BIGGEST, most disgusting black widow spider I have ever seen!
I could barely look at it! Y.I.K.E.S!
The icing on the cake for the kids was buying these $3 
wooden snakes they got to decorate however they wanted. 

desert plants

 I loved the architecture and design of the place too! 


We had fun and will go back someday!

Next time you take your family to Las Vegas- be sure to visit the Springs Preserve!

For more info visit the Springs Preserve Website.
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