viva lost wages

i was in las vegas this week! although it wasn't a pleasure trip, it did mark my very last trade show of the summer season, so i am happy about that :] (to recap, since june i have been to dallas, chicago, san francisco, new york, and finally vegas)

here are some photos from the trip:

about a year ago, i posted about trade shows, what they are, and why i have to go to them. the short story, in case you don't want to read through that again, is that the company i work for sells products to retailers (stores you buy stuff from). the way they find our products is by attending industry shows. hundreds of wholesalers (what my company is considered) display their products in hopes to sell them to retailers (stores). this show in vegas is pet-specific (SuperZoo), so we had all of our pet products on display for retailers and stores to check out!

because SuperZoo is for all things pet, there are also actual animals on display! i thought this chameleon was super cute

we do get to squeeze in some fun! my little sephora haul [clinique chubby stick in #10 bountiful blush; sephora bronzer in los cabos; sephora concealer in 05 porcelain; tweezerman travel nail file]

i'm thinking this may be a new look for lilly.. except she'd have pink accents :)

our neighbor. the girls in the booth next to us brought their puppy, which made me miss mine so much!

my pretty baby girl :) wearing her new jacket courtesy of green monster!

while the boy is away..

randy is in vegas this weekend for a bachelor party, and i'm pretty certain it will play out pretty much like the first hangover movie..

so while he's gone?
i'm taking a digital camera class this morning in LA
& babysitting my brother tonight
& brunch with carmella tomorrow.

and of course lots of lilly cuddle time!

my weekend trip!

so i hope you have all been having a wonderful week!! tomorrow is friday, which is always something to look forward to. and as if that isn't good enough, monday is president's day, which (for most people anyway), means an extra day off from work and school!! i'm lucky enough to have a short hiatus from both, so i'm very excited about that.

to celebrate my 3-day weekend, i have decided to take a short trip to...

my friend erica (see more about her in this post) had already planned a trip and suggested that i meet her there. the big deal about this trip is that i have not gotten to go to vegas since i have turned 21. ever since my big birthday i have really wanted to have the 'vegas experience,' but with everyone's work schedules and other responsibilities getting in the way, my friends and i have never been able to coordinate spending any time there.

this being said, when i found out erica was going, i felt a tiny pang of jealousy. i know most people feel that going to vegas is overrated, but it's something i've never gotten to do! i feel like in our society, it's almost a rite of passage. i do have to admit, though, that i am a little nervous about the whole thing. randy won't be able to come because he is working, and i haven't met the other people erica is going with. but you know what, i am going to look at this as an opportunity to do something that will be very fun - i will get to see erica (it's been since december!) and i can cross it off my list of things to do. i also haven't had a girls trip in a loooooong time (if ever. sad, i know!) so i am very much looking forward to whatever vegas has in store for us.

after the weekend i will definitely make sure to share pictures and any stories with you guys. i promise to be safe and use good judgment (that's for you, dad), but i am looking forward to cutting loose a little and having fun with one of my best friends! erica's birthday is right after the trip, so we are celebrating my new-found sense of adventure as well as another great year of erica's life!

until next time..

<3 alaina