Looking for the "Las"

Word's out... we are moving to Las Vegas!  Brian and I are both so excited about this opportunity for our little growing family, and cannot wait to get there, unpack, meet people, and get to know the area.  Not to mention, Brian will be working again!  Wahoo!!

This past weekend we went up with the intent to find Brian a place to live during the weeks that I won't yet be there, and, well, that was a big, fat fail.  What wasn't a fail, however, was looking for the "las".

Everyone, including myself, has this preconceived notion of what Vegas is like- the strip, the gambling, the shows, the nightlife... I never minded the idea of moving there, but I was convinced that there was more to Vegas than these things.  There was a city out there- a city where people live and grow up and work and go to the grocery store.  There's more to Vegas than the tourist-y parties everyone sees in the movies, and therefore, I have made the decision to call the city Las Vegas, where Las = Mas!

I was very excited about the things we found: neighborhoods that reminded me of Glendale, Arrowhead, Mesa, and Goodyear; beautiful synagogues; areas where you couldn't see the strip at all, where young families were out for lunch; lots of green; wide, well-kept roads; a city that was fairly easy to get around, and that was much smaller than the map made it seem.  I know there's still more- once I get there and meet people, whole worlds will open up- but I'm starting to find the "Las"!

Some pictures from the last week:

Obi: 17 weeks

Samson: Less than 11 months and 20,000 miles and counting...

Sleepiest Johnny there ever was