Le Grand Tour

I'd call this the moment you've all been waiting for, but that's a little presumptuous, isn't it? Nevertheless, I present to you an obscene number of pictures of our humble abode...and judging from the entrance, no, it's not quite as humble as our last one. After a less than successful experience driving around looking for housing (see this post) we went through a company contracted with UNLV to find an apartment and in our desperation signed a contract before actually seeing the apartment (risky business, folks!) But it turned out rather well for us.

Upon driving this for the first time, we had our doubts as to whether or not we belonged here...Still unsure.Here she be...

Here are the stairs you encounter right when you walk through the front door. Not ideal for moving couches in. Our larger one ended up going through the second story window seen above. More to come.Do you think this statement scares some people?The view from the top.So happy to have a fireplace to warm us on those cold Las Vegas nights.
Where was this when we lived in Provo?The living room. To your right you'll see the couch that Brandon, Aaron and Jordan hoisted through the window. I wish I had a video to attach to that story. The first thing we said to our downstairs neighbours was, "Do you mind if we stand on your balcony to get this couch through the window?" Great start.If you're asking yourself if that's freshly baked banana bread on the counter, you'd be correct. And if your next question is how often does Michelle bake this delicious banana bread, the answer is: only when I'm planning to take pictures of my apartment to post on the blog. (See here)
This sight isn't quite as rare as the banana bread. We learned the hard way that chocolate needs to stay in the fridge. I spend a lot of my time there.
And here. Yes, that's a dishwasher in the corner. Look for "Ode to a Dishwasher" coming soon.Also here. But I should mention that I frequent the complex's "state-of-the-art" gym on a fairly regular basis. This is why.I have also been known to frequent the complex pool, which happens to be just around the corner from our condo. Here's the view from the window you've heard so much about.And here's one of the pools. Kelly, that's for you.This is the spare bedroom (that's right, you can come and visit) that currently serves as a study... for Buddy to learn scores on ESPN.com.Should you decide to stay at Hotel Richards, you'll enjoy the luxury of your own bathroom, more than twice the size of our previous master (read: only) bathroom, complete with googly-eyed ducks. Does life get better?Couldn't help myself. Shameless self promotion.Here's some of the master bedroom, another place for Buddy to study (the backs of his eyelids). In my haste, I neglected to crop out the overflowing laundry bin, but don't worry...We have a washer & dryer! Don't let this picture fool you, that's the only time he's been there.And here's ANOTHER bathroom! Also known as Grand Central Station at 6:45am. My mind's always in a fog and I forget that I have another option.We decided to make it official and spend 2.5 hours at the DMV to get the Nevada plates. The prison fee actually showed up on our receipt, which I thought was kind of funny.Our very first visitors! The Browns were good enough to drive all of our belongings here from Provo, help us move them in, then sleep on the floor because we didn't have anything set up. We owe you guys HUGE! Come back and see us...you can sleep on the couch now!We are so thrilled to have the Wilkinsons spending the summer in Las Vegas. They've been a huge help. Here we are cruising the strip. No, it wasn't sunny at 11:00, this is Aaron and Buddy trying desperately to evade the relentless Busty Ladies Bus that seemed to show up everywhere.
Here's an action shot at the infamous sign.Welcome to Las Vegas indeed.