New Years Holidays in Las Vegas

Spend New Years by the
Ballagio Fountains
(photo by morguefile.com)

Why not spend New Years in Las Vegas this year? Many Baby Boomers and other retirees are looking for something fun, exciting or different to do this New Years Eve.  Now that you no longer have young children to worry about, you can make plans that are more elaborate than you could during your child rearing years.  If you are thinking about taking a trip to Las Vegas this winter, you need to start making your plans right away.

December and January are popular times to go to Las Vegas.  Hotels are available in a a wide variety of price ranges, from expensive 5 Star hotels like the Ballagio, Paris or the Venetian down to much cheaper motels, including Motel 6.  In between, there are a nice selection of moderately priced hotels, as well, including the Golden Nugget on Fremont Street in downtown Las Vegas, or the Luxor and Stratosphere on the strip.  If you plan to go to Las Vegas in the winter, make your hotel reservations as soon as possible.

Unless you want to eat in a specific restaurant, you can be more casual about dinner reservations.  There are so many restaurants and buffets, it is usually possible to find one with an opening.  However, exceptional restaurants such as the one in the Eiffel Tower at the Paris Hotel, or the one at the top of the Stratosphere may require advance reservations.  The late night clubs may be more difficult to enter on New Years Eve than at other times of the year.  You may wish to talk to the concierge at your hotel for their recommendations.  They may be able locate one for you, and arrange to get you admitted. 

If you are planning to see a show, your concierge can also help you arrange tickets.  However, if you aren't picky, you may be able to get half price tickets at a kiosk owned by Tix4Tonight.  They sell the tickets that are left over for that night's shows.  Availability varies from day to day, but it is a fun way to save money on a Las Vegas show.

Check the weather forecasts carefully before you decide what clothing to bring on your trip.  My husband and I have taken frequent trips to Las Vegas during the winter, especially since we have been in our 50's and 60's, and the weather seems to be different on every trip.  We once planned a golf vacation, only to arrive to 6 inches of snow, with the valet parking attendants building a snowman in front of the hotel!  You can be almost certain that it will be quite cold in the desert after dark.  During the day, however, it could be sunny and mild, rainy and chilly, or downright freezing.

Las Vegas is a ideal place for Baby Boomers to enjoy time away from their normal routines.  New Years in Las Vegas is an especially exciting time to be in the city.

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When Grandkids Live Far Away

Facetime on your iPhone is one
way to stay in touch!
Photo from www.morguefile.com

When your grandchildren live far away from you, how can you stay in touch?  How can you feel like you are still a part of their lives?  How can you help your grandkids know how much you care about them?

These are some of the questions that my husband and I have faced.  We have six grandchildren ranging from age 1 to age 21, with another one on the way.  They are quite spread out, living in Northern California, Southern California, New York and Delaware.  Although we make an effort to travel and see them all at least once a year, we realize that is not nearly enough to be part of their lives.  Although it is not the same as having your grandkids live next door, we discovered there are some things we could do to stay in touch and feel close to our grandkids.

The first thing we do is send them all greeting cards and a few dollars on all those little holidays that kids enjoy so much.  We mail out cards for Halloween, Valentine's Day, and Easter.  If they lived nearby, we know we would give them treats on those occasions.  Since they don't live close, we still enjoy recognizing those days as special for the kids and sending them a little money.  It is fun for them and us.

The next thing we do is put the internet to work.  My husband and I are both on Facebook.  Although my husband and I have very few Facebook friends who are not relatives, we have discovered that this site is a great way to stay in touch with our family and close friends.  Our daughters are all wonderful about updating their Facebook pictures and videos often, so we get to see our grandkids getting awards at school, competing in sports, and wearing their Halloween costumes.  Some of our grandkids also have their own Facebook pictures and will post their own comments and pictures to share with us.  We cherish every little thought and comment they share!

Another way we use the internet is by using Skype.  One Christmas morning, one of our daughters set her laptop on the coffee table in the living room and we contacted her using Skype.  We fixed our breakfast and relaxed in front of our computer.  Then we spent a couple of hours watching our grandkids open their presents, and they watched us open ours.  It wasn't quite as good as getting a warm hug, but it was much better than a phone call.  It was hilarious watching them laugh as they opened their gifts and held them up to the computer for us to see!  We have also Skyped on Halloween to see their costumes, and on other special occasions.  We've found that young kids, in particular, will stay on the phone much longer when they can see us and show us things.  Technology has made it so much easier for our family to stay in touch!

In addition to Skype on our computers, we also have it on our Android phones.  We love being able to see our kids and grandkids whenever we chat.  Having Skype on our phones is like having our grandkids in our purse or pocket!

Recently, one of our daughters, and her two kids, moved just seven  miles from our home.  We are delighted to have some of our grandkids living close by, once again.  However, we still have four other grandkids who live far away and the new baby will also be living on the other side of the country.  One thing we have learned is that, while it is not always possible to have our grandkids nearby, that is no excuse for losing touch with them.  We hope we are always part of their lives, whether they live nearby or not.

If you haven't yet used some of these services, you may want to give them a try.  They are a cheap and easy way to keep your grandkids close.

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