VEGAS!

I WANT TO GO TO VEGAS!!!  

Who's in?

Earlier today I was thinking about some of my favorite memories of 2010.  I realize the year isn't over, but I can tell Fall is right around the corner, and the girls are excitedly anticipating the days of carving pumpkins, baking cookies, and enjoying holiday parties.  I feel like the time is going to fly between now and the end of the year.  So, for today's NaBloPoMo post, I decided to feature a repost of a memory I'll never forget...

A VEGAS REVIEW
Originally posted on Saturday, 4/17/10

I am a wife and mother.  I manage my oldest daughter's diabetes.  I drive a mini van, go to church on the weekends, and volunteer in my community.  I try to keep my house tidy and make dinner every night.  I pack school lunches, do my best to go to Zumba 4 times a week, take the family dog to obedience classes, and stress about laundry.  I am a RN who used to have a flashy career, but now works from home 3 nights a week answering triage calls for pediatricians...working from home, afterall, eliminates the child care dilemma - especially for a child with diabetes.  I've hardly had a full night's sleep since Sugar's diabetes diagnosis nearly 5 years ago. I've had 3 babies, I'm nearing 40 (OMGsh...that makes me sick), and my figure is NOT what it used to be.


Suffice to say that I am NOT a living under bright lights...I'm not a night owl...or a much of a party girl for that matter (well, at least not anyMORE anyway!!).  I'm pretty much just your average, run of the mill, wife and mother of 3 kiddos, one of whom happens to have type 1 diabetes.

That being said, I'm sitting in the Las Vegas airport at the moment. My flight was supposed to be touching down at home right about now, but it was overbooked. That's okay, though...the airline took good care of me. Maybe I'll get to go back one day with my snazzy travel voucher.

I'm not exactly sure where to begin. On a whim, a few D Mom Bloggers and I decided to meet up in person...ehum...in VEGAS!!  Shamae, Megann, and myself threw a little caution to the wind and decided to make a memory...a Real. Life. Memory.  And what a memory it will be!

(You'll have to forgive the camera.  I don't know why so many pics are blurry.  Something is up with the flash.  NO.  It has nothing to do with the fact that we were in Vegas with a ton of complimentary drink vouchers.)

Anyway, the trip started with a meet up at the golden lion.

 

 I admit it.  I squealed...almost cried when I saw them!!!

From there it was off to the rooms...and then time to find some dinner at the Rainforest Cafe.

David Copperfield's show followed.

Oh Wait! I need to insert a little background here:


There was this guy. His name is Chris. The long and short of it is that I've had his high school class ring in my jewelry box for....ummmm....let's see....about...20 years. Chris always wanted to be a performer...he was a talented artist in high school and treated life as if it was a new stage everyday. He loved(s) magic, followed his dreams, and now owns a company that performs a show at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.  Seeing how this was my first trip to the infamous strip, I think it's safe to say that I don't get to Vegas often.  I decided now would be as good a time as any to return his ring.

And here's a disclaimer:


To be VERY clear, I just want to say that I'm crazy about my husband.  He's my best friend.  We have a wonderful life that I wouldn't ever compromise. I know he trusts me and vice versa...just because I needed to return something personal to an old friend in Vegas, please don't make assumptions.  I've been married for almost 10 years and Chris is committed to someone.  Besides, as you'll find out, I never actually saw Chris during the entire trip...now on with the show...

So, anyway, I got in touch with Chris via text on the day we arrived and, the next thing you know, the girls and I were headed to David Copperfield's show at the MGM.  Tickets were waiting for us at the box office and all we had to do was claim them (THANKS CHRIS!!!).

We were seated right in the center, 30 feet from the stage! Awesome seats! Pictures were prohibited by FEDERAL LAW...but I had to break the law, and take a pic so I could show you how close we were.  Call me risky :)

Right after I took that picture, however, someone came over to tell us that there were seats in the FRONT ROW for us...

That's the stage...I rested my arm there for a minute and David Copperfield almost stepped on my fingers.  Maybe I was starstruck?  I dunno...but it was SO COOL!!!!!

Front and center and the show was great!  There was a motorcycle and a car that appeared out of nowhere...disappearing audience members...dancing ties...disappearing wedding rings...not to mention, a pretty cool duck :)

Next stop...Studio 54...the VIP line!  Complete with a bartender ready to take care of us :)  Considering that 2 out of the 3 of us don't drink alcohol, we didn't make him work very hard.  I'm told the Strawberry Lemonades were good...and MY drink was pretty yummy too!

Shamae proved to be quite a heartbreaker.  Everytime I turned around there was another guy hitting on her.  Seriously, People.  We couldn't walk from one end of the bar to the other without 3 or 4 guys swooping in.  It was pretty comical from my point of view.  Seeing that I know how much she loves her man...these guys were making fools of themselves!  But I'll have to tease her about it forever...because it was REALLY funny!!!!

Up and at 'em the next morning...by this time, we had decided I would be the official photographer, Megann the navigator/trip coordinator, and Shamae...hmmm...Shamae just kept us entertained since guys seemed to follow her everywhere we went.

After breakfast, we hopped in a cab and headed to a little spa off the strip for a massage!  (Need I say more????)

(Oh yeah...we got ripped off by our cabbie, Famous Amos...somehow an $18 fare turned into a $30 fare...but...the massage took care of all that negative energy :)

When I reconnected with my phone post-massage (feeling completely relaxed, by the way) there was a text message from Chris letting me know that we had tickets to see Gerry McCambridge's show, The Mentalist at Planet Hollywood.  With strict instructions to be there by 7, we decided to check out CSI: The Experience (pretty cool!!!!) and the New York New York roller coaster (VERY FUN!!!)

On the way to the roller coaster, Megann was a little hungry.  We stopped at McD's so she could grab a quick bite which was prrrrrrobably NOT the best idea right right before the ride.  Poor thing!  She ended up feeling really bad and had to skip out on the rest of the night.

Sham and I left her with some medicine, a big bottle of water, and hopes that she'd feel better before the show started.  Then we headed to PF Changs for dinner.  PF Changs is known for their gluten free menu and I've never had a chance to try it, so this is something I was really excited about!

One word:  YUMMY!!!!!

They even had a GF dessert!!!  This is kind of rare when dining out, so I HAD to take a picture of it!!!!!!!!

And then.  THE MENTALIST!!!!  OMGsh...what a great show!!!!!  Gerry McCambridge was freaking AMAZING!!!!!!  I'm not exactly sure how to describe what he does...but...it was WAY COOL :)  Sham and I were on stage right off the bat in the beginning...and then we got to throw some of his balls at the end.  (Ok.  Stop laughing!)  I was completely mesmerized by his mind tricks.

Gerry McCambridge and Chris seem to be really good friends.  Our magical trip to Vegas would be ending the next morning...and I still had that ring in my purse.  I explained the story to Gerry and he said he'd make sure Chris got it.  So we took a few pictures, I bid the ring farewell, and we headed back to our hotel to see if we could strike it rich with a few dollars in the slot machines...this was VEGAS, afterall!

OKAY THAT'S NOT SUCH A GREAT PIC OF ME, BUT I WAS LAUGHING!!!

Our fortune didn't quite work out, but we DID get to redeem our drink vouchers.  Sham and her Sprite.  Me and my...well...whatever it was called...sweet-pink-yummy-lychee-drink-in-a-cool-glass :)

There we were...just talking about how cool it was that we met via our blogs and were sitting at a bar in Vegas...laughing...relaxed...good times!  AND THEN it was all interrupted by ANOTHER dude who liked the Shamster.  (Get over it, dude. She's taken!)

Before heading back to our room, the bartender mentioned that there was a beer called Shamae....?????....really?????  Well, the official photographer MUST take a picture of such a thing, you know!  Spelled differently, but pronounced the same :)

CHIMAY

We each had 3 drinks before heading upstairs to call it a night.  I noticed as I was walking that I was starting to feel the drinks and, mind you, I was a lightweight in my heaviest party days...so...I'm a feather now when it comes to that stuff.  Man, I had fun...didn't do anything really...just giggled and laughed...found some leftover chips sitting on the room service cart in front of room 106...didn't want them to go to waste, ya know!

(Side note:  There was also a cart in front of Megann's room - chicken noodle soup, crackers, and Sprite...ohhhhhh...no fun....)

Sham and I stayed up chatting like teenagers until somewhere around 2ish.  I think.  Not sure.  Who cares?!? I guess we were just enjoying the ride, because it didn't bother us to get up early...we still had tickets to the Titanic exhibit at the Luxor and needed to check out for our flights home.

Titanic was very cool...it was nice to move through it at our own pace and not worry about checking blood sugars, bored kids, and what to make for dinner.

From there it was straight back to the MGM to catch the shuttle to the airport.

And, I guess we've come full circle.  They caught an earlier flight while mine was delayed.  There really wasn't a goodbye -- we were hoping to get through the check in process and meet up for lunch, but we had to go our separate ways and didn't realize it until we went in different directions.  So that was that.  Party's over....until next time....

Thanks for the memories, Girls.  (And for all the hook ups, Chris!)

It was truly a magical whirlwind of fun...and now...I guess it's back to the real world...