Vegas Baby!!!

As we take a vertical decent into the middle of the desert, my ears popping, and poor Katelyn agitated Nick leans over and says to me look out the window. I gazed out my port hole and all of the darkness lit up and became a whorl wind of flashing lights and sky scrapers. Then Nick says, “Welcome to Vegas Baby!!!” “The Strip” was right before me and I was taking mental aerial shots of how breath taking it was. Taxing in through the airport was when I truly believed no wonder this was ranked top 10 most stunning aerial approaches in 2010. I was stunned! We headed off the plane to then grab Katie Bug’s stroller and our baggage, then began towards rental car land on a trolley/bus. O what fun rides those are during the Christmas season. This was the start of me realizing growing up in a military family that traveled, was not how Nick’s family traveled at all! Nick’s parents went off to get the car while Matt and Nick were left to tend to the bags. My father always said if you can’t carry it yourself you can’t bring it. Traveling was smooth and everyone gets on and off together and stays close and moves fast. I literally jumped on this trolley handled my own bag jumped off the trolley with my bag then was like what in the world is happening??? Where is everyone, o wait they are waiting for the bus driver to take the luggage off the racks. Where is the back pain in that!!! So after a good bit of time, we lugged everything in and then out to the van. This van was brand new and only had four miles on it, Megan went to pick out a car seat with the rental man which was also new. Megan and I made a joke that they just decided to open a rental car business on the day we decided to join Vegas. The boys organized the best spot for each luggage placement and decided Nick would have to sit with his. Mom and Dad are in, Katelyn is in, I’m in, Megan’s in, Matt’s in, O shoot the stroller is still not in and neither are Nick and his bag. Allllll of that squeezes in with a good laugh from the rest of the caravan and we are on the road. I watched all of the buildings I have seen in pictures my entire life pass before me and enjoyed how much more dazzling they truly are in real life. We were staying at New York New York Hotel and entering this hotel and casino was a shock to the five senses. There were slot machines everywhere mixed with a little cigarette smoke and people doing both simultaneously. We checked into our room which was a very normal hotel room but the bathroom was covered in marble. We headed back down to smell Vegas for the first time, which was a trip to the gift shop for some night-quil because Nick was feeling ill. After paying 16 dollars for just one bottle, we sighed and kissed each other goodnight.

          Baby, Baby, Baby!!!! As I rushed Nick out of the bed it was the morning I had found a Zumba class at Bally’s Hotel. I was so excited and Nick was being my facilitator. We got dressed and hail a taxi which is different because actually someone’s job is to do that. As we drove to Bally’s this was my first time see “The Strip” in the day light. We ran to the pool and as we are out of breath I see a sign saying the pool is closed for the winter season. I was so bummed because I have become addicted to the Zumba party. We walked back to New York New York and met up with the family to take a trip to the Wal-Mart. Today was Megan’s birthday! Happy Birthday Megan!!! We proceed back to the hotel then to unpack, shower, and wait for Megan’s plan. She announced that we were going to tour “The Strip” for her birthday and eat dinner that night at The 9 Fine Irishmen Club in New York New York. We walked around on ramps that connected the hotels above the road ways and headed ourselves to MGM to see the lions. When we got there they were out to play and the crowd was enjoying the sight. After we took enough photos and were ready to continue on we then purchased a monorail ticket to ride from each of the hotels owned by MGM. We rode to the Venetian, which is breath taking. During this trip it was fun to get into the Christmas spirit because all of the gorgeous Christmas Trees there were to witness. We ventured into take a trip in the gondola ride, I think everyone but me thought was kinda of cheesy but I was dying to check it off my Bucket List. We paid 16 a person which Matt, Megan, Nick and I where the daring souls to check this off. We got onto the boat and it was everything I imagined and more. I was next to the love of my life, hearing an Italian man sing in Italian, while drifting along the store fronts with the sky above me. It was a dream that came true! We then walked to the Bellagio and saw the Bellagio fountains which I truly believe you should see once before you die. It was amazing how the music flowed with the water and how strictly peaceful it was. I remember Nick holding me and whispering in my ear, “check”. He was so right another thing was off my bucket list and into my bucket. We walked back through the streets seeing Caesar's Palace, The Mirage, and The Cosmopolitan. We all decided to lie down before dinner and take a load off our feet. Nick and I hurried down to celebrate Megan’s Birthday Dinner and arrived to only find Nick’s parents. They informed us that Katelyn was having a hard time and they were doing to skip dinner. We continued with dinner and had a wonderful meal filled with fried sausage, beef pockets, brie chicken, and a chocolate molten cake. Stomachs full, we all visited Katelyn to change over shifts because we were about to celebrate hard for Nick’s incoming birthday of turning 21!       

          Nick and I headed back up to our room and rested until midnight. We rushed down and kissed exactly at 12. We arrive at the bar with his family already waiting to toast his first beer. He then pulled his first slot and took a shot and we were off. We all had a few drinks and listened to super loud music and watched some money wagering games. Then we headed off to bed, Nick was not feeling the best so sleep I think was going to be the best medicine. We woke up the next morning very excited for him to be 21! Then we headed off the day with a non-eating breakfast with the family. For Nick’s birthday I was treating him to a brunch at MESA, Bobby Flays Restaurant. We taxied over to Caesar’s and were seated in this gorgeous restaurant that had hard wood floors, cow hide chairs, and an open kitchen concept. Nick and I were drooling over the menu and wanted to try each item. Our waiter was very informative and we indulged in a white tiger shrimp corn tomalley and a hash brown quesadilla topped with a fried egg. Then we took our taste buds on a trip with a pork loin sandwich and a Bourbon waffle with a vanilla cream. During all of this pleasure we also enjoyed biscuits and two very nice drinks. We blessed our time together because it doesn’t happen very often and left with a wonderful memory. We then headed back to the hotel and traveled to the Venetian and walked around viewing all of the Christmas decorations. The statues were stunning; I could have stared at them for quite a while. We ended up eating at an Italian restaurant for Nicks Birthday and it was delicious. We all had a type of pasta dish and I devoured the spaghetti and meatballs. We then toured the Bellagio and the flower garden inside. Each hotel is exquisited by itself it is hard to have a favorite. After this long day the women went to bed and the men decided it was time to gamble. The next morning I attended the gym so I could continue to eat everything in sight. As I got back Nick had a drunken wonderful man’s story to tell about the night before. He had gambled all night and had won big. I was shocked! I was more excited that he had not lost all his money. He was hung-over and our new day he was moving a lot slower. We finally ended up at a chocolate factory in Vegas and it was interesting and it was worth it because we got two free pieces of chocolate. We then arrived at the Palm because Matt thought that the Playboy Club would be worth seeing and as we went in the cover was too much to even check it out. We ate at a brilliant Mexican restaurant and had the best chips and salsa we have ever had. We then went back to New York New York and packed for our plane ride at 7 the next morning. We slept for only a few hours then got up at 4 am to get through security at the airport. After our layover and a Chili’s meal we arrived in Tampa and drove back to Lakeland. Las Vegas is a place to enjoy the party and bring back the memory’s of bliss. I enjoyed our party and it was even better we got to celebrate Nick’s 21^st birthday with family. Happy Birthday Baby!