Vegas baby (or very old lady, however you call it)!

Upon facing the hill I convulsed in a series of spasms that propelled me into a trajectory set far away from reality ... Vegas! 40 was to be met with plastic, size, glitter, over-abundance, waste, hedonism and vanity! Huzzah! Not to mention my two favorite people.

LOVE! Exactly. There they are, in all of their glory in the adorned lobby of the Palazzo. Or was it the Venetian? They sort-of  run together, not just because of the free-flowing freshly squeezed and abundantly available Vegas Juice, but because the hotels were connected. This was some of impetus for choosing to stay at the Palazzo: access to six pools!

Brock is already under the table, and the day is still young, at our first stop on the trip... lunch! If you're wondering about Brock's scrappy facade, a tumble with the radiator (heat not on thank goodness) is to blame.

Read the sign.

After lunch and a nap, we set out on our first adventure, Circus Circus to re-live Matt's youth and fire a water gun into a clown's mouth to blow up a balloon and receive stuffed bits of nonsense. 

 

I pretend that we need a picture here to rest my feet. DO NOT wear new shoes without socks to go anywhere in Vegas. As we know a .3 mile in Vegas = a 45 minute walk.

The first spoils of Circus Circus... a "soft" drink! (get it!)

This was won from the pony races; Brock proudly shows us his prize (that Matt totally won and gave to him but don't tell).

Soft Drink was in our lives a beautiful 7 minutes before being left on the next game and forgotten. He will be missed, but we have Flower, Turtle, Dolphin, and Race Car Track to soften the blow.

Matt's help was no longer needed. Brock positively smoked the gear game. If this video doesn't depict the quintessential euphoria of Vegas and the salacious joy of winning I'm not sure what else will.

I don't think a more hilarious game could exist in my imagination.

Thank you Circus Circus for beginning our Vegas trip with unmatched silliness and sparkle.

The Peppermill is one of my favorite places in Vegas. Neon lights, old school cocktails, life-size fake cherry trees and mirrored ceilings. And a GIANT steak. 

The night goes by. Brock makes friends with the natives. The natives are restless. Matt heads down to the casino to make and lose and make again some $. or $$'s. or $$$'s. or $$$$'s. Better not to know.

Bright and early we have a table at Thomas Keller's Bouchon, an absolute treat.

We went all out and ended up with several half eaten plates. The guilt of it all creeps in, but is washed away with a Bellini and a strong cup of coffee. Then it's off to the pool! A heated 89 degrees is nice, but is still challenging when the outside temperature is in the mid 50's. Brock re-discovered the hot tub, thank goodness.

Here is the man at his favorite hotel activity; making deals on the ol' horn.

Taken outside the Flamingo (giveaway?) on our way to the High Roller, the worlds largest Ferris Wheel!

and there she is in all her 550' glory!

Did I mention it's a half hour till kick off? No one is on the High Roller. We have the entire car to ourselves. Matt and I have a dance party that Brock got cold feet for for some reason. 

We do drink stunts while we cruise the Strip vertically.

After a nap and some shopping and some lunch and some Super Bowl we take to Old Vegas via Freemont street.

Matt has told me of this fabled homage to BMI, the Heart Attack Grill. 350 lbs eats for free!

If Matt couldn't make the cut, Brock was a lost cause as well.

Freemont is meant to be enjoyed with a tacky and tall beverage.

Sadly not pictured was the 80+ year old man wearing nothing but a hand-knitted tidbit to cover his tidbits that was connected to a long thread that looped up over his shoulder and between the cheeks. Picture this with blaring rock music, fighter planes and rainbows projected in giant scale over head complete with the occasional zip-liner. Oh Freemont Street, you are all I dreamed you would be. 

But wait! There's more! Part of going to old Vegas, was to go to New Vegas, the young hipster neck of the woods just opposite of the Freemont Street Experience. Here we are seeking the Shipping Container Park complete with an awesome playground, shops and dining. and... a giant flaming preying mantis DJ. 

We had no idea. Oh Vegas.

The tree house park in the shipping container park was AWESOME. Only complaint is that is was getting so late! 

We head inside a local jerky shop. Apparently, the shop was featured on an episode of "Tanked". Adorable. The girl who was working the counter was so nice and so so so young. She told me there was no way I was 40 and before we chatted said I was rocking the hair. I think Matt planted her.

After some awesome tacos we head home for bedtime and cocktails with Google Hangouts.

We had a blast on the between hotel escalators! Birthday morning we go for a morning walk in search of tigers and sharks, and later find the BEST pool! A super warm almost hot tub pool with fountains and lots of stairs for Brock. I get a fabulous spa day and massage while Matt mans the little guy.

And then the night has come! Matt's amazing gift to me is dinner, a show and a BABYSITTER! The Artsy Nannies are a hotel approved sitter service that comes to your room and does art projects with the little ones and puts them to bed. Cianna was great and Brock was AMAZING. Set my heart good for a great night.

and onto the show! KA by Cirque du Soleil. WOW. We at first were disappointed that O was dark on Mondays. We've both seen it in our youth (for me, that meant like 25 years ago, or MORE. gulp), but it was the best show we had ever seen. It worked out great that it was not showing that night; we want to take Brock one day, and KA was truly breathtaking. This picture does it no justice at all.

Then we are off to a scrumptious meal at Michael Mina in the Bellagio. We love this hotel and, like many of the hotels, was decked out in Year of Rooster flair. 

I guess this is all the pictures we have! It went so fast! What an amazing birthday, truly, and it felt like a celebration instead of a life sentence! Love you boys and there is no other time I'd rather be alive!