Vay-Gus!

My good friend Megan, who I met in Annapolis at a Christmas party 10 (!) years ago this year, celebrates her 40th birthday this week. To celebrate, her husband gathered a group of us to make merry in Las Vegas for the weekend. It was great, great fun. I shared a room at the Monte Carlo with her niece, who I cannot seem to fathom is almost THIRTY; I still imagine her being a mere teenager. The hotel was nice; not lavish but definitely nice. Mad props to Shannon for selecting it. I arrived very early (maybe too early?) Saturday morning and the rest of the gang wasn't scheduled to arrive until 3 or so, so I lollygagged around, which mostly consisted of trying to find a spare outlet in the casinos to charge my phone. Then! On Facebook, one of my sister's high school classmates happened to be in Vegas and said come by and see her. And so I did! I haven't seen her in about 20 years, and it was wonderfully fun to catch up. She has a business making baby bibs and burp cloths and sent Lucia a gorgeous set when she was born. So sweet.

The gang arrived and soon we were off to celebrate. I was really thankful they were on East Coast time, as I had gotten up at 3:45 that morning to head to the airport. We had a nice dinner at a burger place, then headed to bed. At 10 p.m. On a Saturday night. In Las Vegas. But what can I tell you? We were tired. Sunday the girls went to the Spa at the Monte Carlo; I had forgotten my bathing suit so I dashed across the street to Ross and unbelievably, found a cute suit for $20 so I could properly soak in the hot tub. After we cleaned up, we headed to the Venetian for an impromptu lunch at Bouchon, which was so unbelievably amazing. I had quiche and housemade sausage (with veal!) and a crisp glass of Sauvignon Blanc. After brunch the server asked if we'd like a private tour of the kitchen. UM YES!! It was absolutely gorgeous and fascinating, despite the hairy eyeball we got from the head chef. 

Making croissants

The Birthday Girl

Head chef way in the back

MMMM Butter! 

Afterwards we did a mini photo shoot with a friend Megan met from launching her photography biz. We then headed back for a very long walk to the hotel, where I may have whined because I was tired. I managed to squeeze in a quick nap before dinner -- yay!  We headed to the Bellagio for an amazing birthday dinner at Sensi. Our table was amazing with a full view of the kitchen: see? 

Afterwards we played a little blackjack and I won $100! Wheeeee! Both nights I was in bed by midnight -- a definite Vegas first. But it was nice to take a medium speed; there's massive pressure once you're in that town to PARTY HARD and we just weren't up for it. We focused on laughing, eating great food, and making memories. I had forgotten how HILARIOUS Megan is and several times I giggled uncontrollably at her quips. She funny! 


The last day I went to the MGM Grand Spa, which ahem, is a mere 48,000 square feet. For $25, I soaked in the hot tub, took three showers, and sat in the steam room, and snuggled on the chaises with trashy magazines and an extremely comfortable robe. I have dreams of that robe. We had a nice lunch afterwards, and I headed home. It was such a fun weekend; I'm so happy to be included in Megan's posse.