Those bright and shiny lights
From one New York to another 🙂
After a wonderful stay in NYC, I hopped on a plane to Las Vegas to meet the Pilot for the Pac-12 basketball tournament. The tickets were our Christmas gift to each other, and we figured it would be a fun little getaway before the moving insanity begins 🙂
As you guys know, despite the fact that my husband flies planes for his job, I’m a very nervous flyer. It’s even worse now after the emergency landing we had to make on my last trip to Boston. For the direct flight to Vegas, after an hour of turbulence, the flight attendant got over the intercom and said, “Is there a doctor on the plane? If you’re a doctor, please come to the boarding area as soon as possible.” The flight attendants scrambled around the cabin, and even got out the defibrillator, but thankfully, the person of concern was ok. I white-knuckled the arm rests and said a thousand “Hail, Mary” prayers while the man next to me (wearing a sriarcha shirt = an automatic friend) made small talk, which was a nice distraction. Needless to say, I was pretty stoked when we were on the ground and got a kick out of the flight attendant saying “what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas” over the intercom.
We stayed at the Signature for a couple of nights, and it was my first time at the hotel. We really liked it! It was unique in the sense that it wasn’t directly on the Strip (but was easy to walk through MGM to get out on Las Vegas Blvd), and some rooms are individually-owned. I had purchased our room via Groupon, and it was one of the individually-owned suites. Imagine having your own suite when you visit Last Vegas! Baller status.
The room was clean, nice, and had a cute little kitchen with stove:
The last night in Vegas, we stayed at MGM Grand since it was where the tournament was held.
I hadn’t stayed at MGM since I was a kiddo, and it’s totally different than what I remembered. They used to have an entire Wizard of Oz setup in the lobby back in the day, which of course, I was crazy about. It has changed a lot since then, but we loved it. The hotel lights emitted a Wizard of Oz-esque glow into the room!
We went to the semi-final and final games of the tournament,
(Cats lost at the end, but it was a great, close game)
attended some of the insanely fun pep rallies,
(Wilbur looks so nice in his Hawaiian shirt)
ate at delicious spots,
(sushi at Yellowtail)
got to see our friends (and my BFF Jeni) who live in Vegas,
and even went out!
It’s been quite a few years since mama’s gone clubbin’ 🙂 It was fun to put on a dress, pair of heels, and dance the night away 😉
Notable:
-We sat a table away from Questlove at brunch!
-I was pushed by an unruly UCLA fan. It was especially shocking since this little lady had to be pushing 70. I walked through a door that apparently wasn’t an exit (despite the fact that it was propped open), and she was walking in from the other side. She shoved me (using both hands and a surprisingly amount of gusto) saying, “You can’t walk through here!!” She was a feisty one.
-Mesa Grill was kind of meh. (It’s usually one of our very favorites!) The queso didn’t disappoint, but then again, there’s little wrong you can do with melted goat cheese and chips for dipping 😉
Brunch at Mon Ami, however, was just as wonderful as I remembered it:
(smoked salmon benedict on gluten-free toast)
-Slow clap for the DJ at Tryst. He played a killer mix!
As much fun as everything was, this was definitely the best part of the weekend:
I missed that little noodle with my whole heart.
We’re going to enjoy a breakfast date, grab groceries and figure out something St. Paddy’s Day-ish to do. Any ideas?!
Did you do (or are you doing) anything fun for St. Patrick’s Day?
Hope you have a happy Monday <3
See ya later today!
xoxo
Gina
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The Pilot’s moustache deserves its own post haha 🙂
maybe it can guest post before the month is over 😉
What a fun trip! I love the food at Mon Ami! Josh and I want to plan a trip to Vegas next year for his 30th.
We’re running a St Patricks Day 5k today after work with some friends. There’s beer, potatoes, and a DJ at the finish line! I can’t wait!
What a fun trip! I’m a Bruin, so I’m sad to hear one of our alumni didn’t represent us with class. :-/ But you’re right that it was an exciting game! Glad you had a fun time!
I stayed at the MGM Grand when I was a kid and TOTALLY remember the Wizard of Oz stuff too.
My girlfriends and I are headed to Vegas in June for the first time for 2 bachelorette parties (one of which is mine!). This post made me even more excited than I already am!!! June can’t come fast enough. 🙂
you are going to have SO much fun 🙂
So jealous of your Yellowtail and Mon Ami Gabi visits!! Those are two of my favorite spots in Las Vegas 🙂
Sounds like an awesome trip, minus being pushed by grandma. It kind of reminds me of that scene in the Hangover when Alan tells the old man who is looking at his car, “Don’t touch it. Don’t even look at it. Yeah you better keep walking. I’ll hit an old man in public.” I’m sorry that happened!
Anyway, I’m surprisingly having an awesome St. Paddy’s day that has nothing to do with the actual holiday. Just a great day. It’s probably because I’m rocking my Celtics jersey. Let’s just pretend they aren’t having an epically terrible season.
I stayed at the Signature in September and rented a privately owned room! My friends and I actually thought we were staying at MGM because the full name of the hotel is The Signature at MGM. We freaked out for a short while when our reservations were nowhere to be found at MGM’s front desk. Only to realize there was another hotel…. heart attack averted. It is a great option though; a lot cheaper than staying on the strip. Although it’s like a mile to walk through the maze to get to MGM!
Fun trip!!! What kind of extensions do you use? They look fantastic!! I made some Irish soda bread yesterday, and enjoyed it with coffee this morning!!
Hi!
Sounds like a fun getaway for you.
I went to Las Vegas almost two years ago for my bachelorette party with girlfriends. We stayed at the Bellagio (fabulous), went to some awesome clubs and had a few good meals (obviously, Serendipity 3 happened twice during our stay!). We also saw Cirque du Soleil Love show (the Beattles one), which was very entertaining. However, two of our disappointments included Mesa Grill (nothing special about it) and the pool scene at Tao Beach (just bad…).
No special plans today, except recovering from a weekend of hosting friends!
Best,
Ashley
(So I started this comment, and then the page got sucked into The Black Hole at some point after I hit “submit”… let’s try this again…) 😉
I always consider Vegas to be the adult version of Neverland–sometimes it’s nice to escape reality and responsibility and just have a good time (and be reminded yet again that our bodies just can’t handle partying like we did in college…ouch). Regardless, I always LOVE getting dolled up and shakin’ what my momma gave me. Hubby claims that he has outgrown “club life” so we always make sure to hit Vegas with friends so that us chicas can go fist-pump the night away while the boys play their luck at the tables.
Speaking of vacay’s… Hubby and I are going to be in Scottsdale for a wedding in a few weeks (staying at Zona). Any recommendations for where to eat/play/etc??? We are trying to make the most out of this wedding getaway, since we raaaarely get a vacation together (we are leaving the little munchkin at home in California with my mom).
Where did you get the dress your wearing in the reunion pic with Liv? Looks comfy and I love that it can be paired with sneakers.
it’s from gap! one of my faves 🙂
Oh wow what a cool trip – and the hotels look just grogeous!! As do you and the pilot together.
It’s been way over 10 years since I’ve been to Vegas. I guess I need to change that next year – planning to head down CA, so it’s on the way!
Happy St. Paddy’s – no celebrations here in boring Switzerland 🙂
I love Vegas! Looks like you had a fun trip. I haven’t been there in a year (like that’s a long time), but I need to get back soon.
Where did you get your white and black dress and sandals? They look great!
dress is from francesca’s, sandals from aldo 🙂
Trying to decide what to comment on first and all I can think is “MOUSTACHE”. So I guess I’ll leave it at that. 😉
HAHA! it steals the show for sure haha
What a fun few weeks you have had! I love Vegas, such a blast.uYou must have missed Livi!
We just got back from our first vacation ever and first time in vegas. It was so amazing! We were at the mgm grand for the CSI experience and saw soo many tall people. Basketball players are crazy tall!
how was the csi experience??! i really wanted to do it 🙂
Honestly it was kind of lame. They basically have you the answers and there was very little skill needed.
oh, good to know we didn’t miss anything. from the outside, it looks really cool 🙂
What a fun trip! That dress looks great on you.
thank you!
I have only been to Vegas once and I was little, so its like it doesn’t even count! I have a few friends in several of the Cirque shows, so I am dying to get out there to see them. It looks like you had a wonderful little get away!
That room you stayed in is gorgeous!! A group of us gals are going on a weekend trip to Vegas so this is something I should look into. We are going to try and do 4 girls to a room (which is a lot when considering all the mirror and outlet space we need) Oy! 🙂 Did you search for Groupon deals in Vegas, or was it through your normal home city Groupon? (Did that even make sense?)
i ALWAYS check the travel deals because they’re usually amazing. it’s a great way to scope out options if we’re planning a vacay, too!
Looks like a fun trip! Sometimes those older people are the feistiest 🙂 And CUTE clubbing’ dress! I can’t remember the last time this mama danced the night away either.
I ran a half-marathon for St. Paddy’s so nothing too crazy on this end. I DID drink $60 worth of Mimosas and food on Sunday morning though….woops!
*high fives*
OMG clubbing! I’m starting to get the club bug again.
Off topic, I am in love with Livi’s little play kitchen. I want one. Not for Squish, but for me! 🙂
I love that you guys went out clubbing! How fun! It is so fun to go out with my husband and feel like we are back in our early dating years without a care in the world.
I work for the University of Colorado athletic department and was at the tournament for work – I follow you on Instagram and I am pretty sure we missed each other by about 2 seconds multiple times. I would have told you that I enjoy your blog and have cooked about a million of your recipes, but I also would have said Go Buffs! Glad you enjoyed the tournament, hope you get to go next year!
What a fun trip – I need to get to Vegas one of these days! I bet you loved coming home to Liv, though. 🙂
What a sweet hug! That’s just the best!
Looks like a fun time–and a great idea to do right before the stress of a big move!
I am a UCLA fan who is a faithful reader of your blog. 🙂 That was a great game! Sorry you got pushed by a Bruin fan… That Vegas trip looked fun!