never stays in Vegas!
My dear friend/big sister (in APO terms) Julia decided to have an early bachelorette party in Vegas the last weekend of October. What could be more fun than partying with one of my best friends and celebrating Halloween in Sin City!
The planning of the weekend was turned over to me, and Katy (sister/maid of honor) will handle the Dallas bachelorette party in a couple of months. I was ecstatic to plan the weekend.
Thanks to Caitlin's good fortune every time she goes to Vegas, we were able to stay center Strip at Bally's for next to nothing.
So a rundown of the weekend:
My dear friend/big sister (in APO terms) Julia decided to have an early bachelorette party in Vegas the last weekend of October. What could be more fun than partying with one of my best friends and celebrating Halloween in Sin City!
The planning of the weekend was turned over to me, and Katy (sister/maid of honor) will handle the Dallas bachelorette party in a couple of months. I was ecstatic to plan the weekend.
Thanks to Caitlin's good fortune every time she goes to Vegas, we were able to stay center Strip at Bally's for next to nothing.
So a rundown of the weekend:
Thursday
First off, thanks to the lovely Jacob for picking me and Caitlin up and dropping us off at the airport! We got to Vegas around 4ish, made our way to the hotel to check in, and met up with Julia and Katy. After we dropped our bags off in the rooms, we went in search of drinks and light food to hold us over until dinner. As we walked through the concourse that connects Bally's and Paris, we saw a sign that said 2 for 1 happy hour. How could we resist! It was one of those pubs that brings you both of your drinks right then, so we looked a bit ridiculous with 8 glasses of assorted drinks on our small cocktail table. After a short while there, we walked around and let Katy experience her first slot machine. We headed back to the room, changed, then went in search of dinner. While walking down the Strip, a guy standing in front of the little club outside of Imperial Palace gave us a flier for free entrance to the club that night, along with free drinks for the ladies. Again, how could we resist! We headed back to Bally's and met up with Brittany, freshened up, and then headed to IP.
A good time was had that night. Lots of dancing, lots of sweating, lots of free drinks, lots of free shots. After leaving the club, we thought it would be a good idea to go inside IP and sit at a blackjack table with Dealertainer Whitney Houston...yeah, that wasn't a good idea at all.
A good time was had that night. Lots of dancing, lots of sweating, lots of free drinks, lots of free shots. After leaving the club, we thought it would be a good idea to go inside IP and sit at a blackjack table with Dealertainer Whitney Houston...yeah, that wasn't a good idea at all.
Friday
We hit up the delish Bellagio buffet for an early lunch - no better way to start the day than with the amazing spread that is offered. After eating, we split up so that I could do some secret activities. My first stop was Freed's bakery to pick up the cupcakes. I was afraid they wouldn't survive the cab ride, but alas, the penises (peni?) stayed intact.
Caitlin's good fortune at the casinos also scored us a free suite at the Palazzo, which Caitlin and I decided to use for the bachelorette party. Caitlin was playing in a free slot tourney (courtesy of the Palazzo/Venetian), so while she was playing, I decorated the suite.
I made Julia a sash and veil - and of course had to try them on at my apartment the night before leaving. Man, those veils are a distraction! I kept playing around with different hairstyles...you know, for when my time comes around. But anywho, the "b" on the sash got lost in transit from IP to Palazzo, and I was super bummed. But luckily I had a picture to show Julia what it looked like.
Caitlin's good fortune at the casinos also scored us a free suite at the Palazzo, which Caitlin and I decided to use for the bachelorette party. Caitlin was playing in a free slot tourney (courtesy of the Palazzo/Venetian), so while she was playing, I decorated the suite.
I made Julia a sash and veil - and of course had to try them on at my apartment the night before leaving. Man, those veils are a distraction! I kept playing around with different hairstyles...you know, for when my time comes around. But anywho, the "b" on the sash got lost in transit from IP to Palazzo, and I was super bummed. But luckily I had a picture to show Julia what it looked like.
After the decorations were hung, Caitlin and I made our way to Planet Hollywood to meet up with Julia, Katy and Brittany. Julia's cousin Andy works at Koi and his girlfriend works at some bar at PH, and free drinks were being consumed. Again, how could we resist! Free drinks, free shots...needless to say, by the time we left at 5ish we were a bit tipsy.
We headed back to the hotel where we met up with Allison. Everyone got all gussied up, and then we walked across the street to the Bellagio for our dinner reservations at Fix. Then we went back to Bally's, met up with Amanda, freshened up, and then met our limo driver. The limo graciously provided 2 bottles of champagne, so we consumed an entire bottle on the way to our secret location (Palazzo). Everyone was surprised when we took them up to the suite. Cupcakes were eaten, drinks consumed...all while we waited for the special guest...
Julia did not want to do Chippendale's/Thunder from Down Under for the party. We have been to those shows a few times for other bachelorette parties. I tried thinking of fun alternatives, and in the end settled on hiring a stripper. Mr. Stripper called me at the time he was supposed to be undressing. Of course he was running late, and we were on a tight schedule. I met him downstairs; he was not one of top 3 I requested. And can I just say how awkward it was to ride up in an elevator to the 37th floor alone with a stripper as I handed him an envelope of money! I went back into the room, and a moment later there was the knock on the door. He used the generic "there was a noise complaint" line and then walked into the room. And...pause...and more pause. Don't believe the movies when the stripper comes in and starts dancing and undressing. Nope! Mr. Stripper had to first unzip his rolling bag, pull out his ginormous ipod speakers, connect the ipod, load to the correct playlist...and then he began. And it was awful! The most awkward, choreographed dance moves I didn't know were possible (except for shows like Chippendale's/Thunder from Down Under). After minutes of dancing, he began to play games. First, he blindfolded Julia, we stuck dollar bills in his g-string, and then Julia had to pull them out with her mouth while blindfolded (we had to direct her where to go). After that fun, Julia put dollar bills on us and Mr. Stripper had to remove them with his mouth. Then we put dollar bills on Julia, and Mr. Stripper had to remove them with his mouth.
Once Mr. Stripper/no personality finished spreading his germs, he asked if we wanted the XXX - Fire and Ice Show. Seeing how he was late and we now had to meet the limo (and we didn't care to spend an extra $100 to see whatever it was he wanted to show us), we didn't see the XXX show. Oh, did I mention that when he said XXX, he actually crossed his arms into an X, front, then back, then double time?? Aaaaand...did I mention that he spoke with a lisp??
As we put back on our shoes, fixed our hair, wiped the saliva off of our necks/legs/wherever else his mouth was, Mr. Stripper was left standing alone in the sitting room portion of the suite putting back on each layer of clothing. It was like an awkward one night stand - though I've never had a one night stand, so I wouldn't really know. But I can imagine that's what it would be like.
Though I'm still debating which was more awkward: the elevator ride alone with him counting his envelope of money or watching him all alone in the room putting back on his clothes while 7 girls stood around laughing.
We headed back to the hotel where we met up with Allison. Everyone got all gussied up, and then we walked across the street to the Bellagio for our dinner reservations at Fix. Then we went back to Bally's, met up with Amanda, freshened up, and then met our limo driver. The limo graciously provided 2 bottles of champagne, so we consumed an entire bottle on the way to our secret location (Palazzo). Everyone was surprised when we took them up to the suite. Cupcakes were eaten, drinks consumed...all while we waited for the special guest...
Julia did not want to do Chippendale's/Thunder from Down Under for the party. We have been to those shows a few times for other bachelorette parties. I tried thinking of fun alternatives, and in the end settled on hiring a stripper. Mr. Stripper called me at the time he was supposed to be undressing. Of course he was running late, and we were on a tight schedule. I met him downstairs; he was not one of top 3 I requested. And can I just say how awkward it was to ride up in an elevator to the 37th floor alone with a stripper as I handed him an envelope of money! I went back into the room, and a moment later there was the knock on the door. He used the generic "there was a noise complaint" line and then walked into the room. And...pause...and more pause. Don't believe the movies when the stripper comes in and starts dancing and undressing. Nope! Mr. Stripper had to first unzip his rolling bag, pull out his ginormous ipod speakers, connect the ipod, load to the correct playlist...and then he began. And it was awful! The most awkward, choreographed dance moves I didn't know were possible (except for shows like Chippendale's/Thunder from Down Under). After minutes of dancing, he began to play games. First, he blindfolded Julia, we stuck dollar bills in his g-string, and then Julia had to pull them out with her mouth while blindfolded (we had to direct her where to go). After that fun, Julia put dollar bills on us and Mr. Stripper had to remove them with his mouth. Then we put dollar bills on Julia, and Mr. Stripper had to remove them with his mouth.
Once Mr. Stripper/no personality finished spreading his germs, he asked if we wanted the XXX - Fire and Ice Show. Seeing how he was late and we now had to meet the limo (and we didn't care to spend an extra $100 to see whatever it was he wanted to show us), we didn't see the XXX show. Oh, did I mention that when he said XXX, he actually crossed his arms into an X, front, then back, then double time?? Aaaaand...did I mention that he spoke with a lisp??
As we put back on our shoes, fixed our hair, wiped the saliva off of our necks/legs/wherever else his mouth was, Mr. Stripper was left standing alone in the sitting room portion of the suite putting back on each layer of clothing. It was like an awkward one night stand - though I've never had a one night stand, so I wouldn't really know. But I can imagine that's what it would be like.
Though I'm still debating which was more awkward: the elevator ride alone with him counting his envelope of money or watching him all alone in the room putting back on his clothes while 7 girls stood around laughing.
The limo driver picked us up and drove us around for awhile so that we could enjoy the limo (stretch Cadillac Escalade) and the last bottle of champagne. Then it was time to go to the Wynn, where I made table reservations at Tryst nightclub. We met up with our VIP host and were escorted into the club where we had a pretty amazing booth. We ordered our 2 bottles of Grey Goose and got started dancing and drinking. We were located near a stripper pole, so Julia had some fun with that.
After about an hour in the club, Amanda got a little sick from the tequila/vodka/champagne combination and started to throw up. Our server told security, and they made Amanda leave the club. Katy went with her while the rest of us stayed.
Approximately an hour later I got word that Julia was dunskies and it was time to leave. We had only gone through about 3/4 of the 1st bottle of Grey Goose. Abby gave us a few empty water bottles and told us to pour the vodka into the bottles so that we could take it. I'm not gonna lie - I was bummed that we were leaving after only being there for about 2 hours. We had been drinking all day, but I thought if we paced it that night we could stretch it until the club closed at 4 a.m. But alas, I wasn't about to stay at Tryst alone (though the thought did cross my mind), so I went with the rest of the group back to Bally's.
After about an hour in the club, Amanda got a little sick from the tequila/vodka/champagne combination and started to throw up. Our server told security, and they made Amanda leave the club. Katy went with her while the rest of us stayed.
Approximately an hour later I got word that Julia was dunskies and it was time to leave. We had only gone through about 3/4 of the 1st bottle of Grey Goose. Abby gave us a few empty water bottles and told us to pour the vodka into the bottles so that we could take it. I'm not gonna lie - I was bummed that we were leaving after only being there for about 2 hours. We had been drinking all day, but I thought if we paced it that night we could stretch it until the club closed at 4 a.m. But alas, I wasn't about to stay at Tryst alone (though the thought did cross my mind), so I went with the rest of the group back to Bally's.
We got back to Bally's and piled into the elevator. My hands were full of my purse, someone else's purse, someone's shoes, my camera and phone. As the doors were closing, a guy and girl ran to jump in. As they came in, someone bumped into me and SPLAT...I watched as my blackberry fell in slow motion. The front part went to the left, the back part to the right, and the battery pack fell right down the crack of the elevator shaft. Of all the luck. Frustrated, I got off the elevator and walked around the casino for awhile to cool off. Needless to say, it was not a good end to the night.
As soon as I woke up, I went in search of a Sprint store. An expensive cab ride later, I made it to the store only to find out it didn't sell battery packs. Another expensive cab ride back to the hotel to call the battery store that Sprint referred me to (for some odd reason they wouldn't just call the store for me). When I got back to the hotel, called the battery store before trekking all the way out there. Luckily they sold the battery, so another expensive cab ride later, I was back in business.
I ran into Julia and Brittany in the hotel lobby when I got back, and we walked to Planet Hollywood for lunch. After lunch, we went to H&M - my first experience! I found two super cute hair accessories. One was a black headband with a pink feather (a picture in the Sunday recap) and the other was a little sequined gold color hat. Seeing how they were both only $4, I figured what the heck. I modeled the hat in the store and then later ran into Jerry Springer outside of PH and took a picture wearing my new accessory.
We had a Halloween costume theme of "women in uniform." I knew I wanted to be a cop, but I wanted it to be a one of a kind. I don't do store bought costumes: 1) the chance of too many other girls wearing the costume; 2) I'm not skinny, which automatically means that store costumes will not fit properly. So, I had my mom help me sew a costume.
I was quite satisfied with my costume once it was complete. My mom did an amazing job on the dress, and then I added a petticoat and took a hat from Target and covered it with the same material from the dress. Then I sewed black, shiny material across the band, added the badges to the hat and dress, bought a billy club and was set.
Dinner at Diablo's at Monte Carlo was delicious. It was such a fun restaurant - and the pitchers of margaritas made me happy! The UT game was playing, so we got to catch the last part of the 4th quarter. The restaurant played some fun music, so it was a good time. Next time I go back to Vegas, I will definitely have to eat there again.
We walked back to PH and caught the American Storm show. One of the guys didn't even try to keep a straight face. It was cheesy but fun. The guys were going to a bar across from the theater and invited the girls over for a drink. Like little groupies, we went and were treated to a free shot. There were tables all over the place, so the girls played some flip cup. One of the guys from AS came and told me that they were going to a club at Luxor and for us to go and say we were with them. After some flip cup action, we cabbed it down to Luxor and met up with the AS guys in line at Cathouse.
Somehow all the girls got in except for me...just my luck. I stood there like an idiot for about 10 minutes before the bouncer let me in. Thank goodness Julia noticed I wasn't inside yet and waited for me. We found an area near a table full of clowns - yes, clowns - and they were nice enough to let some of the girls sit on the "wall" of their booth (not a wall, but I couldn't figure out a word to properly describe it). There was some dancing. I fed one of the clowns a strawberry (I dunno...the cocktail waitress made me do it). I was handcuffed to some skeevy dude who proceeded to molest me from behind. After awhile, we left and cabbed it back to Bally's and sat in the lounge, where a fun band was playing
Dinner at Diablo's at Monte Carlo was delicious. It was such a fun restaurant - and the pitchers of margaritas made me happy! The UT game was playing, so we got to catch the last part of the 4th quarter. The restaurant played some fun music, so it was a good time. Next time I go back to Vegas, I will definitely have to eat there again.
We walked back to PH and caught the American Storm show. One of the guys didn't even try to keep a straight face. It was cheesy but fun. The guys were going to a bar across from the theater and invited the girls over for a drink. Like little groupies, we went and were treated to a free shot. There were tables all over the place, so the girls played some flip cup. One of the guys from AS came and told me that they were going to a club at Luxor and for us to go and say we were with them. After some flip cup action, we cabbed it down to Luxor and met up with the AS guys in line at Cathouse.
Somehow all the girls got in except for me...just my luck. I stood there like an idiot for about 10 minutes before the bouncer let me in. Thank goodness Julia noticed I wasn't inside yet and waited for me. We found an area near a table full of clowns - yes, clowns - and they were nice enough to let some of the girls sit on the "wall" of their booth (not a wall, but I couldn't figure out a word to properly describe it). There was some dancing. I fed one of the clowns a strawberry (I dunno...the cocktail waitress made me do it). I was handcuffed to some skeevy dude who proceeded to molest me from behind. After awhile, we left and cabbed it back to Bally's and sat in the lounge, where a fun band was playing
Sunday
Our last day full day in Vegas, which meant a time to unwind and relax but still enjoy ourselves. Julia, Caitlin and I headed to the spa at Mandalay Bay early in the day. I got a desert sage massage...and, my first male masseuse. It was quite relaxing. I was in a nice comfort zone and then 50 minutes later, it was time to get up. I was the first one done, so I went out by the pool and, with the comfy spa robe on and ipod set to Jack Johnson, dozed off. Once we were finished, we met up with the other girls for lunch. It was then time to say bye to Allison, who had an early flight. We walked along the strip and stopped in a couple of casinos. Once we got to Bally's, it was time to say bye to Amanda. The 5 of us who remained got dressed for our last night and headed to dinner at a nice Italian place in Paris. We headed over to the Bellagio to their lounge that overlooks the water show. There were a couple of good bands playing, and we had fun relaxing and drinking.
For those who know me, I absolutely love the Bellagio water show. I'm at peace when I'm watching the water flow side to side and shoot up to great heights. If I could plan my own engagement (you know, when I finally find a guy), I would have it take place in front of the Bellagio as the show is going on in the background. Here are some pictures taken in front of the Bellagio and others taken from the porch of the lounge - so a back view with the Eiffel Tower of Paris in the background.
Monday
After a delicious breakfast at the restaurant inside the Eiffel Tower, we headed to the airport. While waiting in the terminal, I could feel my throat on fire, and I just knew I was getting sick. Caitlin and I had a layover in Phoenix and then what felt like a month later, we finally arrived in Austin. Thanks to Terence for picking us up!
The next day I went to the doctor and found out I was having a second bout of strep throat along with the flu...lovely.
The next day I went to the doctor and found out I was having a second bout of strep throat along with the flu...lovely.
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