viva las vegas.

way back in december, my friend monica asked me what i thought about planning a little surprise trip to vegas for our guys. 

although vegas is appealing in and of itself {primarily for its bizarreness}, our primary goal would be exotics racing, a racing school with uber fancy cars that i'd never heard of but the boys would be sure to swoon over.

she didn't have to do much convincing. 

anything that will make mr. lesley feel like he has achieved his dream of starring in the fast and the furious is a done deal in my book.

we told the guys about the trip in december as a christmas gift and planned and counted down all the way until last weekend.

our three days of vegas domination started at the bellagio, because we're fancy like that...

then, of course, there was a little gambling...

where we were obviously big winners.

jackpot.

at one point i was sitting at a craps table with a pirate and then i saw this guy cashing in on a segway.

i can't believe i didn't pack mine in my carryon.

wednesday morning bright and early we headed out to the track.

once they let us go out to the cars, the posing, clapping, and drooling took full effect.

mr. lesley chose the aston martin in the hopes of channeling his inner bond.

kjaer picked a lamborghini gallardo because who wouldn't want to drive a lamborghini?

they let us pose and sit in all the cars there...

mr. lesley was really working on his chest and pelvic thrusting model poses.

once they had their helmets securely in place, they were ready to go.

fortunately for my sanity, they had professionals riding along with them.

they took the corners like champs, got past 100 mph's on the straightaways, and even passed a couple people in the process.

monica and i were very impressed/slightly terrified {but in a good way of course.}

the boys were on cloud nine after the racing.

there was a lot of clapping, and high fives, and the basic look of euphoria on their faces. 

money well spent, i'd say.

oh, and we couldn't leave without getting our money's worth in poses and photo opps...

{i feel the need to point out that monica is not a little person. we were on staggered steps:}

of course we couldn't leave the premises without stopping off at the shelby museum across the street. 

again, i had no idea where we were or what a "shelby" was, but the cars were fun to look at. 

we spent our fare share of time in the afternoons walking the strip, taking it all in.

vegas is such a bizarre place.

"no, i don't want your sex cards."

"no, i don't want a bottled water for $1."

"no, i don't want to go to your club."

"no, i don't want to get show tickets from you."

although with everything over the top, i was never bored, so i can't complain.

we opted for a fancy dinner on wednesday night, right on the bellagio fountains.

it was a perfect setting with good food and even better company.

and i can never turn down on opportunity to wear my one fancy dress and one pair of fancy heels {that kill my feet and make me look like an injured giraffe, but whatever.}

i just have to point out that everyone kept coming up to mr. lesley throughout the night, assuming he worked at the hotel. i guess that's what you get for trying to look fancy.

"no, i don't know where the bathroom is." 

"no, i don't know where the concessions are."

"no, i don't have your tickets."

after dinner we saw "O" by cirque du soleil, which was the highlight of the trip for me. 

minus the spanish couple that i literally had to "shush" during the show, it was one of the most magical and awe inspiring things i've ever seen.

before you know what's happening, the stage is a pool and performers are diving and flipping and coming out of the ceiling and playing with fire and then there's a pirate ship and clowns and it's all so wonderful.

you just have to see it for yourself.

seriously. 

life changing stuff.

we finished out the evening the way every day should end...with dessert.

the jean philippe chocolate shop not only has flowing chocolate that 50+ people are taking their photo in front of all day every day, but they also have some amazing crepes. 

delicious.

we spent our last morning in vegas stuffing ourselves at a buffet {i mean, obviously}, walking the strip, and visiting the venetian {because you just have to.} and before we knew it, it was time to head back home to denver.

vegas, despite your bizarreness, you were very good to us.

kjaer and monica were the perfect friends to travel with, the accommodations were superb, the boys felt the wind through their helmets and adrenaline pumping through their veins, the food was delicious, "O" literally blew my mind and changed my life, and only 1 of our 5 cab drivers totally swindled us. 

i'd call that a major success.