August 24, 2014: My 40th Birthday

I still can't believe I am 40 years old.  I woke up a little anxious.  Mom gave me a birthday card and a cute book about what has happened in the world in the last 40 years.

We had a wonderful brunch at Buddy V's at the Venetian Hotel.   This is the Cake Boss's Italian restaurant that just opened in Fall 2013.   All of the dishes were family recipes.   Looked at the photos of the family on the walls.   Talked with a manager who said that Buddy was in town, but at meetings, but would be coming into the restaurant later.

After brunch, we took the gondola ride inside the Venetian.  It was $18 each for a 15 minute ride.  I bought a cute wallet at Michael Kor's store.    Mom found a Coach wallet she liked.   Both wallets fit our I-phones.

I had make the mistake of wearing new sandals so one of was rubbing against my foot causing me great pain.   I hobbled along the Strip to the Mirage Hotel and got a bandaid.  I wanted to see the famous tigers there, but they no longer have them on display, unless you want to pay.  

Went to Mandalay Bay to see the Cirque de Soleil --Michael Jackson show.  I enjoyed the show and music.   Mom fell asleep during parts of it.  I can't understand how she could fall asleep with the loud music.

We came back to the hotel for a nap.  Then, we went to the Brittany Spears concert at Planet Hollywood Casino.   Brittany sure put on a good show, with many changes in costume.  
I would have to say that this was the most awesome 40th birthday.

August 23, 2014: Las Vegas

We had a nice breakfast at our hotel. It was about $23 per person.  We started talking about how we should rearrange some furniture at home.  My friends on Facebook said we shouldn't be doing that and should be walking down the Strip and exploring the area.    I got a laugh out of the comments.
We had to get our tickets to the Cirque de Soleil-Michael Jackson at the Mandalay Bay Casino.   We went through the casinos and shops on our way to the hotel.   We walked about 26,000 steps that day.

We had tickets to "Legends in Concert" as mom wanted to see that show.   It was a good show.  We also went to the Divas Show which was a female impersonator show.

I wanted to see if we could get tickets to the Brittanie Spears's concert at the Planet Hollywood Casino.  I was happy she added some shows, as the other ones were sold out.   I was thrilled to get us tickets to her show.  

We had pizza for dinner and then went to the top of the Eiffel Tower to see the night view of the Vegas Strip.   It was gorgeous up there.  We could see the waterfall show across the street at the Bellagio Hotel.   We did some more walking along the Strip.

August 22, 2014: Las Vegas

On Friday, August 22, Mom and I left for Las Vegas in order to celebrate my 40th birthday.   I sent a text to Kelsey on her birthday saying "Happy Birthday and that I was still in my 30's".  She sent me a picture of she and Charlene hiking at Cannonsburg.  She wanted to see the sunrise, but it was cloudy.

Our plane went from Grand Rapids to Denver to Las Vegas.  We stayed at the Hotel Paris.  The line to check-in to the hotel was ridiculously long.  I think we stood in line for about 45 minutes.  When we got to the room, my anxiety was quite high. I was in tears and thought I was going to die.   I had read in People Magazine about Robin William's suicide which was the worst thing I could have read. He was a great actor and comedian.   I took an aspirin and rested.

We went for dinner at the restaurant at the Eiffel Tower.  We ended up at a table by the window.   We were at the corner so we could see out both windows.  It was gorgeous.  The food was fantastic.   I would highly recommend this restaurant.  

Mom wanted to get tickets to see "Jersey Boys" as she heard it was so good, so we went to that show. It was a good show.   It was playing at our hotel.   Then, we walked down the strip towards the Venetian Hotel and got cannoli and lobster tail desserts from Carlo's Bakery.  I am in love with the Cake Boss so wanted to see his bakery and restaurant inside the Venetian Hotel.  We were surprised with how the women were dressed walking around the strip.   They wore super short sweater dresses that barely covered their booty and held alcoholic drinks.    This must be a sign of my aging attitude.  

We thoroughly enjoyed our treats from Carlo's Bakery.    

July 31, 2014: Mom's 68th Birthday and Cubs Game

Denise, Cheryl, and I sat around the kitchen table and had chocolate cake for Mom's 68th birthday.   Cheryl bought my mom a Cubs hat and scarf.   My mom looked so cute in her hat.  Cheryl got me a White Sox baseball hat and scarf.   We had some laughs over that. 

Denise showed us inside St. Priscilla's Catholic Church.   She said this church is where she felt at peace from her sisters.

Cheryl, Mom, and I took the bus to the Cubs game.   The Cubs were playing the Rockies.   This is the 100th Anniversary of Wrigley Field, so I wanted to go to a game.   I was on a mission to get a Cubs t-shirt and found one across the street.  It was a fun game.   My old coworker from Information Resources, Tony Dragel, was also at the game, but was sitting in the bleacher seats.   We talked on Facebook.  He had to leave the game early so I couldn't meet up with him.   The Cubs won the game.

We walked around my old neighborhood by the ball park.  I lived at 905 W. Cornelia. I had forgotten how close each building was to each other.   We took the "El" to the North/Clark stop to walk by my first apartment, located at 1030 N. Dearborn.

Mom wanted her birthday dinner at Lou Malnatis Pizza so we went there for dinner.  The pizza was delicious.   Eli's Cheesecake was celebrating their anniversary, so they gave out 1/2 price slices of cheesecake, so we stood in a long line for that.   We ate our cheesecake outside while listening to the water fountains.    We did some shopping at Chicos and Vera Bradley.

I think my mom enjoyed her birthday here in Chicago. It is nice to be able to have these memories.  

July 30, 2014: Chicago

We attempted to drive to Chicago which was a mistake, as the traffic was so bad.   I was so glad to get to Cheryl's sister, Denise's house at 3541 Nora Street.      We were going to stay with Cheryl and Denise which are Norm Schultz's nieces.   Denise is 62 years old, born January 18.   She does a lot for St. Priscilla Catholic Church which is behind her house.   The church has some Polish masses.   Denise takes pride in her job with lighting candles, cleaning, and unlocking the church doors.   She was a real inspiration to me.

Cheryl took us to a Polish buffet called Jolly Inn, which was next door to Galos Caves, which we did another year.   The food was very good.    A few days ago, I found out my job at the Health Department was going to be eliminated, so mentally, I was not in a good place.

Cheryl also took us up to the shops in Glenview.  The shops were built on a former Air Force base.  They used the Air Force base theme around the development.  

June 27, 2014: Rockford, The Deck, and Movies at the Beach

 

I took the day off so we could go meet up with Betty and John Westra at the Arnie's Restaurant in downtown Rockford, which is northeast of Grand Rapids.    We had a nice lunch at Arnie's and then Betty, Mom, and I went shopping in the downtown area.  We stopped in this glass shop and went upstairs to where the glass making classes take place.  That was quite interesting.  I didn't realize they first make a pattern, then melt the glass into that pattern.   It sounds like it takes several months to finish a project.    We got some nice jewelry at the Women at Risk store.    We also took a nice walk on the waterfront which was nice.

We wanted to go to the Hush Puppy Store, so headed over there.  I parked the car and tried to get the key out of the ignition, but it wouldn't come out.  I kept trying everything, but nothing worked, so we skipped the store and headed to Betty's house.  Her husband tried to get my key out, too, but he couldn't get it out either.   So, my Mom and I went to the Honda dealership and would you know it, the service person got the key out right away.   What happened is that the cord from my GPS was hanging down right where you put the car in park, which prevented the stick to fully go into park, which in turn locked the key in the ignition.  Can you believe how easy that was to fix?  We thought that was so funny.    We hurried back to Muskegon as we had a dinner date with Shari Resnick and Sue Arnouts.

I had been waiting for about a year for the new restaurant to open at Pere Marquette State Park.   Since April, I have tried to drive down by the lake to see the construction progress of the new restaurant.  The old Captain Jack restaurant on the beach was bought by Harris Hospitality.    The new restaurant, called 'The Deck' opened a couple of days ago.    

Sue Arnouts and Shari Resnick met us at "The Deck" for dinner.  It was a nice sunny day. Mom and I split a chicken salad which was very good.   

Shari didn't want to see the movie on the beach, so she went home.  Kay, Karen, Drew, Sue, my Mom, and I sat down on the beach and watched the movie 'Ghostbusters'.     Each year, they make improvements on the movie screen which makes it nice.    

June 21, 2014: Becky Ruger Stowe's Housewarming

My friend, Becky, whom I met through my friend Molly Piersma King, got remarried on February 14th this year and bought a historical home in downtown Allegan.    Her husband, John, decided to have a housewarming/birthday party for Becky. 

My Mom and I drove to Allegan to see Becky and her new home.  Earlier in the week, Becky adoped a cute little dog from the dog pound. He has one brown eye and one blue eye.  He is so adorable.  Becky's mom was there, too.   Her dad was at the hospital getting his dialysis treatment so he wasn't able to come.

Becky gave us a tour of the house, which has about 4 bedrooms.    It is a cute house, but will require some work such as tearing down the wallpaper, painting, and new flooring.  

It was really nice to see Becky again, as I hadn't seen her since her bridal shower at Molly's house.   Becky call's me her 'fun friend' as I am always on the go and doing fun things.