Good Times in Vegas- Step Three

The third and final step to a Fantastical Time in Vegas?

Get married where the celebrities do.



The final surprise by The Mighty, Mighty Husbands was a wedding. Each of us will be celebrating five years of wedded bliss this year (to our spouses mind you, not to each other, that would be weird and probably illegal). In honor of that fact, The Hubba and The Hajek, in complete secrecy, planned a surprise ceremony to renew our vows. In Vegas. At Chapel of the Bells. Where Kelly Ripa got married.

For once, I'm left without words.

So, on the last part of our Vegas Wild Ride

say "hello!" to the best man in the world,


(The Hubba and I at Chapel of the Bells)

enjoy a little limo time with the adorable couple,


(The Hajeks after their *second* wedding).

and finish with a grand dinner in Paris.



Thanks for coming along on the blog-by-blog Bryant to Hajek Connection!

Good Times in Vegas- Step Two

Step Two to a Fantastical Time in Vegas?

Live like a celebrity (even if you can't behave like one).

For instance, have a limo, secretly arranged by two fabulous, extra-sneaky husbands, pick you up from the hotel.



Perhaps, though, it is best to travel with someone other than myself, who might have a tendency to say things like "I've never been in a limo before!" and "what do all these buttons do?" (as spiritual rock blares into the car) and "I bet everyone thinks we're famous-hahahaha-snort" (cue hand clapped to mouth moment).

At said hotel,



don't be shy. The Hajeks walk straight up to the hotel clerk, tell him their names and ask, cheerfully, "So what kind of upgrades can we get?" Seriously. I could never do this. Ever. I'm nearly in floods over just asking for a room. "A room? Well, I mean, yes I booked one, but, you know, I'm not stuck on it or anything. Just any old room will do. Broom closet? Why not?! I don't have enough chances to sleep standing up!" Not Dave and Renee. After only a few minutes we had all been bumped up (for a nominal fee) to a suite. They are the adults I want to be when I grow up.



It was shocking. Sure the decor was total Vegas, but the size of the place! The fact we weren't tripping over suitcases in an attempt to walk from the bed to the bathroom was shocking. I left without a single toe-rammed-into-bedframe induced injury.

Speaking of bathrooms



Ours had light sensors. Again, I say, seriously. The "why" I cannot explain, but when you walked within about two feet of the open-floor bathroom lights came on! Which was cool at first. And a bit tricky when those of us with small bladders had to pee at three in the morning and those of us with hibernating bear like tendencies jerked awake, growling, "What? WHAT?"

Not to mention



the bidet.

The Hubba was unconvinced.



Yet even while surrounded by these nifty treats and amenities, I'll show you the reason The Hubba and I are not, now or ever, surrounded by paparrazi.



The extended-arm camera shot. Can you say CHEESE?

Stay tuned for the final Step to Vegas- The Bryant to Hajek Connection! Livin' like Paris, Britney, and Lindsay, but with underwear!

Good Times in Vegas- Step One

Step One to A Fantastical Trip to Vegas?

Hang with celebrities.

I'll start by saying I've never met anyone mega famous. Really. Especially not of movie or rock star caliber. And I've always asked myself the question "Will I be cool when I meet a celebrity?" The answer it seems is no, no I will not.

Now. Does anyone remember the specific reason we went to Las Vegas? For a little group called Dave Matthews Band. Uh-huh. Well. We met someone famous. Someone SO famous. Someone who might- oh God, how can this be true?- mean jack to you, but... well...



That girl there with the weirdly smushed face? That's me. That cute fella in the green shirt? That's The Hubba. That six foot four Sex God in the middle? That's Boyd Tinsley.

BOYD TINSLEY Y'ALL. As in Boyd Tinsley on the violin. As in Boyd Tinsley OF the DAVE MATTHEWS BAND.

We met him . The Bryants (that's us ) and the Hajeks (below)- we met him.



WE MET HIM. IT was AWESOME. I can't quite describe it. We were in Bally's (our hotel) in front of the Bally's Spa (whole 'nother day's post) and Renee looks over and says, face frozen "OhmyGodthat'sBoydTinsley."

At which point, all four of us calmly walked over, introduced ourselves, shook hands, and said intelligent, witty things about the band in general and Boyd specifically.

That's such a lie. We went crazy. Matt and Dave had big stupid grins, Renee's eyes were as big as her face, and I, I'm sad to say, might have jumped up and down and clapped my hands.

But y'all, this is Boyd Tinsley. The man who rocks it out on the violin with DMB. He's AMAZING. And gorgoeous and, it turns out, the nicest person ever. As foolishly as we behaved, he just smiled and spoke nicely and shook our hands and when Renee asked if we could get picutres he said "yes." HE SAID YES. Did you see them? Did you see the pictures?





And for the rest of the weekend we were insufferable. Such as a the concert that night every time Boyd stepped up to jam it out we shouted a variety of things like "Hey Boyd, we're over here!" and "He's just playing to impress us!" and "That's Boyd- my brother from another mother!"

It was- just- it was- wow. We were all shocked and thrilled and mushy brained after. And Boyd, calm as could be, thanked us, told us to enjoy the night's show, and walked into Bally's work-out facility and got on the treadmill.

It took all the power we had not press our faces to the glass and stare.

Also, if anyone wants to play a little quiz, I ask you:

Who said the dumbest thing to Boyd?
A. Dave Hajek "We've seen you in concert 67 times" ?
B. Renee Hajek "We've traveled all over the country to see you more than 60 times"?
(to both these statements he said "really?" and smiled nicely)
C. Matthew Bryant, aka The Hubba, "You were really good last night"?
(to which Boyd said "thanks" and smiled nicely)
D. Em Bryant, aka neighborknitter, aka me "You look even taller on stage"?
(he laughed)
Bonus point if you pick "E- all of the above"

Look out for Step Two tomorrow....

Socks on a Plane

Put your sunglasses on, because you ain't going home till the morning comes. Frank Sinatra

You're not drunk if you can lie on the floor without holding on. Dean Martin

I gotta be me. Sammy Davis Jr

I like to play blackjack. I'm not addicted to gambling, I'm addicted to sitting in a semi-circle. Mitch Hedberg

I wanted to set a mood for the day, but there is a shocking lack of quotes about gambling or Las Vegas. The quotes I could find were grim morality tales about the dangers of betting and the shallow insidiouness of Vegas- Hello Buzz Kill! So I picked the Rat Pack because they are (even dead) Vegas and that last quote because that is me. 21! Hit me!

The Hubba and I have already observed a few pre-Vegas traditions. We watched Ocean's Eleven (the new yummy George Clooney version) last night, we had drinks with dinner and we played poker, with The Hubba offering good tips about "the big blind" "the small blind" and "Em, stop saying 'whoo-hoo!' when you get a good hand." I am prepared.

The only place I'm not prepared is the question of my knitting. I meant to throw out the universal knitter's query (second only to "should I frog it?") "can I take my knitting needles on a plane?" I meant to ask, I meant to call the airline, I meant to have a backup plan if I couldn't. Instead I've decided, to hell with it, better to ask forgivness than permission and just try to get the needles on there. You can bet I'll be pulled aside for a good search, being five three, reddish-blondish, mid-twenties and foolishly grin-y. I already scream "threat!" so I'm expecting security sees my size 0 double-pointeds and I'm getting hauled off for questioning. Unfortunately I'm down to the wire on finishing my Sockret Pal's socks in time to get out her last package before the end of March so it's a chance I'll have to take.

There might be blogging from Vegas. The Hubba, who refuses to carry the camera (three guesses on who he expects will carry it), is convinced we're going to take so many pictures we'll need the laptop to upload shots and free up memory on the camera. If the laptop does make it on board, then expect blogging.

I'm. So. Excited. The bummer about late flights- the whole day in front of us! Oh well...

Viva Las Vegas!

Viva Las Vegas!

Well, I think it's time to tell you

in less than four days The Hubba and I, along with our great friends Dave and Renee, will be winging our way to sunny Las Vegas. For what you ask? Good times, good food, good company.

Oh, and two nights of Dave Matthews Band. HOORAY!

Friday and Saturday night in Vegas just me, Matty, Dave, Renee, 12,000 screaming fans and the band.

I can hardly focus on my knitting for my excitement so I had to go ahead and share. Especially as the tickets came today.



Hallelujah!

Speaking of great things in today's mail, a big thanks to my Sockret Pal whose package arrived today.


(Perhaps I got a tad excited about my gifts and unwrapped the chocolate before I remembered to take pictures.)

Besides the chocolate, there's an adorable sock-shaped change purse, two types of row counters (one shaped like a frog- Miz Knotty, you'll love it!), two balls of Sevilla ribbon yarn, a hank of outrageous Jitterbug sock yarn in bright and brilliant pink, purple and blue - love it!



And, of course, a fantastic pair of handmade socks.



Which I'll be wearing tomorrow.

Thank you Devorah!

What a great day.

I'll add to all this exciting news, I realize I've not posted a lot lately and, I'll tell you, I've been so busy writing on my book, I've not felt that extra bit of blogger energy. Have I mentioned this before? If not, I'll say, I'm writing a book. It's a bit of a *thing* for me, saying it online. Remember the kid in school who wrapped his arm around half his desk so you couldn't see his work? That's how I've felt about this project. However, lately, it's been brought to my attention it's problematic to want to have a published book and at the same time not want a single person to read it. Something to do with contradiction and mixed energy, I've been told ;-).

Point is, I'm back in the book (it's been laid down off and on for the last year and a half) and it's going swimmingly and I'm finally taking a breath to remember how much I love posting here too! And I really appreciate anyone (coughDadcough) who's kept checking back every day even when all signs pointed to the fact I might never blog again.

I'm back. And I'm going to Vegas. And I've got a pair of handmade socks just for me! And, I swear, what happens in Vegas will be on this blog...