So my dad’s birthday (along with the photos in this post) was actually nearly two weeks ago, but I’ve only gotten to posting this now. Apologies (as well as for the lack of posts).

With that said, my dad’s birthday was on the 8th of October, and he decided he wanted to take a little mini trip to Las Vegas that weekend  to celebrate. My aunts, grandma, cousin (Reycel), and the boy went with my parents and me.

These photos are from days two and three of our trip. Day (or rather, night) one was spent arriving in Vegas, checking into the hotel, feasting on a buffet, and walking the Strip.

We had a few photo ops at The Palazzo and The Venetian.

Can’t go to “Italy” without getting some gelato!

I couldn’t help but stop in front of the Givenchy display at Barney’s and drool.

 
Top – Forever 21, Shorts – (I forgot :p), Tights – Banana Republic, Boots – Sam Edelman, Bag – Marc by Marc Jacobs, Watch – Movado

The October Draconids were supposed to be at their peak on this evening, the 8th, so after dinner, we separated from the parentals and drove off, further into the desert to attempt to get a peek at the meteor shower.

Aside from successful seeing a few regular shooting stars and one humongous one (must have totally been part of the Draconids shower), one of the major highlights of my evening was seeing these signs everywhere along that narrow highway into the desert. Burro crossing! Next time, we are going to attempt to take one for ourselves… mayhaps.

Urban Outfitters ads, anyone? And yes, I did indeed change out of my boots into flats (Michael by Michael Kors) for our trek into the desert.

My takeaway from wandering the desert late into the night – Joshua trees are creepy at night.

The next day, before heading back home, we all stopped by the Ethel M Chocolate Factory and Botanical Cactus Gardens in Henderson, NV. If you’re in the area, I highly recommend stopping by. Not only do you get to take a gander at their chocolate factory and cactus garden (which is apparently one of the largest cactus gardens in the U.S.), but you also get a free chocolate sample at the end of the chocolate factory tour!

Seeing as it is currently the year of the rabbit (based on the Chinese zodiac) and I was born in the year of the rabbit, I found this Bunny Ears Cactus rather amusing.

All in all, a successful family trip filled with lots of food, photos, and gambling. Well, the older folks gambled quite a bit. Ironically, we were in Vegas, and this time I didn’t even touch a slot machine once.