14 Will this long awaited SURPRISE be scary or fun?

They made the way down to the entrance and crossed the little road to the canopy where there was a bench they could sit on while waiting.  People watching down there was A1!  And also dog watching..since their ‘relief station’  ( a small fenced grassy area) was also nearby.  They saw huge dogs being walked by tiny people, wee dogs with bows on their ears being carried by muscle bound 6 footers, and a mini schnauzer lifted out of her stroller by mom, all to go pee or poo, often with vocal encouragement and praise.  Then it started to drizzle , and one reluctant pooch sniffed every blade of grass and every deposit left behind by others, with no interest in performing, while their miserable owner, hunched over in the rain, whispering sweet somethings, but getting no result. Eventually the soaked owner picked up the soaked doggie, and carried it inside, where Kodi guessed it would begin to whine in 10 minutes, asking to go out.  Kodi knows these things.

Now the sprinkling didn’t last long, but there were quite a few dark clouds in the region.  Did Kodi worry? They were under a canopy. They weren’t traveling in a convertible with the top down. No problem.

But, umm, their outside activity..was there shelter? Was there seating for them somewhere to rest?   All unknowns.  Yikes!

She got a text from Kiddo saying she’d heard from Mitchell, and he would be leaving to get them shortly, and that the vehicle was a white Subaru Outback.  ( Not that Kodi would recognize one, but at least they wouldn’t climb into a Magic Wagon  or something by mistake.)  Kodi suddenly thought about something, that hadn’t been discussed.  “ You said the ride was prepaid. Should we be tipping this guy?”   A couple of minutes passed before she answered. “Sure. Good idea. I didn’t take care of that in advance.”

After seeing a dozen white SUVs the next few minutes, they suddenly heard honking… and flags flying, they saw one stop just before getting to them.  Toos excitedly said “ Oh look. A Dutch flag!”

The driver’s window rolled down. Kodi’s mouth dropped open. She may have gasped and then cursed under her breath.

“ You have to be kidding!  Toos, it’s her! The person who has been torturing me for weeks.. and that’s not an Orange Dutch flag , it’s the Denver Broncos flag, haha.”  She rushed over clapping, and perhaps punching the driver in the left arm as she arrived at the car.  “ What the…?”

Kiddo sat there smirking,  in a sparkly party hat.  “Get in. We’re holding up traffic.”

She’d  flown to Vegas the night before, and had answered Kodi’s message from her hotel room at 10:30 and just recently from the parking lot of the Stage Door casino just around the corner, chuckling the whole time.  She asked more than once, if Kodi had really been surprised .  Didn’t she catch on at some point?  

Nope. Definitely had NO idea.  Mitchell aka Michelle is a crazy trickster, but an amazing friend.  What wonderful entertainment in Messenger she’d had for the past number of weeks , LOL.

“Mitchell “ pulled up in a safe spot out of the traffic, and handed them each a party hat, and a noisemaker ( think of a sick duck) as well as little plastic wine glasses. She then opened a wee bottle of sparkling wine.  The driver didn’t partake, and had a large bottle of water next to her.  Toos was SO happy about it all, and finally poor Kodi could embrace the surprise as well.  They’d definitely have a fun day, and be safe as could be!

They drove out of Vegas into the desert, and drove, and drove some more.  Toos loved seeing all the different sand formations  and mountains. It was her first visit to a desert, and it enchanted her.  Kodi was in the front seat, also enjoying the views, although there were more dark clouds forming into the direction they were driving. The only highway signs she saw told her they were going to Los Angeles.  She asked Kiddo how much longer the drive would be. He answer was “ I have no idea. I’ve never been there.”  Then they drove some more.

They eventually came to an exit sign that both made sense and had Kodi jumping in her seat.

This was  something she never thought she’d get to see, since she didn’t have access to a car while in Vegas ( except this Kiddo Kab a few times in the past, to move around the city)

It still took a while to find the site, since the directional signs stopped, and nothing was visible ( except possibly threatening weather) looking many ways at the skyline.

They followed their noses and suddenly, there it was. Kiddo pulled into the parking lot, more than a little relieved. She remained in the car, and took some excellent photos with her zoom lens. Toos and Kodi walked a fair distance over the rocky desert surface.  When they were about halfway to the art installation, they felt they couldn’t make it much further.  They had worn their party hats, and got lots of good wishes from the people that passed them, going both ways.  Kodi took a few photos and had Toos take one ( well actually 12, LOL) of her.  They made their way carefully back to the parking lot and car, and thanked their driver for making such a long trip for their viewing pleasure. It would have been nice to get close enough to actually touch the fluorescent coloured rocks, but Kodi and Toos might have had to be airlifted out of the site if they had attempted that.  It may have been only 94F but between that and the rocky ground, it was tough going for both of them. It was great to join the driver back in the air conditioned vehicle.

Kodi later saw a photo of the art pieces at night, and realized it could be even more appealing!  Beautiful!

They began the long drive back to Las Vegas, and still had no idea what was next as part of the adventure .  “Do you have any idea where you are eating tonight?“  Kiddo asked.  “Absolutely none” was the reply she received.  It wasn’t until they pulled into the parking area of the M Resort, that Kodi thought she knew the location at least.  But then tricky Kiddo said  “It’s still too early to drive to the restaurant because the reservation is for 6 p.m.  This is where I’m staying, this time, so I want to show you the room and view I got. It’s an upgrade, so I think you’ll like it.”

Boy, what a swanky place, they thought, as they made their way to the elevators. Kiddo had a version of a wellness style of room, with a spice scented diffuser, and a fridge full of water. She had a lovely view over the pool and the Strip in the distance.  It wasn’t light enough to get any good photos.

She had one more small bottle of the sparkling wine that the three of them shared, and after they all freshened up, she let them know that they would be actually eating IN the hotel, so they headed for the elevators again.  They all wore their sparkly hats, and were walking with canes, so Kiddo started singing, Three Blind Mice, LOL.

There were a couple of Gentlemen in the elevator going downstairs with them, and they wished them a happy birthday. Kodi had her squeaky noisemaker in her soft bag, so thanked them, and then with  a couple squeezes added two quiet honks. 

Once they reached the lower level, their hostess led them into Anthony’s Prime Steak and Seafood and to a reserved table next to a great view of the open kitchen.  Kodi gulped when she spotted the magnificent prime rib sitting under the heat light. 

They were seated, and their waiter Bruno introduced himself.  Kiddo told him that they would want one bill for the table, and when he left, told Toos and Kodi to look over the cocktail menu and then they could enjoy perusing the dinner menu after a birthday toast. (In case you are wondering, they had worn their hats into the restaurant, but removed them after sitting down.) . They each chose a beverage and then turned their attention to the menu where the two guests were told to order anything they wanted, but were a little taken aback by the prices they saw.

Kiddo decided on a wedge salad, and Toos and Kodi split a shrimp cocktail.  

They followed with a lovely steak for Kiddo, Sea Bass for the Dutch gal, and Kodi got her beloved prime rib.  They got sides of baked potato, and jumbo asparagus.   Toos was intrigued by the ‘hand cut homemade’ French fries.  When Bruno came by to check on them they asked him if he had hand cut the fries at home, and brought them in to work with him.  ( Umm, the cocktails were rather strong, LOL.)

 

The dishes were removed from the table and they were all full, but Kiddo wasn’t finished yet.  She had brought candles with her and planned to order a little cake for them to share.  

Bruno beat her to it.  He arrived carrying two little cupcakes, with candles on top, and he placed them in front of Kodi and Toos .  Kiddo then ordered a cream brûlée.

When he was putting Kiddo’s dessert down in front of her,  Bruno said that a gentleman and his son, sitting across the restaurant from them had noticed that they were celebrating birthdays…..and had picked up their entire tab.  They all were open mouthed for a moment and then Kiddo asked hm to point the gentlemen out, so she could go over to thank them.  Bruno said that they had made the request as they were leaving the restaurant.

So …..Kiddo’s surprise for the two Canadians became a big surprise for HER too!    The entire scenario felt like something out of movie to them.  The bill came to just over $300, and the three ladies split the tip, for Bruno’s excellent service.

It was after 9 p.m. and Kiddo asked if they wanted to go back up to her room but the gals decided they were tired enough after the big meal that if they sat down up there,  they’d probably get sleepy rather quickly , so they would be better closer to their own beds.  They said goodbye, exchanging big hugs, and all still commenting and marvelling at the dining room surprise.  

Kodi and Toos couldn’t express how grateful they were to Kiddo. She had put so much time and effort in to make this day special for them both. She has quite the imagination!   The Kiddo Kab dropped them off at the back entrance of the Flamingo at 9:45.  

As Kodi got out of the car, she spotted a shiny new penny on the ground. There were cars right behind them so she could not stop to pick it up. As she walked , she tried to kick it to the curb in order to get it, but after 3 attempts, it was still on the roadway.  Oh well, she thought…she’d leave it there for someone else to have good luck…..when they put it into THEIR  bra.  😏

She stopped to play some video poker for a short while on the way to the room. She was soon approached by a woman who had a most fantabulous deal for her.  She was offered handfuls of very expensive gold jewelry for a fraction of its cost.  The woman wouldn’t take no for an answer, until Kodi started looking left and right, muttering, “ There must be a security guard somewhere around here. “   She then quickly walked away.    Beginning with that amazing offer, Kodi figured she’d discovered the post pandemic method to get her Vegas luck.  Kicking shiny pennies 3 times is possibly her new charm. (The problem of course, might be to find them first. Dirty pennies probably wouldn’t work.)

She was playing a game within a game, she called ‘round and round’, where on a multi game poker machine, you play 3 hands on each game and then move on to the next, no matter the result, continuing the cycle….which actually slows down your play a little, and keeps things from getting tedious.  But she hit this hand on a game she normally wouldn’t play.  

The Take Home Envelope would be glad to see her.

They both crawled into bed that night tired , but full of such happy memories.  The restaurant tab mysteriously being paid made for some good dreams, as it felt like a fantasy.  These sort of things only happen to other people, right?  Kodi fell asleep wondering if their benefactors might have been the fellows they shared the elevator with…but they’d never know.   Unless of course one of them is reading this and makes a comment. 😂