My Epic 40th Birthday Vegas Trip – Part 1

A behind the scenes look into the planning of my 40th birthday celebration in Las Vegas at the Venetian. Plus check out my exclusive video of the making of CrazyShakes at Black Tap Las Vegas!

Turning 40 is pretty epic y’all. 

Last year, I really started thinking more and more about what I wanted 40 to mean for me and how I wanted to celebrate. Turning 39 in the midst of a pandemic really did wake me up to what was most important. I immediately started thinking about how my wish for celebrating my 40th birthday would ultimately be having an absolute blast in the company of my family.

I talk a lot about family on my website because they truly inspired so much of who I am and ultimately why I do what I do.

As time got closer, and I realized that all of my family was vaccinated, I knew that getting everyone together was no longer a pipe dream but an actual potential reality. So I started thinking about locations that were close to home since everyone wasn’t comfortable with international travel yet. I thought Las Vegas would be perfect.

I’ve been to Las Vegas countless times (like 7 or 8 times), and I always have such a blast. The strip is filled with the most incredible energy, the restaurants have some of the best food I’ve ever tasted, and the fun just never stops. Taking and treating 9 family members to Vegas would take a lot of thought and planning but I knew it would be so worth it.  

So I began my planning with the hotel.  I needed the perfect place for our guests to stay that would be welcoming, luxurious, stunning, filled with countless amenities and perfectly located on the strip.  My immediate thought was The Venetian.  I ADORE The Venetian.  It was the very first hotel I stayed in when I first visited Vegas at 21 years old.  It felt like a dream, and I knew my guests would adore it as well.  Planning my Birthday celebration there was not only easy but absolutely flawless.  The team is so dedicated to ensuring events and celebrations are sensational, and I could not believe my eyes most of the time.

When we arrived on June 2nd, I received an incredible surprise in my suite!  It was decorated with gorgeous balloons and flowers in all of my favorite colors! Warm and bright pinks, corals, and oranges filled my room with such vibrancy and fun!  I was taken aback.  It was the best way to begin our trip.  Once all of our guests arrived in Vegas and settled in, it was time to truly explore the property.

My mother, auntie, Harmony and I had an amazing time experiencing the Venetian’s signature gondola ride, one of the incredible features there. My mother has visited Venice, and it was so fun watching her relive her experience right in Vegas. 

Harmony really loved it too!  Our gondolier sang “Let It Go” from Disney’s “Frozen” which is truly the key to her heart.  It was just so thoughtful.

Next, we went for burgers and shakes at Black Tap.  Black Tap is one of the only restaurants I’ve ever stood in line for.  I went to the original one when it opened in New York and stood in the cold during February to try one of their epic shakes. Not much has changed because the lines were long in Las Vegas with such anticipation to get in and try them.  That just shows you how incredibly popular this place is coast to coast!

Our order consisted of the juicy and flavorful burgers and wings which are some of the best ever, and then we concluded lunch with some of their epic CrazyShakes: The Black and White (which is completely vegan), The Cotton Candy (just as amazing and fun as it sounds), The CakeShake (this just screams birthday treat, am I right?) and the Choco Taco which my aunt ordered and seriously lost her mind over. 

Check out my Video below highlighting how the milkshakes are made!

They are creamy, packed with so many wow flavors and just insane!  If you have one Vegas experience, it definitely needs to be one of those shakes.

Next, we couldn’t go to The Venetian and not enjoy the sensational pool.  Seriously, they should write songs about their pool area.  At this point, it was the Sunday before my birthday and we rented a cabana for the morning and early afternoon.  I cannot tell you how unreal this was.  When we arrived, the cabana was decorated with the most gorgeous Happy Birthday balloons and decorations.  I could have lived in that cabana.  The service was absolutely sensational.  

We ordered breakfast in the cabana which included everything from fresh fruit and granola acai bowls to scrambled eggs and toast.  Later in the afternoon, the Venetian set up a super fun cocktail bar where my auntie made mixed drinks and had a blast by the pool. 

Finally the most incredible, moist and decadent cake arrived in the cabana that knocked my socks off!  It was delicious!!!!!  I couldn’t imagine things being better than this but boy was I just gearing up for the ultimate day which was my birthday.  Stay tuned for part 2 of my Birthday trip review.