Viva Las Vegas

It occurred to me that I never re-capped our trip! Well, it's been a month now so the healthy glow of Las Vegas has faded a bit as has my need for a blow-by-blow travelogue.

So, we'll do a Top 5...

In the movie A League of Their Own, Tom Hanks yells at the players "There's no crying in baseball!!!!" I thought of that the first time that Kevin pulled under the Arch at LVMS. It was just such a huge moment for him and I was so proud I could burst. I had to wipe my eyes repeatedly so I could see where I was walking. My nephew did the whole "We're not making eye contact" while we were up there or surely we'd both be crying like babies.

Before that moment, Kevin has to be buckled in before he can race. We buckled him early before his first race so he could just chill. I tried really hard to keep everything routine for him. To ensure that he doesn't get too hot in his firesuit, I stood with his door open until right before he was called up. Now, I had been trying to think of the right thing to say in this moment. Finally, I fell back on something we say on a regular race day. I leaned in, patted him on his arm and said "It's just another race." A nervous cackle emanated from that boy that I have never heard before. It was the first time he'd shown nerves, Ever. It made us laugh and we continued on.

On the day of Eliminations, Kevin cheerfully introduced himself as "The Guy Whose Ass You're Going to Kick" to his competitor. Classic Kevin.

Kevin & his dad had a moment on the last race day. Kevin's dad was the reason this whole adventure was possible. He was so proud of his son the whole trip, he couldn't hardly talk about it without getting emotional. At the end of the day, Kevin disappeared for a moment. Our friend gestured behind me and I turned. Kevin and his dad were hugging it out. It was a very sweet moment.

We rented a van while we were there because there was seven of us. (Toyota Sienna...a kick ass van, if I do say so myself) On the way back to the hotel after being eliminated, we were all kind of in our own heads. The radio was playing and Montgomery Gentry came on, "Roll With Me".
It was the perfect song for the moment:

So now I'm slowing it down and I'm looking around

And I'm lovin' this town and I'm doing alright

Aint' worried 'bout nothing cept for the man I wanna be

I'm thinking maybe it's time to be livin' the rhyme

When I'm singing a song about nothing but right

And it'd sure be nice if you would roll with me



The trip, of course, had it's frustrations but those are the Top 5 moments for sure. Unforgettable.