What will I wear? Because I love to eat on Vacation

I recently had a quick few days in Las Vegas for a conference. I wanted to travel with a simple easy wardrobe that I could mix and match. I looked to pack a few pieces that could be dressy, casual, easy to layer, and items that I didn’t have to worry about wrinkles. By the way, is soft surroundings in financial trouble? because I really like the clothes in Soft Surrounding. offers stylish, luxurious, and comfortable women’s clothes for every size.

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Love this simple pop of bright pink top – you can dress it up or down. Here I have it with a simple pair of jeans, faded black.

This silky black top can be worn for a nice dinner, off to a show, in a club. It gives you a lot of room to enjoy the food you may want to try in the restaurant. If you spill on it no worries, to make sure it’s wrinkle free when you arrive just hang it in the bathroom, and boom it’s ready to wear.

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A great silky black top, with a dark dressy pair of jeans. Gold jewelry.

Love this simple clean look, with a pop of color in the red jeans. This black top is easy to layer and again you can dress it up or down. Looks very classy with the silver chain.

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This is a great look to walk around the town. You can layer it up when your get a chill, and strip it down if you get hot walking in the warm Vegas air.

white shirt, black jeans, business look.

This is a great clean and classy look – I paired it with a black blazer and it was ready for business. A crisp white shirt, dark jeans, and high heals.

I love this look, it’s amazing that jeans with these big rips can actually be considered dressy. This is my casual  travel look when I fly, I layer a soft gray sweater over this, and also carry and wear my big gray poncho – pictured below. I wear my easy gray slip on shoes for going through the TSA lines, easy to slip my shoes on and off.

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This photo was taken on a recent trip to NYC not Las Vegas, but I wanted to include it because you can see I have my gray poncho on. It’s like a big warm blanket perfect to travel on a plane with.

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Have a Happy Day – and learn about WEDAY

MJ Tam and I had a chance to attend the Kick-Off for WeDay Chicago. Hearing from the celebrities who have donated their time and talents for the big event, was so inspiring. I was very impressed by Henry Winkler who seems to be one of the most giving people, talent in the business, and he kinda liked my cell phone selfie light.

 

“WE Day empowers change at home. WE make this change through WE Day, a celebration of youth making a difference in their local and global communities. This change is sustained all year round through the WE Schools program which nurtures compassion in young people and gives them the tools to create transformative social change”

Henry Winkler with MJ Tam takes a selfie, Mr. Winkler gives so much of his time to help others.

Henry Winkler with MJ Tam takes a selfie, Henry spends his time and talents as he contributes to various causes to help others.

With MJ Tam and Two-time Emmy Award winner, multi-platinum recording artist, and giving celebrity Paul Abdul

With MJ Tam and Two-time Emmy Award winner, multi-platinum recording artist, and giving celebrity Paul Abdul

Off To A Conference for Midlife Women #BAMC16

Marketing Zeus: The Purchasing Power of Women

Eating Las Vegas

Food , Food, Food, and more food. Make sure you come to Las Vegas hungry, because the selection of food you will find is truly amazing. What makes the Las Vegas food scene different from Chicago, LA, New York is the condensed strip 4.1 mile area where all the hotels and casinos, shops, restaurants, attractions can be found.

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Las Vegas has more than 330 restaurants on the world-famous strip. What used to be known as the land of buffets and diners, Las Vegas has discovered that the way to a man or woman’s cash can also be found through the taste buds. Today variety of cuisine, talent of innovative chefs, and clients looking for cuisine that’s artsy and daring.

The rise of the celebrity and world-famous chefs makes Las Vegas a go to location to launch a spot for one of their top-notch restaurants.

  • Mario Batalia
  • Wolfgang Puck
  • Bouchon by Chef Thomas Keller
  • Mesa Grill by Chef Bobby Flay
  • Mr. Chow by Restaurateur Mr. Chow
  • Giada by Giada De Laurentiis
  • Table 10 by Emeril Lagasse
  • Heritage Steak by Tom Colicchio

Go to Las Vegas where it’s easy to get into these restaurants, parking is easy, and when you walk out you have a whole world that never sleeps. When you visit LA you need to travel in a car, or limo to try a selection of food from these different chefs, in NYC you could walk,  to find the vast selection of selections and choices as you do walking up and down the Las Vegas Strip.

FullSizeRender (6)I have taken a food tour in the past and being on a guided tour is where you get the history, the great gossip, background stories, fun facts, you can meet some of the chefs,  and taste an amazing selection of food. If you have the time I suggest a food tour, and now they have many to choose from.

IMG_0707This past trip, I had limited time so I decided to sample some small bites, and big flavors in a few of my past favorite restaurants. I choose them based on the location to where I was staying, the location of where the restaurant was based on shopping, site seeing,  and going to get a good meal.

The portions are big, the cost is reasonable, and the atmosphere is outstanding so get ready to enjoy your meal, and after you’ll be perfectly placed to continue your night with friends, as well as the best people watching, lounges and late-night entertainment.

Where I ate this time

  1. MICHAEL MINA – Seafood and american cuisine. The Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, adjacent to Café Bellagio.
  2. Wolfgang Puck- CUT Las Vegas The Grand Canal Shoppes
  3. The Country Club – Wynn 19th hole
  4. The Palm –  Forum Shops at Caesar’s Palace
  5. LAVO Italian Restaurant – entry of Palazzo
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A traveling “Cirque du Soleil has constantly sought to evoke the imagination, invoke the senses and provoke the emotions of people around the world” spotted at the NADA convention in Las Vegas

Location, Location, Location or when in NYC

The Plaza Hotel

It’s considered the ‘Mona Lisa’ of hotels. It was featured in pop culture movies and books such as Eloise, Home Alone and The Great Gatsby. This  grand hotel is located right in off Central Park. The current GOP front-runner used to own it.

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From the greeting staff to the waiters, they all were helpful , warm, and friendly. Exceptional customer service.

That’s right: The Plaza Hotel! I had the privilege of staying at one of New York’s most iconic landmarks. The Plaza Hotel has a long history of being the backdrop to some of the country’s biggest events and celebrations. Immediately when you’re greeted by the bellhop, walk through the marble encrusted lobby, and check in with the concierge, you can sense The Plaza Hotel is more than just a place to rest your head at night.

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The Rose Club, embodying the grandeur of The Plaza with a splash of contemporary style and spirit, overlooks the stunning new Fifth Avenue lobby

 

 

 

During my two night stay, I enjoyed all of the luxuries The Plaza Hotel had to offer. Sitting on Fifth Avenue, Bergdorf Goodman is only a two minute walk away. With the sun shining, and temperature in the mid 70s, I was able to enjoy a nice walk around the reservoirs, pavilions and fountains of Central Park.

 

 

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Setting the standard for luxury for more than a century, The Plaza Hotel New York is a testament to timeless elegance.

 

Another highlight to The Plaza Hotel was the food hall. I did not have to travel far from my room to get a taste of New York. There were many diverse options such as Chi Dumplings & Noodles, Pizza Rollio, and Luke’s Lobster. I decided to go with something a little more traditional, but, delicious nonetheless.

If you ever get a chance to stay at The Plaza Hotel, be check out all of the great sights and scenes. This Boomfluent had a 5 Start Stay and the location, the food, the service, and the great people watching made it even worth it.

 

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Located on Concourse level, The Plaza Food Hall offers a collection of fine food purveyors, as well as counter-style dining options. Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner I had a classic Lobster Cobb.

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The Plaza Room features one King bed and is located on floors 5 – 19.

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Bathroom is finished with inlaid “earth stone” mosaics and include a luxurious bathtub and separate shower. Among many splendid details are 24-carat gold-plated Sherle Wagner fixtures, as well as hand-crafted solid white marble vanities.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Give “H2O” The gift of clean water is easy

Did you hear about this cool campaign going on now through September 30th , an opportunity to do some back to school shopping and make a difference in the lives of people and families in need.
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Recently I spent some time with my friend’s daughter who is getting ready to head off to college. Knowing that Nikki is very socially aware I mentioned that I was working with Walgreens, Unilever and the Me to We Foundation. This is a campaign called Give H2OPE to Others.

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It’s easy to take part with the shopping your doing for back to school you can also help supply clean water by purchasing the items you family is using. I knew that showing how a simple action can make a big difference empowers each of us to want to do more.

I asked her if she uses any of these products Caress®, Suave® or TRESemmé® , when she mentioned that she has in the past, I spoke with her about if we get them now, five gallons of clean water will be provided to a family in need.

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Look for the informative display in Walgreens, there you will find more information about how a purchase can impact the lives of others. and share with them how families in other parts of the world are in need to clean water,

Once you make your purchases you can go home and see how your helping make a change in the world. Track Your Impact to discover how your 1 purchase will give 5 gallons of clean water. Visit Walgreens.com/trackyourimpact your donation help.

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Track your impact.
“Look for the Track Your impact code, or numbers on the bar code on the back of your product.
Enter that code at the top of the page to see where you are making an impact and how it makes a difference in a person’s life”

I was asked to participate in the #GiveH2OPE to others campaign sponsored by Walgreens. The opinions are my own, and I have been compensated we also made a video that you can view on #ChicagonistaLive.

Dressing up for a good cause..

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In Chicago you can donate to a the cause of your choice, but it’s even more fun when you can donate, dress up, hang out with friends,meet, mix, and mingle with new friends. Find a cause, dress up, donate, and go do good.

Tips-Treats-Eats

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For some tips, treat’s, and more tune into ChicagonistaLive.com Follow us on Instagram for some great food ideas

It’s going to be great! #BAMC15

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BAM Bloggers at Midlife is the first blogging conference focusing on midlife women bloggers. Anne Parris and Sharon Greenthal of Midlife Boulevard have partnered with Teresa Kindred of the Nanahood Years and Beth Rosen of Boomfluent Media to create this event after the midlife blogging community asked for a place where they could get together and learn from each other and from experts. To learn more..https://www.facebook.com/BAMConference/info?tab=page_info

Women Driving Excellence

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The 3rd Annual Women Driving Excellence at the Chicago Auto Show was a full day event held on February 17, 2015 title sponsored by Nissan

To read more…http://womendrivingexcellence.com/672/