Contrary to popular belief, I have not: a) run off and joined a Cirque show; b) sailed off into the sunset with the Captain Jack Sparrow lookalike; c) gone into hiding because I owe the Vegas mob...BIG TIME!

Nope, none of the above. I've just been running around non-stop and not been on the computer all that much.

Today we checked into Encore. As we walked through the heavily art-laden lobby, past the bars and uniformed employees to the elevators to our room, the hubs says 'I don't think I need to stay here again...this place is Pretentious' (note, that is with a cap 'P'). Let's just say that when we got to our room/suite, I looked at him and said 'I don't think we need to stay anywhere else, EVER AGAIN!'. You could fit our other rooms into the bathroom of our Encore suite. A bathroom that has built in lighting under the sinks (nightlight's), its own small flatscreen, both a tub and a glass enclosed shower. All the drawers close themselves. You get real wineglasses (made out of glass), the bar cabinet has lights inside, separate sleeping area (luxe bed), closets with frosted glass doors that also light from within....I don't want to leave.  Here's some pix the hubs took upon our arrival.

Okay, so we've just discovered that the hubs is not a threat to Annie Leibowitz or Ansel Adams....I'll take some photos of my own later, but hopefully you get the gist.

The casino is also marvelous....uncluttered, quiet, though the hostesses are rather slow delivering drinks. This is just two of 4 photos I took tonight on the same machine....10c a credit x 5 per pull (you set most of the slot machines how you want them). It's safe to assume that I fed it all back in over the course of the night.

Backtracking, I went to the greatest quilt shop.....Quiltique on Thursday. It was amazing....I think they must have sold every Moda fabric ever made. I picked up some more Henry Alexander Day of the Dead fabric.

I also went to Hobby Lobby, which was an unexpected thrill, and bought some neat fall deco stuff and some less expensive fabric to make some cool aprons (gifts for Christmas). Gotta love Hobby Lobby. Wish we had one in Maryland.

I believe I mentioned the meatfest that was Thursday at Texas de Brazil....cocktails at Blue Martini....check this out:

This is the bar at Blue Martini...too cool for school.

Cirque Elvis was fun....during the big finale, red satin scarves flutter down from the ceiling. The hubs was able to snag one for me. More dancing/singing than acrobatics, it was still good, and the new City Center is quite posh. The Aria hotel and casino where the Elvis Cirque is based is gorgeous, but it's got some pricey slots...never saw a quarter, and the Pai Gow poker was $25 minimum/$10,000 maximum per hand...can you say 'high roller' boys and girls?

On Saturday, I walked from the Mirage to the Fashion Show Mall to visit Bare Escentuals cosmetics and to get my colors professionally matched. Now I've got all the right colors in my makeup bag.

I would continue, but it occurs to me that in my real time, it's 5 am. Vacation time makes it 2 am, and I'm still existing somewhere in between. I need to get some shut eye so I can get up early and check in for Tuesday's flight home. I'll upload more photos tomorrow. I've got the whole morniing to kill while the hubs golfs, though I suspect that half of that time might be spent exploring Wynn and Encore.

TTYL!.