Random Thoughts Friday

Still Smiling

It's Friday and I skipped last week...I really want to publish once per week. I missed last week which is a bummer.  But I'm back on the horse or more like back on the laptop for Random Thoughts Friday.

• The weekend after the Super Bowl I seriously felt lost.  I felt like I was late or missing something or supposed to be somewhere but I wasn't.  For the past 26 weeks, our lives revolved around football. Then seemingly, all of a sudden, we were World Champions (it never gets old saying that btw) and it was over.  YIKES! What do we do with ourselves?  I missed my Purple Friday buddies and I even texted them, just to say hi, I miss you guys. 

• Last week, we had 5 days off.  5 days off, in a row, straight.  At first I was slightly panicked because of my feelings from the weekend before.  Quickly though, that feeling faded when all of a sudden, I got a life back.  I went to a Belgian Beer Fest. I did laundry before I ran out of clean clothes.  I went to the grocery store. I ran through the city. I cooked dinner. I had brunch with some besties. I walked my dog.  I slept in.  Oh and I went to Philadelphia to visit Baby Kitty and his mama.  We went out, tried a new and fantastic restaurant and I had no where to be in the morning.  It was awesome.

• Last week was also Valentine's Day. You know that holiday all about love and goo and all that crap.  It's hard for me to dislike a holiday about love because I really love love. So, I don't hate it...this year though, I referred to it as Thursday February 14th.  It was a nice day off from work.  I worked out and kicked my own butt.  See also: the next bullet.

• We booked my Vegas Birthday Trip.  Operation Hot Ass in FULL force.

There is nothing wrong with rocking Manolo's in a bathing suit. Vegas!

 

• We leave for San Francisco this Wednesday. Favorite Friend and my Bike Racing Sister, can't wait to see you!!

• I signed up to run in the Color Run Baltimore in May.  I don't fully understand the concept, but it seems fun.

• I've decided to cancel my life insurance policy.  I realized that I'm paying money for something that will not benefit anyone.  If I ever do get hitched again or decide to get knocked up, I'll restart it. I'll use the money I'm spending on that useless policy to contribute to my celebrate life fund aka, my checking account.

 

• Dogs know lots of stuff.  They are excited every time they see you. Everyday is like winning the Super Bowl and being a World Champion.  (See never gets old.) My dog is the absolute best. She knows good people and she knows those who don't share her dog's soul. She knows when to hug me and she never forgets someone she loves. I'm impressed by her knowledge on the regular.  So, I'm just giving her a shout-out because she's awesome.

• Survivor is back. I'm watching. And, I like it.

• The Bachelor is almost over. Finally. I'm watching. And, I don't like it.  I do however love reading http://www.ashleyjonesy.com/2013/02/theyre-falling-into-love-everyone.html.  It's probably the only reason I'm still watching at this point.

• My bestie and I are trying new and different things. We tried something this week, we will NOT try again.  It was a low point in both of our dating lives.  But on the bright side, we don't have to do it again. We have never felt so great about ourselves and so terrible at the same time.  See also, the guys on the Big Band Theory are really much cooler on TV.  Take our word for it. @Irishpants16, you were right. Touche.

• I got back to Pinning.  I'm hoping to get back to making those recipes I'm pinning.  I need some Family Dinners back in my life time now.

• I have good plans this weekend.  I love having good plans.  Namely with 2 little blond people at one Build-A-Bear workshop. 

• If I had to pick a favorite food, I'm not sure I could. I love so much!! Mexican, Italian, sushi, American, Indian, Thai, Greek...there are just so many delicious choices!

• Nordstrom is awesome. Their customer service truly is fantastic.  This is not groundbreaking info, but it should get a mention. I bought a pair of Frye boots in December.  I wore them. A lot.  They are awesome, why wouldn't I wear them. They did not hold up well.  One was saggy and the other would stand tall.  It was not a good look for $350 boots.  I took them into Nordstrom with no box and only an Internet receipt.  A brand new shiny pair showed up on Tuesday.  If they do the same thing, they will fully refund my money.  Boom! Now that's how you treat a customer!

• You might be saying $350 for boots, Philly, San Fran, Beer Fests...all of that costs lots of $$.  If you are saying that, you are correct, it does.  But since, at this point I have no little people in my life, I'm spending it as I go! Sorry, there is not likely to be a random inheritance for a nice person might meet on the street. Mr. Right, wherever you are, I promise not to have a boatload of debit, but I can't promise a huge savings to live off of either. I'll have amazing shoes, a decent wardrobe (where I'll still probably have nothing to wear) and lots of travel experience. I also promise to keep up with my hair, face and body. I will always wear make-up and sweats will never be my BFF. Be advised those last items will also be required of you. Well not the make-up part, but you get the point.

Random Friday!

xo~



Garth...Remember us? We're coming to you!

SUPER

 

Super Super SUPER

Super...Super Bowl. Super Win. Super Team. Super People. Super Amazing. Super Blessed. Super Smile. Super Gifts. Super Trip. Super Great. Super Fun. Super Super.

I'm not sure words will every truly express the past 2 weeks of my life. I did my best to post pictures for anyone who was interested in seeing parts of our Super Trip.  You may already have a taste of what was and what continues to be. So, I won't bore anyone with details that aren't interesting or be repetitive.

I will start by saying (again - repetitive but not boring) I work for and with the most amazing people on the planet.  I have no idea how I've been so very blessed.  We were treated likes kings and queens on a stage where most of the world was watching. OK, I wasn't actually on the stage with Beyonce, but hey, I was in the building and I played a very important role in the show. 

Yup...those were our hands!

Who needs a ring on it??


 

As you know, several of us went down early to prepare for the arrival of our families and friends.  We worked for about 2.5 days on logistics, packets, credentials, gifts, rooms, etc.  We spent a lot of time inside of the hotel. For those of you who know me, you know my philosophy on life and welp, instead of resting when we were finished for the day...we hit up Bourbon Street.  So for the first days, it was lots of work with a little play and very little sleep.

Packet Stuffing by Super Peeps

Dinner Break...Super Food!

 

This crew can sleep when they are dead or not at the Super Bowl

On Thursday, our families and friends arrived...in style, I might add. They were treated to privately chartered planes with first class treatment.  They were served food and drinks. They were greeted in NOLA by coach buses with police escorts to shuttle them to the team hotel.  Some might say they were given the Super Rock Star Treatment.

Right this way family...your chariots await.

Friends and family checked into their rooms and got ready for what can only be described as a Super Bomb Diggity Welcome Party.  AFC Champion Baltimore Ravens meet New Orleans in a themed and fantastic outdoor party.  We wore party dresses and socialized with old and new friends. We were treated to delicious food and drinks of our choice.

Some of us took this pic more seriously than others.  :-)

Friday and Saturday were basically free days. We could spend time enjoying all that NOLA has to offer...and, if you've never been, you should definitely go. It's a lot of fun.  The beauty of this location was that everything was within walking distance.  We could walk right out of the hotel to all the hot spots and touristy locations. The weather during the day was a sunny 68 degrees...it was super. In the evenings we socialized with each other and took in the sights. See also: Bourbon Street, Pat O'Briens, Wolf Packs, Hurricanes, gambling, karaoke, beads and one cowboy bar.

Exploring NOLA and the Super Bowl Experience

It should be mentioned that while walking around the city, purple passion was EVERYWHERE.  It was as if Baltimore relocated for the week. The locals were also routing for our boys...they had a rivalry with the 49ers so most of the helpers were all about our boys in purple. We got along swimmingly with them.  The sounds of Seven Nation Army could be heard on just about every street. It was the universal language of future champions.  It was super.

It should also be mentioned that each morning a new and amazing gift was placed in our hotel rooms.  As if the gift of an all expense paid trip to the Super Bowl wasn't gift enough, we were given actual presents!!! #ifimdreamingpleasedontwakeme

Super Sunday finally arrived.  Our day started with a pre-game tailgate party just outside of our hotel.  As you might expect, it was top notch.  Fabulous food, drinks, entertainment and spectacular weather.  It was the first time since Thursday that our whole Ravens family had the opportunity to enjoy each other's company and relish in the experience.  It was also a time when I took a pause to soak it all in and feel the blessings.  It was a bit overwhelming...because in a matter of hours what we had been working for for years, would be upon us.  Wow. Monumental.  Super.

We established a wolf pack. Super!

I borrowed that hat from her.  I think it was a good luck charm.

These ladies are the best!


 

At 2:30 a sea of purple made its way to the Mercedes Benz Super Dome for the game of our lifetime.  Game time was at 5:30 NOLA time. We walked just under a mile to the Dome united in support, excitement, nerves, cheers and chants.  It was amazing!

Upon arrival at the gate...we may have been a touch excited.

This is REALLY happening!!!! Super! (P.S. these girls are the best plus ones ever!)

 

So exciting!

We're IN.  Super!

One for the memory books.

I'm going to assume that most of you watched the game. If not, well, you probably aren't reading this entry and we probably can't be friends, let's be honest. Our seats were on the Club Level and they were great.

This pic doesn't do our seats justice. They were super.

So fun to experience this with these Super Fans!

Oh hey, Super Bowl MVP.

The first half was SUPER. The second half was also super...just not as super, until the end.  As John Harbaugh put it, "It wasn't perfect.  It wasn't pretty. But it was us." How great are those words?  Teams are not perfect.  Teams are rarely always pretty.  But it was us.  Us.  Us. Our team. Our way of winning and our way of making it happen. Isn't that the way all relationships are??  They are our own special way that works for us.  And now, our team is a team of Super Bowl World Champions.

YUP! SUPER!

Couldn't have written a better story.

You might be thinking...what an amazing day.  You were probably exhausted.  Well, it was an amazing day and NO we were not exhausted. We had an after party to get to.  We walked back to our hotel and changed into our Super Bowl Champion party dresses and headed out to our 3rd party of the day.

I'd heard about the after party from 12 years ago.  I knew it was going to be good.  How could it not be?  We just won the freaking Super Bowl.  Good could be the understatement of the century.  It was the Super of Super Dooper Super Bowl After Parties!  The entertainment was kept a secret and turned out to be Mary J. Blige.  Yes, that's correct, she played a show for us.  And, she was fantastic! Our players were walking on Cloud 9.  Employees were hugging each other, drinking champagne, smoking cigars, laughing, smiling and DANCING.  I believe we danced for the better part of 3 hours.  I really don't have many pictures from that party b/c I was so busy celebrating, chatting and dancing, that I didn't take many pics. The ones I took, I already posted on Instagram.

Cheers to being a Champion!

Champagne shower?  Super!!

We stayed until the end.  The very end.  (Shocking I know.)  The end was at 5:00am.  We weren't ready for it to be the end. But after a rousing and totally fitting rendition of "We Are the Champions" alas it was time for that fab.com party to end.  

We still had 3 hours until flights began to leave.

That meant that we also had 3 more hours in NOLA.  We didn't sleep. Some of us spent the last hours of our time with those who could truly understand how great this was.  We relished those last hours.  It was hard to really let the day's events sink in. We had dreamed about this for years.  Then, it happened.  We really won the Super Bowl. It took time to process...all the years of hard work, dedication, desire and dreaming.  It finally happened and there are only a few of us who really get that magnitude.  So, we couldn't sleep. We had talking and celebrating to do!

At about 7:30 am, nearly 24 hours after it began, we packed it up and packed it in. It was time to go.

Champions don't need sleep.

If you're curious as to our actual timeline on Super Sunday here it is:

11:00am - 2:30pm - Tailgate Party
2:30pm - 3:00pm - Purple Parade to Super Dome
5:30pm - 10:30pm - Game (including Black out time)
11:00pm - 5:00am - Post Game Best Super Party Ever
5:00am - 7:00am - Celebratory last minute Super fun in NOLA
7:30am - Bags to the lobby...time to go home.

It was a long and perfect day.  It was how it was supposed to be.  A story that couldn't have been written any better.  A true and living testament that things happen when they are supposed to happen how they are supposed to happen.  There are no mistakes.  If it's meant to be, it will be.

I know I've said this before, but I will say it again, I feel so very blessed and thankful.  I've met some of the best people in the world through my association with this winning team.  The love and joy I've been blessed with is hard to describe.  It's simply amazing.

Thank you to every single person who supports us.  As evidence by the Welcome Home Parade crowd, what we do matters.  It makes a difference and it unites us together. We are a team.  So thank you for supporting, cheering, listening, loving and reading. Thank you to everyone who sent messages of congratulations and well wishes.  Thank you to every single fan. Thank you for loving me and loving us.

Welcome home Lamar and Vince!

We are a TEAM of Destiny. We are blessed.

xo~