It was Everything I thought It would Be...

Bringing the Fun

What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, right? Right...except in our case, anything that happened in Vegas really can't be told, repeated or delivered to truly express how much fun it was.  That's not because there were scandalous deeds that went down, but rather the non-stop laughing and girl time, really cannot be expressed to give anyone a true picture of how great this trip was. 

You had to be there.

I will try, however, and tell you a little bit about it...you know the stuff I can actually tell you. Those who follow us on FB, you saw some of our pics, so you got a glimpse into the weekend. It was sunny and hot and perfect. It was jammed packed with fun sun activities.  I didn't gamble even a $1.  We slept very little and drank quite a bit of vodka. We ate gluten-free, sugar-free, dairy-free muffins on the same day we ate cheese filled pizza. We wore sparkles. We took as long as we wanted to get ready. We had a party room. We played loud music.  We did not have tickle fights in our underwear. We didn't get any tattoos and there were never any tigers in our rooms.  We met cowboys, brides, and bachelors.  And, we laughed pretty much the entire time.

Who doesn't like meeting real-life cowboys?



In case you were curious, he's a champion too.

 

That's us with the happy newly hitched in Vegas couple.  Salut!

 

To me, celebrating any birthday (a big one or small one) is fantastic reason to celebrate all that is good in life. Family, friends, good health, having all you need and enjoying the one thing that will always be more important than things...our relationships with each other.  The gift of our relationships is better than any gift I could ever receive. The most important things in life, aren't things.



All ready to hit Sin City.

The girls that went on this trip were the perfect ones to go.  It's not to say that we wouldn't welcome more girls into our wolf pack because we would. And, to be totally honest, our wolf pack is a darn amazing wolf pack. To quote my sister, "We bring the fun!" It's true, we do bring the fun. More than fun or more than whatever fun means to you, these girls were perfect.  Everyone got it. There wasn't anyone who didn't get it or didn't want to be a part of the fun.  It worked perfectly.  And, it was fantabulous. It was everything I wanted it to be and more. I don't know if I can ever thank these girls enough for going with me!

More fun being brought.
 

2013. Well played. I had a feeling about you.  So far, so great! 

We mean serious fun.

Vegas Quick Hits:

• Robert Baker of Southwest Airlines. Simply put: You ROCK. Absolutely made our flight out the best flight ever. 

Robert brings the fun (and self-tanner) too.

• No sleep, waking up hungover and/or having a blotchy sunburn = small prices to pay for a good time.

I love the sun. She melts.  All-time BFF's anyway.

• We stayed in room Eleventy058.
• Dancing with a very little bit of bumping and grinding then jumping = the only way I will ever dance again.

Little bit of bumping and whole lot of jumping

• Super sick is a great way to describe many things...including a cabana at a rocking pool party.

Bday Cabana - why I think we will.

• Totes adorbs is a perfectly acceptable way to describe anything that is totes adorbs.

Totes adorbs, of course!

• No matter how you feel about your body, someone has a body that is "better" and someone has a body that is "worse".  Love yourself. Be healthy. And, exercise!

Be healthy!!

• The water show at the Bellagio is so freaking cool no matter how many times you see it.

Always rocks.

• At one point, I was holding 5 purses. None of which were mine.  I had a peak into the world of our boyfs..and it really wasn't that bad.

5 purses and a light stick.  Yes that's me.

• Drinking vodka with seltzer water really does help with hydration. The seltzer was free. The vodka on the other hand was $475 a bottle, perhaps that's why I was going through (I mean holding) 5 purses.  #vegasprices

 

Vodka with ice that lit up, seltzer and a splash of cran = delicious.
For $475 a bottle we took that ice light home with us. Don't you dare judge.

• Vitamin B12 smells awful.  However, its powers relative to helping with hangovers seem to be worth enduring the smell.
• Is it just us, or has the song of the summer yet TBD? Where's our Call Me Maybe 2013? For now we threw it back to Put your Hands up in the Air. Everyone's hands look super hot in the air when dance jumping.
• If I had a green thumb, I'm certain my flowers would look like just like the gardens in the Bellagio.  #nodoubtaboutit

Inviting and beautiful, exactly like mine would be.

• While there were stars in Vegas for the Billboard awards, we only saw Ed Sheeran.  He was cool and even though I had already captured his pic by taking a sassy pic of my sis, he was nice enough to actually take a pic with us.  I'm certain he realized that...we bring the fun.

He had to know about the fun we bring, just look at that face.

• Photo bombing is a favorite pass-time for one bestie. Can you guess which one?

A good photo-bomb always makes for fun!

• This past weekend was the kick-off to celebrating summer.  Let the fun continue!!!

Best. Friends. Ever.

 

Happy Memorial Day Weekend Readers!! Enjoy the kickoff to summer! Play, get outside, be safe, have fun and love out loud!!!

xo~

13.1 = Done

Nike Women's Half Marathon - Crushed!

Anyone who is FB friends with me already knows this, but I think it's post worthy, on Sunday, me and 5 friends completed the Nike Women's Half Marathon in DC. And, it was an amazing experience.  In other news, we were not actually posting updates while we were running.  Nike did that for us.  :-)

I'll start by saying that I was somewhat strong armed into participating.  Everyone knows I enjoy a good workout. This is not news. Also running and I have become better friends over the years. We certainly aren't besties, but we aren't enemies like we used to be.  13.1 miles is a lot of running though.  More than I've ever done.

But this race was the first of its kind on the east coast and a portion of our race fees went to LLS, my charity partner for 2013.  The race was through DC and the course took you around the monuments.  I love DC and I've always wanted to run around Linc.  So, from the get, this one had appeal.

Really though, my FOMO (don't joke people, it's REAL) strong armed me into signing up for this race. See also: the finishers prize was a Tiffany necklace given to you by a soldier in a tux.  Ummm where do I sign?

Once we signed up, we weren't automatically in.  The selection was by lottery and we didn't know if we'd get in.  Well, we did. Last December, we were lucky, and I got an email saying that our team was in.  If you are thinking wow, that's not good luck, that's exactly what I was thinking. Yikes, It. Just. Got. Real.

I'm not one to back down from a challenge and once committed to something I do it.  So, I really had no choice.  With my eye on the little blue box and a guilt-free pasta dinner in DC the night before the race, training started in January.

And, readers, here's what I'll tell you...

1. The training wasn't horrible.  I did a mix of cross-training and running.  It wasn't so time consuming that I felt my life was dedicated to training. See also: we won the Super Bowl during this training time, so I was kinda busy.  You like how I work that in every chance I get? #stillnotold
2. Committing to this run in public (http://lifethoughtsquestionsanddreams.blogspot.com/2013/01/13.html) didn't afford me the opportunity to back out. So, knowing I had to do it helped motivate me.
3. I allowed myself to buy a few new pieces of workout apparel.  My 30% UA discount for the Nike Women's Half was well used.  And shopping always make me happy...even if it is for workout clothes and a new sports bra.
4. The team of girls I ran with, simply put, ROCKED.  We had a blast! So much so, that I'd do it again. That's right...I'd do it again.

As far as the race went, it was truly great. An amazing and super fun experience.  I will say that when we woke up at 5:00 am, I wasn't exactly thrilled to be awake and even less thrilled to be freezing my parts off waiting for the start.  But that quickly passed.

Once we got into our race corals, the magic happened.  We were standing in the early morning sun on Pennsylvania Avenue looking directly at the Capitol Building. Fun pump-up music was playing. We were surrounded by 14,999 other women and a few good men with the same goal in mind...finish this 13.1 together.  We raised over $6,000,000 for LLS.  That's right $6 million!!!  Runners had their inspiration for running plastered all over their bodies...we were running for different things and we were running for the same things.  So many of us were running for Boston. We were running for those affected by blood cancers. We were running for our mothers, sisters, brothers, friends, cousins or people we've never met.  We stood united listening to our National Anthem prepared to tackle a goal each of us had set months and months ago.  We were ready.

The start was slow because there were so many of us, but we plugged along dodging and weaving the crowds.  The signs along the entire race route, mostly made by men, (My faves- the first at about mile 4- read, "Do you believe in love at first sight or should I move to mile 12?" Another, "This is way better than match.com 15,000 hot girls to choose from.") were hysterical and totally entertaining. Our team had decided to split up if necessary as not to hold any of us back. About 4 miles in, me and my teammate were still side by side.  We didn't speak it, but mentally I think we both committed to finishing together. She, a seasoned marathoner, offered me words of encouragement, a couple of key check-ins and tips on going the distance. We celebrated each passing mile with smiles and a very spirited high-five.  We felt great and at about mile 8 we decided that we were going to air it out a bit about 1/2 a mile from the finish. We were finishing strong. We knew it.

And, that we did. We crossed the 12 mile marker knowing we crushed that race. When saw the finish line within eye-sight...it was still a 1/2 mile out (it looked a lot closer), and we turned it up a bit. We crossed the finish line with strength, determination and huge smiles!! It was a blast!!!

Really nice swag for this one!

We felt great! We felt successful, accomplished, empowered, loved and prideful.  We celebrated with our team, shared memories, feelings and funny sign sightings.  We have a common bond that we will always share.  A feeling of accomplishment and pride that we made history that day. It will be forever with us.  We then enjoyed the rest of the day in DC....sharing a few beers and a burger.  Girls Rule! I'm just sayin'!! 

Our ROCKING Team minus my sis and her bestie

I highly recommend this race to anyone who even has an inkling of wanting to do it.  Know you can do it. Know you will have the support of over 15,000 other women and you, too, will crush it.  Know that little blue box can be yours.  A well-deserved and well-earned memento that will remind you and others that you are a dedicated athlete with the perseverance to finish something you put your mind to. It's one of the best feelings ever.

Fun. Determination. Success. Happiness.

Join us next year, won't you?

xo~

Bringing a Happy Spirit to New and Different Things

Happy spirit and fun!

2013 has been amazing so far.  We won the Super Bowl (still not tired of saying it).  I'm not sure I will ever get tired of saying it. And, as time goes on, when reflecting on the experience, it gets better and better.  The feeling of teamwork, togetherness, family and becoming a champion brings a smile to my face daily.

Since that time, work has been insanely busy.  Most companies have all year to run their HR programs.  Boring I know, but bare with me...most companies have HR projects annually, compensation increases, performance reviews, hiring/recruiting, organization alignment, benefits open enrollment, etc.  They have 12 months to spread these projects out.  I have just about 5.  Thanks to the Super Bowl, these projects were on hold.  I'm certainly not complaining.  But they still need to be done by July when football starts again.  So, I'm busy at work. It's great to be needed too.

Personally and probably what more of this post is supposed to be about, I've had a goal for 2013 to try new and different things.  In doing so, some of those new and different things well, didn't exactly go the way we would have wanted new and different things to go.  But in the fantabulous twists and turns of life, they make for excellent stories and have given me a few laughs along the way.

2013 New and Different Things Bloopers and Lessons:

Blooper

One Saturday afternoon, we decided to meet a friend at the Inner Harbor and do some day drinking.  It was a nice day, so we arrived early to have a drink at one of our favorite Irish establishments.  Bestie and I sit at the back bar to enjoy our Guinness, NCAA basketball and the view of the Harbor.  We are there for 10 minutes and in walks...

Per our new zombie friends, some make-up application took over 2 hours.  Talk about high maintenance!!

 



Yep, that's right...a HUGE group of zombies came in and took over our Irish pub.  They were out and about on a Zombie Pub Crawl.  I do love a good pub crawl, but zombies?  Pub crawling?  It's true.  Now you know.  And, certainly we were not out trolling for dudes, but the idea of running into some like-minded fellow bball lovers and sharing a pint wasn't totally out of the realm of possibility, or so we thought. Turns out, not so much.  

Truly and to be perfectly honest, the zombies were very friendly. They even encouraged us to join their zombie pack next year. 

Tempting...but no.

Lesson

Exes are exes for a reason. We all know that. Historically, I've been pretty good at keeping a good relationship with my exes. They are good people and just because it didn't work out for us, doesn't mean we don't care about each other. It also doesn't mean that we can't be there for each other in times of need in friendship.  Being a good friend is important.

My philosophy and practice of being nice and friendly is currently under review. Let's just say that when you remain friends with people (an ex or just a plain ole "friend") who clearly are not making good choices, it's not a good idea. Many times you can't save them and you are only bringing yourself down in trying to do so.  A friend I'll always be...an idiot, no thanks.  We all control our own happiness and control our choices.  If someone chooses to stay in a life of unhappiness, constant arguments and unhealthy craziness, I can't help them. They have to help themselves.  Last but certainly not least, this girl will never be a participant on an episode Jerry Springer. Yes, I'm saying never.

Blooper & Lesson

Many of you know, I'm somewhat of a fashionista.  I like fashion and clothes and style. I can be this way because I'm only responsible for myself and my fashionista dog. I also realize that not everyone is as fashion forward as I am. It's not a crime...or is it?  Any who, I went out last week with a swell dude.  He took me to dinner at nice restaurant.  In my fashion conscious mind, I wondered what I would wear for the days leading up to the dinner.  I decided on a casual dress and sassy peep toe heels.  I asked him (a question I'm sure every man hates as much as does this make me look fat?) what he was going to wear and he said jeans and a button down. Cool...we were on the same page...

Except that his jeans while neat and clean...were carpenter jeans. This begs the questions...do they still make those? Or are those his original circa 1998 Gap carpenter jeans? If so, how on earth has he kept them this long? Does he never shop? And, is he perhaps, an actual carpenter on the side?

We had a lovely time and enjoyed dinner and the O's game...but the jeans have not left my memory.  He didn't eat his peas one at a time, he's not a close talker and his hands are perfectly appropriate for his body. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KV8pNfeAGVc  And, in talking with a friend a lunch on Tuesday, jeans can be changed - easily.  Why am I so jeans snobby???  Get over it...it's what's in the jeans that matters (and don't go there...we have gone no where near there).  Plus I'm a Buckle Black Member, if there is another outing, a stop at the mall is likely in order.

Lesson

O's Opening Day ~ The Monday before the game 100% chance of rain.  The day of the game 0% chance of rain, 65 degrees and sunny. Amazing day!
Lesson- don't trust the weather. Ever.


One of the best days of the year in Charm City.
See also: A day of photo bombs



We bring the fun and grand slams.

 

But that's not the lesson from this day...a friend and I were walking along the concourse.  A random dude stops us and starts chatting.  He wasn't wearing zombie make-up or carpenter jeans, so I gave him a chance.  We chatted a bit and he asks our names (those of you who really know me know what I said) and he asks what we are doing later. We really have no idea and we tell him such.  He asks for my phone number and for whatever random reason, I give it to him.  I don't think about him the rest of the day and never expect to hear from him again.

He texts me a few days later. I respond.  He responds.  I respond again.  He asks me to get drinks.  I say OK. I have nothing to lose. I really don't even remember what he looks like. We meet for drinks...at a place where I know people and he can't dismember me in a basement.  He admits that he really didn't remember what I looked like either.  We shared a few drinks. I told him my real name and my real job.  He did the same.  He likes sports and country music.  I like sports and country music.  He had on good jeans and he mentioned he was wearing them because he knows girls like good jeans on guys.  It's then I realize, we can be friends.  We had a fun time.  Not sure I'll ever see him again, but it was new and different and it wasn't awful.  #it'sabouttime

Lesson: you never know, you never know.

My Meeting Randoms Partner in Crime

Love

One of my dear friends is deploying for the 3rd time to Afghanistan.  He's a stud, a warrior, a ninja, an amazing friend and an all around super cool good person. His sister had a beautiful baby this week too, so now he adds best uncle ever to the list great things he is.  He will be meeting his beautiful niece next weekend and leaving soon after.  I expect to get lots of pictures!!!  I wanted to include a message of love and thank you to him in this post. We all will be anxiously awaiting his return (he's promised to take me to THB when he gets back and I'm holding him to it) and I'm hopeful he can communicate while over there.  Be safe my friend. Love you tons!!  Hurry home!! Thank you for protecting us!

Have a great weekend everyone! Thanks for reading about my soap opera life...I still have hopes of making it  onto GH. P.S. Anyone watching the 50th anniversary episodes, reruns and the Nurses Ball?  LOVE!

xo~

It's OK....

Back upon request. :-)

It's OK...

To be so sad and completely unrealistic about losing some of our favorite players.  Tears...Ed Reed, BP, Q.  It's a business, but our hearts are sure connected to that business. Best luck guys...just not against us.  And, #20, your home will always be in Baltimore.

To have mixed emotions on the O's/Ravens schedule conflict.  Obvi, my first love is the Ravens. However, I get why it's difficult to move the O's game.  But I really want us to open at home on Thursday night. We are World Champs after all. (Still not tired of saying it.)

To be shopping for boots still.  It's not warm yet and there is one particular pair of boots that would work nicely for these last few weeks of cooler weather.

To plan a juice cleanse in the middle of the week, around happy hours, weekends, birthdays and burger nights. At least it's on the agenda. 

To hate DWTS, even if Jacoby is a star. That show is awful and there are 2 hours of my life I will never get back after watching those "stars" wiggle all over the floor, many of which in ill-fitting dancing dresses.  No thanks.

To pin, like on Instagram and be inspired by exercise pics, quotes or plans.  Whatever works!

To be known on a first name basis with Jon at Hummus Corner.  One wrap combo with extra salad = 2 healthy dinners.  #singlegirllife

To keep in touch your exe's family.  Call it weird, call it unusual, call it whatever you want.  For however long a period of time, those people were a part of your relationship and part of your heart. Just because the relationship with the dude didn't go the distance, doesn't mean your relationship with the family can't.  Period.

To dislike having my news feed filled with selfies but still love the word selfies.

To have a busy social calendar. It's not a crime to be out and about doing all kinds of fun things. It's not that hard either.  And the only casualty is my laundry. Live out loud and retrieve life!

To do random Random Acts of Kindness on my assigned day of the month as well as on additional days of the month.  Be kind. Everyday.

I received this Random Act of Kindness today from a bestie and it made my day.
 

To stay up until 11:30 to watch one episode of Friends on Nick @ Nite. Best show ever.

To keep your $4.98 thrift store motorcycles on the beach dress in the not-so-secret hopes of wearing it again and having just as much fun the next time.

Motorcycle Dress, $20 in her pocket and hottie in the middle

To be super excited for new bronzer and summer shades eye shadow.  Did anyone else get the email from Bare Escentuals introducing their summer shades??  Bring on the sun or the faux tan look that protects from wrinkles but still makes you look kissed by the sun.

To have a 2 hour lunch with a friend you haven't seen in forever and feel happy to see her but sad at the same time because it reminds you how much you miss her daily.

To wait until the last minute to do your taxes...well technically it's not the last minute yet, but it's not looking good.  Ain't nobody got time for that. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cT_Ulmcrys

And, to laugh out loud every single time you watch this... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EzNhaLUT520 and then http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mKwgwH1UTo


Happy Thursday y'all!

XO~

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~