The hips don't lie

Last night, Abbey spent the night at Uncle Stew and Suze's house so her very lucky father could go do this:

Yes, that is a real Superbowl XLIV ring and THE Superbowl XLIV Lombardi Trophy.

Points to Jeremy for showing some restraint, as I would have been weeping sweet black and gold tears of joy and also hugging that trophy as if it were Drew Brees himself. (Earmuffs, Stew. You don't need to listen to that part. Plus, I hear Brees is a big fan of earmuffs.)

Anyway, back to Abbey.

We were watching cartoons and I got up to go get her some juice from the kitchen. As I'm walking across the living room, she tells me "Hey Suze, I like the way your butt moves side to side when you walk."

Maybe I'm the one who should wear the earmuffs.

My 2nd Annual 29th Birthday

Today. May 3rd. Marks the date of my birth. Thirty years ago. THIRTY. Three whole decades.

I was asked this weekend if I was dreading the big 3-0. To tell you the truth, I haven't been. And I'm not freaking out now that I am. Officially. THAT age.

Honestly, 25 was the age that really hit me. In the face. Hard. I was at the grocery store buying candles for my own birthday cake (which is depressing in and of itself). Not sure if you've ever noticed, but birthday candles come in packs of 24. I was 25. Which meant I needed 2 packs of candles. FORTY EIGHT candles. I had graduated to the same candle bracket as a 48-year-old. Gone were the carefree days of simply one pack of candles! Also gone were the days of someone else taking care of the birthday candle buying, but that's a whole different issue.

Later on that year, I saw a billboard advertising the 25th Anniversary of Popeye's. Great, now I'm the same age as fried chicken.

It probably didn't help that at age 25, I was a few steps behind where I thought I'd be at that age. Sure, I had scored an awesome husband, but I still hadn't completed college or bought a house. I thought I'd surely have done both by then. After a whole quarter century! Then Katrina came and well, nothing really throws your life plans off track like a natural disaster.

Here's the good news. I made it to 30. And I'm happy about what I've accomplished thus far. Here's a recap of the past decade of me:

2000 - dropped out of LSU, planned my wedding, married the one and only Stewart Alexis

2001 - moved to Washington, lived on a military base, bought AUSTIN, bought AUSTIN a new $3,000 leg, cried when AUSTIN ate the whole roll of film that documented Stewzie's first year as a married couple

2002 - bought Black Betty, was voted Employee of the Year, moved back to Louisiana, readjusted to heat and humidity

2003 to 2004 - worked, saved, had my purse stolen by crackheads, missed Stew a lot (he worked offshore)

2005 - went back to college, paid for it myself, continued working full time, turned 25 along with a 2 piece, white meat, spicy, with a side of dirty rice, a biscuit and a red drink, got Katrina'd, lived in Arkansas for a month with 9 dogs and a whole mess of people, came back home and removed my neighbors' carport from our backyard, got a new job

2006 - went back to college (again), got a 4.0, kept working, paid off Black Betty, became an Aunt

2007 - kept my 4.0 streak alive, started househunting, kept working full time

2008 - bought a house, renovated it every night for 9 months, kept my job, my husband and my GPA but lost my sanity, EARNED my degree and finally graduated

2009 - learned to relax, thanked my husband, went public with my snoball love affair, started Stewzie

2010 - had a crazy dream that the Saints won the Super Bowl, realized it wasn't just a dream, dressed like a toothless hillbilly not once but twice, then turned THIRTY

Whew.

This is just a tiny percentage of the ups, downs, and in betweens of the past 10 years. If you are the one who created the above, good or bad, THANK YOU, I am truly blessed. If you have been a part of any of the above, good or bad, THANK YOU. If you weren't a part of any of the above, THANK YOU, because you're reading this now and that means you're a part of today. My 2nd Annual 29th Birthday. The first day of the rest of my life.


"Time and Tide wait for no man, but time always stands still for a woman of thirty." - Robert Frost

Pinch Me

It's been over a week with no post. I'm aware of this.

Honestly though, with SO MUCH going on in the past 10 or 15 days, any words I could muster up to type would come out as a rambling mishmash of incoherent thoughts. Don't ask me how that's different from normal. Just don't.

"Who-Dat-gotta-pee-on-the-Lombardi-trophy-while-Drew-Brees-throws-me-somethin-mista-and-parks-my-car-15-feet-from-a-fire-hydrant-or-else-gets-a-ticket-Heyyyy-pockey-way-SHOCKEY-doubloons-more-king cake-please-and-thank-you-Sean-Payton."

Yup. I warned you. That's the craziness that's been marching through the old noggin as of late. And crazy never felt so...well...crazy. But good crazy. Like the Saints just won the Superbowl a week before Mardi Gras and then it almost snowed crazy.

Mardi Gras pics will follow soon. As soon as I wake up from this crazy dream...

Bucket List Week

If you're looking for a poignant post about THE SAINTS WINNING THE SUPERBOWL, you're not gonna find it here. Yet. I'm still trying to wrap my head around that one. Much like Tracy Porter wrapped his hands around that football when he intercepted Peyton Manning. But I digress...

Anyway, in the past week, things have been falling into place for yours truly. And her whole city, if we're gonna name names. My mom got a mean case of the sick (thanks Mom!) and I got to take her place riding in my first ever Mardi Gras parade. It. Was. Un. Be. Liev. Able.

Then, I'm not sure if you heard, hell froze over and THE SAINTS WON THE SUPERBOWL. I figure the only thing left on my "Things to do Before I Die" List is to win the lotry. That and the whole conquering the world thing. And honestly, THE SAINTS WINNING THE SUPERBOWL may have just taken care of that for me. And it probably feels just as nice.

Proud Who Dat,
Suzie

We ain't Ain'ts no more

THE NEW ORLEANS SAINTS ARE GOING TO THE SUPERBOWL.

Unbelievable. It's a feeling I can hardly describe with words. I will try, however, because otherwise I'm just writing this blog for the perks - which include my Mom telling me how she loved my latest post about tinkle.

Warning: Here is the part where I get all sentimental and cliche'-y.

The Saints are so much more than a football team. They represent our city, our people, our stuggles and our hope. New Orleans has long been underrated, overlooked, beaten up, forgotten, laughed at and shunned. Our accomplishments and bright spots have been recognized only sporadically and spoken of as if they were flukes. Remarkable how the same can be said of the Saints. The parallel is striking.

The Saints have done much more than win the NFC Championship and secure a spot in the 44th Superbowl. They have given our city a voice that is loud and clear. And the world is finally taking serious notice. We are more than just a hard luck city, and team, who can't seem to catch a break. We have talent and spirit and loyalty and personality. We are New Orleans and we are The Who Dat Nation. Take us or leave us. But leaving us is probably a poor choice. We want you to stay and be inspired by everything we love. And we'll totally show you a good time. Promise.

We know a thing or two about hard work and keeping the faith. It's what makes us us. We have shoveled our way up out of a whole lot of mud, and we want everyone to have the same feeling we do now that it's starting to pay off. I gotta say, the win for the Saints feels great, but the win for our city feels phenominal.

Bless you Boys and Bless you NOLA. You've made us all proud.


In that number,
Suzie

TWELVENEAUX !

That's all I have to say about that.

The Next Buddy D

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