Recovering AFTER the month of gross indulgence that is MARDI GRAS

“At every party there are two kinds of people- those who want to go home and those who don't.  The trouble is, they are usually married to each other.” - Ann Landers

 

Thursday.  The day after Ash Wednesday, subsequently being the day after Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday.   There is so much going on in Mobile during carnival season.  ESPECIALLY the week leading up to Mardi Gras.  Two weekends prior we had the Incas on Friday, Comic Cowboys barn party and MOMs Saturday, MOT Barn party Sunday, Monday off, Tuesday was a work event for the hubs, Wednesday crazy, Thursday Striper parade, Friday friends came in and the Crewe parade, Saturday MOT, Sunday friends depart and Jason rode MOT due to the rescheduled parade, Monday IMs and Tuesday KOR.  

Mardi Gras day was beautiful.  The weather could NOT have been nicer.  Mid 70s and sunny.  Perfect for a day party.  And Lundi Gras was wonderful.  I always LOVE the Infant Mystics Ball.  Famous last words: I will not stay until the drum roll this year.  RIIIIGGGHHHHTTTT.............

One thing I love about the KORs is that you can get down there by noon, enjoy the parades, go to the reception, catch the OOM parade and still be home by 7:30.  Let's thank the good lord for that because by the time the end of it comes, NOBODY needs to be out past 7:30.  Most especially not me.  The great thing about seeing your girlfriends at these event is having fun with them.  The bad thing is that nobody has good judgement on Mardi Gras.  Fat Tuesday is one hell of a nemesis.  Famous last words:  I will NOT go to the A Club for the OOM parade this year.  UGH.  Yes, I did.  

I'm very lucky to have such a great husband.  He couldn't make the reception this year but I still went with a great group of girls and had a blast.  I love dressing up and wearing a hat.  Always a great time!  And luckily for me he likes to cook so he had some GREAT red beans and rice waiting when we came home.  

Luckily for us the weather has been cloudy, rainy and generally nasty for the days following Mardi Gras.  PERFECT weather for staying inside and relaxing.  As far as detoxing- I have given up alcohol for lent and I am getting some much needed sleep!

Next, college room mate arrives tomorrow for a pledge sisters wedding in Alys Beach.  I can handle one night- I cannot handle a month any more.  I am now officially too old!  

Overall, Mardi Gras 2012 brought lots of great moments, no bad ones and very little sleep.  I am looking forward to 2013 :-)

What doesn't kill you only makes you stronger?

"I've got a great ambition to die of exhaustion rather than boredom. " - Thomas Carlyle


Mardi Gras will not kill me, I will emerge from this carnival season a victor, come hell or high water.  Today is Sunday, or as it is known in Mobile- Joe Cain Day.  This means that fat Tuesday is two days away and we have over 3 weeks of mardi gras behind us.  We have been to 4 balls, two barn parties, a queens reception and still have another ball and reception to attend.  Jason has ridden once and will ride again.  I am READY for Mardi Gras to be over.  I believe that I will not move from my bed on Wednesday.  Mommy will get breakfast bars, lunchables and hit up red box prior to this day so that little man can feed, water, and entertain himself on our day of much needed rest.


On the plus side, I have seen so many people that I may only see once a year, many people I have not seen in years and years and great friends that I should see more often.  This carnival season has brought some interesting people watching, slutty looking super hero girls dancing on stripper poles and a much needed trip to the chiropractor.


We have had so much fun so far.  I am fairly certain that Monday and Tuesday will not kill me as long as I stay hydrated and fed.  I did get an adorable new hat that I cannot wait to wear Tuesday and I get to wear a cocktail dress I have had for a while and not worn.  I cannot wait until the KOR party to see all the hats!  So much fun.  Only in Mobile do people get dressed up and wear a hat on Mardi Gras day in the middle of the craziness in the streets that is fat tuesday.


Jasons ball last night, the MOT ball was a complete blast.  We had friends in town and friends in tow.  For some of them it was their first Mobile Mardi Gras and others have been before.  One of my favorite nights of the year was again a memorable one.  It is fun to have your husband in an organization with a million people you know.  It makes the ball much more fun!  Stay tuned for a mardi gras wrap up as well as tips on how to recover from fat tuesday in time to make it to one of your best friends weddings the following Saturday!


Laissez Les Bon Temps Rouler!

                                 No, I did not wear them all night!

                                                       Title Float

                                                       Emblem Float

                                 Jason is right in the middle on the bottom

Oh, I LOVE Mardi Gras!

"Most of us don't need a psychiatric therapist as much as a friend to be silly with." 
~Robert Brault

I love Mardi Gras!  Everything about it.  The parades, the balls, the pageantry around all of it- EVERYTHING.   I very much, especially LOVE spending this time with my girlfriends.  


As much as I love my husband and love a great night out with him, I relish the nights I get with my girlfriends.  As we get older we get married, have kids and essentially grow apart from our every day communication.  HOWEVER, during Mardi Gras we come together for parades, balls and general fun.  I love it!  It's like a girls night out without the planning.  


I am fortunate enough to have some seriously wonderful girlfriends.  We are all very busy so I don't get to see them as often as I would like, but when I do I truly appreciate the time.  And we have FUN!  Watch out- it's on!  


The past couple of nights we have had a couple of balls to attend.  My girlfriends have made them so much fun!  I love getting dressed up, grabbing a cocktail and chatting (and dancing) with these ladies.  Mommas can still shake it and have fun- as if there were ever a doubt. 


I need to send a big shout out to the MOMs.  Whoever said that ladies organizations were lame and can't party as hard needs to be shot.  These women have F-U-N.  And, I had about two tons of fun at their ball tonight!  I was able to see people I have not seen in a while, dance, chat and just have a generally good time.  It was a blast!  


No doubt that the rest of Mardi Gras will be a GREAT time!  


I LOVE MY FRIENDS.................

(Celie and Catherine ;-) Shout out to you!)

My Life in the Carpool Line

"A suburban mother's role is to deliver children obstetrically once, and by car forever after."
 ~Peter De Vries

I feel like I spend half of my life in the carpool line. As I sit here and type this out on my phone I am at good ole UMS-Wright in........wait for it.........the carpool line!!!! SHOCKER!

One thing I don't get is the stick figure family stickers. I can't even draw a stick figure so I surely don't understand the reasoning behind the sticker. What exactly made someone think, "one day! One day I will design a sticker that will appear on half of the mini vans in the US"

I watch Dexter on Showtime. It's about a serial killer that is a blood spatter analyst for Miami Metro and he hunts other killers. There is always a big serial killer he hunts. In one season, the serial killer found his target from one of these stick figure stickers. He knew some things to say to the child about his family to gain trust based on the mini van sticker. Then Dexter had to hunt him to rescue the child.

That would really suck if your kid was trapped because of the stick figure family on your car.

It would suck even more if the serial killer knew the moms initials because they were also on the back of the van.

Or, (gasp) if the serial killer knew the mother liked flip flops because there was a flip flop sticker on the opposite corner as the stick figure family.

I guess the mini van driver with the stick figure family, monogram and flip flops likely does not get why I have a whale on my bumper. Or a big green thing that is telling her to "Eat Berthas Mussels" or my need to tell the world where I attended college.

Guess my son should watch out for a serial killer telling him he is friends with me because I like pink whales, eat mussels from Bertha and like UA.

Oh, the things you have time to think about in the carpool line!

Kind of a big deal, in case you didn't know........

"Fashions fade, style is eternal."

— Yves Saint-Laurent

Back in November of 2010 I was given the opportunity to resign from my position at an awesome interactive marketing and PR firm (wellbornIdeas) in order to stay home with my only child for the months until he started K-4.  Although this was an amazing experience I started to get the itch to return to something.  I needed something to do while he was in school. After all, it is hard to be a stay at home mom when your kid is not there.  Around the end of July of this year while I was itching to figure out my next steps I got a phone call from a friend who was working at this awesome new magazine that had been taking the Bay area by storm, Access.  They were looking for ad sales reps and within 20 seconds of hearing the Editor in Chief/ Publisher I was sold.

Hayley Hill started Access last year but had been researching the concept for quite some time prior to launching this completely unique guilty pleasure.  Hayley's background makes this experience for me.  She is AH-MAZ-ING.  Seriously.  The woman has a fierce fashion sense and the resume to back it up!

Prior to moving to Mobile, Hayley was in the ridiculously high pressure world of publishing in New York for 20 years.  Not only did she launch Teen People but she also held top positions at magazines like US Weekly and InStyle.  As if that were not fabulous enough, Hayley was also a well known stylist.  She has dressed some sick names for everything from red carpets to album covers.  People such as Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake, Pink, Mandy Moore, Jessica Simpson, Beyonce, and Brooke Shields.  

Having the opportunity to work for someone of this caliber is clearly one of the best experiences I have had professionally.  Not only is it exciting to be a part of something that EVERYONE is talking about, it is mind blowing to watch this talented, creative and bold person take a concept to a reality each month.  

If you have not yet had a chance to read the magazine you should.  It is not heavy investigative journalism but it is a delightful guilty pleasure each month that people read cover to cover.