Mark's First 2-A-Day

It was an early morning for my little guy today. He was up at 6:00 a.m. and out the door by 6:40 to head to the football field. I dropped him off and headed to work. I couldn't tell if he was nervous or not but I suspect he might have been. All morning I watched the clock wondering what he and his teammates were doing. Was he drinking enough water? Was he being careful with his glasses?

Finally 11:30 arrived and I left to go pick him up. He walked to the car looking so tired. I asked him how it went and he said "it was horrible". But he didn't seem defeated. He said he was starving and wanted a burger to eat. So we went to grab some food and then I took him home, administered some Aleve to him, told him to take a cool shower after he finished eating and promised to call and check on him soon and headed back to work. I called to check on him about an hour later and he said he felt much better. The first 2-A-Day is in the books, now he just has to get through 6 more!

Vote for Mark Ingram!

I have been lazy and still haven't moved all my stuff from my old blog over to here and I haven't posted anything in a while. I still don't have all the links working and I haven't edited and added my pictures yet.




But....I stopped what I was doing today to add this video of one of my favorite Bama players of all time - Mark Ingram. He is a finalist to be on the cover of NCAA Football 2012. The video is so cute and he is so adorable! Watch the video and then vote for him by clicking HERE! Think about it, do we really want Nick Fairley on the cover?! No, I didn't think so!!

Roll Tide!

I am moving....

I am in the process of moving all my posts from my old blog over to this one. And I am still formatting all of the links and stuff on here too. I had hoped to have it finished before now, but some formatting issues and that darn thing called life keeps getting in the way!

Maybe I will have everything finished before the kids graduate high school! 

Stay tuned....

ROLL TIDE!!

This sums it up perfectly! THE. BEST. COMMERCIAL. EVER.   ROLL TIDE!

Mark got Student of the Month!

Today was a really great day! Mark came home on Monday with the news that he was chosen as Student of the Month by his reading teacher! He was given a little invitation to the "Breakfast of Champions" where he and 2 adults are invited to attend a breakfast at the school.

We arrived at the school and went into the gym and found a really nice little breakfast laid out. There were fruit and cheese danishes, bananas, strawberries and grapes, breakfast pound cake, mini blueberry muffins and mini cinammon pinwheels. They also had orange juice, water and Starbucks coffee! Mark had 2 plates of food and really liked the pound cake. The cheese danishes were really good too.

The school Jazz Band was there and they were really good! I mean really impressive!

We sat down at the table and ate our breakfast and then Mark's teacher joined us. We talked about how well Mark was doing and she said he had transitioned really well in the short time he had been at the school. She said he had gotten caught up to where the rest of the class was and that he had been working really hard. Whew! That was so good to hear!

The principal presented the certificates by grade and then each grade gathered together for a group picture to be hung in the office and also to be sent out in the school newletter that we get in the mail.

I could tell Mark was very proud of his accomplishment. His Dad and I were beyond excited and proud of him!

Congratulations buddy! Your Dad and I love you and are so very proud of you! Keep up the good work!

Love, Mom

I'm a bit surprised...

I got to work today and decided to get on the scale and see what my weight is. And guess what?!

I have actually lost 6 pounds!!

This is not from my little ‘ol workout, but mostly from watching my diet for the last few weeks. I texted Louis and told him my good news and he panicked and thought I had lost that all 6 pounds in one week. I texted him back and told him that they were cumulative over the last few weeks. My sweet honey was worried about me, isn’t that sweet?!

I am not really overly concerned with weight as much as toning myself and the fit of my clothes, but I do monitor it all the same. And a 6 pound weight loss is exciting!

Keeping up the good work...

Another workout down! Louis is still going with me. He is not only my best friend, but now he is my work out buddy! I had to ride a bike for 20 minutes today because all the treadmills were taken. I liked it better actually and I think I worked up more of a sweat than I did on the treadmill so I think I may stick to the bike from now on. I stretched before I got on the bike and after and I think that helped my soreness. The leg press (which is the first machine I use) was tough, but I worked through it and stretched some after it too for good measure. I made it through everything else pretty easily. It feels good to be working up a sweat and to be doing something good for myself!

Let the soreness begin...

I am sore today! Not terribly, but enough that I definitely notice it. Especially after I sit at my desk for a little bit and then get up to walk around. I stretched really well after I worked out last night and I have been stretching today off and on to try and help with the soreness and tightness. I go back on Friday and hopefully that will help work the soreness out even more.

Louis went with me again last night. It is nice that we are working on getting fit together. We are both going to be hot bodies before long!

The first of many...

My first complete workout completed! Woo hoo!! Louis went with me and worked out on the “regular floor”. That is where all the “fit” people and “men” are. I work out in the women’s only room. It is much safer in there. I like it in there. No one judges you and there are no men to look at you when you are on the thigh machine! You know the one I am talking about – the one where your legs are spread open and you squeeze them together. I only used that machine once when I worked out in gyms before. The men in the gym stared at me while I was on it and it was embarrassing. Of course, that was back when I was in good shape, they would probably barf if they saw me on it now!

Anyways, I got through the whole workout pretty well except I was not able to finish the very last exercise. It is hard to do at the end of a workout. I am supposed to lay with my hands under my butt and lift both my legs straight up to work my lower abdomen. My legs were completely tired out from everything else I did that I just couldn’t finish them. Oh well, I will get to where I can do them soon!

The day after...

So it is the day after my first trip to the gym and I am a tiny bit sore from the training session. I can’t even call it a workout because all I did was the treadmill for 10 minutes and one set on each machine the trainer put me on! I am embarrassed that I am even sore from it. I knew that I was out of shape, but this is ridiculous! I am not looking forward to how sore I am going to be Thursday morning after working out Wednesday!

I Started Working Out...

So I joined the gym yesterday (actually, Louis, Chris and I all joined) and I had my first session with the trainer to set up my workout today. I need to loose these rolls of fat that I have around my belly, on my back and thighs! I also just need to get into shape for my health. I thought that if I put it in writing on here, I would be more likely to go and keep it up. The body fat assessment was painful and sad. I was not happy with what the trainer told me about fat to muscle ratio and just my weight in general. But that I why I have started working out. So I can change it and be a healthier, happier me!

I started watching my calorie and fat intake about 3 weeks ago and have lost a couple of pounds just from doing that. But I decided that exercise would not only speed up the weight loss, it would just be good for me.

Since I just started today, I didn’t do a whole lot. I only did one set on each machine, but I will go back on Wednesday and do the whole workout – 20 minutes on the treadmill and 3 sets on each machine. I am sure I will be sore, but it will be a “good” sore!

Here’s to the weight and the rolls falling off me!

Happy Birthday letter to Mark ~

Thirteen years ago today, you made your entrance into the world. While I wasn’t there when you were born, I have been in your life since you were about 18 months old. You were a spunky little boy who could charm the pants off anyone with your cute little smile and “who me?” look and you still can! I will never forget all the cute little ways you would say things. Hamburgers were “hang-a-burgers” and tortillas were “tort-tid-das”. For the longest time you couldn’t say Angela and it came out “Annie”. Now you call me Mom and that is the most awesome name I could ever have!

You have the cutest little laugh and are a happy-go-lucky kid who never fails to ask me and your Dad how our day was. Even on weekends! Not a day goes by that you don’t tickle me to death by saying or doing something hilarious. You don’t think a lot of times before you do something, which has gotten you into trouble or hurt more times than I care to remember. But you are all boy and your spontaneity is one of the things that makes you who you are.

I worry about you, I say prayers over you each day, I am proud of you and most of all I love you! I can’t believe you are 13! And although you have already started to develop that “teenager attitude”, your sweet boyish ways are still there. You stole my heart when I met you and I couldn’t imagine my life without you in it!

I love you buddy!
Love,
Mom

National Champions!!

We are the champions!! And I was there to see it!! The game had its up and downs, more ups than downs, but we came out on top and what a game it was! I had dreamed of watching my Crimson Tide play for a National Championship in person ever since our last National Championship in 1992. And 17 years later, that dream finally came true!

Louis and I had such a good time at the game. We walked all around the Rose Bowl and realized that we were outnumbered by Texas fans about 5:1. That didn’t matter to me any though. I felt deep down that we were going to win it.

At one point during the day we were walking around the golf course area and I noticed that their really weren’t any Alabama fans around us. We were surrounded by burnt orange. It was then that I looked to my left and saw a huge assemblage of Texas fans and their real live mascot Bevo. Simultaneously I saw a huge arch made of balloons with Texas spelled out in even bigger balloons hanging from its center and it was then that I realized we had wondered into the Texas tailgate party area! I told Louis that we needed skedaddle before we got jumped and sacrificed to Bevo or something!

We decided that we would walk to the other side of the stadium and see if we could find the Alabama tailgate party. While looking for it, we stumbled up on where the players were going to be entering the stadium! I was so excited! We were told that they would be coming in about 30 minutes. That turned into about and hour and a half. But we kept standing there. There was no way I was going to miss a chance to see our future National Champions! While we were waiting, several fans started “ALA – BAMA” and “It’s great to be from Alabama” and of course chants of “Roll Tide” were frequent as well. We talked to the people around us and shared our favorite memories from the season. There was a guy who was standing close by us who had the funniest shirt on. It said “I got my ticket from Tebow’s mom”! That poor guy was being asked by everyone if they could take a picture of it. And of course I took a picture of it too! And here it is….



About a half hour before our guys arrived, the Texas team arrived. They went into the stadium at the entrance right next to where our guys were going to go in. They had a huge gathering of people too, but I have never heard such a quiet stadium entrance in my life. I don’t know if they were just standing there clapping or what, but I swear I heard some crickets chirping while they were filing off their bus! Finally after about an hour and 45 minutes, our guys arrived! OUR crowd of fans went nuts! It was hard to get good pictures of the players like I got a Homecoming, but I got a few good shots. Some of the players were smiling and you could tell they were taking it all in, but most of them had their earbuds in and were in the zone. They were serious and they came there to win! We all cheered and screamed and made sure they had a great welcome to the stadium and that they knew we were behind them!
Here are two of the better pictures I got of Terrence "Mount" Cody and Rolando McClain.





After that it was only about an hour or so before the game was going to start, so we headed into the stadium and to the concession stand to get some food and a commemorative cup. We got to our seats and I was just amazed at how good they were! We were technically on the Texas side of the field, but the Alabama endzone was right next to us! There were 4 Alabama fans sitting right behind us and 3 or 4 more right behind them, so we were in some good company. We did have Texas fans on each side of us and everyone directly in front of us were Texas people as well. They were all really nice and were not obnoxious like I was afraid they were going to be.



We watched the team working out before the game and I took lots of pictures of them. Then it was time for the pre-game stuff to start. Josh Grobin was great singing the National Anthem. But I think the best part was seeing the Air Force guys parachute in. I knew that there was going to be one carrying an Alabama (team, not state) flag in and that was sooooo cool seeing him come in! He did a huge fist pump when he landed. You could tell that he was so proud to have been able to do that. Then the guy carrying the American flag came parachuting in. That was such a great moment. I was virtually in tears from watching the Alabama flag come in and that put me over. The icing on the cake was when the jets flew over. That was amazing! I was streaming tears at that point. I couldn’t believe I was there! I was getting ready to watch my Crimson Tide play for and win a National Championship!



The coin toss was next and we won the toss! Then in the blink of an eye, the game started. Marcel Darius’s interception and run into the endzone was on our side of the field, so we had a good view of that. I won’t bore you with my analysis of the game. I’m sure you saw it and know what happened! The Texas fans around us were very gracious when we had our ups and for the most part were gracious when they had their ups. When Mark Ingram scored that last touchdown, that is when the Texas fans that hadn’t already left, stared filing out. That is when it hit me that we were going to win it. I got really emotional and shed a few tears and to be honest, it was all surreal. Then the game was over and a huge smile came upon my face and I don’t think I stopped smiling for the rest of the night. We of course stayed and watched the trophy presentation.



Then we headed out of the stadium. The parking lot and traffic was really not bad at all. We pretty much got in the car and drove out of the stadium. We stopped at a couple of t-shirt vendors on the way out and I got several shirts for 50% off and one vendor even had National Championship pennants already, so I of course picked up a couple of them. The next morning, we went back down to the Rose Bowl and I was able to get a shirt with the score on it as well as an Alabama purse and a Mark Ingram jersey with the BCS NCG patch on it. I paid only $50.00 for the jersey. They were going for $80.00 the day before!

We headed home after that and as tired as I was, I couldn’t stop talking or smiling the entire trip home. And of course when we got home, I immediately went to the computer and promptly placed a large order for more National Championship stuff!

What a great time! We are National Champions and I was there to see it! Thank you honey for taking me to the game! I will never forget it and I hope we are able to do it again or maybe one day we can be there to watch your Cubs do it!

ROLL TIDE!!!!

I HAVE TICKETS!!

This very well may be the happiest day of my life! I have tickets to the National Championship Game! I get to watch my Crimson Tide play in the Rose Bowl!

WOOO HOOO!!

These tickets are on the 40 yard line and in row 39! They are great seats!! And I didn’t have to sell my soul or take out a small loan to get them either! I will not put how much they cost on here because my mother reads this and she might pass out when she sees it. But suffice it to say I paid less for the 2 of these tickets than I was finding for just 1 ticket anywhere else. And they are much better seats than I was able to find anywhere else too.

Well, I have to go stare at my tickets now!

Roll Tide!

Have a Room - Just Need Game Tickets!

Well, I tried to go online right after the SEC Championship Game to the Tournament of Roses ticket reserve website and it was completely locked up! All us Alabama fans knocked their server off line! About 2 hours after I first stared trying, I was finally able to get on and discovered that the tickets on there would be around $900.00 each and they would probably be in the last few rows in the endzone. I want to go to the National Championship Game really bad, but I don’t want to spend that much and have to squint the whole game. I will keep a watch on StubHub and some other places and Louis had already put word out to someone he works with that knows someone at ESPN that if we won the SECCG and went to the NCG to see if he could help out. So I am holding out hope that I might be able to go yet.

I did book a room in Pasadena this morning. I don’t have tickets yet, but by golly, I have a place to stay if (WHEN!) I do!! It is a good thing that I booked it too. There were very few rooms left anywhere.

Wish me luck on finding some tickets!

Roll Tide!

SEC Champs!!

It is the day after the SEC Championship Game and I am still grinning from ear to ear! What a game! What a team! What a year!

The plays from the game are still running through my mind! I can still see Greg McElroy going tippy-toe down the sideline to get that first down. And the fantastic block he threw to ensure that Trent Richardson got a few more yards out of his run. How many quarterbacks do you know that would do that?!? And P.J. Fitzgerald’s tackle of Brandon James to save him from running for a TD. Colin Peek’s TD reception was great and Mark Ingram just being Mark Ingram. And how about that chest bump between Ingram and Coach Saban! WOW! What a game!


I knew deep down in my heart that we were going to win it. I just had no idea that we would run away with it the way we did. I know it is sooo bad of me, but I wanted to see Tebow go down. It has been nauseating the last 2 years listening to the media gush about him like they have. And it was so satisfying to see those tears!



The Crimson Tide is off to the Rose Bowl to play for the National Championship! This is our year! We will do it! I just hope somehow I can find a way to go to the game. After all, it will only be about 3 ½ hours away from me….

Yea, Alabama! Drown 'em Tide!
Every 'Bama man's behind you,
Hit your stride.
Go teach the Bulldogs to behave,
Send the Yellow Jackets to a watery grave.
And if a man starts to weaken,
That's a shame!
For Bama's pluck and grit have
Writ her name in Crimson flame.
Fight on, fight on, fight on men!
REMEMBER THE ROSE BOWL WE’LL WIN then.
So roll on to victory,
Hit your stride,
You're Dixie's football pride,
Crimson Tide, Roll Tide, Roll Tide!!

Roll Tide!!

We are only 2 days away from the SEC Championship Game and I can feel my stomach starting to knot up already. No matter the outcome of the game, our guys played one hell of season. Back to back undefeated regular seasons! How many teams can say that?! Not many.

I saw this video this morning and it made me teary eyed, proud and fired up all at once. Here's to a great game on Saturday! Roll Tide!! Beat them Gators!!

Veteran's Day Thank You

Today is Veterans Day. If you know or see someone who served or is serving in the military, make it a point to stop and tell them 'THANK YOU' today.

I myself want to say a few thank yous today to the thousands of men and women who are serving our great country in Afghanistan or Iraq as well as at our many military bases here and overseas.

Thank you to my Daddy for his service in the Navy. He would not want me to say when/where his service was because military guys don't like to brag. After all, "Loose Lips Sink Ships!" But suffice it say it was during a time when guys came home to a not so great welcome. But Daddy, I want you to know that I am proud of the time you spent in the Navy defending your country and today, I say I love you and I thank you!

Thank you goes to my cousin Bryan who is in the Navy and is currently on deployment. He is a brave guy who is away from his family a lot serving and protecting our country. The sacrifices he makes and has made for many years are hard to fathom. Yet, he does his duty with such dignity and pride and never complains. I am very proud of him and pray for his safety daily. Thank you Bryan! Come home soon. I love you!

Thank you to all the military wives, children and families out there. YOU are the ultimate warriors! You hold down your forts in your loved ones absence and your strength during their service is awe inspiring. This especially goes out to Bryan's wife Hillary and their daughters Emily and Allison and their angel who watches over them, Natalie. Hillary, you are an inspiration and a blessing.

Finally, to the families, friends and soldiers of Ft. Hood. You are in my prayers.

God bless all military personnel everywhere and God bless this great country!

Louis’s Rotator Cuff Surgery

Back in June while we were in Mexico we think is when Louis tore his rotator cuff. We had just finished dinner one night and as he reached up with his left hand to grab his seat belt in the car, he felt a searing pain and actually couldn't move his arm for a few moments. It hurt him some the next morning, but he took some Ibuprofen and was ok after that. It continued to bother him when he'd play gigs so I finally convinced him to see his doctor. An MRI was performed and sure enough, he had a torn RTC. So he had his rotator cuff surgery yesterday. He did really well and is feeling ok. He was very groggy when I got him home and has only taken one pain pill so far. He has this giant pillow that is attached to his sling and he has to sleep with that on. He is really stubborn and will not let me do a lot for him, but I am being a good nurse all the same.

Last night was Chris’s first high school choir performance and Louis wasn’t able to go because he was still so groggy. I was tired from being with him at the hospital most of the morning so I didn’t take the video camera. The choirs all sounded really good. Chris is one of just a few Freshman that made the Chambers Choir. This year, he has a tux that he wears for performances. It was neat to see Chris in his tux. He looks really handsome in it.

Here is a picture of Louis after he came home from the surgery and Chris in his tux.

Happy Birthday, Mommy!

Today is my Mommy's birthday. I just got to see her 2 weeks ago when I went home to Alabama. Me, her and Louis went to an Alabama football game and had such a good time. I am so glad that she was able to go to the game with us.

I love you Mommy and I hope that you have a great birthday today!