Thanks for the inspiration...

Our parents have a lot to celebrate this weekend... my parents have been married 32 years today, and Derek's parents will celebrate their 29th anniversary on Sunday. Ideally, we wanted to get married right in between their two dates, but timing wasn't on our side, so we had to settle for a couple of weeks later.

For those in my generation, it's not as common as it should be that both sets of parents are still together. I consider it a blessing and a strong foundation for us. They've taught us that marriage is a serious commitment through the good times and the bad, and the vows you speak should always be remembered.

Thank you, parents, for setting such a great example and Happy Anniversary!! We love you. By the way, those are great tuxes. :)

Nevermind... my crystal ball must be broken...

So, not even half of those rumored songs were what they ended up singing last night, so next time I’ll just keep the rumors to myself or find a more reliable site. Sorry about that! :)

As for last night’s show, here are my thoughts … I really wanted Jasmine to do well, but she was just alright, I think. And it definitely doesn’t help to go first…Was Allison the red-headed 16-year-old? She’s a rocker. Love her already… Meghan, the hippie-chick mom with the long blond hair, is also pretty good. She has a really unique, retro-sounding voice that I really like. I just wish she would have moved around with the microphone instead of just standing there dancing awkwardly… Adam Lambert, the Pete Wentz look-a-like, can really sing, I think. He just needs to pick the right song… Nick “Norman Gentle” Mitchell, wow. I swear I was crying I was laughing so hard. I don’t think he deserves a spot in the Top 12, but he very well could get voted in because of how popular he is. Guess we’ll see tonight. In the meantime, he’s fun to watch at least…

So far a lot of the ones I was impressed by in the audition rounds haven’t really impressed me in the actual competition. I have yet to pick a total favorite.

I could be wrong, but my prediction for this group’s top three will be Adam, Allison and Meghan.

I see in my crystal ball...

SPOILER ALERT!!!

So, I just did a little googling to see what I could find out about American Idol’s next group of 12 who perform tonight… And I found a great spoiler site! These aren’t confirmed, they’re just rumored, but if you care to know what songs the contestants are supposedly singing tonight, read down below... I’m just excited to see Mississippi’s own Jasmine Murray and to see what crazy Nick “Norman Gentle” Mitchell (who I kind of think resembles Neighbor Ben) can do.

Now, I’ll wait to tell you all about the rumors I’ve heard about the dramatic Bachelor finale next week… :)

Adam Lambert- “All By Myself” Eric Carmen
Nick Mitchell - “Crying” Roy Orbison
Matt Breitzke-”How Am I Supposed to Live Without You” Michael Bolton
Kai Kalama-”Lean on Me” Club Nouveau
Kris Allen- “How You Remind Me” Nickelback
Matt Giraud - “Viva La Vida” Coldplay
Jeanine Vailes -”Love Will Lead You Back” Taylor Dayne
Allison Iraheta”Total Eclipse of the Heart” Bonnie Tyler
Meghan Cockrey- “Nothing Compares 2 U” Sinéad O’Connor
Jesse Langseth- “You Needed Me” Anne Murray
Mishavonna Henson-”With or Without You” U2
Jasmine Murray- “Love song” Sara Bareilles

No, honey, we don't pick up beads off the ground...

We're back from Mardi Gras and totally worn out. We had a great time, though! We got down to New Orleans about 5 on Friday and kept the evening pretty low-key with happy hour at a bar down the street and then dinner at a Central American restaurant and grocery shopping for the weekend at Walmart. We stayed on the West Bank with our friends Bobby and Keever. This is actually our second Mardi Gras with them and my third one with Bobby. A big group of us came with him one year in college. He's from there, and it's always better to go with someone who knows where to go and how to get around. It sure makes the trip a lot easier when you're not having to Mapquest everything.

Saturday morning we woke up bright and early and headed to mid-city for Endymion. This year the Endymion route was back to what it was pre-Katrina, so it was the only parade we would see that day. Our "spot" was with a group of Bobby's high school friends who were ready to party with eight kegs, five private porta-potties and a DJ. Needless to say, it was a LONG day from 9:30 in the morning until the parade rolled about 4. Here are a few pics from Saturday.

Yes, that's Kid Rock. He was the grand marshal for Endymion. I think I'll send that picture to my Granny. She has a crush on him... not quite sure why.

We made it home about 10 that night totally exhausted and ready for a good night's sleep before doing it all over again the next day.

Sunday was much more laid-back, which is good because I think that's about all we could handle. We stopped for White Russian daiquiris on the way Uptown and made it to the house of another friend of Bobby's just a few blocks off St. Charles. We had a bathroom to use, red beans and rice cooking and some burgers for later. Once we got to the parade route, we decided to make ourselves comfortable just a little bit behind the crowd where we could spread our stuff out and just sit and enjoy the day. It was nice and sunny and perfect for a relaxing afternoon of people-watching. There were four parades that rolled on the Uptown route, so we caught plenty of beads just sitting in our chairs. By the way, the title for this post came from Derek who gave me a quick lecture on not picking up beads from the ground and instead being aggressive enough to catch my own. :)

You can't really see it all that well, but this was one of the guys on a float proposing to his girlfriend with a big sign. Pretty cool idea, I think...

Here's Val Kilmer. He was grand marshal of Bacchus Sunday night.

Here's the Bacchasaurus float, one of the ones that's been in the parade for years.

And here's the Bacchagator...

By Sunday night we were so worn out that we barely made it home without me falling asleep. I'm definitely not a spring chicken anymore. It was a great weekend, and we had all day today to recuperate before heading back into work tomorrow. I think I have New Orleans out of my system for a while, and I'm definitely not ashamed of the amount of beads I actually caught the classy way without picking them up off the ground or showing anything to get them. All it takes is a little luck, a lot of yelling and a few cold beers. :)

Throw Me Something, Mister!

This was Mardi Gras 2007 ... not even a full year into our marriage and back when Taylor Hicks was the American Idol and also the grand marshal of Endymion. We've had two full years to hone our bead-catching skills (the classy way, of course) ...

Give me a cold beer, plenty of Germ-X for the porta-potties, a comfy chair, a clean porta-potty and a brass band in the background... we're on our way!

They're losing my vote by the minute...

All I can say is… seriously??? That was 12 of the best singers in the country? I beg to differ. I was so incredibly disappointed with last night’s show. I had high hopes for the oil rig guy, for Jackie the comedian, Stevie the youngster and the cute little girl from Memphis. But I have to say the only one who really pulled through last night was Danny, and he was good, but not phenomenal.

My mom called about an hour and a half into the show saying she had just turned it on and didn’t know what in the world all the hype is about. I told her just to change the channel and try to watch it again in a month when they’re finally down to the Top 12. Derek and I kept pausing it just so we could fast-forward through most of the songs. It was that bad…

To the producers of Idol, please, please, please give me something better than that to look forward to on Tuesday and Wednesday nights. I’ve been a devoted fan for years, and I always get excited when it’s Idol night, but if this keeps up, I’ll just be looking forward to Grey’s Anatomy Thursdays and Bachelor Mondays. You don’t want that.

It's Carnival Time!!!

We celebrated Valentine's Day this year with the Krewe of Elks Carnival Ball in Hattiesburg. We go every year with my grandparents, and each year seems to be more fun than the last. First, I need to explain that this is no dinky Mardi Gras ball at the Elks Lodge. This group of Elk (or is it Elks?) has a swanky lodge on more than 1,000 acres complete with a lake (appropriately named Elks Lake.) They built the lodge in the 1960s I think, and while it may be just a little outdated now, it was definitely top of the line back in the day. I grew up going swimming and camping out there with my parents and grandparents. It was THE place to go. :)

Anyways, back to the Carnival Ball... This was the 43rd annual royal presentation. They have a king and queen and court just like any other Mardi Gras Krewe. My grandfather, Pap, was King Elk VIII back in 1973, my parents were in the Court back in 1980 when they were pregnant with me, and I was a page to Queen Elk XX and XXI when I was a little girl. So, needless to say, it's definitely a family tradition. :)

Here's Pap with his queen, Rosie, during the presentation of the former kings and queens.

Here is a picture of Derek and me with Granny and Pap.

And here's my favorite shot of the night... Derek getting some lovin from the ladies... Notice the crazed look in Rosie's eyes. I think she was ready to fight me for him last night. :)

We had so much fun, and it's always a great way to kick off the Mardi Gras season. I think we're ready for New Orleans now! :)