Too Early??

Is it too early to be excited about football season? 

This house does not discriminate.  We love it all . . . college, professional, peewee, high school.  Shoot.  I think Cosmo even watches Canadian football once in a while.  Hopefully we'll get to a bunch of games in the Grove this season and if

Saw this the other day on the Girl Meets Gameday blog (I think she posted it way back in May but I'm just now seeing it.  I need to catch up on some blog reading I guess!). 

I'm a total Martha.  Everything coordinates in a classy, elegant way . . . the outfit, the accessories, the tailgate menu, the tailgate décor. 
http://girlmeetsgameday.wordpress.com/2013/05/04/which-tailgater-are-you/

Flim Flam, Bim Bam

Are you ready?

Hell yes!

Damn Right!

Hotty Toddy, Gosh almighty Who the hell are we?

Hey!

Flim Flam, Bim Bam Ole Miss, By Damn!

OK. Not gonna lie. It was kind of weird rooting for a team other than the Tide or the Jets.  But we had a great time with T, got to see 5 of the 7 Hoover kids, visited with some old friends, met some new friends and just soaked up all that is tailgating at the Grove. 

 

The Grove was quite an experience . . . tailgating at it's finest.  The kids were all decked out, the tents were gorgeous (I was in heaven and got lots of ideas for my dining room table!) and the food was delish!  

 

 

Ole Miss won but it was an ugly win.  KJ and I giggled the whole time and drove Cosmo nuts.  He bought me a seat cushion and KJ a jersey to keep us quiet.  We kept asking him when they were going to play "Sweet Home Alabama" and under our breath we would say "Roll Tide Roll" when it was 1st and 10.  KJ had her picture taken with the cheerleaders and we did the Walk of Champions a couple of hours prior to kick-off.  

 

 

On our way home on Sunday we stopped at a nice little park in Tupelo and let KJ run around and play in the splash park. 

Social Sunday

Today didn't start off too great.  Or maybe Saturday night never really ended?  Too tired to tell the difference.  All I know is insomnia and a migraine are not a good combination.  I was up until 5:30 AM.  Wide awake.  With a raging headache.  No Bueno.  But the Bagel Boy took good care of me.  I do luv me some Bagel Boy on Sunday mornings! 

So we're down to the ten day mark.  In ten days T-bone will be leaving for college.  The Auburn girls were moving in today (I think Rush starts tomorrow) and I know the Alabama girls can't be far behind.  Thinking of all the moms (and dads!) today.  I know it's going to be much harder on me (and Coach) than it is T.  She's excited to start this new chapter in her life and I'm going to have a hard time letting go.  And I can tell you right now Coach is going to be a wreck.  This is the man who cried when the girls got their ears pierced. 

Ok!  Moving on to Social Sunday!  So excited for this week's questions!  I luv, luv, luv the Fall.  It's the best time of the year in our house . . . my b-day in September, our 20th Anniversary in October, Coach's b-day the day after that and KJ's 13th b-day the day after that!  I hate Alabama summers but luv Alabama Autumns!  I luv being able to open the windows and get some fresh air.  I luv sleeping with the windows open.  I luv waking up with a slight chill in the air.  I luv football season.  I luv having friends over to watch football on the back deck with a bonfire going.  I luv decorating the house for Fall.  I luv decorating the house for Halloween.  I luv Thanksgiving.  Yup.  Best time of the year for me! 

This weeks questions:

1. What is your favorite Fall activity? I absolutely luv everything about the Fall so this is going to be a tough one.  I would say Friday night high school football games, Saturday college football games and Sunday NFL games.  Decorating the house for Fall, bonfire evenings, and Halloween.

2. Do you follow a football team? if so which one and why? We've always been Alabama fans and of course this is a New York Jets house.  I guess this year we'll need to root for Ole Miss, too.  

3. What is something fun about Fall in your area? We've been going to the same pumpkin patch since we moved here 13 years ago.  It's a family tradition.   And Coach carves the pumpkins with the girls.  It's just one of those "dad" things.   

4. Fav Fall outfit staples? Jeans, a long-sleeve V-neck t-shirt from either Gap or Old Navy.  Cute scarves.  Lots of bracelets.  A great brown leather bag and brown leather boots with a heel because I'm vertically challenged in a big way. 

5. Thing you are looking forward to most about this coming Fall season? I am really, really excited about football season.  I'm really looking forward to tailgating in the Grove.  I'm looking forward to seeing Brye play and Rory cheer!  

6. Favorite Fall holiday? Traditions? Thanksgiving is my absolute favorite holiday.  It's just such a simple holiday.  No cards.  No gifts to buy.  It's just a day to reflect, be thankful and spend time with your loved ones.  I luv cooking the turkey, I luv the textures of Fall, I luv the smells.  I luv having the girls help in the kitchen on Thanksgiving day (they like to make the mashed potatoes and crescent rolls).  I luv when Coach carves up the turkey.  

Next Week's Questions:

If you could only eat one thing for the rest of your life, what would it be?

What's your guilty pleasure/comfort food?

What's the weirdest/craziest thing you've ever eaten?

What foods do you avoid at all costs?

What meal reminds you of your childhood?

Share one of your favorite recipes and the story behind it.

Breaking the Huddle

I can NOT believe I missed the SAG awards Sunday! It was such a crazy day and I totally forgot they were on! Our little emergency room visit kind of threw us all off kilter but we did watch two incredible documentaries on HBO when things finally settled down.

The first documentary was on Integration in the SEC (football). This was all a little before my time and, being a "Yankee" I will admit what little I know about the Civil Rights Movement I learned in a high school class or from news snippets. This documentary was a fascinating look at how sports played an important role in the movement. There was a lot of pressure on these young men to represent their race in a positive light and each victory on the field was considered a victory for all African-Americans. These were very brave young men (and women) and I had absolutely no idea that Alabama had an all-white football team until 1970. 1970! Insane.

http://www.hbo.com/sports/breaking-the-huddle-the-integration-of-college-football/index.html

The following article doesn't not portray Bear Bryant in a positive light and accuses him of not using his power as the head coach of Alabama to do more for African-Americans (simply amazing to me that the masses look to their sports heroes to be their moral compasses -- i.e., Paterno. But that's a rant for another day.). That is the writer's opinion and I am in no way, shape or form trying to smear Bear Bryant's legacy. I only post the link because it details the HBO documentary better than I can. I like to give people the benefit of the doubt and I think Bear Bryant did the best he could based on the political temperature in the South at the time. I think if he had just went out and recruited a bunch of African-American players and threw them onto the playing field he would have had a race riot on his hands. He needed to introduce the concept in such a way that Alabamaians thought it was their own idea. Baby steps. And that's why he invited USC to Legion Field.

http://www.aolnews.com/2008/11/29/breaking-the-huddle-hbos-powerful-look-at-the-integration-of-c/

The next documentary we watched was on Joe Namath. Interestingly enough, while we were watching the Integration documentary I asked Cosmo if Namath was at Alabama while all this was going on and quickly did the math in our heads (1969 NY Jets Super Bowl victory minus a couple of years for college). Namath does talk about when he first arrived at Alabama, how his teammates gave him a hard time because he was a "Yankee," how he didn't understand what segregation was all about, and about the history making day when the two black students tried to register for classes. You could just hear the pride and excitement in his voice when he talks about Vivien Malone walking into the building. He was rooting for her. I think this was an excellent story about a simple kid from Beaver Falls, PA and they did not hide from his alcohol issues. He was from a broken working class family, he wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed (couldn't pass the entrance exam @ Maryland), caused a lot of mischief when he was a kid and just lived his life to the fullest and went along for the ride. My favorite part of the whole 90 minutes is when his older sister referred to him as a PIA --- Pain in the Ass.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2012/football/nfl/01/27/namath/index.html

http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/sports/138259629.html