Thanks for indulging me yesterday with my little Halloween detour. We managed to give all of them away and now only have waay to much leftover candy and some unfrosted sugar cookies. Meh, such is life, right?
Here’s something you should know about my family. We love football. Thursday, Sunday, Monday, and some Saturdays are taken up by watching football. We count down to football season like stores countdown to Christmas. We have Sunday NFL Ticket because its cheaper than taking a pregnant football fan out to a bar every Sunday two years in a row. I also am passionate about the team I love and those that I hate and am not usually fit for public consumption during a football game. My husband is a very smart man. The purpose of the trip to New Orleans was two-fold. We got the opportunity to spend some time with very close friends (and make some news ones!) and go to our first football game. On Sunday Night Football, the Green Bay Packers were playing the New Orleans Saints. Dream. Come. True.
Our second day in NOLA dawned bright and clear at 9ish am. This is what happens when a group of adults have the opportunity to sleep in for the first time in who knows how long. They do. Some people who work with my husband had traveled into town also for the game and we stopped by the Superdome to spend some time with them and watch a little bit of the first football games. Mark it, Sunday October 29, is one of the only times I have rooted for the Patriots. Though we had seen it in the French Quarter the previous night, I was finally able to get a photo of the Sunday Night Football bus.
I am proud to say that I didn’t sprint (or what I would consider a sprint now, so fast walk) across a busy street to have my photo taken with the bus. I controlled myself.
We didn’t stay at the tailgating spot for very long because we wanted to spend some more time wandering through the city. I normally would have worn something over my Packers t-shirt while wandering in an opposing city, but there were so many Packers fans wandering around that I actually fit right in. We went for lunch at the Louisiana Pizza Kitchen. Its this very cool little pizza place at the very end of the French Market. He had the Jambalaya Pizza and I had the Classic Pepperoni. We were even able to sit outside because the weather was so nice and not too humid.
I’m really not into having my photo taken (much more comfortable on the other side of the camera), we don’t really have any pictures of my first pregnancy. This time, we wanted to do it a little bit differently. We have been taking photos of The Bump in places we have traveled to while I’ve been pregnant. What better place in New Orleans to take her photo than Jackson Square?
A lady visiting Jackson Square with her family saw what we were doing and asked my husband to take some photos of her family. While he was doing that, I wandered off to the side and took a few extra photos of the Square. Warning: I love to take photos of lamp posts. Not sure what’s wrong with me.
Continuing on, we wandered through the French Quarter. Our group wanted to wander through some of the shops on Royal Street and we stopped at this really cool lighting store. One day, when we are rich and have a lot of disposable income, I want to light my house with their products.
Finally… Game Time! We were fortunate enough to have pre-game sideline passes. Needless to say, that whole evening was one of the coolest experiences we have ever had. We have, of course, seen the inside of the Superdome on TV, but it was never done justice.
When we first walked onto the field, we walked past the Sunday Night Pre-Game broadcast featuring Chris Collinsworth, Hines Ward, and Bob Costas. They wouldn’t let us take any photos, unfortunately. I did, however, get a photo of Al Michaels and Chris Collinsworth as they took off across the field towards the Packer’s sideline.
Once the players came out from the locker room, I was finally able to see the players I’d been watching on TV in person. The game didn’t go as I was hoping (Packers didn’t play well, at all), but we had an amazing time, nonetheless. This was our first NFL game and the score was the only thing that wasn’t awesome. We even got to see our favorite referee (I know, we’re nerds) Ed Hochuli. Oh, and Aaron Rodgers waved at me. Which, since I’m a geeky waver, was super cool but super embarrassing.
I’m grateful that we have a bye this week. Last week was about enough to give me a heart attack and my nerves need the break. The vast majority of the fans seated around us were gracious and there to simply enjoy the game. I’m grateful for their hospitality towards us and the other Packers faithful who made the trip to NOLA. I’m also very grateful for the friends who made this trip possible. It was definitely a weekend we won’t soon forget!
Oh Captain, My Captain 