There’s really no way to describe this past Saturday’s State / ‘Bama game without borrowing a line (or two) from my mother-in-law:

Oh, it was more fun! Just more fun! We had so much fun!

And we won! We did! We won!

Sister and I really did wake up at 4:45 Saturday morning because it was very important to me that we arrived in Starkville in time to see the team walk into the stadium at 9:30, and even though about half of you rolled your eyes when you read that last little phrase, please don’t judge me because I believe that it has been well-established that I have some obsessive issues where MSU sports are concerned.

So we left the house around 6:10 (OH YES MA’AM), and you’ll never guess where we made our first stop of the day:

We actually saw another State fan there, and as we left the Starbucks parking lot I honked my horn at him in a show of solidarity, and he wasn’t COMPLETELY FREAKED OUT by the two crazy sisters OR ANYTHING.

We made great time traveling to Starkville, and after we parked the car we began what felt like a six-mile hike to The Junction. But I did stop and snap this picture for the internets – because it was an absolutely gorgeous day.

I mean, nothing says “SEC FOOTBALL” like a ginormous water tank that’s been emblazoned with the school logo.

It brings a tear to mine eye.

Once we made it to The Junction, we stood on a corner while Sister called her hubby and said, “LOOK ON THE GAMEDAY CAM! LOOK ON THE GAMEDAY CAM! YOU CAN SEE US ON THE GAMEDAY CAM!” but he couldn’t find the link on his computer, so we pretty much just stood there looking like this, never stopping to think that THE LARGE TREE IN FRONT OF US would have completely blocked us from the gameday cam’s view:

See? Perfectly uncrazy.

This particular picture actually convinced me that I need to go with a bolder lipstick color, and if my car hadn’t been parked approximately forty-five miles away from where we were standing, I would have run down to the Walgreens and picked me up a sort of rich burgundy color. But that is neither here nor there.

And fortunately, the outcome of the game was not dependent on whether or not my lipstick color effectively balanced out my paleness.

I think we can all thank the good Lord for that.

Also, maybe I need to find me some EVEN BIGGER sunglasses for the next game. Maybe some that will just go ahead and COVER MY WHOLE FACE ONE TIME.

Ya think?

So we made our way to the Dog Walk (OH, I ADORE PROMPTNESS) and waited for the team while Sister rang her cowbell for about thirty minutes straight.

She actually had a cowbell-related injury Sunday morning – a bit of tendonitis, we believe – but winning takes commitment, people, and Sister was determined to ring that bell for the long haul.

In fact, I can still hear it ringing in my left ear. Even now. Two days later. In the privacy of my own home.

And look! The band!

I’m telling you: I love me a marching band. I especially love me a marching band that plays “Hail, State” four or twenty-six times in a row.

Right after the band and the team finished the Dog Walk, we ran smack into my freshman roommate Amanda and her family. Amanda still looks exactly like she did in high school, but since I love her I just call on the name of Jesus to wipe out any stronghold of bitterness that threatens to take root in my ever-aging heart.

Amen.

My sophomore roommate (and frequent bloggy commenter) Daphne was there, too; in fact, she is the person responsible for making sure we had tickets for the game. Even though I talk to Daphne all the time on the phone, it’s still quite a treat to be able to see her LIVE AND IN PERSON so that we can look at each other while we’re laughing. Because we make each other laugh a lot. Which is why we weren’t always very, um, constructive with our time management when we were roommates. Because we were too busy laughing. And not studying. For many hours in a row.

We headed back over to Daphne’s family’s tailgate because we were a bit hungry what with waking up at 4:45 and all, and after eating about fourteen pigs in a blanket (COME ON, NOW) I saw my friend Lea Margaret. Sister and I got to visit with her for a long time, and I’m sure you’ll be shocked to know that I took a picture of her and her adorable little boy, too.

I just love her to pieces. She really is the most Southern person I have ever known in my whole life ever, and yes, that even includes my mother-in-law.

That’s quite a feat, my friends.

Right after we said goodbye to Lea Margaret I was ready to get to our seats, seeing as how it was about 45 minutes from kick-off and WHAT IF WE MISSED SOMETHING IMPORTANT, LIKE WARM-UPS?

That would’ve been horrible.

The first half of the game was fairly uneventful until the greatest interception in the history of all time ever, at which point I picked up my camera and started clicking away, screaming like a crazy woman all the while.

I think you’ll be totally impressed with the results and agree that I have quite the future in sports journalism.

Yeah. No idea what’s going on in either of those.

But still. It was awesome.

The band performed their patriotic show during halftime, and I don’t think there was a dry eye anywhere around us as the band and choir paid tribute to each branch of the armed services. They also performed “The Battle Hymn of the Republic,” which is pretty much a sure thing in terms of making me want to lie down and bawl my eyes out.

The second half of the game was completely nerve-wracking, but the Bulldogs held on. And when the last seconds finally ticked off the clock, Sister and I were somewhat incredulous because OH MY WORD, WE ACTUALLY WON THE GAME!

As you can see, I have my hair pulled back off my face. No flippy, cute-sy hairstyle for me. No ma’am. I was ALL BUSINESS, people.

And then I took more random pictures of unidentifiable masses of people.

MAD. SKILLZ.

But here’s the best picture of all:

We stayed in the stadium for about twenty minutes after the game, and I’m telling y’all: it was the most fun ever. D, my brother, and my daddy all called once the game was over, and since I couldn’t hear anything, I’d just hold up the phone and let them listen to the cowbells.

Keep in mind that my brother graduated from Ole Miss. But the sound of the cowbells didn’t make him throw up or anything, so we were really proud of him.

A couple of hours later we hiked back to the car so that we wouldn’t be too late getting home. As we were leaving campus Sister looked to her right, saw rows of tents still set up for tailgating and said, “Oh, that would be a great picture.”

I love that place so much.

Win or lose.

Go ‘Dogs.

Sister and I have been awake since FOUR FORTY FIVE IN THE AM, so needless to say there’s some sleep on my immediate horizon.

But oh. My goodness. We had the best time ever watching our beloved Bulldogs beat Alabama 17-12.

Also, I got SUNBURNED. While wearing sunscreen. Because it’s NOVEMBER.

I’m telling y’all: my skin is the color of parchment paper.

But look! Gloriousness!

I’ll be back tomorrow or Monday with all manner of mindnumbing details.

It’ll be fun. Really. I promise.

Go ‘Dogs.

Do you hear that loud noise? That loud, swooshing noise caused by the LARGE PIECE OF MACHINERY currently residing at the top of our driveway?

Really? You don’t? Because if you asked me right now, I would vow and declare that the noise WILL NEVER, EVER GO AWAY.

Apparently a water main broke in our neighbor’s front yard last night – at least that’s what I’m guessing since there was a small yet powerful river flowing down our driveway for the better part of about twelve hours.

So now the water works people have cut off the main line on our street, rendering us temporarily waterless, and I don’t know if you have ever had the pleasure of hanging out at your house with a small child when there’s no water, but it’s been interesting to see how the little man has never in his whole life ever had to go to the bathroom more frequently than he has this afternoon, and now that I mention it, I’m not faring much better myself.

Also: the fact that we decided to go eat Mexican food for lunch may prove to be an unfortunate call on our part.

I’m just sayin’.

And another also: Alex seems to think that every single “swish” of the pumping machine sounds like “POO POO POO POO POO” because HE KEEPS SAYING IT OVER AND OVER AGAIN, OH PLEASE HELP ME, SWEET MERCY, HELP ME.

Good times. Precious memories.

Anyway, Sister is coming into town later this afternoon, and we could not be more excited about that because 1) we love it when Sister comes to visit and 2) we are going to the Mississippi State / Alabama football game tomorrow, OH YES MA’AM WE ARE.

(As a brief aside, Alex just stopped his bike to tell me that if I eat poo-poo and tee-tee, it will make me throw up, in which case poo-poo and tee-tee will come out of my mouth. Then he pedaled off all nonchalantly after leaving me with that stunningly beautiful image.)

(Clearly I am the luckiest woman alive.)

Anyway, the State / Bama match-up is always a great one, and I for one cannot wait to hear some cowbells ringing at Scott Field tomorrow. This is a huge game for the Bulldogs since we have the chance to be bowl-eligible for the first time in, oh, seven years, so I think it goes without saying that Sister and I will be screaming, “COME ON NOW, SON” at regular intervals.

Even better? I’ll get to see Daphne and Emma Kate and Lea Margaret, and I’ll get to hear the Famous Maroon Band play the fight song, and I’ll get to cheer for the Bulldogs with about 55,000 of my favorite people I’ve never met.

Win or lose, I think it’s gonna be a mighty fine Saturday.

So I’m off to straighten up the house and figure out what’s for supper (restaurant! that’s what’s for supper! restaurant!) and iron my clothes before we leave at the crack of dawn tomorrow. And don’t even bother to tell me that ironing won’t matter because I’ll be all wrinkled by the time we get there, because ANTICIPATION IS HALF THE FUN, PEOPLE.

Maybe even three-quarters of it.

Y’all have a great weekend.

And Go ‘Dogs.

Well, I guess I didn’t have to be afraid to tell the internet that I’ve been struggling a little bit, especially given that your responses to yesterday’s post were every possible combination of awesome. I appreciate your prayers and your emails more than you know.

I actually didn’t realize how much NOT writing about all the STUFF RELATED TO SOME THINGS has been weighing on me until I finally hit “publish post” yesterday afternoon – and I’m telling you, as soon as that post went up, the tears started to fall, and I cried all the way from Panera to Alex’s school.

By the way, I would not recommend listening to Watermark’s “The Purest Place” when one is in a highly-charged emotional state.

Because it will send you straight into the ugly cry.

Which can be somewhat awkward and unsafe while driving.

And all that to say: I just love y’all to pieces.

We’re going to lay low around here this weekend: plant some mums, wash some clothes, watch our beloved Bulldogs play South Carolina (not to mention Auburn vs. Florida and Alabama vs. Florida State), have some sweet friends over for dinner, and gear up for the fact that Sunday is my day to help with the three year-olds at church.

I may need me a special anointing for that last thing.

I’d love to go all-out this weekend and decorate the outside of the house for fall (seriously, HOW CUTE IS THIS?), but I know my personality. I would start off with the perfectly innocent intention of buying a few pumpkins to make some topiaries, and before you know it I’d be all up in the Michael’s trying to find pumpkin lights and fake fall foliage, only not the fake stuff that looks fake, because I would be very particular about wanting the fake stuff that looks REAL, and sometime around 4 o’clock Sunday morning D would have to physically remove me from the front porch because I would still be out there trying to artfully place some dried gourds along the steps.

I’m not very good with the HAPPY MEDIUM, you know.

Have a great weekend, everybody.