She’s Back…..Bigger and Better Than Ever

As y’all know, I spent this weekend on South Beach, Miami Beach, FL.  It was the annual Food Network Wine and Food Festival.  I saw some amazing chefs and ate & drank some amazing foods and wines.  I will tell y’all all about that on another post.  Right now I want to tell everyone about who was the highlight for so many at this years festival.

Without much advertising and more of a surprise for her fans, Paula Deen joined her sons Bobby and Jamie in doing a cooking demo today.  For anyone who has doubted her return, she proved them wrong.

Yesterday she spent the morning doing a photo shoot for People Magazine.  The pictures below are courtesy of her personal hair stylist Jamie Cribbs. (thanks for sharing them with us Jamie)  As Jamie Cribbs stated to me “We had such a great shoot today. She was radiant in all the images the photographer took today.”   I’m sure y’all will agree.

I met up with Paula immediately afterwards in the lobby of The Lowes Hotel and I have to agree as well.  I have never seen her more beautiful.  That amazing smile of hers lit up the whole lobby.  As we stood and talked she had many people stop and ask to take a picture with her and she not once said no.  She was exhausted but made sure each and everyone of them got to talk to her and get a picture.  She just never says no.  She even was stopped by Chef Ingred Hoffman who told her she couldn’t be happier to see her back where she belongs.

Today though was the big event.  First she and her sons did a book signing.  This was the first time many people found out that she was even there.  The line grew and grew for people to get her autograph.  It was amazing to see so many people converging on her.   She even took a moment to stop and talk with me on her way up to the table to sign books.

Then it was Paula back on stage for her fans. One of the organizers of the festival came on stage because he said he always liked to introduce all the Chefs each year during the festival.  But he had quit doing this because he was afraid he wouldn’t be able to do one and that chef may be upset thinking he didn’t want to do theirs.  Well he made an exception this year.  He said he had to introduce Paula.  He said he could remember the first time he saw her on TV.  Even remembering that she made cobbler and was wearing a pink blouse.  He knew at that moment he wanted her to be a part of the festival and she has been since.  He also said she would be for as long as he had control of organizing the event as well.

Then he did it.  He welcomed Paula to the stage and she was met with an astounding standing ovation. She was so “Paula Deen”.   She welcomed everyone and talked to a few individually who had questions.  She was continuously interrupted by people walking by just outside the tent yelling “We Love You Paula”.  Of course she yelled back “I love y’all too darlin”.

 

Here’s a bit of the show…….

Also joining her was her former shows producer (and I hope for future shows) Gordon Elliot.

She brought her husband Michael Groover up to the stage and her beautiful new daughter-in-law Claudia and had them sit there with her during the whole show.  She also took a moment to say to the crowd that she was so happy to be here and thanked them all for the support in letters, prayers and thoughts this past year.  She admitted this had been a very hard summer for her but all this love from her fans helped get her through it.  She then said she wanted to apologize to anyone who hadn’t heard her previous apologies.  Everyone was yelling no apologies necessary.  Well someone who was standing just off the stage came up and joined Paula.  This was Robert Irvine.  He too is one of Paula’s biggest fans.

Robert told her that “It’s Over. You have apologized.  You have eaten crow.  Now Quit.  You do NOT have to do it anymore.  It’s over, in the past and time to move on.” Of course another round of applause with everyone on their feet.  Then Paula and Robert joked a lot and told a few stories of past events and then he was off to let Paula continue with her fans.

Paula and her boys made chicken and dumplings, a broccoli salad and wonderful dessert.  But it was not about the recipe today or to see her cook for her fans.  It was that they had her back and they were with her.  Paula as I said earlier was in total “Paula Deen” mode.   She was taking control of the cooking, take over and interrupting Bobby and Jamie as she always does and her boys would never expect anything less.  She never stopped coming back out from behind the counter to talk to everyone and joke with the audience.  Jamie and Bobby were continuously having to bring her back to point and keep on track.  It was an amazingly fun filled demonstration.

Yes folks, Paula is back as they say.  I don’t believe she is back because I don’t think she was truly ever gone.  What I mean is her millions of fans never stopped supporting her.  They never stopped messaging her and they even made their family vacations to Savannah to go to her restaurant.  I was lucky enough to join her in Savannah myself back in October.  I got to be her  guest at a cooking demo she did at the Lady and Sons.  I witnessed her stop and take pictures and talk to every single fan that approached her.  She was then engulfed with her fans and surrounded by their love,  just as she was today.

So No, Paula is not back in my opinion.  She was Never gone.